The Good News

by John Edwards

In Judaea in the first century AD, it seems the 'kingdom of God' was the talk of the town. The 'hope of Israel' was a hot topic, on many people's lips.

So I reckon it might have been relatively easy for the Apostles to start telling people their 'gospel of the kingdom'—because all they had to really do was join the public conversation of the day, address the concerns and questions people already had about it, and then announce the good news they had to tell about the topic.

The hard part for them was not bringing the gospel of the kingdom into a conversation—because there was already a public conversation going on about the kingdom. If there was a hard part for them, it was how they got treated after telling it!

But nowadays, down at our local shopping malls, most people are probably not already talking about the coming kingdom of God! So for us the hard part seems to be to turn a conversation with people onto the gospel.

Since many people today aren't already talking about the kingdom of God, it's like we actually have to change the subject of a conversation, in order to introduce the gospel - and try to do so hopefully without coming across too obtrusive. Whereas the Apostles could announce the gospel a bit more seamlessly with the public conversation of the day, perhaps.

But what if one reason our message mightn't seem to fit people's conversations quite so seamlessly today, could be because we’ve actually shifted our focus in the gospel a bit, compared to what the Apostles emphasised.

We’ve tended to make our gospel about ‘how to go to heaven when you die’. Our message tends to focus on instructing people about how to avoid ending-up somewhere else bad besides heaven. That's our gospel. (And sometimes that may indeed be the angle to take.)

But it means that no matter what else anyone may start-out talking with us about, we would virtually have to treat their subject-matter as if it's relatively unimportant in comparison to what we have to warn them about. We’ve had to try to change the subject of a conversation entirely, and hope they'll somehow be interested. No wonder it’s sometimes felt a bit awkward to bring the gospel into a conversation!

Whereas the Apostles centred their message not so much just on how to go to heaven when you die (although that was part of it, and true and wonderful)—rather, the Apostles seemed to focus their gospel on another aspect: the 'hope of Israel'—which was that the kingdom of God was coming, and God's will was soon to be done on earth as it is in heaven, and that the dead would be resurrected in order to inherit this beautiful new world of the Messiah.

That was known as the blessing of Abraham - and the new and 'good news' which the Apostles had to tell about that long-promised blessing was that it had now been inaugurated for Israel, and for all mankind, through the cross and resurrection of Jesus. That was their good news of the kingdom of God.

Now the whole world today is still groaning, still yearning for a better world, better conditions, to feel better, just as first-century Israelis were. So, what if we re-centred our gospel more on the good news about God's kingdom, like the Apostles did, rather than focusing almost exclusively on the challenging question of where a person might go when he dies—centre our message more on the promise of new creation, the restitution of all things, and freedom - with the good news that it's now available in Jesus—might we find then that the gospel still fits just as seamlessly as it ever did with the yearning that’s already in everybody's hearts if not their lips? A happier world free of sin, oppression, tyranny, pain and death.

Letting people know that this wonderful project has in fact already now been inaugurated, would make the gospel 'news' again, and 'good' news at that! It's good news about something the whole world really still longs for: it answers exactly what many today are talking (and complaining!) about. The gospel was and is the gospel of the kingdom of God.

(Another spin-off from getting the focus of our gospel more in-line with the Apostles’, is it might help our eschatology a bit.

See, with our gospel of how-to-go-to-heaven-when-you-die, we haven't really thought of the gospel as Israel’s story having come to fruition, like the Apostles claimed - instead we've thought of the gospel almost as something ‘else’ that has just been inserted temporarily into history - and therefore we kind of have to tag the fulfilment of Old Testament promises and prophecies, which were held by ancient Israel, onto the future, onto the end of history. But the apostles instead presented the gospel scheme of things as being the very fulfilment of those promises and Prophecy.

We would again see Jesus as central, and the gospel as final, just as the New Testament asserts, instead of thinking that the gospel is just a temporary thing going on while we wait for God to restart the prophetic timeclock and finally do something about Old Testament promises and prophecy, and we all revert back under some Old Testament-like world.

The apostles were claiming that the promises and prophecies which ancient Israel were custodians of, was always going to be Jesus-centred in its fulfilment, and that it has all now been inaugurated (by His first coming, by His cross and resurrection), and that the future, and things surrounding His second coming, will therefore always be gospel-shaped (not Jerusalem temple-centred, and not again Levitically-shaped).

Recovering the theme of 'kingdom' in the gospel, and the fact that the gospel inaugurated the very hope of Israel (a hope which had stressed the promise of resurrection to an eternal new life more so than just where-you-go-when-you-die) could possibly therefore shed some much-needed light on some difficult passages of Prophecy, and maybe even clear-up some funny ideas about the future.)

So I could hardly wait for an opportunity to share the gospel with this refocused approach and tone...

...Then one day, some time ago, I felt led to get a train to the City.

And I didn’t know why.

I thought of a couple of things I could do in the City, but afterwards I still felt there must have been some greater reason why I was led there.

I thought it might be nice to have an opportunity to share the Lord, of course, but nothing specific came to mind, so I thought of just heading to Central Station and going home.

Then straightaway I felt redirected to walk towards Roma Street Station instead, even though Central Station was closer.

As I approached Roma Street I could see a small crowd gathered on the footpath. I was pleasantly surprised to find that some organisations including Christian groups had set up tables and were feeding the homeless and giving out clothes and blankets. I unexpectedly found myself right amongst it!

In the crowd I recognised a new neighbour of ours, collecting empty bottles for recycling. (So later that night he and I ended-up riding the train home together, and the conversation all the way was about the Lord.)

(I later found out it’s a weekly event. New Hope Ministries sets up a mic. sometimes and has gospel music and testimonies, and they’ve reported several coming to the Lord.)

I got chatting with some of those who were queuing-up at a table—and the conversation quite effortlessly and naturally came to include the Lord.

So I sat down with them, and one person started complaining about everything that was wrong with the world: the pandemic, lockdowns, mandates, conspiracies of global government oppression—he even complained about Christians preaching.

I listened ‘til he was finished. I simply acknowledged all the dissatisfaction he'd expressed about this present world—I didn't need to change the subject at all, but now I also had a piece of good news to tell him about it all—really good news:

“Yes," I sympathised, "Well, God promised long ago that one Day He’ll come and wipe away all tears from every face, and make everything right again. He’ll even reverse death; and make a beautiful new creation—and live among us forever.

And the good news about that promise,” I said, “is that He’s actually already started it now, with Jesus, and He’s inviting us to experience it and be part of it.

Jesus Messiah dealt with evil and tyranny, but He achieved it in a way few expected - by dying for us. Because tyranny after all wasn't the only source of pain in this world—we've all sinned, and made mistakes, and hurt others. Each of us personally has been part of the problem."

(No-one who's poor in spirit argues with that—they already know it and feel it.)

"And Jesus came to save, not destroy. So He started forgiving people and healing people and announcing the kingdom of God—and He was crucified for our sins—but God raised Him from the dead," I said.

“The fact God raised Him from the dead showed Jesus was justified—He’d been innocent all along—it was for our sins He died, not for any wrongdoing of His own. And His resurrection from the dead means our sins have been taken away!

Jesus ascended, and for now He reigns from heaven, our Lord and Saviour. Whoever believes on Him and is baptised in His Name, His death becomes your death (bringing forgiveness), and His resurrecton becomes your hope of resurrection!

He now invites us all to receive Him and participate in His new creation project—receive forgiveness of sins, and new life—He'll make everything right and new on the inside of you—and give you the gift of His Holy Spirit.

He'll make a new heart in you, right now - it'll be like a foretaste of the beautiful new world that He’ll complete when He comes again.

And if you happen to die before that Day when He’ll level everything out,” I said, “He’ll raise you up from the dead—just like Jesus rose again—so you can see the glory of His kingdom and be part of it with Him forever!”

He was speechless. All his objections seemed to be gone. It was like He’d never heard anything quite so beautiful—it wasn’t merely instruction, but news, truly good news.

And there was nothing left he had to do—not answer an altar-call, nor pray a sinner's prayer, necessarily—only believe the news (not that altar calls can’t still be helpful too.)

The gospel itself is infused with the power to save, just by hearing and believing. It answers what everyone is still groaning for, longing for and really talking about.

ROMANS 6:23

23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.