The Kingdom of HeavenMatthew 13

The Kingdom of Heaven – Matthew 13

Matthew portrays Jesus as the King– Ch 1 - Jesus kingly ancestry– Ch3 - Testimony of John Baptist / victory over prince of

darkness– Ch 5-7 - The rules/principles of his kingdom

– Ch 8-10 - Jesus CV for the role of King- Growing opposition and rejection

– Ch 11 - The dangers of rejecting him

– Ch 12 - The rejection reaches its peak

– Ch 13f - Jesus directs his teaching to those who believe

The Kingdom of Heaven – Matthew 13

The Kingdom of God – the Big Picture!• Bible more than a collection of Christian writings• Bible is God’s story– It follows the family line of Abraham– God’s gave promises to bless and prosper him• Chief of these was a land and a king• Much of Old Testament is spent looking for this king

– New Testament = new dawn• John Baptist told people to get ready for the king• Jesus said he’d come to bring the kingdom in

The Kingdom of Heaven – Matthew 13

The Kingdom of God – the Big Picture!• Bible more than a collection of Christian writings• Bible is God’s story

– Abraham– promises of a king– New Testament = new dawn

• John Baptist told people to get ready for the king• Jesus said he’d come to bring the kingdom in

– Didn’t work out as people expected– Leaders rejected Jesus because he wasn’t what they expected– God’s plan was to start small, gradual build up, to include non Jews and

to climax at a 2nd coming.