23 Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom.
Have you ever paused and thought about this? Jesus was preaching “good news of the kingdom.”
When we think of the “good news,” we think of God’s love, his redemption for us in Christ, and our promise of eternity with Him. But for Jesus, he wasn’t speaking about his death. Or his redemption. So what was the good news of the kingdom?
We know from how Matthew has begun his book in Mt 1 that he is all about presenting Jesus as the king. Jesus is clearly in the lineage of David and is the rightful king of the kingdom. And now in the Sermon on the Mount he is teaching on the kingdom.
What does this kingdom look like? In the Sermon on the Mount first and foremost it is about righteousness. Not just a little righteousness but a righteousness that is beyond anyone’s ability. It is the righteousness of a clean and pure heart before God.
So far we see that
- Jesus is the King of the new Kingdom
- Jesus preached the good news of the Kingdom
- The Kingdom is based on holiness and righteousness
Then I think for a moment on Daniel. Because Matthew will mention Daniel in a few chapters to come.
Daniel’s prophecy was that there would be 4 kingdoms, then a new kingdom would come as a rock, it would decimate all other kingdoms, and this kingdom would grow and grow and grow, and be an eternal kingdom.
What Jesus is saying is that the kingdom Daniel predicted was now here. Jesus was the king of that kingdom, that kingdom would be ruled in righteousness and justice, and that kingdom would be eternal.
And how was it good news?
If you are living in a place of extensive government corruption and that corruption is very real to you, the truth looks all the sweeter! And if you have ever been the recipient of injustice, you know deeply the treasure of justice. And in this kingdom of heaven, the righteousness is not just external lip service, but is of the heart.
So the kingdom of God is good news. It is where the reign and rule of God rules its citizens. It’s citizens are from every nation, tribe and tongue. This kingdom is eternal (Daniel). This kingdom supersedes all over kingdoms of this world. This kingdom will never stop growing.
