Separate Gospel of Jesus Christ?

Recall, yet again, Mark 1:1: “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ.” What is the “gospel of Jesus Christ”? Is this a different, second gospel? Regarding Paul, we could ask, on the other hand, did he forget about this gospel?

No! But most modern preachers teach that the gospel of Jesus Christ is about Jesus Christ. They claim that He is the kingdom of God—that the gospel of the kingdom refers exclusively to Him. But this is not what the Bible says! The gospel of Christ is His gospel—His message about the kingdom of God!

Messengers carry messages. Remember, Christ was a Messenger sent from God with an announcement. His message was not about Himself—it was about the kingdom of God! In John 12:49-50, Christ said, “For I have not spoken of Myself; but the Father which sent Me, He gave Me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. And I know that His commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto Me, so I speak.”

Plainly, Christ functioned as a messenger—a representative—a SPOKESMAN for the coming kingdom of God. In John 14:24, Jesus said, “The word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s which sent Me.” Christ brought the Father’s message. This should now be clear! Recall that He stated, “The law and the prophets were [preached] until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached” (Luke 16:16).

That is what this Work is doing today, and, through this booklet, the kingdom of God is being preached to you.

This chapter contains what many call “The Lord’s Prayer” (Mt 6:9-13). Christ instructs Christians to pray “after this manner,” and then continues by adding the phrase, “Thy kingdom come.” Knowing what you are praying for will make your prayers far more meaningful! (This booklet’s primary purpose is to explain the true gospel of the Bible. To understand the kingdom of God in detail, read our free booklet What Is the Kingdom of God?)

But we should ask, at least briefly: What is the kingdom of God? Again, the word kingdom simply means “government.” Of course, you cannot have a government without a nation to govern. Therefore, a kingdom is at least one nation with a government.

There are four necessary components of any kingdom: (1) Land, property or territory—however large or small. In other words, one must have a specific and definite set of boundaries establishing the size of the kingdom, (2) a ruler, king, monarch or governor leading the government, (3) people or subjects living within the territory governed, and (4) a system of laws and rules and a basic structure of government. No kingdom is complete without all these basic elements.

But how does this apply to God’s kingdom? Is this to be a literal, physical place on earth, with people and laws, presided over by a ruler?

Most do not understand even these most basic elements of the kingdom of God. Some believe that this kingdom is in the hearts of men. Others believe that it is wherever you find a particular church. Still others believe that it is Jesus Christ Himself. Some believe that it is on earth now, with others believing that it is yet to come, but not understanding how or when this will occur. Such confusion!

One Must Be Born Again into the Kingdom

Paul wrote that Jesus, after His resurrection, became “the firstborn from the dead” (Col. 1:18), and “that He might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Rom. 8:29). When connected, these two verses show that Christ is the firstborn from the dead, and that many others will follow later. But when—and into what—will these others be born?

In John 3:3, Christ said to Nicodemus, “Verily, verily [this means truly, truly], I say unto you, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” In Jn 3:6, He continues, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

Believe this plain verse. One must become spirit to see the kingdom of God!

Paul also wrote, “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God” (I Cor. 15:50). The following two verses there explain that the resurrection will occur at the Seventh (“last”) Trumpet, when “the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.”

The resurrection of the dead will occur when Christ returns. There must be no misunderstanding this great event. People who were once fleshly human beings will be changed into spirit—will be born again—and enter into the kingdom of God.

John 4:24 states that “God is a Spirit.” Under the Father, Christ will lead His kingdom, to be composed of resurrected spirit beings. At His Return, Christ, as a member of the Family of God, will have many younger “brothers and sisters,” who will have qualified to rule with Him in His kingdom.

There is a plant kingdom, an animal kingdom, human kingdoms and an angelic kingdom. There is also the kingdom of God.

Notice Genesis 1:26: “And God said, Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness.” Referring to Themselves, the One speaking says, “Us,” “Our,” “Our.” This verse reveals that there is more than one Being in the Godhead. In fact, there are two! In this scripture, the Hebrew word for God is Elohim. This is a uniplural term like group, team, committee or family, with all of these terms representing one entity, comprised of several persons.

Thus, the Bible teaches that there is one God, composed of two Persons—the Father and Christ—with many more children to be added later. The first time that God will add more to His Family is at the time Christ’s kingdom is established.

At that time, “many sons shall be brought unto glory” through the work of the “Captain of our salvation” (Heb. 2:10). Heb 2:11 says that Christ “is not ashamed to call them brethren”—those of whom Christ is called the “firstborn.”

Do you see what is described here? A true Christian’s goal—his destiny—is to be born into the coming kingdom (government) of God as a spirit being who will rule under Christ. What could be more wonderful—more glorious—for a Christian to look forward to?

There Are Conditions to Entering the Kingdom

Christ said to a young rich man inquiring about eternal life, “…if you will enter into life, keep the commandments” (Matt. 19:17). Jesus explained that one must keep the Ten Commandments, and specifically cited five of them in the passage.

Let me explain. In Romans 6:23, Paul wrote, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” You receive wages from your job. These wages constitute payment for work you have done. Wages are something that you earn. Death is what all have “earned”—through sin! If Christ had not paid this penalty, the final “paycheck” that all people would receive is death—the ultimate “pink slip.” On the other hand, salvation is a gift. You cannot earn it.

But what is sin? Since committing it results in death, should you not know what it is? I John 3:4 records, “Sin is the transgression of the law.” This is the same law that the young rich man was told he must obey to inherit eternal life.

Recall Christ’s words in Mark 1:15: “Repent you, and believe the gospel.” Repentance is from sin (Acts 3:19)—the breaking of God’s spiritual Law. A Christian is one who has repented of this, and been baptized (Acts 2:38), and converted (Ac 3:19). Through a lifetime of overcoming sin, the Christian qualifies for (though he can never “earn”) salvation and spiritual birth into the kingdom of God.

The Kingdom of God Must Still be Preached Today

In the Matthew 24:1-51 (and Mt 25:1-46) Olivet Prophecy, Christ was asked about those events that would be the signs of His Second Coming and of “the end of the world [age].” He answered that a number of different trends and conditions would occur first. In Mt 24:14, He stated, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” The true gospel was prophesied to be preached until “the end come.” This plainly means that someone will be preaching it now, in our present age—because the end has not yet come.

The Restored Church of God is doing this!

Preaching the truth of the gospel to the world was restored by Herbert W. Armstrong (1892-1986). This man was used by God to reach hundreds of millions of people with this message throughout a 52-year ministry, which ended with his death in 1986. It was Mr. Armstrong who taught me the true gospel and who trained me to be able to take this same message to the world.

The Kingdom of God is Coming

Make no mistake! Christ will soon return to earth and establish His kingdom. No human being could set up a single, world-ruling government that could work. In late 1966, wondering about the possibilities, I asked my United States Congressman if he thought that this could ever happen. He had been in Congress for over thirty years, to that point. He loudly asserted that it was not possible. Interestingly, he did say that if he thought it could work, he would “shout it from the housetops.” I shall never forget his words. He was absolutely right—it certainly would never work, if left in the hands of men! But this is not what Christ will do.

Recall that Daniel wrote, “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever” (Dan. 2:44). The kingdom of God will reign over the entire earth—ALL nations—and the resurrected saints shall share this reign with Christ.

Christ stated in the “Sermon on the Mount” that “the meek shall inherit the earth” (Matt. 5:5). Now you know why! Actually, Christ was quoting Psalm 37:11, where David said precisely the same thing. Other passages show that David knew he would one day rule (over all the tribes of Israel), within the kingdom of God.

Now turn to Daniel 7 and examine three separate verses. Notice verse 18: “But the saints of the Most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever.” Verse 22 states, “Until the Ancient of Days [Christ here, and the Father in verse 13] came, and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.” Then notice verse 27: “And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions [rulers] shall serve and obey Him.”

Daniel understood that the saints will reign on the earth!

Now notice three separate passages in Revelation. Through John, Christ states, “To him that overcomes will I grant to sit with Me in My throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with My Father in His throne” (Rev 3:21). Also notice Rev 2:26-27: “And he that overcomes…to him will I give power over the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron.” And, finally, “and [God] has made us…kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth” (Rev 5:10).

Has anyone ever told you about any of these verses? Almost certainly not. Yet, they are basic, and have been in the Bible for thousands of years!

No wonder that when Christ was on trial for His life, He said, “My kingdom is not of this world: if My kingdom were of this world, then would My servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is My kingdom not from here” (John 18:36). Pilate had asked Him, “Are you a king then?” Christ answered, “To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world…” (Jn 18:37).

Jesus Christ understood throughout His life that He was born to be a king (Luke 1:31-33)!

The prophet Isaiah was inspired to also record, “And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come you, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more”(Isa 2:2-4).

The exact same prophecy is repeated in Micah 4:1-3!

In front of the United Nations Building is the sculptured image of a large man forging a plow from a sword. I have seen it hundreds of times because I conducted Sabbath services directly across the street from that spot for over four years. But no one seems to any longer take notice of, or even believe, the enormous prophecy this famous sculpture depicts.

Christ came to be a KING. When His reign begins, world peace will literally “break out”—along with worldwide happiness, prosperity, abundance and supreme joy! No human government has ever been able to bring these things to even one country on earth.

This soon-coming kingdom is the core of the very gospel that Christ brought. Do you believe it? Will you believe it?

The Restored Church of God is boldly preaching this greatest of prophetic truths. This prophecy is sure—it is certain! And, when it is fulfilled, you too can be a part of God’s wonderful government!

Christ’s Message

The following is from the conclusion of Herbert W. Armstrong’s booklet What is the TRUE GOSPEL?: “It’s about time that someone speaks out, in this world, and tells the world that the very Gospel of Jesus Christ was the advance ANNOUNCEMENT of this very world GOVERNMENT—a government, NOT by selfishly motivated man but by the living all-powerful God.

“Jesus Christ’s message—His Gospel—was the Kingdom of God—the GOVERNMENT of the living God!

“When the Messiah returns with all the power of God, we shall have world peace, with happiness, joy, prosperity—and a changed world inheriting eternal life.

“That is the true Gospel proclaimed…‘IN ALL THE WORLD.’”

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