Repent the Kingdom of Heaven Is at Hand

[Mark 1:1 NKJV] 1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

The word “gospel” in the Greek New Testament is used approximately 100 times from Matthew to Revelation. The Greek term is euangelion (yoo-ang-ghel’-ee-on), which means “good tidings” or “good news.”

In the New Testament the term is used in several ways: the gospel of Jesus or Christ (11×), the gospel of the kingdom (3×), the kingdom of heaven (32× in Matthew), the gospel of the kingdom of God (2×), the gospel of the grace of God (1×), and the gospel of God (7×). Altogether, the word “gospel” appears in many contexts that emphasize God’s saving action and sovereign rule.

In this message, we focus on the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which proclaims both grace and the Kingdom of Heaven (also called the Kingdom of God).

Why Begin with Repentance?

Why does Jesus begin His ministry by calling people to repent?

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

I found it surprising that I had not often considered why Jesus and John told the Hebrews to repent, declaring that the Kingdom of Heaven was near. After all, they were speaking to the people who held the oracles of God. Yet repentance is integral to the gospel of grace. In Greek, metanoia means a change of mind; the verb metanoeō means to change one’s mind, to turn from what one is doing (sin), and to turn to God. In Hebrew, “repent” is šûḇ (shoob), meaning to turn back (to God) or to turn away from evil.

Throughout Israel’s history, the people repeatedly worshiped idols: from the Golden Calf (Exodus 32) to Baal, Chemosh, Moloch, the “queen of heaven,” and other Canaanite deities.

[Judges 2:12 NKJV] 12 and they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt; and they followed other gods from [among] the gods of the people who [were] all around them, and they bowed down to them; and they provoked the LORD to anger.

[1 Kings 11:4 NKJV] 4 For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God, as [was] the heart of his father David.

[Jeremiah 7:18 NKJV] 18 “The children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead dough, to make cakes for the queen of heaven; and [they] pour out drink offerings to other gods, that they may provoke Me to anger.”

[Jeremiah 19:4-5 NKJV] 4 “Because they have forsaken Me and made this an alien place, because they have burned incense in it to other gods whom neither they, their fathers, nor the kings of Judah have known, and have filled this place with the blood of the innocents; 5 (they have also built the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire [for] burnt offerings to Baal, which I did not command or speak, nor did it come into My mind),”

Jesus began His ministry with a call to repentance because many Israelites continued to serve other gods—sometimes openly, sometimes in more subtle ways. When outward religion replaces true devotion to God, repentance becomes necessary.

Idolatry, Legalism, and the Tradition of Men

In Jesus’ day, the religious leaders often drifted into a different kind of idolatry: legalism and the traditions of men. They elevated human traditions above the heart of God’s law.

[Matthew 15:1-9 NKJV] 1 Then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, 2 “Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread.” 3 He answered and said to them, “Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? 4 ‘For God commanded, saying, “Honor your father and your mother”; and, “He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.”‘ 5 “But you say, ‘Whoever says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me [is] a gift [to God]”– 6 ‘then he need not honor his father or mother.’ Thus, you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition. 7 “Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: 8 ‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with [their] lips, But their heart is far from Me. 9 And in vain they worship Me, Teaching [as] doctrines the commandments of men.’ ” (Isaiah 29:13)

Jesus confronted religious hypocrisy and exposed how tradition can nullify the heart of God’s commands.

The Gospel of the Kingdom

The Gospel of the Kingdom proclaims the good news of God’s rule and reign over all creation. It is directly associated with Jesus’ ministry and is a core theme across the New Testament.

[Matthew 4:17 NKJV] 17 “From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.'”

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the good news of salvation through faith in Jesus as Messiah, Savior, and Son of God. It encompasses His life, teachings, crucifixion, death, and resurrection, offering forgiveness of sins, eternal life, and reconciliation with God to all who believe.

[John 3:16 NKJV] 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Jesus declared the nearness of the Kingdom of Heaven and repeatedly called people to repentance, emphasizing a change of heart and submission to God’s rule. When Jesus sent out His disciples, He instructed them to proclaim that the Kingdom was near and to demonstrate its arrival by acts of mercy and power.

[Matthew 10:5-15 NKJV] 5 These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. 6 “But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7 “And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ 8 “Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. 9 “Provide neither gold nor silver nor copper in your money belts, 10 “nor bag for [your] journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor staffs; for a worker is worthy of his food. 11 “Now whatever city or town you enter, inquire who in it is worthy, and stay there till you go out. 12 “And when you go into a household, greet it. 13 “If the household is worthy, let your peace come upon it. But if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. 14 “And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet. 15 “Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!”

[Luke 10:1-3, 9-12 NKJV] 1 After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go. 2 Then He said to them, “The harvest truly [is] great, but the laborers [are] few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. 3 “Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves. … 9 “And heal the sick there, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 10 “But whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 11 ‘The very dust of your city which clings to us we wipe off against you. Nevertheless, know this, that the kingdom of God has come near you.’ 12 “But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that Day for Sodom than for that city.”

Jesus also proclaimed the Gospel of Grace and the Gospel of the Kingdom when He read and applied Isaiah 61 in Nazareth.

[Isaiah 61:1-2 NKJV] 1 “The Spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to [those who are] bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD,”

When Jesus read this in Nazareth, the reaction was hostile—He was nearly thrown off a cliff—because His message confronted entrenched expectations and exposed spiritual blindness.

Why the Offense?

Why were many Jewish people offended by the preaching of the Kingdom of Heaven and the call to repentance? The primary reason is that many were not truly following God. They had made a god in their own image. The nation, the Law, and Moses had become ends in themselves. They rejected the Messiah because they expected a national political kingdom limited to Israel rather than a worldwide Kingdom that includes both Jews and Gentiles.

[Acts 13:47 NKJV] 47 “For so the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, that you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ” (Isaiah 42:1–8)

Just as Israel struggled with exclusivism, the Church today can fall into the same error. Bigotry and exclusion are contrary to the gospel. God’s plan was always to make Israel a light to the nations and to bring salvation to the ends of the earth.

Modern Parallels: Syncretism and Spiritual Drift

We must also examine modern parallels. Many professing Christians in our culture have received a syncretistic faith—blending biblical elements with worldly philosophies and false teachings. This has produced departures from sound doctrine and a weak or distorted witness.

[2 Timothy 3:1-7 NKJV] 1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! 6 For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, 7 always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

[2 Thessalonians 2:1-17 NKJV] 1 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, 2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. 3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for [that Day will not come] unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains [will do so] until He is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. 9 The coming of the [lawless one] is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 13 But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, 14 to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle. 16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given [us] everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, 17 comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work.

Paul warns that lawlessness will increase and deception will spread. Yet God’s people are called to stand fast in truth, to hold to sound doctrine, and to preserve the teaching of the gospel.

The Gospel of Grace—and Our Hope

Jesus preached the Gospel of Grace, and we study it because it is the only means of salvation. It is as necessary now as it was then.

[Romans 1:16 NKJV] 16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

[1 Corinthians 15:1-4 NKJV] 1 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,

The gospel is the declaration that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again. It is through faith in this reality that we are saved and called into sanctification by the Spirit.