Note: the following is the manuscript for the message and will not match exactly the recorded message above.
Rumours are spreading that a man with the power to heal diseases, cast out demons, and even raise the dead is making his way through Galilee.
Galilee is located in the northern part of Israel. Its elevations range from 3,962 feet at Mount Meron to 680 feet below sea level at the Sea of Galilee.
According to Josephus, a first-century Jewish historian, there were 204 cities and villages in Galilee, each with at least fifteen thousand people.
Among those cities was a small town called Nazareth. There was nothing special about this place. It wasn’t even mentioned in the Hebrew Bible.
This is where this great man of miracles was said to have come from. The son of a carpenter.
He wasn’t trained to be a rabbi, yet he recruited disciples to follow and learn from him.
Rumours spread all around the region that this man, whose Hebrew name is Joshua but is referred to as Jesus by the Greek-speaking people, has been called the Messiah by his followers.
Rumours also say that he has never rejected that title. The Messiah, or Christ in Greek, means God’s anointed.
According to the Hebrew Scriptures, the Christ is God’s promised deliverer. He is the one who will finally rescue Israel from oppression and restore their former glory.
The Christ will be a king from the line of David who will reign over Israel in justice and righteousness forever.
There are many prophecies about the Christ, but none say he is to come from Nazareth.
Instead, the Scriptures say he is to come from Bethlehem, the city that King David was from.
Yet, this Jesus has a power that has not been seen since the days of the prophets Elijah and Elisha, who also raised people from the dead.
Jesus was once heard preaching a sermon in which he called people to repent and said the kingdom of heaven was arriving imminently.
Then, he started sending out his disciples, giving them authority to preach the same message and perform the same miracles as him.
He is behaving in so many ways like a prophet of God.
He speaks of wanting to save Israel’s lost sheep, the very same words spoken by God to Ezekiel the prophet.
People say he has compassion for the most oppressed and the outcast.
Even touching and healing people with leprosy.
He spends time associating with tax collectors and prostitutes.
Listen to these words that Jesus spoke to his closest disciples.
“The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field… Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.”
The biggest question on everyone’s mind is, just who is this Jesus of Nazareth?
And this is the question we come to as we enter the Advent season.
Advent is a season of transitioning from darkness to light. As we anticipate the arrival of the Messiah, we ponder God’s promises.
We will explore the four themes of Advent—hope, peace, joy, and love—within the larger theme of the imminent arrival of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Next week, Elliot will speak on the theme of peace. The following week, Tamera will focus on the theme of joy. I’ll wrap up on the 22nd with the theme of love.
Today, we are exploring Matthew 10:7 and the surrounding passage, from which we get the Advent theme “Here Comes Heaven.”
In this passage, we see Jesus instructing his disciples to go out to the lost sheep of Israel as his representatives to say and do what Jesus has been saying and doing.
The whole point is to proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is near.
Let’s consider three things this morning. First, heaven comes through Jesus. Second, heaven comes through words and actions. Third, heaven comes with hope.
First, just a few words about what heaven means. This is important because we might all have different ideas about what or where heaven is.
The Bible uses the term “Heaven” to refer to the place where God and other spiritual beings live. It is also used to refer simply to the space above the earth.
To differentiate between the two ideas of heaven, biblical authors often refer to God’s dwelling place as the highest heaven.
The early Jews believed that only God and the heavenly hosts could live in heaven. It is a place of perfection and holiness.
It was much later that Jewish theology began to adopt the idea that people could actually enter God’s dwelling place in heaven.
In the New Testament, we see the development of the idea that heaven is a kingdom which people go to when they die.
It is described as the hope for those who will pass away before Christ returns.
When Christ does return, the presence of God will come to the earth, and the earth will be made new to reflect the perfection and holiness of heaven.
So, when we refer to the kingdom of heaven as being near, we are talking about the renewal of all things.
In short, heaven means perfection, and it is the dwelling place of God.
Jesus is saying that this is imminently coming. So, go out and tell people about it.
In the meantime, we are meant to live as people who belong to that kingdom. And by doing so, we will give people a taste of what heaven is like.
With that said, let’s look at how heaven comes through Jesus.
Heaven Comes through Jesus
John 1:1-5; 51
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
“Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”
These passages refer to Jesus. Jesus is the Word, and he is the Son of Man.
When Jesus was born as a human, he came as a reflection of what humans were supposed to be like. He is the perfect image of God.
To say that heaven comes through Jesus is to say that he is the first among human citizens of the new kingdom that is being prepared as the eternal dwelling place of God and his people.
He is not only the first human citizen, but he is the king of this kingdom.
Luke 19:37-40 – triumphal entry
Here, we read a familiar story, which we call the Triumphal Entry.
Jesus, riding on a colt, entered Jerusalem to the praise and celebration of multitudes. Why the celebration?
Riding into the city was a declaration. He was riding in as a king. He knew what he was doing.
In those days, a person who enters the city in this way does not do so in order to claim kingship; rather, entry presupposes an already achieved victory.
This is important because it suggests that Jesus is not about to assert his royal status. This accords well with his acclamation as king even before his birth.
Luke 1:32–35 says… He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.
The meaning of the triumphal entry is that Jesus is the king of the eternal kingdom.
And, he is the sort of king who dies for his people. His victory was not over the human enemies of Israel but over the ultimate enemy of all humans: death itself.
This is the sort of kingdom Jesus wants us to proclaim is coming near. We proclaim through words and through actions.
Heaven Comes through Words and Actions
If we go back to the early part of Jesus’ ministry, we can see what sort of proclamation Jesus intends for us to imitate.
Matthew 4:12-17; 23-25 – Jesus proclaiming in word and deed
The message Jesus was preaching was, first and foremost, a message of repentance.
In 4:17, it does not say what Jesus wanted them to repent from. Only to repent.
Repent means to change the course of direction. In the Bible, the call is to change the course from sin and toward holiness.
In this passage, it is unclear what sin Jesus was saying people should repent from.
But, if you would keep reading, you would come to what is known as the Sermon on the Mount.
This sermon is characterized by its comparison with the Law of Moses. In 5:17, Jesus said that he is not eliminating the law, but fulfilling it.
We tend to misuse religious teaching. For the Israelites, they would misuse the law of Moses in a variety of ways.
It would become a source of oppression for those who found it impossible to keep the laws despite their best efforts.
Others would misinterpret or misapply the law so they could justify their behaviour.
Others would elevate specific purity laws as a way of distancing themselves from the undesirable people in their lives, even their own family members.
The law was problematic in the hands of sinful people. Jesus said, repent from these things. Repent from the misuse of the law.
But, turning away from something means one must turn toward something else.
What is it Jesus wanted them to turn toward? In short, he wanted them to turn toward the kingdom of heaven.
This is a kingdom characterized by humility and servanthood.
Matthew 18:1-5 – a kingdom of humility
Matthew 20:20-28 – a kingdom of servanthood
The kingdom of heaven is a kingdom in which people are unconcerned about their status.
A while ago in a message, I characterized humility as that which is outside of the pride and shame spectrum.
On the one end of this spectrum is the conviction that I could never measure up, never be good enough.
On the other end is the conviction that I am above and more deserving than others.
Both ends are hyper-fixated on an identity and value in comparison to others. Both are about measuring up.
But humility is unconcerned about measuring up. Humility rises up in those who begin to see themselves as inherently valuable as image bearers of God.
This frees us up to give ourselves to the service of others in a spirit of abundance rather than a spirit of scarcity.
Scarcity is the belief that there isn’t enough to go around. If I don’t claim my position in the kingdom, someone else less deserving will get it.
But abundance is the belief that everyone will get more than they could ever imagine because the generosity and supply of God is unending.
This is why the proclamation of the nearness of the kingdom of heaven is a message of hope.
Heaven Comes with Hope
Matthew 19:16-24 – do not hope in wealth
The problem with this man was not that he had great wealth. The problem was that the source of his hope was his wealth.
Losing all his possessions would put him at risk. It would make him vulnerable. This is what Jesus is asking of those who want to enter his kingdom.
It is a kingdom of vulnerability. This brings hope because the promise is that in God’s kingdom, there is no need for personal security.
It is a kingdom made up only of vulnerable people. Think about it.
It is a kingdom founded by a God who entered his creation by means of human childbirth.
The most vulnerable person in the world is the newborn baby. Utterly dependent on others for warmth, safety, food, and instruction.
Jesus grew to become an adult man. But not one of high social status. He was the son of a carpenter, not the son of a high priest or political official.
When he began his ministry, he was homeless. He travelled from place to place, a nomad, dependent on the generosity of others.
And his life ended with the same sort of death that the worst among them experienced. Crucifixion was reserved for outcasts, rebels, and slaves.
This is our king! And when he calls you to follow him, he calls you to vulnerability. This kingdom is secured not by your ability to protect yourself.
This is a kingdom secured by a God whose power is expressed through humility.
Jesus told the disciples, “As you go, proclaim this message: the kingdom has come near.”
What we have heard today is that as we live among our neighbours, as we do our ordinary things, speak and live with humility and service, pointing people to a kingdom that is coming in which our behaviour is a foretaste.
When we speak and act in the way of Jesus, we will be beacons of hope, pointing people to a kingdom in which all people can experience the fullness of God’s perfect presence and the complete peace that comes when everyone is totally secure in Christ.