Mission of the Church

SYNOPSIS – The mission of the church between now and the return of Jesus is to announce the Good News of his Kingdom to all nations – Matthew 24:14. 

The message proclaimed by Jesus is summarized in the New Testament as the “Good News of the Kingdom of God.” In him, the final rule of God over all creation is being established, although in unexpected and paradoxical ways. By the time Jesus arrives in glory, this process will consummate with the total sovereignty of God over the Cosmos and the defeat of all His enemies, including the termination of Death - (1 Corinthians 15:24-28). - [Photo by Joao Marcelo Marques on Unsplash].

To Whomever He Pleases

"Let the name of God be blessed from age to age, in that wisdom and might belong to him; HE changes times and seasons, HE removes kings, and HE sets up kings" - Daniel 2:20-23. 

In the year 2020, many “leaders” of the church exhorted Christians to invest their time and resources into electing politicians of whom they approved, warning of the dire consequences that would befall them if they failed to do so - Churches shuttered, “religious liberties” lost, political tyranny imposed - How could the Church preach the gospel in a land without freedom of speech or where Christians might suffer persecution? Therefore, believers must fight tooth-and-nail for their chosen candidates! - (Photo - Tower of Babel, by Lucas van Valckenborch, 1594, Louvre Museum, Paris).

Coming on the Clouds

SYNOPSIS – The whole earth will witness the “Son of Man” arriving on the clouds to gather his “elect” – Mark 13:21-27. 

The narrative now takes us beyond the “abomination of desolation,” the destruction of Jerusalem, and the horrific “tribulation” to the return of the “Son of Man” to gather this “elect.” How much time will pass between the “tribulation” and the arrival of Jesus is not stated. However, during the interim, the church must beware of “false prophets” who will disseminate false information about his coming, employing impressive “signs and wonders” to validate their claims.

Dream of the King

SYNOPSIS – Only Daniel was able to reveal and interpret the troubling dream of King Nebuchadnezzar - Daniel 2:1-49. 

The second and third chapters of Daniel present a single story told in two parts. In the first one, King Nebuchadnezzar dreams of an enormous image composed of several materials. In the second part, he attempts to implement the image from his dream but according to his concept of political power. The interpretation of his dream provided by Daniel highlights the key theme of the book - God rules over the World-Power and gives it to whomever He pleases.

Land of Shinar

SYNOPSIS - In Daniel, the arrogant acts of Nebuchadnezzar parallel the story of the Tower of Babel from the book of Genesis. 

The first paragraph in the book of Daniel refers to Babylon as the “land of Shinar,” a clear verbal link to the story in Genesis about the “tower of Babel” and the founding of the city of Babylon. This incident is echoed again in the third chapter of Daniel when Nebuchadnezzar gathered all nations to pay homage to the image he had “set up” - (Genesis 11:1-9).