“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
Luke 4:18-19
Luke 4:18-19 (NIV)
Mark 1:15
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Roman Kingdom | Kingdom of God |
---|---|
Caesar Augustus | Jesus Christ |
“You are a king, then!” said Pilate.
Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me."
John 18:37
“Are you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate.
“You have said so,” Jesus replied. Mark 15:12
Roman Kingdom | Kingdom of God |
---|---|
Rome | Not of this World |
Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”
John 18:36
“the kingdom of God is at hand” Mark 1:15
"Repent, for the kingdom of heave has come near." Matthew 4:17
"The kingdom of God is in your midst/among you ." Luke 17:21
Roman Kingdom | Kingdom of God |
---|---|
To make them slaves and to control them. To conquer the whole world. |
To set the humanity free from sin and give back their power. |
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
Galatians 5:1
Roman Kingdom | Kingdom of God |
---|---|
You are rich. If you have resources Land/Gold/Cattle |
You are poor, you are meek, you are righteous, |
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heave Matthew 5:1-12
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; ........I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this
will NOT inherit the kingdom of God.
Gal 5:19-21
Roman Kingdom | Kingdom of God |
---|---|
Pontius Pilate (Governor of Judea) |
Holyspirit (Advocate/Comforter) |
But the Advocate/Comforter, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you all things and will remind you
of everything I have said to you.
John 14:26
Jesus was going all over Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.
Matthew 9:36
Takeaways from this comparison:
What’s the relation between our repentance and the Kingdom?
“.... Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen". Rev 1:5
But, Why a Kingdom?
God always wants to live with us.
But, NOT
That’s the reason we are incomplete,
we accepted him as saviour,
but
we don’t want his relationship,
we want to leave alone.
How selfish are we??
So, what are we supposed to do??
"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness"
Matthew 6:33
How about our problems in this world?
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness,
and all these things will be given to you.
Matthew 6:33
That’s why Paul says,
For the kingdom of God is NOT
a matter of eating and drinking,
but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Romans 14:17
The kingdom of God is not about these physical needs or our selfish needs, its about righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
“Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Matt 6:25-33
Takeaways: