Simply Good News: The Welcome Announcement of Jesus the KingPrimjer

Day Two: All Authority Rests on His Shoulders

The Jewish people of the first century had long been waiting for God to return to Jerusalem. His glorious presence would defeat their enemies once and for all, and a king would be established on David’s throne that would rule with justice and righteousness forever (Isaiah 9.7). However, until this happened, there was a sense in which they believed Israel was still in exile.

Isaiah said that one day God would come back in person, with all authority resting upon his shoulders (v 6). The prophets envisaged the wolf would lie down with the lamb, the mountains would drip forth new wine, and the earth would be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Is it any wonder that many people were puzzled by Jesus of Nazareth? They were hoping for a repeat performance of what had happened 1500 years prior and were longing for a ‘new Exodus’. Jesus did not exactly fit the expectations for the Jewish Messiah who would return to take charge.

In Matthew’s Gospel, we see that Jesus’ own cousin did not recognize entirely what was going on. John had been baptizing people in preparation for the arrival of God’s coming King, the anointed one. What was John to think now that he found himself imprisoned by Herod? How could this be the Good News that he had been announcing that God was going to do? John sent his disciples to ask Jesus, ‘Are you the one who is coming? Or should we be looking for someone else?’ (Matthew 11.3).

And, Jesus replied: 

‘Blind people are seeing! Lame people are walking! People with virulent skin diseases are being cleansed! Deaf people can hear again! The dead are being raised to life! And—the poor are hearing the good news! And God bless you if you’re not upset by what I’m doing’ (Matthew 11.4-6, Kingdom New Testament).

Jesus’ words to John still speak to us today: as we take forward the Gospel message, there will be resistance. Change can and will happen, but it is often costly. However, we must not retreat into gloom and hopelessness, even as we acknowledge our very real struggles and hardships in anticipation of the fullness of God’s Kingdom on earth.

The Gospel is a welcome announcement of the possibility of real and lasting transformation of people’s lives. But, it can also be seen in ways that are completely unexpected at the human level—through imprisonment and even martyrdom—and it may not fit our idea of what happens when God rescues his people. Jesus emphasized that these are both the true signs of the way that God’s Kingdom comes to birth. As such, we must continue to be people who pray for God’s renewal and new creation, trusting God will bring his Kingdom to completion in his own time and in his own way. May we be steadfast to notice where Jesus, by the Spirit, is already at work making this a reality.

Questions to consider: 

What does it mean to be believers in people of the Good News in our world? How has your own life become part of the Gospel story?

Living it out:

How might you respond to someone questioning, ‘If God is in charge, and loving, how could things be so badly messed up in my life’?