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“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand;
repent and believe in the gospel!”
– Jesus’ proclamation at the beginning of His ministry (Mark 1:14)

Most of Jesus’ fellow Jews were clinging to God’s promise to return as Israel’s King, to once again assert His rule, end Roman oppression and vindicate His chosen people. They believed God would soon fulfill His glorious Kingdom promise to step into world history and usher in a new age through His chosen Messianic warrior.

At the beginning of his gospel, Mark summarizes the core of Jesus’ message: “The prophecies are being fulfilled; the time has come!” Jesus’ words carried explosive significance for His people. The new day was dawning! God was beginning to write the next chapter in Israel’s history.

Jesus saw His fellow Jews on a collision course with Rome. They believed that fighting for a nationalistic kingdom would bring religious and cultural freedom from their pagan rulers. Jesus told them the Kingdom was truly coming, but His announcement did not only demand celebration, but also repentance, for the Kingdom was not arriving as had been expected.

God was asserting His claim to kingship through Jesus. He was finally writing the pages of history that had been prophesied for hundreds of years. Thus, Jesus tells His followers to turn from their sins, to change their way of thinking and to accept the Gospel – the good news of what God is doing. “Repent” literally means to “turn around.”

When we call people to repentance today, we are asking them to turn from their sins and turn to a whole new way of thinking. When we preach about God’s Kingdom, we are speaking, not only of a heavenly afterlife, but also of loyally following Jesus as King here on earth. Jesus tells us to trust in the good news of God’s action and give up our silly paths to temporary happiness. We must trust that through His sacrificial death on the cross, we gain access to the Father. Then, as God’s children, we must work at bringing every area of life under subjection to Christ the King.

written by Trevin Wax  © 2007 Kingdom People blog

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