Mark 1:14-15 -- Jesus' Message in Bible Studies
- Feb. 27, 2014, 4:10 a.m.
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- Public
This passage is the beginning of Jesus' preaching. Jesus' first message is in verse 15: "The time has come. The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!" This is the first mention of "the kingdom of God" and it is not immediately explained. What does the phrase itself mean, and what is the significance that it "has come near"? Jesus uses this phrase throughout the gospels, and it certainly sounds ominous. Would it have had any particular meaning to the Jews of the time that he was talking to?
Regardless of whether "the kingdom of God" had any meaning for those Jews, Jesus' message of what to do about it was clear: "Repent and believe!" This is essentially what many preachers today still preach, and forms a simple thesis statement for Christianity as a whole. What is Christianity all about? Repentance and belief.
Jesus is also giving essentially the same message that John did, minus the baptism. John's message was to repent, be baptized in water and believe that Messiah was coming. Jesus' message was to repent and believe that the kingdom of God was near. The parallel here suggests a meaning for the phrase "kingdom of God" -- it is the baptism of the Holy Spirit that John said Jesus would perform.
Open Questions:
- What does "the kingdom of God" really mean?
- What did "the kingdom of God" mean to the Jews that Jesus was preaching to?
