Luke's Kingdom: the Other Half of the Gospel

By John Thomas

There is a new world coming -- a far, far better world, and it is called the "Kingdom of God". That was and is the inescapable theme of the gospel of Luke, the almost forgotten message of Jesus Christ.

Luke's Kingdom takes a closer look at that message, the kingdom vision that energized the Early Church as it set out to proclaim the "good news" of a new world order, the literal government of God on earth -- and the forceful intervention of God in human affairs, not only to save Israel from her enemies, but, as we shall see later, to the rescue the whole world from the total self-destruction.

Unfortunately, that shining vision sometimes now seems faded -- by sheer neglect and the scriptural ignorance of too many Christians, by the unbelief of so many of their supposed leaders, and by the relentless attacks of erudite but spiritually blind scholars determined to undermine the authority of the Bible as the inspired Word of God.

This brief commentary revisits that vision, focusing on the key kingdom teachings of Jesus as recorded by Luke -- the neglected message that might well be called the "Other Half of the Gospel".

• Language: English
• Publisher: John Thomas
• Release date: Mar 21, 2012
• ISBN: 9781476033426

John Thomas

I am a retired science teacher/writer, having worked in the UK and US, the author of a series of secondary science texts and a book on creative thinking and problem solving, "Take Charge of Tomorrow -- and Change It!" (Random House, 1997).When researching my book on creativity I came in contact with the late Edward Matchett, a world authority on creativity and genius, who, as the result of a casual aside, got me started studying the famous "Song of Solomon", the "greatest puzzle in all literature". I was surprised to notice in the Song some of the principles I had been writing about. Further study revealed the "Song" to be meticulously structured exposition of the principles of creativity, even genius.Unable to find a publisher for the material, I have self-published it as "King Solomon's Masterclass in Creativity", showing it to be the third part of a wisdom trilogy, along with Solomon's Proverbs and Ecclesiastes..The e-book version is also available as "King Solomon's master class in creativity and genius". The same title is also available in paper back.I have since researched the evolution/creation question, exposing the errors of both parties, and proposing a simple final solution in the book "EvoGenesis -- Easy answers to evolution", the micro-biological content of which has been approved by a top scientist at the HPA, Porton Down, UK. For more information, go to http://www.EvoGenesis.com or http://www.GapTheory.net

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INTRODUCTION

There is a new world coming -- a far, far better world, and it is called the Kingdom of God. That was and is the inescapable theme of the gospel of Luke, the almost forgotten message of Jesus Christ.

Luke's Kingdom takes a closer look at that message, the kingdom vision that energized the Early Church as it set out to proclaim the good news of a new world order, the literal government of God on earth -- and the forceful intervention of God in human affairs, not only to save Israel from her enemies, but, as we shall see later, to the rescue the whole world from total self-destruction.

Unfortunately, that shining vision sometimes now seems faded -- by sheer neglect and the scriptural ignorance of too many Christians, by the unbelief of so many of their supposed leaders, and by the relentless attacks of erudite but spiritually blind scholars determined to undermine the authority of the Bible as the inspired Word of God.

This brief commentary revisits that vision, focusing on the key kingdom teachings of Jesus as recorded by Luke -- the neglected message that might well be called the Other Half of the Gospel.

In reading the gospel of Luke, bear in mind, to begin with, that it was not written as a contribution to world literature or to provide interesting semantic material for scholars to dissect and discuss.

It was and is, in fact, an individualized distant-learning package for the disciples of Jesus Christ, the motley human crew called out over the centuries, not only to proclaim the gospel of a new world order, but to take part in God's Executive Training Program -- a master plan designed to confound the wise and the mighty, a creative reversal by which generally weak, foolish and failed individuals (1 Corinthians 1:27, James 2:5) have been and arebeing groomed for leadership positions in the Kingdom to come, at which time Jesus the Messiah will depose and replace the angelic illuminati, the invisible rulers of this present evil age (Hebrews 2:5, Ephesians 6:12, Galatians 1:4).

1 -- LUKE'S MISSION

Luke 1:1-4

Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who, from the first, were eye-witnesses and servants of the word.

Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.

*

Although many people in the first century set out to write accounts of the life and works of Jesus, Luke was inspired to provide a more comprehensive, more carefully investigated and detailed account, with events set out in correct chronological order.

As a physician (Colossians 4:14), a doctor, an educated and able person, familiar with suffering and the problems of life, and used to asking questions, establishing detailed facts, and analyzing problems, both physical and emotional, Luke was eminently qualified for his undertaking -- in order that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.

2 -- ZACHARIAH THE PRIEST

Luke 1:5-14

There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zachariah, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord's commandments and regulations blamelessly. But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and the were both well on in years.

So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. And when the time came for the burning of the incense, all the assembled worshippers were praying outside.

Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

But the angel said to him: Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John.

*

In the opening verses, Luke said that he wanted readers to know the certainty of the things they had been taught -- and that is what he now sets out to accomplish, showing how the events surrounding the birth of John the Baptist and Jesus were deeply rooted in the ancestry of the priesthood and the royal family, and in the historical writings of the ancient prophets.

Zachariah, for example, the father of John, was a member of the priesthood -- a gifted line of highly intelligent individuals extending right back to the days of Aaron, the first high priest of Israel, the brother of Moses himself. These were not gullible and superstitious peasants.

Notice also that the angel, Gabriel, did not appear to Zachariah in some secret cave out in the desert, but in the Holy of Holies of the very Temple of God in Jerusalem -- an inner sanctum where only the appointed priests of the day entered in to offer incense and intercession for the people before the Lord.

It was there, besides the altar of incense, that the angel, the messenger of God, informed Zachariah that his wife, Elizabeth, who was well on in years, like himself, and barren would bear a son who was to be named John.

These events in turn laid a credible foundation for what followed a few months later when the angel then visited her cousin Mary to announce the forthcoming birth of Jesus himself.

3 -- THE SPIRIT OF ELIJAH

Luke 1:15-17

He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother's womb.

Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous— to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

*

Zachariah's promised son, John, would not be converted to the ways of God later in life, like many believers, but was destined to be filled with the Holy Spirit, the power and nature of God, from his mother's womb -- and as a result would be a source of constant joy and delight to his parents, no doubt because of the things he said, his insights and observations as he grew up, his character and his personality. Although he was to meet a horrible death some thirty years later at the hands of Herod, his parents were probably dead by then and so spared the suffering.

Once again we see that these events are rooted in the writings of the ancient prophets, as the angel quotes the words of Malachi who wrote: "See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple, the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire will come (Malachi 3:1) -- and also: See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and hearts of the children to their fathers" (Malachi 4:5).

Notice that Gabriel interprets the words of Malachi by explaining that John would come in the spirit of Elijah, carrying out a similar commission, namely that of fearlessly confronting the nation's political and religious leaders, and preaching a message of repentance to the people. As John explained to those who asked him, he was not literally Elijah (John 1:21), although he did have a similar life style, also instructed disciples (2 Kings 2:3, Matthew 9:14), and apparently even dressed in a similar fashion (Mark 1:6, 2 Kings 1:8).

The writings of the prophets are complicated and easily misunderstood -- but we now know that the message of Malachi encompasses both the first coming of Jesus, as Saviour, and his future second coming, as the Messiah.

The separation in time of these two events was not originally understood by Jesus' disciples, who,