Chris Eleam Chris Eleam

Consider two scriptures about Jesus Christ 2 Tim 3:10 “But you have closely followed my teaching,my course of live,my purpose, my faith, my longsuffering, my love, my endurance” Also 1 Pet 2:21 “ In fact, to this course you were called, because even Christ suffered for you, leaving you a model for you to follow his steps closely” These scriptures are the essence in being a Christian, being Christ Like.

For what, though, was Jesus is primarily known? He was addressed, not as Healer, not as Feeder of Thousands, and not even as Resurrector of the Dead—although he did fill all those remarkable roles. But people called him Teacher, and rightly so. (John 1:38; 13:13) Jesus explained that a major reason he came to the earth was to teach people about the Kingdom of God.—Luke 4:43.
That is why Christ’s genuine followers devote themselves to the same work that occupied their Master when he walked the earth—teaching people the good news about God’s Kingdom. Jesus Christ commissioned all true Christians to teach people worldwide about that subject. (Matthew 24:14; 28:19, 20) That incorruptible heavenly government will rule over all of God’s creation, according to the law of love. It will accomplish God’s will, even eliminating suffering and death. (Matthew 6:9, 10; Revelation 21:3, 4) No wonder the Bible refers to Christ’s message as “good news”!—Luke 8:1.

What did Jesus preach? If you were to seek the answer by examining the teachings of many churches that claim to represent him, you might conclude that he proclaimed some kind of social gospel. Or perhaps you would get the impression that he advocated political reform or that he stressed personal salvation above all else. However, as previously noted, Jesus said plainly: “I must declare the good news of the kingdom of God.” Just what did that involve?

Remember, Jesus was present in heaven when Satan first challenged the rightness of Jehovah’s sovereignty. How it must have pained Jesus to see his righteous Father slandered and accused of being an unjust Ruler who withholds good from His creatures! How hurt God’s Son must have been when Adam and Eve, the future parents of humankind, gave heed to Satan’s slander! The Son saw that the human family was infected with sin and death as a result of that rebellion. (Romans 5:12) How thrilled he must have been, though, to learn that his Father would one day set matters straight!

Above all else, what needed to be set straight? Jehovah’s holy name needed to be sanctified, cleared of every trace of reproach heaped upon it by Satan and all who have sided with him. The rightfulness of Jehovah’s sovereignty, his way of ruling, needed to be vindicated. Better than any other man, Jesus understood these vital issues. In the model prayer, he taught his followers to ask first for his Father’s name to be sanctified, next for his Father’s Kingdom to come, and then for God’s will to be done on earth. (Matthew 6:9, 10) God’s Kingdom, with Christ Jesus as its Ruler, will soon rid the earth of Satan’s corrupt system and confirm Jehovah’s righteous rulership for all time. —Daniel 2:44.

That Kingdom was the theme of Jesus’ ministry. All his words and all his actions helped to clarify what that Kingdom is and how it will serve Jehovah’s purpose. Jesus allowed nothing to sidetrack him from his mission to preach the good news of God’s Kingdom. In his day, there were pressing social issues, countless injustices, yet his focus was on his message and his work. Did maintaining such a focus mean that Jesus was narrow in his outlook, dull and repetitive in his approach? Far from it!

As we will see throughout this section, Jesus made his teaching both interesting and colorful. He appealed to people’s hearts. We might be reminded of wise King Solomon, who sought delightful words, correct words of truth, to convey the thoughts that Jehovah inspired him to write down. (Ecclesiastes 12:10) Jehovah gave that imperfect man “broadness of heart,” enabling him to speak about many things, from birds to fish to trees to beasts. People came from far away to hear Solomon speak. (1 Kings 4:29-34) Yet, Jesus was “something more than Solomon.” (Matthew 12:42) He was far wiser, with far more “broadness of heart.” When teaching people, Jesus drew on his superior knowledge of God’s Word as well as of birds, animals, fish, agriculture, weather, current events, history, and social conditions. At the same time, Jesus never showed off his knowledge in order to impress others. He kept his message simple and clear. No wonder people delighted to hear him speak!—Mark 12:37; Luke 19:48.
Christians today try to follow Jesus’ lead. We do not have his immense wisdom and knowledge, but all of us do have a measure of knowledge and experience from which to draw when we share with others the truths of God’s Word. Parents, for instance, may draw from their experience in raising children to illustrate Jehovah’s love for His children. Others may draw examples or illustrations from secular work, school, or their knowledge of people and current events. At the same time, we are careful not to let anything divert attention from our message—the good news of God’s Kingdom.—1 Timothy 4:16.

In the minds of many, Jesus Christ was merely a man who did good deeds. He healed the sick, fed the hungry, and showed love and kindness to those in need. But Jesus did much more. He was first of all a zealous preacher of the good news of God’s Kingdom. A few months after his baptism in the river Jordan, Jesus began publicly preaching: “Repent, you people, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn near.” (Matthew 4:17) Mark’s account states: “Jesus went into Galilee, preaching the good news of God and saying: ‘The appointed time has been fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has drawn near. Be repentant, you people, and have faith in the good news.’”—Mark 1:14, 15.

Jesus called Peter, Andrew, James, and John to follow him, and we read: “Then he went around throughout the whole of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the good news of the kingdom and curing every sort of disease and every sort of infirmity among the people.” When the crowds in Galilee tried to detain him, he said: “Also to other cities I must declare the good news of the kingdom of God, because for this I was sent forth.” Then he went preaching in the synagogues of Judea.—Matthew 4:18-23; Luke 4:43, 44.

Returning again to Galilee, Jesus “went journeying from city to city and from village to village, preaching and declaring the good news of the kingdom of God.” (Luke 8:1) He likened his preaching work to harvesting and said: “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. Therefore, beg the Master of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.” (Matthew 9:35-38) Even when crowds gave him no rest, “he received them kindly and began to speak to them about the kingdom of God, and he healed those needing a cure.”—Luke 9:11.

True, Jesus healed the sick and on occasion fed the hungry. But more than all else, he was busy telling people about the Kingdom of God. And he wanted his followers to do the same. Having trained his apostles, he sent them out two by two to preach, saying: “As you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of the heavens has drawn near.’” (Matthew 10:7) Luke states: “He sent them forth to preach the kingdom of God and to heal.” (Luke 9:2) To the 70 disciples, Jesus also gave the command to ‘cure the sick ones and go on telling them that the kingdom of God has come near.’—Luke 10:9.

Before ascending to heaven, Jesus commissioned his followers to continue the preaching work and even to expand it. He commanded them: “Go therefore and make disciples of people of all the nations... teaching them to observe all the things I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19, 20) Further, he said: “You will receive power when the holy spirit arrives upon you, and you will be witnesses of me both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the most distant part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8) Thus, both Jesus and his apostles gave first attention to the preaching of the good news of God’s Kingdom.

The Kingdom to Be Preached in Our Time
In his prophecy about events to take place at “the conclusion of the system of things,” Jesus said: “And this good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations; and then the end will come.” (Matthew 24:3, 14) Or, as stated at Mark 13:10: “Also, in all the nations the good news has to be preached first.”—See also Revelation 14:6, 7.

In “the last days,” the good news of the Kingdom involves more than it did when Jesus was on earth. Jesus preached that the Kingdom had drawn near, drawing attention to the fact that he was among the people as the Messiah and King. (2 Timothy 3:1; Matthew 4:17; Luke 17:21) The good news preached by the early Christians included the matter of Jesus’ resurrection and ascension to heaven, and it encouraged meek ones to put faith in the coming Kingdom. (Acts 2:22-24, 32; 3:19-21; 17:2, 3; 26:23; 28:23, 31) Now that we have reached “the conclusion of the system of things,” the preaching of the good news of the Kingdom includes the striking message that the Kingdom is established in the heavens.—Revelation 11:15-18;

August 18 2013 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

S. Michael Houdmann Supporter Got Questions Ministries

"Ministry" is from the Greek word diakoneo, meaning "to serve" or douleuo, meaning "to serve as a slave." In the New Testament, ministry is seen as service to God and to other people in His name. J...

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July 01 2013 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Bruce Lyon

Christian ministry is to love God with all your heart, mind and strength and love your neighbor as Jesus loved all men giving his life in order that we might have new age life in him. Christian ministry is to preach the message that Jesus brought to the world - the message about the coming Kingdom of God, a message unfortunately not being preached by ministers who claim to represent Jesus. Why is the message of the Kingdom of God not being preached. It is the very thing that we are commanded of Jesus to seek first!

Matthew 6:33:...SEEK YOU FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD, AND HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS;.......

Are we all doing that?

May 21 2014 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report