John Bright - The Kingdom of God, p.8, 1953
As we search the Scriptures, it becomes apparent that there has only ever been one gospel, not two. We are told, in fact, that it was first preached to Abraham.
Galatians 3:8: And the scripture, foreseeing that God - Yehovah would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In you shall all nations be blessed.
The promises to Abraham included land and abundance in physical categories, as well as spiritual blessings. The fact that we have the same promise of blessings as Abraham is shown in verse 29.
Galatians 3:29: And if you are the Messiah’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
The definition of the Gospel of the Kingdom, built on the promises to Abraham, is found throughout the Old Testament, as we shall see. In the Gospels, John the Baptist, Jesus, and all of his disciples preached the Kingdom of God. In fact, Jesus said preaching the kingdom was the whole reason he was sent in Luke 4:43. The book of Acts ends with Paul continuing to preach the kingdom of God (Acts 28:30,31). There is nothing to indicate that there was a change in the gospel message that the followers of Jesus were to preach.
It has been said that the gospel that Paul preached was not the same gospel that Jesus preached. Many have been taught that Paul's gospel was different, because Jesus spoke of the kingdom, but Paul preached "the gospel of grace."
Acts 20:24: But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.
However, the very next verse defines what the gospel of grace is.
Acts 20:25: And now, behold, I know that you all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God - Yehovah, shall see my face no more.
And in verse 27 he equates that Gospel of the Kingdom of God - Yehovah with the whole purpose, or counsel, of God -Yehovah.
Acts 20:27: For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God - Yehovah.
Unless Paul preached two different gospels, it is clear that the Gospel of the Kingdom of God - Yehovah is the Gospel of Grace, which is all the counsel of God - Yehovah. It could not be a new gospel, for when Paul was giving his defense in Jerusalem in Acts 24, he says:
Acts 24:14: But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God - Yehovah of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets.
Many have been taught that the promises to Israel as written in the Law and the Prophets were different from the Christian hope, yet Paul said he preached the same things that were promised to Israel.
Acts 26:6-7: And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God - Yehovah unto our fathers: Unto which promise our twelve tribes, instantly serving God - Yehovah day and night, hope to come. For which hope’s sake, king Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews.
The gospel Paul preached and the hope of the promise made to the fathers are the same gospel, and it was that message for which he was accused of the Jews. At the end of the book of Acts, nothing had changed as far as what gospel Paul preached.
Acts 28:23: And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God - Yehovah, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening.
Acts 28:31: Preaching the kingdom of God - Yehovah, and teaching those things which concern the lord Jesus the Messiah, with all confidence, no man forbidding him.
Paul refers to the kingdom of God - Yehovah in his epistles as well (Romans 14:17; I Corinthians 4:20; 6:10; 15:50; Galatians 5:21; Colossians 4:11; 2 Thessalonians 1:5), so his gospel can't be different from that which Jesus preached.
Paul criticized the Galatians for being swayed by "another gospel" and said, "But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed" (Galatians 1:8). If what he wrote about in his epistles was different from the Gospel of the Kingdom which he preached all through Acts, he would have been under his own curse. But in I Timothy 6:3-4, he states that we are to consent to the wholesome words of Jesus the Messiah.
Disciples of the Messiah Jesus are to obey the words that his God and Father Yehovah gave to him to him to give to us – he said his words were not his but came from the Father – John 14:24
Many have believed that what Jesus taught concerning the Kingdom of God - Yehovah was addressed to Israel, and thus fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies, while the gospel that Paul and the apostles preached concerned the Great Mystery, which was not revealed in the Old Testament or in the time of Jesus the Messiah. If this is true, then why did Paul quote from the Old Testament so much?
Many have believed that what Jesus taught concerning the Kingdom of God - Yehovah was addressed to Israel, and thus fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies, while the gospel that Paul and the apostles preached concerned the Great Mystery, which was not revealed in the Old Testament or in the time of Jesus the Messiah. If this is true, then why did Paul quote from the Old Testament so much?
In Acts he preached the gospel, reasoning from the Scriptures (Acts 17:2; 18:28; 28:23). All throughout his epistles he constantly referred to Old Testament scriptures, as the foundation for his doctrine.
Romans 16:25-26: Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus the Messiah, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God - Yehovah, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:
"By the scriptures of the prophets" is the Old Testament scriptures. He cited many, many quotations from the Old Testament in his writing and public preaching. Why did Paul use the Old Testament so much if the Mystery was not revealed there? To understand this we must consider what is meant by a mystery. A mystery is not something that was never even mentioned, but rather something that was not understood. There is something to be seen or observed, or something spoken, but it is not understood by those who observe it. In Daniel, chapter 2, King Nebuchadnezzar has a dream which he wants interpreted. It is referred to as a "secret".
Daniel 2:17-19: Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions: That they would desire mercies of the God - Yehovah of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God – Yehovah of heaven.
Daniel 2:27-30: Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, the secret which the king has demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, show unto the king; but there is a God - Yehovah in heaven that revealeth secrets, and makes known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of thy head upon your bed, are these; as for you, O king, your thoughts came into your mind upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter: and he that reveals secrets maketh known to you what shall come to pass. But as for me, this secret is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but for their sakes that shall make known the interpretation to the king, and that you might know the thoughts of your heart.
Daniel 2:47: The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth it is, that your God - Yehovah is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing you could reveal this secret.
In the above verses, the word for "secret" in the Septuagint (the Geek translation of the Old Testament) is the word “musterion” which is the same word that is translated "mystery" in the New Testament. The dream was a mystery, because the understanding of its meaning was hidden.
Jesus told his apostles that it was given to them to know the mysteries of the kingdom, but to others he spoke in parables (Luke 8:10). The mysteries of the kingdom were not things that were never spoken, but things that were not understood when spoken, the result being that: "...seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand." There were also a number of things the apostles themselves did not understand at first. When Jesus first began to speak of his death and resurrection, they didn't get it at all.
Mark 9:31-32: For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day. But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him.
Luke 9:43-45: And they were all amazed at the mighty power of God - Yehovah. But while they wondered every one at all things which Jesus did, he said unto his disciples, let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men. But they understood not this saying, and it was hid from them, that they perceived it not: and they feared to ask him of that saying.
Now when we read of Jesus being delivered into the hands of men and killed, we have no trouble understanding it, do we? Yet the disciples did not understand it, for it was hidden. Many of the things they saw and heard they did not understand at the time, but later it became clear.
John 12:16: These things understood not his disciples at the first: but when Jesus was glorified, then remembered they that these things were written of him, and that they had done these things unto him.
Luke 24:25: And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.
Luke 24:45-46: Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, and said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved the Messiah to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day.
God - Yehovah often said things through the Prophets that were not understood at the time they were spoken (many times even by the Prophets who spoke them). But later they were revealed after Jesus the Messiah fulfilled them. Until after it was accomplished, it was not understood how the suffering and death of the Messiah fit into the plan to bring God's – Yehovah’s rule to earth, and how the Mosaic Law was then fulfilled and completed. It was also not understood that a period of time would intervene between his first coming and his second, during which the nature and power of the Kingdom could be experienced in a limited form. And while it was said in many places in the Old Testament that the Gentiles would be blessed through Israel, it was never understood how they would be blessed, nor was it ever imagined that the Gentiles would be "fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in the Messiah Jesus by the gospel." (Ephesians 3:6). These mysteries of the Kingdom were hinted at in the Old Testament, but their full meaning was not understood until it was revealed to Paul, who then wrote about it in his epistles.
Paul wrote at length about what Jesus had accomplished by his suffering and death. But he did not imply that the result of the Messiah's sin-offering sacrifice was a new gospel, different from the Gospel of the Kingdom which Jesus had preached.
The good news of God's - Yehovah's Kingdom is the one Gospel that ties together the entire Bible. The details concerning what Messiah's sacrifice accomplished, how that fits into the overall plan, and what we have during this period of time as a foretaste of the coming Kingdom, are what Paul wrote about in his epistles. But they have added details; they do not constitute a new or different gospel. The death and resurrection of Jesus are absolutely fundamental to our gaining entrance into God's - Yehovah's Kingdom, but we must take care not to limit our definition of the Gospel to the death and resurrection, and neglect the full message concerning that Kingdom.
Romans 16:25-26: Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus the Messiah, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God - Yehovah, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:
"By the scriptures of the prophets" is the Old Testament scriptures. He cited many, many quotations from the Old Testament in his writing and public preaching. Why did Paul use the Old Testament so much if the Mystery was not revealed there? To understand this we must consider what is meant by a mystery. A mystery is not something that was never even mentioned, but rather something that was not understood. There is something to be seen or observed, or something spoken, but it is not understood by those who observe it. In Daniel, chapter 2, King Nebuchadnezzar has a dream which he wants interpreted. It is referred to as a "secret".
Daniel 2:17-19: Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions: That they would desire mercies of the God - Yehovah of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God – Yehovah of heaven.
Daniel 2:27-30: Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, the secret which the king has demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, show unto the king; but there is a God - Yehovah in heaven that revealeth secrets, and makes known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of thy head upon your bed, are these; as for you, O king, your thoughts came into your mind upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter: and he that reveals secrets maketh known to you what shall come to pass. But as for me, this secret is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but for their sakes that shall make known the interpretation to the king, and that you might know the thoughts of your heart.
Daniel 2:47: The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth it is, that your God - Yehovah is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing you could reveal this secret.
In the above verses, the word for "secret" in the Septuagint (the Geek translation of the Old Testament) is the word “musterion” which is the same word that is translated "mystery" in the New Testament. The dream was a mystery, because the understanding of its meaning was hidden.
Jesus told his apostles that it was given to them to know the mysteries of the kingdom, but to others he spoke in parables (Luke 8:10). The mysteries of the kingdom were not things that were never spoken, but things that were not understood when spoken, the result being that: "...seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand." There were also a number of things the apostles themselves did not understand at first. When Jesus first began to speak of his death and resurrection, they didn't get it at all.
Mark 9:31-32: For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day. But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him.
Luke 9:43-45: And they were all amazed at the mighty power of God - Yehovah. But while they wondered every one at all things which Jesus did, he said unto his disciples, let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men. But they understood not this saying, and it was hid from them, that they perceived it not: and they feared to ask him of that saying.
Now when we read of Jesus being delivered into the hands of men and killed, we have no trouble understanding it, do we? Yet the disciples did not understand it, for it was hidden. Many of the things they saw and heard they did not understand at the time, but later it became clear.
John 12:16: These things understood not his disciples at the first: but when Jesus was glorified, then remembered they that these things were written of him, and that they had done these things unto him.
Luke 24:25: And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.
Luke 24:45-46: Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, and said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved the Messiah to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day.
God - Yehovah often said things through the Prophets that were not understood at the time they were spoken (many times even by the Prophets who spoke them). But later they were revealed after Jesus the Messiah fulfilled them. Until after it was accomplished, it was not understood how the suffering and death of the Messiah fit into the plan to bring God's – Yehovah’s rule to earth, and how the Mosaic Law was then fulfilled and completed. It was also not understood that a period of time would intervene between his first coming and his second, during which the nature and power of the Kingdom could be experienced in a limited form. And while it was said in many places in the Old Testament that the Gentiles would be blessed through Israel, it was never understood how they would be blessed, nor was it ever imagined that the Gentiles would be "fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in the Messiah Jesus by the gospel." (Ephesians 3:6). These mysteries of the Kingdom were hinted at in the Old Testament, but their full meaning was not understood until it was revealed to Paul, who then wrote about it in his epistles.
Paul wrote at length about what Jesus had accomplished by his suffering and death. But he did not imply that the result of the Messiah's sin-offering sacrifice was a new gospel, different from the Gospel of the Kingdom which Jesus had preached.
The good news of God's - Yehovah's Kingdom is the one Gospel that ties together the entire Bible. The details concerning what Messiah's sacrifice accomplished, how that fits into the overall plan, and what we have during this period of time as a foretaste of the coming Kingdom, are what Paul wrote about in his epistles. But they have added details; they do not constitute a new or different gospel. The death and resurrection of Jesus are absolutely fundamental to our gaining entrance into God's - Yehovah's Kingdom, but we must take care not to limit our definition of the Gospel to the death and resurrection, and neglect the full message concerning that Kingdom.
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