Jesus Sends Pilgrims into Battle: Gospel in Hostile Territory (Luke 22:35-36)

Unpack some of Jesus’ final instructions to His disciples to live as pilgrims in hostile environments. As the world grows increasingly resistant to the Gospel, Christians today must understand their true citizenship and mission. From being royal ambassadors during Christ’s ministry to becoming pilgrims in hostile environments after His crucifixion, the disciples’ journey mirrors our own. https://youtu.be/WDss9AeVwik Table of contentsFrom Genesis to Malachi, the Gospel was, “The Messiah is coming!”From Matthew to John, the Gospel was, “The Kingdom has come!”From Matthew to John, Jesus’ Disciples Were Royal Ambassadors In Welcoming EnvironmentsFrom Acts on the Gospel is Christ CrucifiedFrom Acts On Jesus’ Disciples Are Pilgrims In Hostile EnvironmentsOur Heavenly CitizenshipWhat Is Commendable About the Faith of Those in Hebrews 11?We Must Be Born Again When I was growing up, my parents made me feel thankful to be an American. It usually took place at the dinner table when they wanted me to finish my food. They would encourage me to eat by telling me how children in other countries didn’t have the same blessings, and I guess at that moment, the blessings I was supposed to be thankful for were peas, broccoli, cauliflower, and asparagus. There are few people who, if asked where they would want to live, would say a country other than the United States. But no matter how good American citizenship is, we will see in some of Jesus’s last words to His disciples that He didn’t want any of His followers to see themselves as citizens of any earthly country. Instead, we’re to see ourselves as pilgrims. To fully understand some of Jesus’s final words to the disciples, we must understand the mission of God’s people throughout human history. From Genesis to Malachi, the Gospel was, “The Messiah is coming!” Sometimes people mistakenly believe the Gospel is a New Testament invention; something Paul invented during the Church Age. The even worse situation is when people think man was saved differently in the Old Testament than in the New Testament. But man has always been saved the same: by grace through faith. In the Old Testament, people were saved by believing God would send a Messiah. People looked forward in faith to the Messiah coming, like we look backward in faith, believing the Messiah has come: Galatians 3:8 God…preached the gospel…to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” This shows that the gospel was preached in the Old Testament, as it was preached to Abraham. But it begs the question: How could the words “in you shall all the nations be blessed” be a gospel presentation? This is a prophecy that the Messiah will come as a descendant of Abraham. That’s how all the nations would be blessed in or through Abraham. As people believed this prophecy that the Messiah would come, they would be saved. That’s what happened with Abraham, the father of faith: Genesis 15:6 [Abraham] believed the Lord, and [the Lord] counted it to [Abraham] as righteousness. This is justification: Abraham believed and was justified, or declared righteous, by his faith. (NKJV) Hebrews 4:2 The gospel was preached to…[the Israelites in the wilderness]. We aren’t told exactly what this Gospel presentation looked like, but there was some way for the Israelites to look forward in faith to Jesus so they could be saved. I think they could look forward to Christ in faith through the fantastic types and shadows in the wilderness: They saw Christ through the Bronze Serpent: John 3:14 “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up.” They saw Christ through the manna: John 6:32-33 “Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, My Father gives you the true bread from heaven (referring to Himself). For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 1 Corinthians 10:4 says Jesus was the rock in the wilderness that provided Israel with water, so they definitely saw Christ through the Rock. When Israel saw these types and shadows of Christ, they were able to believe in Him. So this was the Gospel message in the Old Testament: the Messiah is coming. But what did they preach when He came? From Matthew to John, the Gospel was, “The Kingdom has come!” God became a Man in the Person of Jesus Christ, came from heaven to earth, and brought the Kingdom of God with Him. This was the primary message in the Gospels. People were invited to enter this kingdom by grace through faith in the King of this kingdom. John the Baptist came on the scene and said: Matthew 3:2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” He knew Jesus was bringing the kingdom of God with Him. When Jesus’s public ministry began, His first words: Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” The ESV and NKJV translate this as "at hand," but they include footnotes indicating that it could also be rendered as "the kingdom of God has come near," which is how the NIV translates this verse. I like has come near for two reasons. First, it is in the past tense: it says 'has come' because Jesus brought it with Him. Second, it says 'come near' because Jesus was on earth and people could see Him, hear Him, and even touch Him. To be near Jesus was to be near the kingdom. This is the first time the phrase Kingdom of God occurs in Luke, and it’s very fitting. Luke 4:42 the people sought [Jesus] and came to him, and would have kept him from leaving them 43 but he said to them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose.” People were trying to keep Jesus from leaving them, but He told them he had to go so he could preach the kingdom. He went so far as to say this was his purpose. Think of the way Jesus began much of his teaching: “The kingdom of God is like…” He spent most of His earthly ministry helping people understand this kingdom. Luke 8:1 Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, Although the verse says “good news,” it’s the word for gospel, because that’s what the gospel is: good news. So, Jesus was preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, because that was the gospel during Jesus' earthly ministry: “the kingdom has come.” After Jesus had taught the twelve enough about the kingdom of God, He commissioned them to preach it as well: Luke 9:1 And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal...6 And they departed and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. Verse 2 states that they preached the kingdom of God, and verse 6 indicates that they preached the gospel, because preaching the kingdom of God was preaching the gospel. From Matthew to John, Jesus’ Disciples Were Royal Ambassadors In Welcoming Environments Unfortunately, in Luke 9:2, some translations, such as the NKJV and KJV, use the term 'preach' instead of 'proclaim', whereas most other translations, including the NIV, NASB, and ESV, use 'proclaim'. The word "proclaim" is better because it conveys kingdom imagery. It depicts a herald arriving and making an announcement to the King. The Twelve Apostles announced that the King had arrived. Royal ambassadors are treated well. People love them. People love to receive them. People want to have them in their homes because it’s like having a famous person with them. To see how well royal ambassadors fare: Luke 9:3 And he said to them, “Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not have two tunics. 4 And whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. 5 And wherever they do not receive you, when you leave that town shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.” This sounds pretty good. They didn’t have to take anything with them: no staff, bag, change of clothes, or even food or money. Whenever they reached a house, they would be welcomed; if not, they could move on to the next. The disciples were in a favorable position because Jesus was so popular. The disciples were associated with Jesus, so they were popular, too. Luke 9:11 When the crowds learned it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing. Jesus attracted huge crowds, and He preached the kingdom to them. I could show you many other verses, but you get the idea that the Kingdom of God was preached during Jesus' earthly ministry. From Acts on the Gospel is Christ Crucified Because preaching the kingdom of God was such a prominent theme in the Gospels, when the Book of Acts begins, we would expect to continue reading about the Kingdom of God being preached. But there’s nothing like that, and why is that? The King of the Kingdom was rejected. So you can’t keep preaching that message. Instead, they had to preach a new message: the King has been crucified. 1 Corinthians 1:23 we preach Christ crucified. The 'we' refers to church-age believers or everyone after the cross. The new message that began being preached in Acts and continues to be preached throughout our lifetimes is the message of Christ crucified. Let me show you a few examples. Peter is preaching on Pentecost: Acts 2:23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men…36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Peter in Solomon’s Portico: Acts 3:15 and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead.