To the Uttermost Ends

Acts 28:30-31 "Each one of these words—Lord, Jesus, and Christ—is essential to the meaning of how God reigns. We start with Jesus—the peasant Jewish carpenter of lowly Nazareth. He was sinless, but his life ended in complete embarrassment. Condemned as a criminal, hung naked on two pieces of wood, jeered and scorned by his own people. Now, this would have been a confirmation of the normal way things work in this world: the powerful crush the weak; the innocent die just like the wicked. But in Jesus’ case, a mighty reversal took place. Three days later, his heart began to beat, his blood began to flood, his cold, mangled corpse warmed again. Now this must mean that Jesus is the Christ—the anointed one long anticipated from ancient times. And if he is, then he is also the 'Lord'—that is, the Sovereign master over all. And if Jesus is Christ the Lord, that tells us how God reigns: he subverts the cruel power and cunning wisdom of this world. Instead of taking from others for his own advantage, he gives to others for their advantage. He turns it all upside down. He shows us that the way up is down, the way to greatness is humility, that love triumphs over hatred. Most importantly, he offers to us a way to be part of his kingdom—not by demanding that we climb the lofty heights to his throne, but by descending to us in love. That is what it means to 'proclaim the kingdom of God and teach about the Lord Jesus Christ.' It means to say, 'There is a kingdom, and God reigns through Jesus who loves us and gave himself for us.' The Christian mission is to prove that this world has a King, and that this King is Jesus."