I. Video. Swindoll Tower At DTS.
II. Article References.
Charles C. Ryrie, Th. D., Ph. D., D. Litt. Merrill F. Unger, Th. D., Ph. D. John F. Walvoord, Th. D., D. Litt. Harold W. Hoehner, Th. D., Ph. D. Stanley D. Toussaint, Th. D. Edward E. Hindson Th. D., Ph. D. Robert L. Thomas, Th. D. Lewis Sperry Chafer, Th. D., D. Litt. J. Dwight Pentecost, Th. D. Robert P. Lightner, Th. D.
III. Article Narrative. The Kingdom In Acts.
A. Following His resurrection, Jesus spent time with those whom He had chosen [John 15:9,15,16 , 9 Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you. 15 No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain], instructing them concerning the new form of the kingdom and preparing them for their ministry of introducing that new form to Jew and Gentile alike. He reiterated His promise of empowerment by the Holy Spirit for the work of their ministry. On Pentecost the promised Spirit was poured out and indwelt believers as His temple. In the book of Acts their ministry of proclaiming the new message of the new form of the kingdom is recorded, by which the gospel was proclaimed and spread throughout the world.
B. The kingdom of God in this present age, formed through the preaching of the gospel would be made up of Jews and Gentiles. This was made clear to Peter in the vision given to him in Acts 10. When Peter, in obedience to the Levitical law, refused to eat that which was unclean, he was told, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean” (v. 15). To make sure there was no misunderstanding, the command was repeated three times. It later became apparent that Peter understood that the distinctions inherent in the
Levitical law had been removed, for when he was in the house of Cornelius he declared, “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear Him and do what is right” (vv. 34-35).
C. Peter felt free to proclaim the gospel of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles assembled in Cornelius’s house In response to their faith, “The Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message” (v. 44). The evidence that Gentiles had received the Holy Spirit was that they spoke with tongues (v. 46). “Tongues were evidence to the apostles of the genuine conversion of the Gentiles and of their inclusion in the body of believers.” In response, “these Gentiles showed their identification with Jesus Christ and the company of believers by being baptized.”
D. Even so, Jerusalem had to be convinced of God’s acceptance of Gentiles into the church and the kingdom. So Peter testified to the genuineness of their conversion by recounting in his dream what had happened next. And those in Jerusalem, “When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, ‘So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life” (11:18). This question was submitted to the apostles in Jerusalem, and Peter testified to the salvation of the Gentiles by faith in Jesus Christ “apart from the law (15:7-11).” His testimony is further corroborated by Barnabas and Paul (v. 12), and James, who presided at this council and rendered its decision. It was evident that “God was dealing with Gentiles as Gentiles,” taking from the Gentiles a people for Himself (v. 14).
E. James found this in keeping with the prophetic program, as was given by God to the Jewish Prophet Amos, who gave the prophecy to Jews.
1. Amos, a Jew, but prophesying (B.C. 776-763) in the northern kingdom exercised his ministry during the reign of Jeroboam II, an able but idolatrous king who brought his kingdom to the zenith of its power. Nothing could seem more improbable than the fulfilment of Amos’s warnings; yet within fifty years the kingdom was utterly destroyed. The vision of Amos is, however, wider than the northern kingdom, including the whole “house of Jacob.”
2. Amos is in four parts: Judgments on the cities surrounding Israel. Judgements on Judah and Israel. God’s controversy with “the whole family” of Jacob. The future glory of the Davidic kingdom.
a. Amos 9:9-10, “A vision of the Lord judging:” 9 “For behold, I am commanding, And I will shake the house of Israel among all nations
As grain is shaken in a sieve, But not a kernel will fall to the ground.
10 “All the sinners of My people will die by the sword,” Those who say, ‘The calamity will not overtake or confront us.’
b. Amos 9:11-12, “The Restoration of Israel:” 11 In that day I will raise up the fallen booth of David, And wall up its breaches; I will also raise up its ruins And rebuild it as in the days of old; 12 That they may possess the remnant of Edom And all the nations who are called by My name,” Declares the Lord who does this. (verse 11 comment: “In that day.” The aspect of the Day of the Lord known as the Millennium. “booth of David.” The dynasty of David, though humbled for a time, will be reinstated to rule over all the world (v. 12; see Acts 15: 15-17).
3. It was prophesied that after the period in which Israel was disciplined because of disobedience, and the Davidic throne left empty for a time, the Davidic throne would be restored and the Davidic kingdom would be instituted. When it is reinstituted, the kingdom will include not only the physical descendants of Abraham but also a multitude of Gentiles. Therefore the restored Davidic kingdom under its rightful Davidic king would be composed of both Jews and Gentiles. In that kingdom “Gentiles would not be made into Jews; instead, they would be in the kingdom as Gentiles.” This allowed James to conclude that if God had a program for “Gentiles, as Gentiles, in the future Davidic kingdom established here on the earth,” there was no reason to deny that God could include “Gentiles, as Gentiles,” in this present form of the theocracy through faith in Jesus Christ; Gentiles are equal participants with believing Jews in the present form of the kingdom of God.
F. Paul’s life was dedicated to the preaching of the grace of God. He wrote, “Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again” (Acts 20:25). Paul clearly equated preaching the gospel of the grace of God with the preaching of the kingdom of God. Once again we see that “the two terms are used interchangeably,” as in 28:23 when Paul arrived in Rome and “they arranged to meet Paul on a certain day and came in even larger numbers to the place where he was staying. From morning till evening he explained and declared to them the kingdom of God and tried to convince them about Jesus from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets.” Again “the preaching of the gospel was referred to as testimony concerning the kingdom of God.” And in verses 30-31 this identification was again made, where for two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him. Boldly and without hindrance “he preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.”
G. Thus as we survey Paul’s ministry from the book of Acts, we see him as an
ambassador of the kingdom of God, but his message was salvation through the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. “No reference is made to support the notion that the earthly Davidic kingdom had been established.” Rather, the message concerns entrance into a present form of the kingdom of God by faith in Jesus Christ.
IV. Article Considerations.
A. One of the most difficult and most important factors of writing an article is related to sources of information. A writer must ensure that such sources have a high degree of knowledge on the subjects that are being written, and also must have a high degree of respect from other writers. A second factor that must be considered relates to how to lawfully use material of other writers. In this web site, copyright statutes are not violated. Also, “public domain,” is to be considered. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_domain
B. In this article, I have chosen theologians whom have proven themselves to be highly respected by others in the Biblical doctrine of eschatology (the study of what Scripture teaches about the end times), and other doctrines of scripture. All of the references in this article have a connection with Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS) as graduate or instructor.
C. For education and other supporting data for each source of information in this article, please refer to my Page, “About My References.” The following links show information about Dallas Theological Seminary. I encourage you to familiarize yourself with the Seminary. It is important to understand that DTS is not a denominational seminary, and is totally independent of such.
D. About Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS).
1. General Info. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dallas_Theological_Seminary
2. Doctrinal Statement. https://www.dts.edu/about/doctrinal-statement/
Eternity 