What was the Gospel in Jesus' day? (Part.2)
The Kingdom Gospel was a completely different gospel than Paul's grace gospel for today
(Rom.16:25; Romans 2:16; 2 Timothy 2:7-8)
Paul's gospel requires that to be saved we must trust in the death, the burial and resurrection of Christ (1 Cor.15:1-4). Prior to Paul, no one preached that the gospel of salvation had been sent to Gentiles nor offered salvation through faith in the cross work of Christ.
The Kingdom Gospel was proclaimed to Jews ONLY
Throughout Jesus ministry and even into the early chapters of Acts, the prophetic program of the King and the Kingdom was still in effect and the audience remained wholly Jewish. On the day of Pentecost Peter addressed only Jews, i.e., "men of Judea" (Acts 2:14), "men of Israel" (Acts 2:22), and the "house of Israel" (Acts 2:36).
The Kingdom Gospel did not recognize the cross-work of Christ but rather His identity
Peter's message was that Jesus was the Messiah, that they had crucified Him, and that He had risen from the dead. In response to his message, his audience asked, "Brethren, what shall we do?" (Acts 2:37). NOTE: Peter did not tell them to believe that Christ died for their sins, was buried and was raised from the dead. What did he tell them?
Acts 2:38 Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself".
Whose teachings does this sound like? John the Baptist? Jesus? Absolutely! Baptism was a requirement under the gospel of the kingdom. Again, whom is Peter addressing? Gentiles? No. He is addressing Jews. Peter quoted from the Scriptures. The Scriptures say little to nothing to Gentiles but everything to Jews. He specifically said that the Holy Spirit was the promise for you and your children, etc. This was prophesied by Jeremiah (Jeremiah 31:31-34), Ezekiel (Ezekiel 36:22-32, Ezekiel 37:14), and Joel (Joel 2:28-32). Indeed, in his sermon, Peter quoted Joel's prophecy (Acts 2:17-21) for what was then happening in Israel.
In the Kingdom Gospel, Jesus death and resurrection were kept secret (only later revealed by the risen Christ to Paul)
(See: 1 Corinthians 2:6-8 – Christ's death and its meaning was a secret kept hidden!)
The Gospels indicate clearly that the Twelve had no clue about the good news of Jesus' death and resurrection as we believe today. In Luke, we read,
Luke 18:31 Then He [Jesus] took the twelve aside and said to them, "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things which are written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished. 32 For He will be handed over to the Gentiles, and will be mocked and mistreated and spit upon, 33 and after they have scourged Him, they will kill Him; and the third day He will rise again." 34 But the disciples understood none of these things, and the meaning of this statement was hidden from them, and they did not comprehend the things that were said.
In the next part of this lesson we will look at our gospel and what makes it different from the Kingdom Gospel.
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