The Gospel, the Kingdom and Baptism

Jesus great Commission to his disciples recorded in Matthew 28:16-20 comes in the context of the advancing of the kingdom of God. Our continuing mission as demonstrated in the preaching of the early church by the apostles and others is to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom. This good news is that the King of God's kingdom has arrived in the person and the redemptive acts of Jesus and it is now being extended through the conversion of rebel sinners to Messiah Jesus. In repenting of sin and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ we enter God's kingdom in its present form even as we pray and labor for its fullness to arrive in the return of the King! Baptism is the initiation sign of entrance into the kingdom. This is one of the meanings attached to this gospel ordinance or ritual of immersion of believers into the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. This mark the beginning of the life of discipleship.