Day 2: Why Jesus is Central to All Things?
As we move through these readings together, you will see that we are often discussing truths related to our PAST and also our FUTURE. Understanding the PAST helps us to get our bearings in terms of where we have come from. Looking to the FUTURE helps to see where we are going. From this Past>Future perspective we are able to understand our present. What we will discover is that Jesus is at the beginning of things and He is at the end of things. Knowing Him is vitally important to understanding what life is really about.
Here at the beginning of things, it is important to make something clear. It is not our goal, or within our ability, to prove that the things we are sharing are true. We have become convinced that these things are true and represent reality. We are convinced and believe that the Bible is the Word of the One True God and that Jesus is the True King and Savior. (Click here to read more about our core commitments).
We simply invite you to read through these posts with an open mind. Hear what the Scriptures teach about Jesus. You might even ask, “What would this mean if this is really true?”
Jesus is in The Beginning (He is the Creator)
Jesus is the person who is at the center of all we will discuss. Jesus’ name means, “The Lord Saves.” He has one name, but many titles. As we move through this study we will discover that Jesus is our Teacher and calls us to follow His way of life. Jesus is also called Messiah (Hebrew) and Christ (Greek), a term which means “the Anointed King.” Jesus is called Lord and so He is Master over all things.
Consider this:
Colossians 1:15–18
He [Christ] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
For everything was created by Him,
in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—
all things have been created through Him and for Him.
He is before all things, and by Him all things hold together.
He is also the head of the body, the church;
He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
so that He might come to have first place in everything.
Jesus is centrally important to all things. We start with the passage from Colossians so that you can just get a taste of who He is. Jesus came to reveal the One True God to us. Everything that now exists was created by, through, and for Jesus! Think about that for minute. Everything belongs to Jesus! This is why He holds “first place” in everything. Reality itself is shaped and formed by Jesus.
As we move through this study, we will learn about Him and how He calls us into a deep, personal relationship.
Jesus is in The Future (He is The King)
We return to a passage we read yesterday:
Mark 1:14–17
…Jesus went to Galilee, preaching the Good News of God:
“The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe in the good news!”
As He was passing along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, Simon’s brother. They were casting a net into the sea, since they were fishermen. 1:17 “Follow Me,” Jesus told them, “and I will make you fish for people!”
Jesus came to reveal the One True God to us. What Jesus teaches us about God and His Kingdom is good news and has its origin in God Himself. You often hear this “good news” referred to as The Gospel. Ever since the first man and woman rebelled against God The Creator, He has been working in and through History—making promises to His people—to fix and mend what had been broken in our rebellion. Throughout the whole story of humanity, God has been working to establish His Kingdom where truth, goodness, and beauty shape all things. Jesus told his first followers that the time of preparation had been fulfilled and that this glorious reality was now near.
Jesus’ message to His first followers and us is that The Kingdom has come near.
The Kingdom
is the place where the Truth of God defines reality, the Goodness of God is experienced deeply, and the Glory of God is seen clearly.
When we look at the overall big picture of the Bible and what it says about history, we discover that when all is complete, The Kingdom of God—the Kingdom of Christ the Beloved Son—will be the only government and reality that exists on planet earth! In the last book of the Bible, John (one of Jesus’ first students) is given a glimpse of this future reality:
Revelation 11:15
Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become The Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever.” {NET}
In the end, all that exists will be under the rule of the One True God and His Christ, Messiah – Jesus. So, here is what every human needs to know: The Kingdom of God is coming and it cannot be stopped. This one point makes understanding the nature of The Kingdom vitally important for us.
This is why Jesus and His first followers believed the news about The Kingdom being near was “good news.” During His earthly life, Jesus gave people a taste of The Kingdom:
Matthew 9:35
Then Jesus went to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness.
When The Kingdom comes in full, there will be no more disease or death. There will be no more rebellion against the One True God. Everything will be set right, put in its proper place. There will be no evil and “no mourning, crying or pain” (see Revelation 21:4). The Kingdom is a revolution. Jesus is inviting us into the present reality of His revolution, preparing us for the day when the Kingdom comes in its full reality.
Now, Jesus is calling to us to believe these things to be true. He is calling us to trust Him and follow so that we can be trained to be people who are prepared for The Kingdom when it comes. All of these MilktoMeat readings will be focused in that direction.
Tomorrow, we will talk more about the Kingdom and what we are being called up and into.
*You can find a complete list of all the MilktoMeat readings here.
