External Challenges to the Kingdom

Pentecost initiated a new community of followers of Israel's God, identified by their living union with Him through sharing in the life of His Son by His indwelling Spirit. As the beginning of God's renewed human race, this community was set in contradistinction to the rest of mankind - the people of Israel as much as the pagan Gentile world. This contradistinction couldn't go unnoticed, and it provoked confusion, fear, and derision in some, and hostility and open opposition in others. Until the consummation, Messiah's kingdom and rule would exist within the dominion and power of human kingdoms, and it was precisely this dynamic that God ordained to testify of His triumph and build His kingdom in the world.