The Kingdom: Entrance into Jesus'
Church
Scriptures after Jesus' died and rose from the
dead (after the gospel* was enacted):
Jesus said: "Go therefore and make
disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all that I commanded you;
and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the
age." in Matthew 28:19-20 (NAS)
Jesus
said: "And He said to them, "Go into all the
world and preach the gospel to all creation. "He who
has believed and has been baptized shall be saved;
but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.
Mark 16:15-16 (NAS)
Jesus said: "...and that
repentance for forgiveness of sins should be
proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning
from Jerusalem." Luke 24:47 -- (NAS)
From Jerusalem, a few days later, Peter said in
Acts 2:38-39:
"And
Peter said to them, "Repent, and let each of you be
baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the
forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the
gift of the Holy Spirit. "For the promise is for you
and your children, and for all who are far off, as
many as the Lord our God shall call to Himself."
Acts 2:38-39 (NAS)
Paul said to the Christians at Rome:
"Or
do you not know that all of us who have been
baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into
His death? Therefore we have been buried with Him
through baptism into death, in order that as Christ
was raised from the dead through the glory of the
Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. For
if we have become united with Him in the likeness of
His death, certainly we shall be also in the
likeness of His resurrection," Romans 6:3-5
(NAS)
"...that is, the word of faith
which we are preaching, 9 that if you
confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe
in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you
will be saved..." Romans 10:8-10 (NAS)
Paul, writing to the Christians in the city of
Corinth:
"For
by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body,
whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and
we were all made to drink of one Spirit." 1
Corinthians 12:13 (NAS)
Paul, writing to the Christians in the region of
Galatia:
"But
before faith came, we were kept in custody under the
law, being shut up to the faith which was later to
be revealed. Therefore the Law has become our tutor
to lead us to Christ, that we may be justified by
faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer
under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through
faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were
baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with
Christ. Galatians 3:23-27 (NAS)
Paul, writing to the Christians in Ephesus:
"...just
as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up
for her; that He might sanctify her, having cleansed
her by the washing of water with the word, that He
might present to Himself the church in all her
glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing;
but that she should be holy and blameless."
Ephesians 5:25-27 (NAS)
Paul, writing to the Christians at Colossae:
"having
been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were
also raised up with Him through faith in the working
of God, who raised Him from the dead.
Colossians 2:12 (NAS)
Paul, writing to the Christians in the city of
Thessalonica:
"...and
to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as
well when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from
heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire,
dealing out retribution to those who do not know God
and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord
Jesus." 2 Thessalonians 1:7-8 (NAS)
(Note: these Christians had obeyed the gospel and
Paul tells what will happen to those who have not
obeyed the gospel or do not know God. See Lesson 1
for how to "obey the gospel.")
Paul, writing to Titus:
"He
saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have
done in righteousness, but according to His mercy,
by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the
Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly
through Jesus Christ our Savior, that being
justified by His grace we might be made heirs
according to the hope of eternal life." Titus
3:5-7 (NAS)
"...and since we have a great
priest over the house of God, let us draw near with
a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having
our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience
and our bodies washed with pure water." Hebrews
10:21-22 (NAS)
"And corresponding to that,
baptism now saves you-- not the removal of dirt from
the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good
conscience-- through the resurrection of Jesus
Christ, who is at the right hand of God, having gone
into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers
had been subjected to Him." 1 Peter 3:21-22 (NAS)
Scriptures before Jesus' death and resurrection
(before the gospel* was enacted):
"For
I say to you, that unless your righteousness
surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you
shall not enter the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 5:20
(NAS)
"Not everyone who says to Me,
'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven; but
he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven."
Matthew 7:21 (NAS)
"...and said, "Truly I say to
you, unless you are converted and become like
children, you shall not enter the kingdom of
heaven." Matthew 18:3 (NAS)
"Truly I say to you, whoever
does not receive the kingdom of God like a child
shall not enter it at all. " Mark 10:15 (NAS)
"Jesus answered, "Truly, truly,
I say to you, unless one is born of water and the
Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
John 3:5 (NAS)
"Truly, truly, I say to you, he
who does not enter by the door into the fold of the
sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief
and a robber. "But he who enters by the door is a
shepherd of the sheep. "To him the doorkeeper opens,
and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own
sheep by name, and leads them out. "When he puts
forth all his own, he goes before them, and the
sheep follow him because they know his voice. "And a
stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee
from him, because they do not know the voice of
strangers." This figure of speech Jesus spoke to
them, but they did not understand what those things
were which He had been saying to them." John 10:1-6
(NAS)
Jesus said in John 16:25 "These
things I have spoken to you in figurative language;
an hour is coming when I will speak no more to you
in figurative language,
but will tell you plainly of
the Father." (NAS)
Question:
After Jesus rose from the dead, what instructions
are we to follow to get "into Christ" and
"into His body"...the "church?"
- All people are already in Jesus' church.
There are no instructions to follow.
- Just believe and pray.
- Believe, confess Jesus, repent from sin, be
baptized for the forgiveness of sins - obedience
to the gospel - raised from the waters of
baptism to walk in newness of life (all the things that Jesus and His
disciples taught with respect to being clothed
with Christ...and how to enter the
church...which is His body).
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