Repentance and the Kingdom   (July 31, 2016)

 

From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:17)

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                 It is extremely important that anyone who would hear Jesus and heed his message understand what he meant by announcing the coming of the kingdom. Just what he was announcing has been disputed virtually from the time he began his ministry until this very hour. All must agree the kingdom has something to do with what the prophet Daniel revealed in his book [chapters two and seven]—for in those two chapters Daniel spoke of a coming kingdom that would, first, last forever, wiping out all the preceding human empires and, secondly, be given to one “like a son of man” by the Ancient of Days (God). When Jesus referred to himself throughout his ministry as “the Son of Man” he was saying (at least) that he was the fulfillment of this kingdom prophecy.

                The kingdom was also an idea linked to a promise made to King David during his reign. When David had expressed a desire to build a permanent place of worship, a temple or house for the Lord, he was told by the prophet Nathan that, instead, the Lord had in mind to build a house (i.e., a political dynasty) for him; one that would last forever. This would be accomplished when a descendant [“son”] of David was established permanently on the throne; this, too, was fulfilled in Jesus. In fact, the Jews of Jesus’ day missed the importance of his announcement because they misunderstood the Lord’s promise as a  promise of a material kingdom. But God never intended to give David’s dynasty a kingdom in the way we usually define that word. He did not intend to measure out a parcel of land over which the son of David would reign forever. No, the son of David would rule over a border-less kingdom that would permeate the entire world and his subjects would be distinguished, not by their physical addresses, but by the way their conduct, their manner of life, their way of thinking. This would be a kingdom, not in the commonly understood sense of that word, but understood primarily as power and authority—and demonstrated by the submission of people to the reigning will of the sovereign son of David. 

                So, when Jesus announced the coming of the kingdom, his first command was, “Repent…” This is not a word we use every day (although it was more familiar once than it is today!) so we may have to define it in order to understand it. The word literally means to “change one’s mind or way of thinking.” When we change our minds about our sin we feel regret, guilt and shame. But repentance means much more than merely regret, guilt or shame. It means to turn around, to face a new direction. It is a change of mind leading to a change of action. To prepare for the kingdom of God in Jesus we must make a conscious decision to change direction in life by accepting God’s will and submitting to his reign in Christ...for this is the way the kingdom of God is identified in the world today.