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Well, if you have your Bibles take them out and turn with me to Mark chapter 1 and we are going to read Beginning at verse 14 tonight. It is not always necessary that a lesson have a Title but I always try to title mine just for the sake of Trying to keep some consistency in my notes as I as I have notes going all the way back to when I began preaching and So all of my sermons are listed by this text and title give me an idea of what it was I spoke about as I was thinking about tonight.
I said, well, what am I gonna call tonight? Cuz we're gonna be dealing with three Subjects tonight. We're gonna be dealing with the arrest of John. We're going to deal with the first words of Christ in the gospel of Mark.
And we're going to be dealing with the calling of the Apostles. That's the that's the texts that we're looking at verses 14 to 20 in the gospel of Mark and So the the title of tonight is simply repent and believe.
That was the first words of Jesus in his public preaching ministry. So that'll be the centerpiece of what we're going to look at tonight. So if you have your Bibles read along with me and we will read beginning at verse 14 Says now after John was arrested Jesus came into Galilee Proclaiming the gospel of God and saying the time is fulfilled.
The kingdom of God is at hand repent and believe in the gospel. Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee. He saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea for they were fishermen. Jesus said to them follow me and I will make you become fishers of men and immediately they left their nets and followed him.
And going on a little further he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother who were in their boat mending their nets and immediately he called them and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him Father as we seek to understand this tonight and have a Lesson on the words of Christ.
I pray Lord as always that you would keep me from error. Lord, you know that I'm a fallible man. And my heart's desire and prayer is always that I would be kept from preaching error. And I pray all of this Lord in Jesus name and for his sake.
Amen. Well, we are it has been a few weeks since we have been together due to holidays and different things that have been going on and We may not quite remember everything that we have talked about up until this point.
But I know some of you have been out been away. So just sort of giving you a quick reminder of what's brought us to where we are tonight. We've been looking at so far the prelude to Jesus's ministry which in in Mark's gospel is really the only a few verses.
If we were to be looking at Matthew or Luke we would get the entire birth narrative and if we were to go to John's gospel We would get an entire narrative on Christ as he relates to creation and being God and in the beginning was the Word the Word was with God the Word was God.
But but Mark's gospel has a much more condensed much more concise Introduction to the to the ministry of Christ it begins with saying that Christ fulfilled Old Testament prophecy. That's the first thing Mark says very quickly referencing the book of Isaiah and Malachi then we saw the introduction of John the Baptist that went very quickly as it talked about John preaching in the wilderness and then we for a couple of weeks looked at the baptism of Christ and how that was the anointing for ministry that Christ received by the Holy Spirit.
Essentially launching his public ministry there at his baptism with the with the Holy Spirit descending on him as a dove. And the father saying this is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased and then the last time we were here we looked at what what is often referred to as the Temptation of Christ or Christ's time in the wilderness and we talked about the fact that that indicated to us Christ's perfection that he was what Adam was not.
Adam was tempted and failed. Adam was our representative in failure. Christ was tempted and Overcame that temptation. He sent the devil away be gone Satan and in that demonstrated that he was not only the second Adam, but he was the great greater Adam and Demonstrated that he in fact came to do what Adam did not and so those who are in Adam Die and those who are in Christ are made alive.
So that brings us to where we are today and that is the Introduction of Christ as preacher. Because so far we have not seen Christ really say anything except his interaction with Satan. We now get to see Christ enter interacting as the Son of God come into the world to proclaim the Word and We begin in verse 14.
It says now after John was arrested Jesus came into Galilee now. Before we go any further, even though that's only a few words We have to indicate here that Mark is doing something. He is really good at and that is giving us a big story in a few words.
Because he doesn't tell us anything about why John was arrested. He doesn't tell us when John was arrested. He just said Jesus's ministry essentially begins after that point but we don't get anything else out of Mark about the arrest of John and If Mark was the only gospel we had It might be very Common among us to say well what in the world?
Why was John arrested? I mean certainly John had ruffled a few feathers. Because he had gone out into the wilderness and basically proclaimed a baptism of repentance. Which was telling everybody in the nation of Israel that they needed to repent that they needed to turn from their sin.
And and certainly that's not a popular message, but it it wouldn't necessarily be a message that would cause someone to be arrested. Would it. So it's a question of why why was John arrested? Well, Mark doesn't give us the answer he just simply says after John was arrested, so if you're like me, I like to know things and it the way that we find out the answer to that question is we harmonize the Books of the New Testament the four Gospels and we look at the other Gospels.
And so what we're going to do tonight very quickly is we're just going to look Over at the other Gospels and what they have to say because they do shed light on why John was arrested. It really wouldn't do us good to go to Matthew because Matthew says essentially the same thing Mark does he says now when he heard That John had been arrested.
He withdrew into Galilee. So G The only thing Matthew gives us it's a little different than Mark is Matthew's tells us that upon hearing that John had been arrested Jesus goes into Galilee so that so it seems to be a cause-and-effect Relationship where we don't really see that in Mark Mark simply says after John was arrested Jesus came into Galilee doesn't tell us that that was the reason why but Matthew sort of gives us that indication.
But Luke gives us quite a bit more information. So if you want to turn in your Bible over to Luke chapter 3 and Verse 18 we will see a little bit more about what has happened. Why John was arrested. So in Luke chapter 3 and verse 18 it says these words.
It says so with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people but Herod the Tetrarch Who had been reproved by him for Herodias his brother's wife and for all the evil things that Herod had done.
Added this to them all that he locked up John in prison. So Luke tells us that the reason why John was locked up was not just that he had been proclaiming a message of repentance or a Command to be baptized and and repent of sin, but he had specifically spoken about Herod and Herod's illicit affair with the wife of his brother.
And so this gives us the the background for what had happened with John and why John was arrested. We see also in the Gospel of John. You don't have to turn there. It just mentions that John was arrested this reminds us again that we have a we have a library of Information here and it's always good to compare the different Gospels to get the full narrative about what's happening in the life of Christ and I've always thought this was just an interesting story for my own sake just thinking about the fact that here is a man who's preaching the gospel and He's or he's preaching repentance to the people and he's basically going for we don't know how long of a time.
But obviously for a long enough period of time that he had gathered some attention and what is the ultimate thing that gets him in? Trouble he's willing to call out the king. He's willing to say to people to someone who is in an authority over him you need to repent, too and as far as a simple application for this we might want to think about the fact that One of the most difficult things there is to do is To preach the truth to someone who has the power to hurt you as a result.
It's easy to preach to people who have no influence or no power. It's easy to preach to people who can do nothing. But I know many preachers who have been afraid to preach the truth in their own churches.
Because they know the people who hold the purse strings. They know the people who have the power of the The committees and who can make life very difficult for them. I Remember very early in my ministry I've told this story before but I always like to point back to it as I think an important moment was that there was a time in my ministry where I had upset a few folks and a lady came to me and she said you need to make your givers happy and What she was saying was essentially if you want to keep your job you need to say what we want to hear the people who give the most and I was thankful that God had given me the Ability to say to her one by God's grace.
I don't know who gives what in this church. We don't have the elders don't know what people give and so we don't know who the givers are and who the givers aren't we? Can assume some things but assumptions are dangerous.
You never know what the truth is when you're making assumptions I said but to the most important thing in the world is that we make God happy and If we preach and we please the Lord, it really doesn't matter who we offend.
Because God's going to see to it that His will is going to be worked out regardless and that's and sometimes God's will may be that we suffer for the sake of truth. That's what happened with John. This is the reason why I would say the prosperity gospel is such a false gospel because the prosperity gospel Simply says that if you continue to do God's will and preach God's truth God's going to bless you in abundance and press down and shaken up and they always misuse that verse.
But the thing is sometimes when you preach the truth of the gospel, sometimes you get punished for it. Just go through the history of the gospel preachers. How many gospel preachers have been burned at the stake this Friday?
Our young people every Friday have our homeschool group this Friday. They're going to be learning about polycarp. Polycarp was a second century teacher. He was a he was a disciple of the gospel or the of the just of the Apostle John.
He was a disciple of John's. He was a second-generation leader in the church and At 80 years old he was burned. At 80 years old. He was burned for his faith. And you know what? He said? He said 80 years.
He has done me. No wrong. How can I deny him now? He's talking about Jesus. He says in 80 years. He's not done anything wrong. He's not harmed me in any way. How could I deny him now? So John is imprisoned because he's willing to tell the truth.
Ultimately, we'll see later that he will die in chapter 6. We will see That he will die for his faith or die rather for having spoken the truth. Herodias the wife of Herod's brother hates John because of the things that he has said the the the attention that has been given to her sin and.
So like I said, even though it's only a few words in Mark I thought it deserved the attention that John's arrest here has been because he was willing to preach the truth and We ought to be willing to proclaim the truth.
Even if it is not always the safest thing to do. So we move now to chapter 6. To the rest of that sentence it says now after John was arrested Jesus came into Galilee. Now it's important that again. I'm stopping.
I don't mean to stop at every word, but everything is important, right? Every word of God has significance and Galilee is important because it was actually prophesied back in Isaiah. That this would actually be a place that would be blessed that would be shined upon.
The gospel would come here to this this place Galilee and and so this is something that Christ is fulfilling a Prophecy by coming here and doing this work and that's mentioned in the gospel of Matthew.
About that and it says now after John was arrested Jesus came into Galilee. Proclaiming the gospel of God now I have to ask if I'm gonna ask Mike because I know he has King James. But if you have a different translation, I want to ask does anyone else does anybody's Bible say something different?
Than what? I just said proclaiming the gospel of God Mike. What does your say? Preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God. That's that's that's what I thought and I wanted to make sure that it was the KJV.
Does anyone else have a different translation and it say something different? No one. Okay. Well, what do you have Caleb? Stewart. Yeah, okay. So you have same as me. Okay, you're anointed you have the same.
Yeah, I know you have same as him. Anybody else anybody got an IV. Oh. We might we're anointed look at nobody. What are you brother? Do you ever you knew King James? What does it say? Of the kingdom of and the reason why I'm pointing this out is This is again a manuscript thing and there's a difference a distinction here whether it should be Basile on which is the word kingdom in Greek the Basile on of God or just the gospel of God the gospel of the kingdom or the gospel of God if in fact this is Right that it's the gospel of God.
This is the only time in the Gospels that that term is used and There's only one other time that I can think of that that term is used and it's in the book of Romans that particular phrase the the you angeliou.
To say which is the the gospel of God is it seems to be unique to Paul. So I would think that it actually should be The gospel of the kingdom because we see the term kingdom used throughout the Gospels and Christ preaching the kingdom.
But it is an interesting phrase because the term gospel of God Does remind us that the gospel is ultimately God's idea? And that's what Paul means in the in the first chapter of Romans when it says that he's giving us the gospel of God.
We often think of the gospel of Jesus Christ, but I tell people When I when I look at the New Testament, I say The four Gospels is the gospel of Jesus that the book of Acts is the gospel of the Holy Spirit and Romans is the gospel of the Father or the gospel of God because Romans really focuses on God's God the Father's work and sending the Son and doing the work through the Spirit.
So it's an interesting phrase and I do think it's interesting that this that the ESV goes with this. With this variant here and just says the gospel of God, but either way, what does the word gospel mean?
The gospel means good news. It's you on Galilean the word on Galilean is the word for message. It's the same word angel where we get the word angel simply means a messenger. So on Galilean or and then to put the prefix Epsilon epsilon at the beginning of a word where what we say EU to put that at the beginning of a word means good so the you on Galilean is the good message and What's interesting if I were to ask any of you?
In fact, I'm gonna ask and I'm gonna see who's willing to raise a hand and speak. If I were to say what is the gospel who wants to give it a shot, okay, very good. That's a very good short condensed version.
Now I want to I want to make a mention of something because I'm glad that you went all the way to the end. Because a lot of people if you ask them what the gospel is They will simply say the death burial and resurrection of Jesus.
Because that's the way Paul defines the gospel in 1st Corinthians 15. Say Christ was died according to the scriptures was buried and was raised according to the scriptures, right? That's how Paul defines the gospel the problem with that.
Only as a definition if that's the only definition you give is that in this context? Christ has not yet died and resurrected. And Yet he's still proclaiming the gospel and this is what we need to understand about this idea of gospel.
Yes, the gospel includes the death the burial and the resurrection of Christ but We have to understand that the gospel Also Goes all the way back to the beginning where God promised to do what when he Judged the serpent.
What did he say? He's going to crush the head of the serpent and he's going to. He says he will crush your head, but you will bruise his heel right? There's this promise what we call the proto Evangel or the first giving of the gospel.
That's what theologians called that statement Genesis 315. They call it the proto evangel or the proto evangelion. So that's the first mention that there's something that's going to happen. Now. What does this promise this promises this event?
Right, but when Christ is preaching he's preaching here. Now, this is not a exact timeline. So just gonna understand what I'm saying. There's a three-year gap Between Christ proclaiming the gospel and this event happening.
So Christ is proclaiming a gospel. About something that is yet to take place. You say well, it doesn't matter in the mind of God because in the mind of God It's certain and it's going to take place and that's true.
But my point is this I don't think Jesus was going around saying I'm going to die in race. I Think what he was saying is what this text says that he says the kingdom of God is at hand. Because what the gospel involves that we often forget is the gospel is about a kingdom and What does a kingdom have a king?
The gospel is about him. So as he comes into the world to proclaim the gospel what he's doing is he's proclaiming himself as the long-awaited Promised Messiah the one that they'd all been waiting for.
What did John say? There's one coming who sandals I'm not willing or worthy to get down and untie. There's one coming who is the king and when he comes I have to decrease so he can increase. There's this one coming who is going to end.
Excuse me inaugurate the kingdom and the inauguration of the kingdom begins with the king so it says The time is fulfilled the kingdom of God is at hand. That's the message Jesus gives the time is fulfilled.
That's how this gospel is defined. It's defined by three things the time being fulfilled the kingdom being at hand and the response. Which is repent and believe. So that's how the gospel is defined in this moment.
One the time being fulfilled let's talk about that part just for a moment. When it says the time is fulfilled. What is it that's being fulfilled? Well, we can we could in our minds think what Paul tells us we sing songs about it.
We sang a song Sunday about it in the fullness of time. Right. What is Paul tells us in the fullness of time God sent forth his son born of a woman born under law. That he might do what? What. Redeem those who are under the law and give them the adoption as sons so that the king would Come and usher into his kingdom his citizens his people.
This is the fullness of time. And again, we can go back and we can find No less than a hundred Direct references to the birth life death burial and resurrection of Jesus throughout the Old Testament specific Messianic prophecies when I teach my Old Testament survey class we do that.
We walk through several Old Testament prophecies. We look at Isaiah 53 a specific prophecy about the death of Christ. We go back to the Psalms and we look at the Psalms and how the Psalms reference the death of Christ.
In fact when Jesus was on the cross, he says my god my god. Why have you forsaken me which is a direct reference to one of the Psalms that he was quoting. He was quoting. This is the fulfillment of this particular Psalm.
He wasn't just saying God have you left me? He's quoting this Psalm of promise because the promise the Psalm begins with the question Have you abandoned me and it ends with no God will not abandon his his his son.
And So there are these Messianic prophecies that all pointed to a specific time you go back to the book of Daniel. It talked about a specific time when the king would come. And that's why it says Jesus says the time is fulfilled.
This is the right time. So the first good news is the time has come. That's what the gospel included. That's what Jesus was preaching the time has come the kingdom of God is at hand now. When we think about that phrase kingdom of God.
And by the way in Matthew's gospel, it's different. Matthew has a unique phrase. What anybody know the difference? Matthew's the only gospel that uses the term kingdom of heaven and he uses it almost exclusively.
It's different. It's not different in meaning but but there is just just different word use there. So we have kingdom of heaven kingdom of God, are they exactly the same thing? I had a professor who would die on the hill and say they weren't the same thing.
But then again, he was a dispensationalist a dispensationalist if they're good at anything. They're good at dividing things. He would say they're absolutely separate the kingdom of heaven in the kingdom of God.
And he would say the kingdom of heaven represents what's coming at the end of the age the kingdom of God represents spiritual Reign of Christ in the hearts of his believers now and he made that hard distinction and whether or not We should make that distinction is not my purpose tonight.
I will say this though in many places. They're synonymous the kingdom of heaven in the kingdom of God are synonymous in many places so even though a Distinction may be able to be made and an argument may be able to be made for the distinction as my professor would argue it would I would say that For the most part they're synonymous and the idea is this when we think of God as king We think of three aspects one God is sovereign all the time everywhere in every place and in that sense the kingdom of God is the whole universe as R .C. Sproul said there's not one rogue Molecule.
That's floating around in space that isn't under God's sovereign control because if there was one rogue Molecule that was out in the universe that wasn't under God's control that one rogue Molecule could be the one that tore everything else apart and caused everything else to fall apart if there's any if there's a shoelace That isn't under God's control that shoelace could be the one that tripped up the president and took the whole thing down, right?
It's the one thing. You know, you've all heard me say a nail in the shoe. Right. Y 'all heard that The for want of a nail it's my favorite little little Story, it's called for one of a nail says for one of a nail the the the shoe of the horse came off and for one of a shoe the horse fell and battle and for one of a battle the nation fell and for one of a nation the Government changed and the idea is everything happened for want of a nail, right?
If there's one nail that's not under the authority of Almighty God, it could change the world. All right, so God is sovereign over everything. So when we talk about God being king and being sovereign we could say he's sovereign over everything, but that's not the kingdom That Jesus is talking about.
At least not here. Because in this instance he is talking about a kingdom with Subjects that are loyal and are part by virtue of having been changed. And we'll see that in a minute. We talked about repentance and faith.
When Jesus talks about the kingdom who are members of Christ's kingdom. Oh, please get this one, right? Who are members of Christ's kingdom? Now how the elect. I love you. And I agree. But I could take a step back and just say we could say we could say believers from all time.
Which of course are the elect right the members of God's kingdom are those who have been? Placed into that kingdom through the work of by repentance and faith by the work of God and they are part of the kingdom of God as Citizens think about all of the New Testament references that say we're not citizens of this world.
We've been made citizens of a new world. We've been made citizens of a new kingdom right and that doesn't happen in the future that has already happened. We are already made part of that. We have already been adopted.
Our adoption doesn't come at the end of the age our adoption comes when we receive the Lord Jesus Christ in that moment. We are adopted into his kingdom and so When he says the fullness of time or in the he says the time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand this kingdom is the kingdom with the king and the subjects and A Theological idea that that we need to understand some of you probably have heard this is The debt that what we call the already and the what?
The not yet. The already and the not yet and this is the third aspect. I said, there's three aspects. I said, there's the the fact that God reigns over everything. We could say that's kingdom of God in the fact that God reigns over everything, but that's not the kingdom here.
The kingdom here is specifically Christ and his subjects. Those are who are the elect which which is very true but the kingdom Exists now in the hearts of all believers but will one day exist as the gathering of all believers in the new heaven and the new earth and.
So there's an already Aspect and by the way, this is why I am an amillennial list for those who are maybe a little. There are three ways of interpreting The Millennium which is mentioned in Revelation chapter 20.
There are those there's Millennium simply means a 1 ,000 years and it mentions a thousand years. Some people interpret that that we're going along Christ will return and then there will be a thousand years and They call that's called pre-millennialism and they say this is when the kingdom is that the kingdom is coming.
Jesus will return he will reign for a thousand years from Jerusalem on this earth. And then at the end of that thousand years this earth will be destroyed and we will go into the new heavens in the new earth.
So eternity begins after the thousand-year millennial reign. You guys heard of that, right? That's called pre-millennial Eschatology, I don't believe that I don't think it's heresy. I just don't agree with it.
All right, you can disagree and not think something terrorcy. The the next one is called post millennialism that says That there's that we're going along there is coming a time when there will be a a an undisclosed.
They don't say it's 1 ,000 years they say basically an undisclosed period of time where there will be gospel advanced throughout the world and it will essentially Christian eyes the world and Christ will return to a world which is Ready to accept him because the world has been Christian eyes.
Many people in the 1800s believed that America was going to be That land which brought the gospel into the world that America was good. That's why so many Adventist movements cropped up in the 1800s because they thought this was the end.
America's the shining city on a hill right? This is the new Jerusalem the new the new Israel, right? There's a lot of Post-millennialists now who hold to the fact that there's that the kingdom is growing and coming and I love that I love the Positivity of that the idea that the gospel is going all around the world and and growing and and I'm I'm not Opposed to post millennialism on its face as saying it's terrible or anything.
I think that it's it's fine if that's where you are, but on millennialism says this Is that the kingdom is here now in the hearts of all believers and the Millennium is simply representing the church age so the church age is An undisclosed period of time, but we do know this it's at least 2 ,200 years because that's where we are now.
Well 22 ,000 and 20 years that's where we are now. So the the church age is going to last as long as it's going to last and we don't know when Christ is going to Return, but when Christ returns that ushers in the eternal state and the eternal state will be when Christ returns puts all his enemies under his feet and he ushers in the new heavens and new earth and there's there's Nothing in between the church age and the final eternal state and we are now in the kingdom spiritually and we will be ushered physically into the new heaven and the new earth.
After the return of Christ whether we have died and we are ushered in having been resurrected or whether when Christ returns We are alive. Let's say he comes back tomorrow and we're still alive. We get to go into the new heaven in the new earth but the point is With this with this this is the only one That I think fits with this because this kingdom begins with Christ.
You see these both are waiting to start the Millennial Kingdom the pre-millennial Christ has to return. The post-millennial kingdom some event or something has to bring it about but amillennialism says Christ has been reigning since he came and he will continue to reign Until he returns and puts all of his enemies under his feet and then he will reign in eternity.
So you see how when I say when Christ says the kingdom is at hand. He didn't say the kingdoms 2 ,000 years or 3 ,000 years from now. He said the kingdoms at hand. How is the kingdom at hand. He reigns in the hearts of his believers now and He is currently reigning as head of the church.
He is King now. Jesus is King now and Again, I'm not making an argument for I guess I am but I'm not intending to if you if you hold a different millennial view. That's fine. I'm simply saying this is this is how I think it fits into what he's saying.
He's saying the kingdom is at hand. It's it's here. Why. Because the king is here. The king has come and So we see the time is fulfilled the kingdom is at hand and then what. Repent, that's the that's that that's how we should respond.
We respond repent and believe in the gospel. So two responses to the Message the two met the two responses are first to repent second to believe and What's interesting is this idea of believing in the gospel is slightly different Than what John had had given them.
John had given them a baptism of repentance. Repent and be baptized. Jesus says repent and believe. But it doesn't mean his disciples weren't baptized. I'm not saying that baptism is eliminated but Christ is introducing this idea of faith as a Necessary element of being a part of his kingdom because the being a part of Christ's kingdom the Necessary element is faith.
In fact, we are reformed. So what do we say? It's by faith alone. Right by faith alone and he says repent and believe understand this repentance and faith even though they are Distinguishable. They are inseparable.
Let me say it again, even though they are distinguishable I can define repentance and I can define faith. But we cannot divide them and separate them. One of the most dangerous things that exists in the churches today and I can I can point you to some churches that teach this.
Very thing that I'm about to say is that you can believe in Jesus and not repent. That repentance is not a necessary element of the gospel. In fact, they would say if you teach Repentance is a necessary element of the gospel.
Then you've added works to salvation and you are a heretic because you are teaching a works-based salvation. Beloved. If that's the case Jesus was a heretic. Because Jesus connected repentance and faith together and here's why that is if you Are an unbeliever.
Let's just say you're an unbeliever and you become a believer. What by what process did you become a believer? Go ahead say it in? Yes the first thing you do When you become a believer is you repent of your unbelief you have to.
Because that was the thing that was the sin as it were that was holding you back. Doesn't it say in the gospel of John? It says they didn't that they were already condemned. Why. Because they didn't believe in the name of the Son of God, right?
They were already condemned because they didn't believe so the very first thing you do when you become a believer is you repent of? Unbelief. Now is that the only thing you repent of? No. Because if you repent of unbelief that means you've turned to faith in Christ and faith in Christ.
Also includes that you see everything else as being under his authority because you've turned to him not just as Savior. But you've turned to him as Lord and now he's Lord of your life. So everything else comes under his subjection.
So everything in your life is now subject to your new King. You see prior to coming to Christ prior to turning from sin and turning from Christ. You were in essence the captain of your own ship. But now you have rejected yourself as King you've rejected yourself as captain you've turned to Christ as King and now everything in your life is subject to him and Therefore repentance doesn't end with just belief it begins to flow throughout your life.
Now. Do you automatically become perfect? I've been a Christian for 22 years, and I'm not perfect. But everything in my life should be subject to Christ, right and so those things that I have in my life that are not in Keeping with his word.
Those are areas that I need to continue to repent of and this is why we say I talk about it. And I know this is maybe sort of a simple way. I talk about big our repentance and little our repentance. And what I mean by that is big our repentance is when I turn from unbelief to faith did that 23 years ago now I was 19 years old.
I repented of my unbelief. I turned to Christ in faith. He became the captain of the ship. He became the king of my life. I became a citizen of his kingdom and Since then has been a daily struggle with the flesh.
Which Galatians 5 assures me is going to continue as I continue to struggle between the flesh and the spirit and in those struggles I have the little our daily dying to self. Isn't that what the scripture tells us to do.
It tells us to put away the flesh and don't don't make provision for the flesh. Romans chapter 13 tells us that don't make no provision for the flesh. And so my my role in this kingdom is to continually follow the king and continually put to death the deeds of the flesh.
So repentance is part of being a believer. If someone says repentance is not part of the faith or not part of the gospel or it's tertiary or secondary to the gospel they have Denied what I think is clearly taught in Scripture and that is when we come to faith in Christ.
We are repenting of unbelief we are repenting of sin and we are trusting in Christ as the king of our life and I would say this to more specifically in Mike Mike Collier and I were chatting a little bit on the way in today.
He and I were talking and we were talking about another aspect of this Message because remember Christ has an audience here. So when he goes about preaching repentance to the audience his initial audience is who?
It's Israel and Many of them like the rich young ruler would have felt very good about themselves. Many of them would have said I have kept the commandments and that what the rich young ruler said when he said You know keep the commandments and he says all these I've kept from my youth.
Many of them felt very prideful about having kept the commandments when they hadn't but but some of them had an external goodness. Like like like Jesus tells the Pharisees you're whitewashed tombs. You've got that external goodness, right?
Jesus is calling them to faith in him. Rather than faith in their ability to keep the law. They had become like the Pharisees. In fact, the Pharisees represented in many ways the Jewish people. Who had a veneer of godliness?
But not true godliness. They had an outworking of religion, but not an inward change. Which accompanies true faith? So when Jesus says repent and he speaks to them He's saying turn from this dead system think about how many prophets before Christ Announced to Israel.
Yes, you're following the rules, but you're doing it without a right heart. You're doing the right things for the wrong reasons and you're not obeying God from the heart and Jesus is saying turn from that and Turn to me follow me.
And we're gonna see next week because we're out of time now. We just I just We're we've gone over and I don't want to even try to get into the next part because the next part he's going to do Is he's going to call the disciples and he's going to call the Apostles with that same message.
Follow me. That's part of repentance and faith as well because faith in Christ is not just a belief. It's a following after him. And so after he goes about preaching repent and believe the very next thing He says is to a group of fishermen you follow me.
That's what faith looks like and again going back to the rich young ruler. Didn't that what he said to him. Go and sell all you have and follow me and it says a young man went away what? Sad. Because he didn't want to give up all he had to follow Christ so faith in repentance inextricably linked.
Undividedly linked and together they end up with a life that follows Christ. Any questions on tonight? Is that helpful? Well good, well, let's pray and We will we will close. It's a Went a little longer on that first part than I thought I would so let's pray.
Father I thank you for your word. I thank you for this opportunity to talk about the kingdom Lord about the fact that the the kingdom is here and yet not yet. We have a greater promise. Revelation 21 tells us there's coming a day when there will be no more sickness.
No more death. No more tears and Lord, we we are so excited for that day. But yet Lord, we know there is still yet work done to be here. The fields are white Lord for the harvest let us be workmen in your kingdom.
Let us be followers of Christ. And let us do so with joy in his name Amen.