4 Jesus Announces The Kingdom

Shortly after John the Baptist was put in prison Jesus began His ministry. Mark provides a detailed discussion of the events that caused him to be put in prison as well as his death in chapter six. For now it is helpful to introduce the family of Herod the Great.

Mark says that Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God. He was proclaiming the appointed time of His arrival on earth as prophesied in the Old Testament. Two term frequently found in the New Testament are the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven. It is important to distinguish between these two terms because both of them appear in the Gospels and elsewhere. The basic distinction is that the “Kingdom of God” which appears here in Mark chapter one is universal in that it includes all the elect and those who have been regenerated of all ages (Luke 13:28-29; Hebrews 12:22-23. Therefore this is the more inclusive term to include all “saved” people of all times. Whereas the term “Kingdom of Heaven” is a very Messianic term found in the book of Matthew. It can be said that it is Davidic, and Messianic describing the establishment of the Kingdom of God on the earth over Israel and placing them in a position of government over the nations of the world. Davidic refers to the covenant which bears his name given in II Samuel 7:18-29. The Davidic Covenant and it had four eternal promises.