____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ May 3, 1998 ____________________________________________________ Great Themes From Acts The Kingdom of God by Tom Roberts As past lessons in this series have indicated, The Acts is much more than a simple rendition of the beginning of the church and its early history. In fact, The Acts takes upon itself a form of Apologetics as it presents the church to the world full of skepticism (Romans) and prejudice (Jews). One is not asked to accept Jesus Christ, the risen Saviour, on blind faith. Rather, the evidence is presented to the Romans as in a forensic case; to the Jews as a model of Mosaic orthodoxy. We have already studied the case of evidence, based upon the role of the apostles as ``witnesses.'' Now, let us examine the case as it would appear in the eyes of those familiar to the Law of Moses. Was this church something new, unexpected, unheralded? Did one have to turn one's back on the Law and the prophets in order to accept Jesus of Nazareth? Could a descendant of Abraham remain faithful to his nation and yet become a part of a ``sect'' that opened its doors to Gentiles? Could a Jew become a part of this Kingdom and avoid conflict with Rome? To Jews, there were many disturbing factors to be considered: the Sabbath, sacrifices, the Temple, the priesthood, and most importantly, the Torah. Could anyone expect a devout Jew to turn his back on millennia of following after Moses and abruptly begin to follow Jesus? Luke's approach (by inspiration) was to lay the foundation that Christianity was but an extension, the natural culmination, of all that Judaism represented. Rather than violate the law by accepting Jesus, a Jew reached the natural end (purpose) of the law by accepting Him of whom the law and prophets testified. In becoming a Christian, a Jew fulfilled his planned destiny from God. As Paul would later declare, ``For Christ is the end of the law unto righteousness to every one that believeth'' (Rom. 10:4). Luke proved that a Jew, in fact, followed orthodoxy when be became a Christian and that only by denying Jesus could he violate the Law. Before us is another of the great themes from Acts. Fulfilled Prophecy When Pentecost occurred, there was not so much a break with the past as a fruition. God was beginning, at that pregnant moment of time, to fulfill the prophets, not destroy them (Matt. 5:17). Luke carefully rehearsed the sermon from Pentecost, showing that the apostles argued their case as Jews to Jews, brethren to brethren, as fellow inheritors of the promises to Abraham and David, not violators of the covenant. The event of the day was the culmination of history, not a break from it. Without repeating the sermon of Acts 2, we must impress that it is a model of proof to those who loved the Old Testament. Beginning with Joel's prediction of the ``last days,'' and continuing through David's testimony of the Christ, the twelve drove home the fact that God had promised both a king and kingdom and that ``this is that'' (v.16) spoken by the prophets. There would be no disloyalty in accepting Jesus as the Christ. It would be disloyal to God not to accept the Messiah. God had raised Jesus to sit upon the throne of David when he raised him from the dead (vs. 39-31). The Holy Spirit, of which Joel spoke, had poured forth the power on Pentecost (v. 33), even as he had given proof through the works of Jesus of which the multitudes were witnesses (v. 22), as were the apostles (v. 32). The logical conclusion of such a presentation was that ``God hath made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom ye crucified'' (v. 36). That Jesus was rejected by the nation came as no surprise. In fact, the rejection became, in itself, a mark of identity. While the gospel of Luke records the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, it also records the crucifixion. Cries of ``Blessed is the King that cometh in the name of the Lord'' (Lk. 19:38) turned into cries of ``Crucify, crucify him'' (23:21). Luke attested to this as fulfillment of scripture when he recorded Peter and John saying, ``He is the stone which was set at nought of you the builders, which was made the head of the corner'' (Acts 4:11). This served as a warning to listeners not to repeat the tragedy of rejecting Jesus once again. The King of the Jews had now established the long-awaited kingdom. From the opening paragraph to the last, Luke presented his case. He began with Christ ``speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God'' (1:3), and closed with Paul before the Roman Jews ``preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ'' (v. 31). When Philip went to Samaria, he went ``preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ'' (8:12). When the disciples were confirmed by Paul on his second journey, he exhorted the brethren to ``continue in the faith, and that through many tribulations (they) must enter the kingdom of God'' (14:22). In the synagogues, Paul ``spoke boldly for the space of three months, disputing and persuading the things concerning the kingdom of God'' (19:8). And what better source for proof-texts than the Old Testament? The sacred scriptures, which testified of Jesus (John 5:39), were used to make manifest the ancient testimonies of God. Peter affirmed that Jesus was ``that prophet'' (3:22-23) like Moses to whom all should pay heed and that ``Samuel and all the prophets...told of these days'' (v. 24). Paul ``expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets'' (28:23). A Universal Kingdom As far back as Gen. 3:15, God promised the ``seed of woman'' who would become the Christ. In Abraham, he promised blessings to ``all the families of the world'' (Gen. 18:18) through this promised seed. In David, he promised a king and a kingdom (2 Sam. 7: 11ff). Through Daniel, God promised further that the kingdom would consume all other nations (2:44). Isaiah had spoken that ``all nations'' would be in that kingdom (2:2). This cumulative evidence, and more, must have been the basis for the heated discussion in Jerusalem in Acts 15 as to the destiny of the Gentiles who believed in Jesus. James summed up the evidence when be stated: ``Simeon hath rehearsed how first God visited the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name. And to this agree the words of the prophets...'' (15:14, 15), and this is followed by a quotation from Amos 9:11, 12. Surely, we must be struck by the steadfast manner in which Luke pressed his theme of a kingdom that required no treason to embrace. Under the searching light of his presentation, it would have been treasonous not to accept it. Questions Are Answered Was this church something new, unexpected, unheralded? No, it was a subject of ancient prophecy. Did one have to turn one's back on the Law and the prophets in order to accept Jesus of Nazareth? No, one would establish the law and prophets (Acts 2:30-35; Rom.3:31) by accepting Jesus. Could a descendant of Abraham remain faithful to his nation and yet become a part of a sect that opened its doors to Gentiles? Yes, if it was understood that God was granting them ``repentance unto life'' (11:18) as well as the Jews. Could a Jew become a part of this Kingdom and avoid conflict with Rome? Yes, if he realized that ``his citizenship is in heaven'' (Phil. 3:20; Acts 28:17-18). To Jews, there were many disturbing factors to be considered: the Sabbath, sacrifices, the Temple, the priesthood, and most importantly, the Torah. Could anyone expect a devout Jew to turn his back on millennia of following after Moses and abruptly begin to follow Jesus? Yes, if he understood that the Old Testament system was a ``yoke upon the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear'' (Acts 15:10), yet it did not require the Christian to do aught ``against the people, or the customs of our father'' (28: 17). The typical system was gone, the anti-type had arrived; substance had replaced shadow. With these things before us, we can only stand in awe at the evidence and testimony presented by this great historian. Another of the great themes from Acts is brought to view with evidence sufficient to convince Jew and Gentile alike that the Christ was now on the throne of David. Our own faith in Jesus is enhanced by the evidence before us and we can only thank God for his Providence in bringing it to our view. ___________________________________________ Correction Notice Special thanks to Chuck Williams of Palm Harbor, Florida, who pointed out an error in the March 22 issue of The Gospel Observer. He states: ``At the end of the second paragraph the writer makes the point that `they began to [die] (physically) when they could no longer eat of the Tree of Life. Their bodies eventually returned to dust (Gen. 3:19; James 2:26).' The phrase `could no longer eat of the Tree of Life' implies that they had been eating of the Tree of Life; however, in Gen. 3:22-23 the Lord said `lest he stretch out his hand and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever,' indicating that they had not previously eaten of the Tree of Life. It may seem a small thing, but sometimes erroneous teaching grows from small errors." ___________________________________________ "This is the day which the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it" (Psalm 118:24). ___________________________________________ If I Had A Hammer by Steve Klein Renowned psychologist Abraham Maslow has said that, ``When the only tool you own is a hammer, every problem begins to resemble a nail.'' It seems to me that some Christians only have a hammer, so all they do is hammer. Others only have a saw, so all they do is cut. Some only have a sander, so all they do is smooth things over. We as Christians have a tendency to deal with others and their problems in the way that is most comfortable for us, rather than in a way that is most beneficial for them. We would be much better workmen and more helpful in building God's house if we would all learn to use a variety of tools (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:10). Every person with a spiritual problem is not to be handled in exactly the same way. Sensitivity and discernment are required to know which tool is appropriate. We are to ``warn the unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all'' (1 Thessalonians 5:14). Yes, the unruly need warning, but the weak need something different; they need support! The fainthearted need comfort. Using the hammer of warning on the weak and fainthearted is not just poor carpentry, it's destructive! More than one weak, fainthearted Christian has been destroyed by the too stern rebuke of a well-meaning brother or sister who only knew how to use one tool. On the other hand, many an unruly Christian has found unneeded support from an overly-sympathetic brother or sister who only knew how to use a floor jack. We must learn to make distinctions. Everyone is not the same. On some we must ``have compassion, making a distinction.'' But others we must ``save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh'' (Jude 22-23). The words of an old folk song go something like this: ``If I had a hammer, I'd hammer in the morning, I'd hammer in the evening, all over this land....'' As Christians our song should be, ``If all I had was a hammer, I'd go and buy a sander.'' -- Via The Exhorter, December 21, 1997 ___________________________________________ NEWS & NOTES Silas Oney, Debbie Frazier's father, is in the hospital due to some heart-pain. Let us pray that all will go well. Be sure to read the correction-notice by Chuck Williams in this issue, concerning one of our recent articles in the bulletin. The e-mail version of The Gospel Observer is now sent to more than 575 homes. We are thankful for all those who are part of the readership--whether through e-mail or hard copy. ________________________________________ Tri-State CHURCH OF CHRIST 1314 Montgomery Avenue, Ashland, Kentucky 41101 Sunday: 10:00 A.M. Bible class 10:50 A.M. Worship 6:30 P.M. Worship Wednesday: 7:30 P.M. Bible study evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (606) 325-9742 e-mail: tedwards@zoomnet.net Gospel Observer web site: http://www.zoomnet.net/~tedwards/go ________________________________________