Study of Matthew 4:17. Can you help with any relevant scriptures or comments ?

Question

Matthew 4:17....From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near."

See Mark 1:15...."The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"

Also Matt 10:7....As you go, preach this message: 'The kingdom of heaven is near.'

Some other scriptures.... Matt 3:2 9:13 10:7 Mr 1:15 Lu 5:32 9:2 10:11-14 15:7,10 24:47 Ac 2:38 3:19 11:18 17:30 20:21 26:20 2Ti 2:25,26 Heb 6:1 Matt 11:12 13:9,11,24,47 25:1

Comment

And to say, Repent, etc. The message that Jesus now preaches is identical with that of John the Baptist. See Mt 3:2. He commands repentance, and declares the kingdom of heaven is at hand, not yet come, but near. All is still preparatory. Jesus had not yet declared himself as the Messiah.

Do you agree with the comment , why , why not ?

What does Jesus want people to repent from ?

What is the Kingdom of Heaven ?

Matt 10:7 "preach this message" are we being told to preach the news of the Kingdom ?

What is preaching , is it just being a good Christian or knocking on doors like the Jehovah's Witnesses & Mormons is it being on this site asking & answering questions ?

Have i missed any important points ?

Can you add any relevant scriptures or comments ?

Answer 1

The kingdom of heaven was come the moment Jesus ascended back into heaven.

Answer 2

Jesus Christ gave the Kingdom of God wide publicity. He went through the land of Palestine proclaiming: “The kingdom of the heavens has drawn near.” (Matthew 4:17) How could he say that? Because he himself was to be the King of that Kingdom. His presence there showed its nearness.

For Jesus to say he would be King of God’s Kingdom was quite a claim! Was it a mistaken one? No, for at least two reasons: First, what Jesus taught was based on the Bible as it existed then. And, secondly, he performed miracles that were possible only by power from God, showing that God backed up what he was saying.

How could Jesus be King of God’s Kingdom when history tells us that he died on a torture stake? As you may know, the Bible reports that he was raised from the dead and ascended to heaven, to await the establishment of God’s Kingdom. (Acts 2:32-35) Did that really happen?

Yes, and it was not done in secret. There were witnesses of Jesus’ resurrection. On one occasion after his public execution, upwards of 500 saw him alive. (1 Corinthians 15:6) Some of these witnesses wrote books that still exist. The books that the apostles Matthew, John and Peter wrote are now a part of the Bible.

Repentance involves both mind and heart. The wrongness of the course or act must be recognized, and this requires an acknowledgment that God’s standards and will are righteous. Ignorance or forgetfulness of his will and standards is a barrier to repentance. (Ro 10:2, 3) For this reason Jehovah mercifully has sent prophets and preachers to call persons to repentance. (Jer 7:13; 25:4-6; Mr 1:14, 15; 6:12; Lu 24:27) By means of the publishing of the good news through the Christian congregation, and particularly from the time of the conversion of Cornelius forward, God has been “telling mankind that they should all everywhere repent.” God’s Word—whether written or spoken—is the means for ‘persuading’ them, convincing them of the rightness of God’s way and the wrongness of their own ways. God’s law is “perfect, bringing back the soul.”

Answer 3

The bus is full of people!

Look, seriously, it's like packed or something.

People, people, there are people!

Can anyone contain themselves from this is wonderous news?

A ******* bus!

  

Answer 4

Q - Do you agree with the comment, why, why not?

A - Yes – simply because what you say is evident from reading scripture.

The symbol of repentance – baptism, was an acknowledgement of sin (doing things not pleasing to God), and being wash clean in symbol.  

After the death and resurrection of Jesus baptism took on a new symbolism.  The Apostle Paul explained this in the letter he wrote to the Roman Ecclesia.  Romans 6 gives us an wonderful word picture of what baptism means.

Q - What does Jesus want people to repent from?

A – There sins – acknowledge them and be baptised, in this instance.

Q - What is the Kingdom of Heaven?

A – It is the Heavenly Kingdom that will be established on earth when Jesus returns.

Note: no where does it speak of the Kingdom “in” Heaven.

Q - Matt 10:7 "preach this message" are we being told to preach the news of the Kingdom?

A – Yes it is the last comment Jesus gave to his followers –

Mark 16:15 -16

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

Q - What is preaching is it just being a good Christian or knocking on doors like the Jehovah's Witnesses & Mormons is it being on this site asking & answering questions?

A – That is one aspect of preaching those two denomination participate in.  

Preach in the sense that Jesus used it is to “ herald (as a public crier),  especially divine truth (the gospel message): - preach to proclaim,  to publish.

The act is to make known the Good News about the Kingdom of God based on the declaration we find in John 3:16 and 17.

Q - Have I missed any important points?

A – Only in so far that you have not understood the larger picture, a small part of which I have painted above.  

Q - Can you add any relevant scriptures or comments?

A – Read the letter to the Hebrew in one sitting – you may not understand the significance of what you read initially, but it will illustrate that God has an overall plan which runs through the Old and New Testaments.

Answer 5

I completely agree with your comment. Repentance by definition is a change of mind. A change of actions might happen because of the repentance, but the repentance is still a change of mind. In many of the passages cited Jesus, John, and the disciples said repent, and believe. It was as if these two went hand in hand. So, what is it that we must repent from? It is anything that keeps us from believing the gospel of Christ. Jesus said that it is unbelief that condemns a person. (John 3:18) Repentance is not a fun thing. It involves godly sorrow. (2 Corinthians 7:10) "For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death." Repentance does not mean that we are to do any work whatsoever to go to heaven. We are saved by grace through faith in Christ. Salvation is a gift of God, and it cannot be earned. (Ephesians 2:8,9)

Preaching simply means to proclaim. Christians are supposed to proclaim the gospel.

I hope that I could help in your Bible study.

Answer 6

The Kingdom of God is inhabited by all who accept the King God anointed i.e., Jesus Christ.  we, who are born again, are now citizens of this kingdom and are subject to it's laws.  We remain in this world as ambassadors and emissaries of this kingdom.

The laws we obey are higher than the laws of this world.  They are expressions of love in various ways.  Love for God, for other people, for our fellow citizens, for the outcast, even for our enemies.  It is a love that encompasses all of mankind to the exclusion of none.  There is no higher law.

Love all, forgive all, show mercy, judge no-one

Answer 7

Matthew 4:17 & See Mark 1:15 = Matthew 27:45-53 = 26/12/2004 = ...

Answer 8

No

No

A Void

Preaching = Raming your own purile views down other peoples throats.

No

The missing page of the Bible starts with this line

Once upon a time in a galaxy far far away.....