Kingdom Disciples

In his second epistle, Peter addresses the growing weariness of some believers due to the apparent delay in or even the failure of the “ arrival ” of Jesus to materialize, an open door for false teachers and outside critics to exploit. Instead of the predicted terrestrial and cosmic upheaval, daily life was continuing as it always had. The Apostle’s explanation is as relevant today as it was two thousand years ago.

Jesus charged his followers with announcing the same message he preached, He summarized it as the “ Good News of the Kingdom of God .” His Church would establish God’s Kingdom in unexpected and paradoxical ways. By his return, he will establish his complete sovereignty over the nations and subdue all his “ enemies ,” including “ Death .” Until then, his disciples must proclaim his message to the “ uttermost parts of the Earth .”

Is the Gospel of the Kingdom of God a message of hope for only SOME nations, or is it Good News for all nations and peoples?  Too often in church history, the Gospel has been perverted into Good News for some nations, but apparently bad news for others, or at least for the latter, a less appealing message. And this occurs whenever representatives of the church of the same Jesus who gave his life for the entire world associate and even identify his name and Gospel with certain nations, races, cultures, and political ideologies.