Different Good News

There was a time in the bible when people such as you and I were without God and without hope in the world. The bible is very plain on that. There is a difference between the church and Israel. Jesus Christ said:

Matthew 15:24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

When the Lord came, the bible says that he came unto His own, but you and I were not there. In spite of the fact that many in the world's religious system try to "spiritualize" the words of the bible, it just doesn't make it so. As a matter of fact, to refuse to believe the bible is about as far from spiritual as you can get. There is something called "time past" referred to in the book of Ephesians, and it says:

Ephesians 2:12 That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

We see then that in time past there was something called the commonwealth of Israel and something called the covenants of promise and we were aliens and strangers, having no hope. So unless there is a gospel which will fit us then what hope is there? There are different GOSPELS in the bible.

All good news is not the same news. That's what the word Gospel means...good news. But just as all news in the newspaper is not the same news, so all gospels in the bible are not the same. Let's look at the different messages, called "gospels." We will look at them in the order they show up in your bible. First is the Gospel of the Kingdom.

Matthew 4:23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.

Obviously then, the message the Lord preached was good news about a kingdom. It's called the kingdom of heaven in the book of Matthew, and the good news is that the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Now from the book of Ephesians we saw that there is something called the covenants of promise. In the book of Genesis, God called a man named Abram. His name was changed to Abraham and all through the book of Genesis, God makes promises to Abraham and to his descendents. They are the promises made to the fathers.

The promises have to do with the land, the literal land of Palestine, called the promised land. They also have to do with a literal political government called a kingdom, and they have to do with a coming king who will reign in the kingdom. Jesus Christ was confirming those promises, in his earthly ministry that you read about in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Romans 15:8 Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers:

We see then, from the covenants of promise, that the Kingdom was a particular message for a certain group of people. The gospel of the Kingdom is the good news that it's time for the Kingdom, the Kingdom is at hand. But we know, Gentiles were not promised that Kingdom, only Israel was.

Gentiles will be in the Kingdom, they will inherit the Kingdom. But their even being allowed to enter the Kingdom depends on whether they bless the seed of Abraham, on whether they bless Israel. Remember the Kingdom is based on the covenants of promise. The promises begin in the book of Genesis. Here is the first example. God told Abraham:

Genesis 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

Now those blessings work out, when the Kingdom comes, when the Son of Man, Jesus Christ comes in all his glory and all his holy angels with him, as in Matthew 25, he will say to some people:

Matthew 25:34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

In Matthew 25 you find that certain people will enter the Kingdom on the basis of their treatment of someone who is called "these my brethren." In other words, the people of Israel. So the gospel, the good news, is called the Gospel of the Kingdom. The Lord preached that message. He also picked twelve apostles to preach the same message:

Matthew 10:5 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:

Matthew 10:6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Matthew 10:7 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

So we see that the gospel of the Kingdom was strictly for those to whom the kingdom pertained, the people of Israel. The only way a Gentile ever got involved would be like the Roman Centurion in the gospel of Luke. He blessed the seed of Abraham. As a matter of fact, the disciples told the Lord that he was worthy:

Luke 7:4 And when they came to Jesus, they besought him instantly, saying, That he was worthy for whom he should do this:

Luke 7:5 For he loveth our nation, and he hath built us a synagogue.

He blessed Israel, and so he would have been in line for a blessing, and his son was healed. Remember God's promises to Abraham:

Genesis 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

So the Centurion got a blessing. His son was healed. The only other Gentile the Lord had any dealings with was the Syro-Phonecian woman, the Greek woman in Matthew 15. She was the same. She blessed the seed of Abraham, and when she recognized her position, like a dog under the table, eating the crumbs of the children's bread, the Lord granted her request and healed her daughter.

Most people just don't realize that THESE TWO are the ONLY Gentiles in your bible that the Lord had any dealings with. As far as you and me, we were not there. We were simply not in the picture at that time. People like us were aliens from Israel.

There is also another important fact you should know about the gospel of the Kingdom, the earthly ministry of Christ, those red letters in your bible, the ones people place so much importance on. The gospel of the Kingdom does NOT include the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. In fact, the men who preached the gospel of the Kingdom in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John didn't even KNOW that the Lord was going to die, much less die for anyone's sins.

 I have actually run into people who give you a funny look when you tell them that. Obviously they have been taught something totally different. But what does YOUR BIBLE say on the subject? What is your authority when it comes to the things of God, some religious leader, or God's Holy Word? Just look at the facts of the matter in the bible.

In Matthew 16, near the end of the Lord's ministry, Jesus Christ tells his apostles that he is going to Jerusalem and that he will be killed:

Matthew 16:21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.

Now Peter is standing there, listening to these words. Peter is one of the twelve. He has gone about all over preaching the gospel of the Kingdom. He has healed the sick, raised the dead, cleansed the lepers and cast out devils. Now the Lord has told Peter about his crucifixion. Watch Peter's attitude:

Matthew 16:22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.

So you must understand that the cross of Christ, the very essential element in our salvation is just not in view in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Look at another account:

Luke 18:31 Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished.

Luke 18:32 For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on:

Luke 18:33 And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again.

Luke 18:34 And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.

So the gospel, the good news, of the Kingdom, is not the good news where you are concerned. When the Lord told them he would be put to death, be buried and would rise again the third day, they didn't understand it. So he was crucified, rose from the dead, ascended into heaven, and Peter preached to Israel, in the book of Acts that he was coming again. He told the men of Israel to repent and be converted and that times of refreshing would come and Christ would come again and Israel's sins would be blotted out.

So Peter's message is called the Gospel of the Circumcision. The difference between the gospel of the circumcision and the gospel of the Kingdom is very little. But instead of Peter saying that the kingdom is "at hand" he says that the Lord will return if Israel will repent. In the gospel of the Kingdom the message was that the Kingdom was "at hand." It was "at hand" because the Lord was at hand. He told some Pharisees that the Kingdom is "within you."

I realize that people try to "spiritualize" the message to mean that the kingdom is inside of you, in your heart. But there is no way it could have that meaning. The Kingdom was most certainly not "within" those Pharisees, they were unbelievers. The phrase means "in your midst." It was in their midst because in their midst was the "little flock" of people who did believe and who did receive Jesus Christ as their Messiah. The Lord said to them:

Luke 12:32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

So in the book of Acts, Peter's message is identified as the gospel of the circumcison. It is basically the same message. There is some new information. There is Holy Ghost power to "endure to the end," the power to "become the sons of God."

John 1:11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

So Peter says that if they will repent and be identified with their Messiah in water baptism they will receive the power, the gift of the Holy Ghost. They will have power to endure to the end, to the second coming of Christ.

The gospel of the Kingdom relates back to David, the king of Israel, because Jesus Christ is the son of David, according to the flesh, the heir to the throne of David, the King of Israel. That's the reason Peter gives for the resurrection of Christ, to sit on David's throne. But the gospel of the circumcision relates back to Abraham. Remember he received the sign of circumcision in Genesis 17:

Genesis 17:10 This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.

Now when Israel rejected their King and their Kingdom, Christ was crucified, was buried and was raised again the third day. They didn't know why. The plain facts are that the WHY of the cross of Christ is simply not revealed to the 12 apostles at this time. The Lord appears to them for a period of forty days, he gives them a commission, the so-called great commission of Matthew 28, Mark 16 and Luke 24, but he tells them NOT to depart from Jerusalem but to wait for "the promise of the Father," in other words the baptism with the Holy Ghost.

The Day of Pentecost comes, in Acts chapter two, and 12 Jewish men are baptized by the Lord from Heaven WITH the Holy Ghost and they become witness for the Lord. But contrary to popular opinion in religion today, when Peter begins to preach, he doesn't say "the grace of God that bringeth salvation has appeared to all men."

He doesn't say "God would have all men to be saved and come unto the knowledge of the truth." Instead he begins to preach the cross as a shame. He preaches the cross as a MURDER INDICTMENT against Israel. He doesn't GLORY in the cross. He tells the men of Israel they have murdered their King. Look at what he says:

Acts 2:14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:

Acts 2:22 Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:

Acts 2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made the same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.

Peter is preaching to Israel. He knows nothing at all about the church the body of Christ. He knows nothing at all about the Gospel of Christ. He says you have crucified Christ, but God has raised him from the dead. Now look at the reaction:

Acts 2:37 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?

Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Notice he says FOR the remission of sins. In other words, Peter is preaching an amnesty message. He says I know that you did it ignorantly, that is they demanded the death of Jesus Christ, and so did your rulers, but if you will repent, CHANGE YOUR MIND, about this man, Jesus of Nazareth, recognize that he IS your King, and be identified with him in water baptism, then He will come again and SET UP THE PROMISED KINGDOM. His message is this:

Acts 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.

Acts 3:20 And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:

So what we have here is "the acceptable year of the Lord." God gave Israel this acceptable year to repent, change their minds, and acknowledge their Messiah. Consider that in Luke chapter four, the Lord went into the synagogue in Nazareth, he stood up to read, and he quoted from the book of Isaiah and he proclaimed this here that is going on in the book of Acts:

Luke 4:16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.

Luke 4:17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,

Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

Luke 4:19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

Luke 4:20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.

Luke 4:21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

So Peter preaches the Kingdom message with the one difference. It doesn't have a date. Notice Peter never says that the Kingdom is "at hand." It was "at hand" in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, because the Lord was "at hand." Now the Lord is in Heaven. So the Gospel of the Circumcision is the restored Kingdom at the second coming of Christ:

Acts 3:21 Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

But basically, Israel did not repent. Peter had said repent and be baptized every one of you, but every one did not. Only 3,000 people did in Acts chapter two. Five thousand did in Acts chapter four. Others were added from day to day. But the majority of Israel rejected their King and their Kingdom. The leaders of the nation rejected Christ, and Israel FELL. Peter's ministry is basically from Acts chapter one to Acts chapter twelve. But the ministry of the twelve fades out of the book of Acts. By the end of Acts chapter twelve they are no longer there to be seen. Instead Paul says in the book of Romans that through their fall, salvation is come to the Gentiles.

And then, there is the gospel of the UNCIRCUMCISION:

Saul of Tarsus, a rebel, a blasphemer, an unbeliever, persecuting the little flock of believers in Jerusalem, is on the road to Damascus with letters from the chief priests to locate and imprison believers in Christ. At the time of Acts chapter nine, the ascended and glorified Lord Jesus Christ appears to his worst enemy, Saul is saved and becomes Paul the apostle, and the Lord commits to Paul a totally different message:

Galatians 1:11 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.

Galatians 1:12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

So the Lord commits a message and a ministry to Paul and he preaches for a number of years. A conflict breaks out over the issue of circumcision and keeping the Law of Moses. So the Lord reveals to Paul that he should go up to Jerusalem. Let's look at the reason the Lord told him to go and exactly what happened as the result of the trip:

Galatians 2:1 Then fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me also.

Galatians 2:2 And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain.

Galatians 2:3 But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised:

Galatians 2:4 And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage:

Galatians 2:5 To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you.

Galatians 2:6 But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man's person:) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me:

Galatians 2:7 But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter;

Galatians 2:8 (For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:)

Galatians 2:9 And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.

Galatians 2:10 Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do.

Why do you think that James and Peter and John wanted Paul and Paul's group to remember the poor? Because they had sold all they owned and laid it at the apostles feet, expecting the Kingdom to come.

Acts 2:44 And all that believed were together, and had all things common;

Acts 2:45 And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.

The Kingdom didn't come because Israel as a nation didn't repent. So Israel fell. They were being set aside, and something new was happening:

Romans 11:11 I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.

Now we have looked at the entire passage in the book of Galatians and the reason for doing that is so that we can see several different but important facts as Paul relates this account of that meeting in Jerusalem, the meeting Luke writes about also in Acts chapter fifteen.

First of all, Paul has been preaching and teaching now for at least fourteen years. He is preaching a message he received by revelation for the Lord. He said he wasn't taught it. He didn't learn it from ANY man. Obviously the message he is preaching is DIFFERENT from Peter's message because the Lord REVEALS to Paul that he should go up and communicate it to the apostles at Jerusalem. Why communicate something they already know?

In other words, can you see Paul saying, "now Peter, I know I got this by direct revelation from the Lord, but let me run this by you just to make sure I am doing this right." Do you see Paul saying that? But yet, that is EXACTLY what most in religion today THINK that Paul did. The truth is, Paul didn't go to GET information, he went to GIVE information. He says he went to communicate, to give or to share "That gospel that I preach."

Galatians 2:2 And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain.

Remember the reason for the meeting in Acts chapter fifteen:

Acts 15:1 And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.

Acts 15:2 When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.

Remember that the gospel of the circumcision, the message being preached by Peter, is a covenant message. It relates back to the covenant of circumcision in Genesis. But what is Paul preaching?
 
Galatians 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

Galatians 5:2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.

Galatians 5:3 For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.

Now wait! Peter is PREACHING the gospel OF the circumcision. Does Peter preach circumcision. Yep. Does Peter preach keeping the law? Yep. As a matter of fact, thousands of Jews in Jerusalem believe and look at them here near the end of the book of Acts, when Paul goes to Jerusalem:

Acts 21:19 And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry.

Acts 21:20 And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law:

But you see, Paul is preaching the gospel OF the uncircumcision. A mystery until the Lord revealed it to Paul. A mystery hidden in the scriptures. A mystery going back beyond David the King, beyond Abraham to Abram, the UNCIRCUMCISED Gentile in Genesis chapter 15:

Genesis 15:5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.

Genesis 15:6 And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.

Before being circumcised, before doing any religious works, this man named Abram is justified by faith alone. Faith without works. So there's a MYSTERY here. It is about not one but TWO covenants. Look at what Paul says:

Galatians 4:21 Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law?

Galatians 4:22 For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman.

Galatians 4:23 But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise.

Galatians 4:24 Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.

Galatians 4:25 For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children.

Galatians 4:26 But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.

In other words, the allegory: Hagar represents those who would come to Christ through the Law, the gospel of the circumcision. But Paul is preaching the gospel of the uncircumcision. Look at what Paul says in Romans:

Romans 4:16 Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,

So the gospel of the uncircumcision is separate from that of the circumcision. It is a totally different message. Paul's message during this period of time pertains to the covenants of promise. In other words it is to people who are IN the covenants of promise, people who are not aliens from Israel, but who are allied with Israel. In fact the message is to Jews, Jewish proselytes, Gentiles called Greeks in the bible, who fear the God of Abraham.

So in Acts 13, Barnabas and Saul, or Paul, are separated by the Holy Ghost for a ministry. It turns out to be Paul's provoking ministry to the Jews and it has to do with the remnant which God foreknew. In other words God did NOT cast away his people:

Romans 11:1 I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.

Romans 11:5 Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.

Romans 11:6 And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.

So Paul is looking for the remnant for about ten chapters in the book of Acts, Acts nine up to Acts 19. The body of Christ is being formed and SOME of the people in it are a believing remnant of Jews. Paul is the apostle of the Gentiles, and his main ministry is to the Gentiles. But Paul is also a Jew, and some of the members of the body of Christ are Jews, after the flesh.  Look at the description of the Galations who are in the body:

Galatians 3:27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Galatians 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

So in Paul's ministry there is a SETTING ASIDE of the nation of Israel. At this time, Israel is fallen but they are not yet cast away. And by the time Paul and Barnabas get to Antioch and Iconium Paul has been into quite a number of synagogues of the Jews. Probably in every city he has been to. We don't know how many, but we know that Moses is preached in every city, according to James:

Acts 15:21 For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.

But yet, Paul is preaching the "gospel of the uncircumcision." How then, can members of the Body of Christ be aligned with Peter's ministry, a part of those involved in the "gospel of the circumcison," the message committed to Peter. It is impossible. Paul's message is different from Peter's. In Acts 14, Paul goes into the synagogue in Iconium:

Acts 14:1 And it came to pass in Iconium, that they went both together into the synagogue of the Jews, and so spake, that a great multitude both of the Jews and also of the Greeks believed.

Acts 14:2 But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles, and made their minds evil affected against the brethren.

Now as you follow this account, these unbelieving Jews begin to hound Paul. They stir up the people and an assault is made. They try to stone Paul to death. Paul is aware of it and he flees to Lystra and Derbe, but the Jews follow him there. The unbelieving Jews all they way from Antioch, the place Paul preached in Acts 13, have followed him:

Acts 14:19 And there came thither certain Jews from Antioch and Iconium, who persuaded the people, and having stoned Paul, drew him out of the city, supposing he had been dead.

So Paul is stoned, and we believe that it is here that Paul is caught up to the third heaven as he later writes about in 2 Corinthians:

2 Corinthians 12:1 It is not expedient for me doubtless to glory. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord.

2 Corinthians 12:2 I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven.

So Paul is caught up and sees things which he says it is unlawful for man to utter. We believe that it is here that Paul sees the RAPTURE of the church. So we know that the body of Christ is in no way a part of Peter's kingdom of priests and holy nation. The body of Christ has a heavenly, not an earthly calling. So Paul sees the Rapture, he stands up on his feet and he goes right back to every city he has been to before:

Acts 14:20 Howbeit, as the disciples stood round about him, he rose up, and came into the city: and the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe.

Acts 14:21 And when they had preached the gospel to that city, and had taught many, they returned again to Lystra, and to Iconium, and Antioch,

Acts 14:22 Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.

So Paul now has the BIG PICTURE. The destination of the body of Christ is Heaven, not the earthly kingdom. So, at a point in time, Paul writes the Galatian letter:

Galatians 1:1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)

Galatians 1:2 And all the brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia:

Galatians 1:3 Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ,

Galatians 1:4 Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:

So this is the doctrine Paul preaches. That we will be delivered from this present evil world. Later, Paul gives the specific account of the Rapture. In 1 Thessalonians and again in 1 Corinthians.

But the Galations meanwhile, are being troubled:

Galatians 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:

Galatians 1:7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.

And the whole Galatian letter is taken up with Paul explaining the finished cross work of Christ and total justification by grace through faith, the GOSPEL OF CHRIST.

Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

So Paul says that our justification depends on what Jesus Christ did, not what we are doing or going to do. We are justified by the faith of Christ, and we also have LIFE by his faith:

Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: neverthless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

So we now have the Gospel of the Kingdom, the Gospel of the Circumcison, the Gospel of the Uncircumcision, and the Gospel of Christ. The gospel of Christ preached by Paul was preached to the Jew first and also to the Greek. All Greeks are Gentiles but as we know, all Gentiles are not Greeks. The Greeks in the synagogues were IN the covenants of promise. The MYSTERY pertaining to their salvation was hidden in the scriptures:

1 Corinthians 15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;

1 Corinthians 15:4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Paul could tell those people that the gospel of THEIR salvation was according to the scriptures, hidden there in the scriptures. But he could never say that to people like the Ephesians, or to you and me.

Ephesians 2:11 Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;

Ephesians 2:12 That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

 There is not one single HINT in the scriptures of the salvation of the likes of you and me, aliens and strangers, apart from Israel, apart from the covenants, except for THE GOSPEL OF THE GRACE OF GOD.

Paul traveled all over the regions of Galatia, of Asia, and in Europe. He went into synagogue after synagogue. In those places he found Jews and also Gentiles who feared the God of Abraham. He preached to them the gospel of Christ. Paul said:

Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

The gospel of Christ, Paul says, is the power of God unto salvation, to the Jew first. The reason Paul preached during that time to the Jew first is because of the faithfulness of God. You see, Israel had fallen, but they had not yet been cast away. Most of Israel was in unbelief, but yet, God was still faithful:

Romans 3:1 What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision?

Romans 3:2 Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God.

Romans 3:3 For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect?

The answer to that is no. God is faithful and will be faithful to his promise to Abraham. In the synagogues of the Jews where Paul went and preached he found people, both Jews and Gentiles, who feared the God of Abraham. His message was to them:

Acts 13:26 Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent.

So the remnant, people who God foreknew would hear Paul's gospel and believe it were saved. Now, at the time of Acts chapter twenty, Paul wrote the Roman letter. In it he said:

Romans 15:19 Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.

He says he has fully preached the gospel of Christ and he also says he has the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ:

Romans 15:29 And I am sure that, when I come unto you, I shall come in the fulness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ.

So in Acts chapter twenty, while Paul is in Corinth, he writes the Roman letter. He then leaves Europe, sails back to Asia, and from Miletus he sends for the elders of the church at Ephesus. He is on his way to Jerusalem.

Acts 20:22 And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there:

Acts 20:23 Save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me.

Acts 20:24 But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.

So Paul says that he has received a ministry from the Lord, to testify the gospel of the GRACE OF GOD. He goes to Jerusalem, he is arrested, and becomes the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles. He remains in prison for two years in Jerusalem and in Caesarea and then he is sent to Rome. From Rome, he writes the Ephesian letter:

Ephesians 3:1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,

Paul says that there is a cause for him being a prisoner, literally in prison in Rome. Here is the cause:

Ephesians 3:2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:

Ephesians 3:3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,

So there was a mystery. Paul says that it was made known by revelation directly from the Lord Jesus Christ. The fact that Christ died for some men's sins, was hidden in the scriptures. But here, Paul is talking about something that was unsearchable in the scriptures.

Ephesians 3:8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;

Unsearchable. That means that search as you will, you will never find any hint in the Hebrew scriptures about ungodly, sinful people like those Ephesians to whom Paul wrote the letter, and like you and me, ever having any hope. This was a mystery, not hidden in the scriptures, but hid in God:

Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:

Ephesians 3:10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,

Paul is talking about the manifold wisdom, the multi faceted wisdom of God. He is talking about the unsearchable riches of Christ. And what is the mystery? It is the good news that the Ephesians, and that Barbarians and Scythians, and people like you and me can be saved by grace alone through faith alone in what Christ did on the cross.

Saved by grace, sealed with the holy Spirit, and ready to be delivered from this present evil world. Saved, and made a part of the same body, fellowheirs of God, and Christ, right along with Paul, and Titus and Timothy and the Galatians, the Corinthians, the Thessalonians and the Romans:

Ephesians 3:6 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:

Then, the good news for you and I today is: CHRIST DIED FOR OUR SINS, he was buried, and he ROSE AGAIN the third day. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, nothing more and nothing less, and thou shalt be saved!