Christ Church

The King’s People (The Continuing Adventures of Jesus #18) (King’s Cross)

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INTRODUCTION

After the resurrection, Jesus said that since all authority had been given to Him, the apostles were to “therefore, go” disciple all the nations of the world. The center and most essential point of this mission is the regeneration of individual hearts. But the Bible teaches that this ordinarily happens through public and private, national and individual, external and internal means, all of which is not neat and tidy. The story of Peter and Cornelius demonstrates this, as does the controversy following. Jesus is at work by His Spirit ruling through the challenges and opportunities of making a new people and saving the nations of the world. 

The Text: “And the apostles and brethren that were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God. And when Peter was come up to Jerusalem, they that were of the circumcision contended with him…” (Acts 11:1-30). 

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Those Jewish believers who thought that Gentiles must be circumcised to fully join the people of God contended with Peter when he came back to Jerusalem, questioning him specifically about eating with Cornelius (Acts 11:1-3). Peter responded by retelling the story of his vision of the animals in the sheet, and God’s instruction not to call them common or unclean (Acts 11:4-10). Then Peter recalls the Spirit’s instructions to go with the men from Cornelius, and Cornelius’s own testimony of the angel’s instructions to call for Peter, to learn how his household might be saved (Acts 11:11-14). Peter said he just started preaching when the Spirit fell upon them, and he recalled Jesus promising the baptism of the Holy Spirit and concluded it was from God – and the Jewish believers agreed and glorified God (Acts 11:15-18).

Meanwhile, when the believers had been scattered after the death of Stephen, some landed in Antioch, and many Jews and Gentiles believed (Acts 11:19-21). So the church in Jerusalem sent Barnabas to encourage them, who did so, and who then also invited Saul to join him in that work (Acts 11:22-26). It was there in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians, and it was in those days that the Spirit indicated that there would be a severe famine and so an offering was collected for the saints and delivered by Saul and Barnabas (Acts 11:27-30). 

FIRST CALLED CHRISTIANS IN ANTIOCH

Beginning with the contention of the Jewish believers “of the circumcision” and Peter’s explanation of what happened with Cornelius and then continuing north, in Antioch, both Jews and Gentiles were turning to the Lord, and they were all coming to be called “Christians” (Acts 11:26). This new name highlights the Jewish roots but also the new people being formed. The word “Christ” means “anointed” and could also be translated as Messiah or King. So to be “Christian” is to be associated with the King, or the King’s people. The word “Christian” is only used two other places in the New Testament: when King Agrippa says that Paul almost persuaded him to become a Christian (Acts 26:28) and when Peter encourages believers not to be ashamed if they suffer as Christians (1 Pet. 4:16). 

OUTWARD & INWARD

The thing to notice is that in all three instances, the name is an objective, public title. It was not used in the first instance as an exact description of those going to heaven. And this corresponds to how the name Israelite/Jew also functioned. The objective, public sense of the name referred to all who were covenantally connected to the family of Abraham through circumcision, but that outward sign was always meant to be a call to believe in the promises of God and so be circumcised in the heart (Dt. 10:16, 30:6, Jer. 4:4). A true Jew is one who is circumcised in his heart (Rom. 2:29); so not all Israelites were really Israelites (Rom. 9:6). In the same way, we might say, not all Christians are really Christians, and a true Christian is one whose heart is baptized. In Romans 3, Paul immediately asks, then what advantage is the outward, covenantal connection, and he says: “much in every way” because God is still faithful and works through His public people, even if some do not believe (Rom. 3:1-4). Christ rules through His covenant. 

APPLICATIONS

The New Covenant is better than the Old Covenant in quality (fullness of Christ), quantity (fullness of forgiveness and the Spirit), and extent (for the whole world) (Heb. 8-10). But the New Covenant is not made out of stainless steel. Jesus says He is a vine, and we are the branches (Jn. 15). Likewise, the covenant is an Olive Tree, which unbelieving Israel has been cut out of and Gentiles have been grafted into (Rom. 11). Old Israel had baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and Christ in the wilderness, but they lusted for evil things, served idols, and complained – and the Spirit wrote those things as warnings for us (1 Cor. 10:1-11).

A married man who commits serial adultery is not at all acting as a husband, but he is a husband by covenant – that’s what makes his crime so hideous. Likewise, we live in a land full of baptized unbelievers or unbelieving covenant Christians, which is what makes our situation far worse. Many have trampled the blood of the covenant (Heb. 10:29 cf. 2 Pet. 2:20-21). 

Matthew Henry’s father is remembered as saying that whenever his children misbehaved, he would “grab them by their baptism.” The point is that in baptism God says something objectively about us, putting His name on us, and that covenantal reality must be part of our appeal to our children, one another, other churches, and many of our neighbors. When Israel was worshipping idols and committing abominations, they were still God’s people and that only made it worse. We do not confuse the covenantal and eternal realities: John (and other ministers) baptize with covenantal water, but Jesus is the only One who baptizes with the Holy Spirit who seals us forever (Lk. 3:16, Acts 11:16). And His fruit is unmistakable (Gal. 5). 

It was hard for faithful Jews to accept Gentiles as full members of the covenant (e.g. Lk. 15:28, Jonah, Habakkuk), and it is often easy to resent how God works in the covenant, with believers and unbelievers, strong and weak, wise and foolish, even heroes and scoundrels. There are plenty of opportunities for envy, resentment, bitterness, or despair. But notice how Barnabas was glad and served the new Christians in Antioch and then promoted Saul (Acts 11:23-26). And notice how the new Christians in Antioch gave freely to the needs in Jerusalem (Acts 11:27-30). Our job is not to sort it all out (Mt. 13). This is the King’s mission. He rules. We obey and glorify Him as we see Him work. We are the King’s people. We are Christians.

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The Colonies of Heaven (Philippians #13)

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INTRODUCTION

After the Lord’s resurrection from the dead, He established to His disciples that He was in fact alive forever, and then He ascended into the heavens for His coronation. When He did this, He was received by the Ancient of Days, and was given universal authority over all the nations of men. Earth now has a new capital city—located in the heavens—and we are called to learn how to live in terms of this. And as we learn, we are to teach.

THE TEXT

“For our conversation [lit., citizenship] is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself” (Phil 3:20-21).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Caesar Augustus had established the Roman colony of Philippi after the battle of Philippi in 42 B.C. and the battle of Actium in 31 B.C. He did this by settling his veterans there, who were Roman citizens. This is the backdrop for Paul’s comment to the church that was located at this same Philippi. The Roman citizens of Philippi were there as Roman colonists, intended to extend the force of Roman influence throughout the Mediterranean world. They were not there in order for them to leave Philippi in order to come back to Rome for retirement.

In this passage, Paul is using this striking metaphor for a reason. He says that our citizenship is in heaven (v. 20). We look toward heaven because that is where Jesus went, which means that heaven is the place He is going to come from when He returns to earth. When the metaphor is translated, it means that Jesus was going to come from “Rome” back to “Philippi.” He was not going to take “Philippi” to “Rome.” And so when the Savior, the Lord Jesus, comes, He is going to transform our lowly body so that it becomes like His glorious body (v. 21). What He does in this final transformation is in complete accord with the authority He is exercising now as He brings all things into subjection to Himself (v. 21). In multiple places, the New Testament tells us that He is doing this.

THE LINE OF THE STORY

If we take this simple metaphor of Paul’s, it clears up a great deal for us. Christians currently are living in the colonies of heaven. Now colonies are not established as feeder towns for the mother country—just the opposite actually. The mother country feeds the colonies.

How you take the line of the story matters a great deal. Many Christians believe the cosmos has an upper and lower story, with earth as the lower and heaven as the upper. You live the first chapters of your life here. Then you die, and you move upstairs to live with all the nice people in part two. There might be some kind of sequel after that, but it is all kind of hazy. The basic movement in this thinking is from Philippi “below” to Rome “above.”

But what Paul teaches us here is quite different. We are establishing the colonies of heaven here, now. When we die, we get the privilege of visiting the heavenly motherland, which is quite different than moving back there permanently. After this brief visit, the Lord will bring us all back here for the final and great transformation of the colonists (and the colonies). In short, our time in heaven is the intermediate state. It is not the case that our time here is the intermediate state. There is an old folk song that says, “This world is not my home, I’m just passing through.” This captures the mistake almost perfectly. But as the saints gather in heaven, which is the real intermediate state, the growing question is, “When do we get to go back home?” And so this means that heaven is the place that we are just “passing through.”

THE IMAGE OF GOD

The ideas here—Jesus the Savior, Jesus the Lord, citizenship, a return that transforms—are all regal and political images. And what this means is that the emperor is coming here, and we are the advance team. But though Paul draws on this imagery from certain concepts in the Roman Empire, there are places where the analogy (obviously) breaks down. The pagan emperors did not elevate the people they ruled, but rather just sat on the top of a mountain of peons. But Christ intends to transform our lowly bodies so that they become like His. This means He is gathering us up into royalty. And the colonies will become as glorious as the motherland, which makes sense because it is the ultimate reunion between Heaven and earth. “That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him” (Ephesians 1:10). 

Representing and establishing royalty on earth has been God’s design and purpose from the beginning. One of the indicators of this purpose and intent that is frequently missed is that famous phrase, “image of God.” The phrase image of God was one in the ancient world that indicated a divinely-imparted royal status. But unlike the pagan use of this, this royalty in Genesis was bestowed on all men and women, and not just a solitary ruler. Through our sin, we succeeded in marring this royal image, but God never relinquished His determination to establish it among us regardless. This is why Jesus came in the way that He did—to restore that image of God in man. This is why Peter can say that we are a royal priesthood (1 Pet. 2:9), and it is also what Paul is talking about in this place. Christ is going to transform our lowly bodies so that they become like His glorious body.

HEAVEN MISPLACED

Christ is going to come from heaven when He returns. And until He returns, He rules from heaven—which we know on the basis of the Ascension. Consider what was given to Christ when He came back into the throne room of God. “Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool” (Ps. 110:1). “Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began” (Acts 3:21). “And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed” (Dan. 7:14). And so we wait and work in preparation, patiently, knowing that our labors here are not in vain. In this hope, we take care not to “misplace heaven.” The kingdom comes; the kingdom does not go. So Christ is going to come from heaven, and in the meantime, He rules from heaven. The kingdom is going to come, and we are the advance team.

THE GREAT DESCENT

When we consider the Lord’s Ascension, that is the basis for our faith in the coming Descent. If you stop the story at the Ascension, you are misplacing the point of heaven. If you stop the story when we follow Christ to heaven at the time of our deaths, you are misplacing the point of heaven also.

Christ has ascended, and this is why the earth is going to be redeemed. And the whole creation is groaning, longing for this to happen. We who have the Spirit long for this as well. This is the blessed hope (Titus 2:13). 

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