I have listened to a 100 or so sermons of MLJ in the recent couple of months and I wanted to state a few things that are not noted in the sermon of this post, in reference to the gospel. A preacher cannot say all things about the gospel in a single sermon.
I have spent quite a lot of time the past decade or so learning about the gospel. It is not some 5-minute task, like a lot of evangelists seem to believe…. Pastor Paul Washer has said that one could spend eternity meditating upon the wonders of the gospel. I am beginning to see that he is right.
Aspects of the gospel that are not in this sermon; that I have heard in other MLJ sermons:
- The first mention of the gospel is in Genesis 3:15
- There is only one gospel
- The one gospel is core to God’s plan of redemption
- God’s plan of redemption is revealed in a progressive manner via the covenants of the Bible (recent posts on the covenant of grace in the Old and New Testaments attest to this; see the CATEGORY, Covenant Theology for more on that topic)
- God’s plan of redemption culminated in the New Covenant in Christ’s blood, those very words spoken by Him: Luke 22:19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
20 And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood - Also in Luke: Luke 24:27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself
- There is only one people of God
- Ephesians 3:6 This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel [Paul is not a rogue teacher with a different gospel message; he was appointed by Christ in Acts 9 to minister that one gospel message that originated with God’s pronouncement in Genesis 3:15; that was portrayed via ‘types’ in the Ark; the Exodus; the Levitical sacrificial system; prophesied by Jeremiah and Ezekiel…]
- [In the final third of the sermon below, MLJ recites words by Paul beginning at 1 Cor. 15:25, indicating, at least, that Paul was a preacher of that one gospel message]
- Gentiles were grafted into this people by God Himself (study Ephesians – MLJ has a long series on that epistle at MLJTrust, YouTube)
- In other words, the teachings of dispensationalism are very wrong: that there are two peoples of God; that there are two ways of salvation. [he never mentioned the title, dispensationalism; but he did critique a system of thought the Darby propagated in 1830ff; that is dispensationalism]
- MLJ addressed those in several of my recent posts about the books of Daniel and Revelation
The sermon in this post is from the YouTube site, MLJTrust.
A sermon by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones on The Gospel of the Kingdom https://www.mljtrust.org/sermons/king…
“The ultimate purpose of the gospel is to make us obedient to God. That’s its ultimate purpose. The ultimate purpose of the gospel is to bring us to a condition in which we shall glorify God and live to his praise and keep his commandments.” ―Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Sermon Description [by MLJTrust]:
What is the gospel is? A great tragedy today (even among professing Christians) is not knowing what the gospel of Jesus Christ is.
In this Christmas sermon on Matthew 4:23 titled “The Gospel of the Kingdom,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones preaches on the message that frames the beginning and end of the Lord Jesus’s ministry. By looking at both Matthew 4:23 and 24:14, he explores the message of the gospel from the perspective of the kingdom of God.
Dr. Lloyd-Jones reminds that the greatness of the gospel is the good news of God’s kingdom (or His rule and reign).
People are often guilty of reducing the gospel to subjective terms such as personal happiness or peace. They often start with themselves and end with themselves. But as Dr. Lloyd-Jones teaches, the gospel of the kingdom reminds that the whole world is involved in God’s redemption.
The good news of the kingdom reminds that the Son of God came to this earth not to simply make people respectable, but to make them obedient to God. This obedience to the King brings Him glory. Listen as Dr. Lloyd-Jones answers the most important question of all: why was it necessary for Jesus Christ to come into the world?
Sermon Breakdown [by MLJTrust]:
- The gospel of the kingdom means the rule of God, the reign of God.
The kingdom of God is not political or outward. It is a mystery that grows secretly.
- The kingdom of God comes through the preaching of the gospel, not through force or politics.
- The kingdom of God is established as individuals are translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God’s Son.
- The kingdom of God will be fully established when Christ returns, judges the world, and creates a new heaven and new earth.
- We must repent and believe the gospel to enter God’s kingdom.
Video-page link for MLJTrust: https://www.youtube.com/@MLJTrust/videos
Playlist-page link: https://www.youtube.com/@MLJTrust/playlists