The King will bring a whole new world!
Irenaeus was a 2nd century early church father with some interesting cross-generational connections that connected him, in a sense, more directly to the teachings of Jesus than we experience today. You see, Irenaeus was a disciple of Polycarp who was in turn a disciple of the Apostle John, an eyewitness to Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, and teaching. And so, Irenaeus could write things like “as the elders who saw John, the disciple of the Lord, related that they had heard from him how the Lord used to teach…” What Irenaeus is saying here is that he learned from a man who had heard, first-hand, John speak of Jesus’ teaching! And some of the most wonderful things Irenaeus learned from John through Polycarp was Jesus’ teaching on what His kingdom would be like when He returned. Crops and fruits will be super abundant in ways that exceed well beyond our experience and even imagination. Single vines that produce thousands of grapes and similar production from heads of grain and fruit trees and vegetables. And as Irenaeus writes, “all animals…should in those days become peaceful and harmonious among each other, and be in perfect subjection to man.” And as for man, when Christ’s kingdom comes, “the righteous shall bear rule upon their rising from the dead; when also the creation, [will have been] renovated and set free.” And all of this isn’t a matter of Jesus’ teaching made fanciful through 3 generations of discipleship for the scriptures speak of these very kinds of things in Christ’s coming kingdom, some of which we see in Isaiah 11:1-16. And one can’t help but think that Jesus shared these kinds of wonderful insights with the Twelve when “He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and SPEAKING ABOUT THE KINGDOM OF GOD” (Acts 1:3). And with the whole counsel of the scriptures as our guide, we know that Jesus was, at least in part, teaching that the King will bring a whole new world! Is this something you’re excited about and looking forward to?
We invite you to come join us this Sunday morning for our in-person worship service at Leptondale Bible Church in Newburgh, starting at 10:55 AM. For those unable to attend, our service can be viewed live on the church’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/leptondalebiblechurch. This Sunday, we’ll resume a series from Isaiah titled “In That Day: The Kingdom in Isaiah.” This Sunday’s message from Isaiah 11:1-16 is titled “The King will bring a whole new world!”
God bless!
Pastor Mike
