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his kingdom there will be no end (Luke 1:32–33).
However, Jesus’ kingship took
on a more poignant meaning when the gospel writers used another image from the Hebrew Scriptures to express their faith about who Jesus is. Recalling Isaiah’s image of the “suffering servant” (Chapter 53), Jesus’ suffering and death made atonement for human sin within God’s plan of saving grace. And on the cross, Jesus cries out the deepest lament of Psalm 22: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46). Many such times throughout the gospel, Matthew assured his read- ers that Jesus’ life and death fulfill the scriptures. At the point of his arrest, Jesus himself proclaims, “But all this has taken place, so that the scriptures of the prophets may be fulfilled” (Matthew 26:56).
Life in the Kingdom
The Early Church confessed Jesus as Lord and Saviour. They also remembered his teaching and preaching about how to live as God’s redeemed people. As the gospel writers told the good news, they recalled that Jesus spoke of the continuing impor- tance of adhering to “the law and the prophets” to guide how one lives. Jesus preached and dem- onstrated that the scriptures had been fulfilled and given their deep- est meaning in the Kingdom of God. As the law and the prophets had taught, a life lived in response to God’s saving grace must be expressed in ways that embody God’s compassion, righteous- ness and will for humanity.
Regarding the Sabbath com- mand, for example, Jesus dem- onstrated God’s righteousness based in a scriptural command.
This image of the Rev. Dr. J.A. and Marjorie MacInnis was taken in Lon- don, England, as they were leaving for the Coronation of Queen Eliza- beth II, June 2, 1953, where they were representing The Presbyterian Church in Canada. PHOTO CREDIT: PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH ARCHIVES
He confronted the arrogance and authoritarianism of those who had a lot to lose in terms of the world’s power, privilege and status.
Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sab- bath. And just then, there ap- peared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eight- een years. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said, “Woman, you are set free from your ailment.” But the leader of the synagogue [was] indig- nant because Jesus had cured on the sabbath. But the Lord answered him and said, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the man- ger, and lead it away to give it water? And ought not this woman...be set free from this bondage on the sabbath day?” (Luke 13:10–17, excerpts) The interpretation of the Sab-
bath commandment was an issue in Jewish communities of Jesus’ day because all Jews understood the Sabbath to be one of the most important marks of their
faith. During his ministry, Jesus acted and healed on the Sabbath, showing how compassion and life-giving actions fulfill the true, liberating meaning of the Sab- bath command. While ordinary Jews might have accepted Jesus’ words, his actions challenged Jewish interpreters and leaders who placed a higher value on their authority over the law than on the law’s expression of God’s gracious will.
Jesus insisted a true fulfillment of the commandments of the He- brew Scriptures expressed God’s righteousness—a righteousness that went beyond the words of the law to the inner meaning of the law. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gave a series of illustra- tions that all started with “You have heard that it was said” and continued with his reinterpretation of a commandment.
You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, “You shall not murder”; and “who- ever murders shall be liable to judgment.” But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother
or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, “You fool,” you will be liable to the hell of fire (Matthew 5: 21–22). You have heard that it was said, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also (Mat- thew 5: 38–39).
In dramatic language, Jesus conveyed the Kingdom’s demands for righteousness. He deepened the commandments as he com- municated the radical demands of the Kingdom to live according to God’s will. Jesus also used the Hebrew Scriptures to summarize God’s righteousness for all who would be his followers. In so do- ing, he extended the community boundaries of God’s people.
One of the scribes came near and asked him, “Which com- mandment is the first of all?” Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbour as your- self” (Mark 12:28–31).
Jesus’ response illustrated a significant passage from Deuter- onomy (6:4–5) and a verse from Leviticus (19:18). It summarized the law in a way that the rabbis and Jews of his day would have understood. However, in Luke’s version of the Great Command- ment (10:25–37), Jesus was asked a further question: “Who is my neighbour?” To whom is God’s love to be extended? In the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus showed that the righteous- ness God’s people are to live out
does not stop at the convenient boundaries of our own “group.”
Jesus’ teaching, preaching, acts of healing and confrontations all demonstrated that God’s right- eousness, as it had first been ex- pressed in the Hebrew Scriptures, would be fulfilled and deepened in the Kingdom. Sometimes, he confronted people, especially the powerful who felt secure in their position of wealth, with their arro- gance and hypocrisy. Always, he demonstrated the radical depth of commitment to God and God alone that the Kingdom demanded.
The Early Church professed that Jesus was the fulfillment of all the hopes and prophecies of the He- brew Scriptures. They found in those scriptures the traditions and texts that helped them express their faith in who Jesus was and what the Kingdom he preached on required of his followers. And they confessed that God had brought those scriptures to full realization in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the Christ.
The Old Testament has eve- rything to do with the Christian faith! The revelation of God’s will and righteousness; the sure and unbreakable promises to God’s people; the history, poetry, proph- ecies and wisdom concerning God’s grace, justice and stead- fast love—all of this is the rich heritage and tradition of the Old Testament. Jesus depended on the Old Testament because it was the faith of his ancestors, the root of his identity and the source of his teachings. Those who con- fess Christ are the heirs of the liv- ing heritage of the Old Testament. We continue to depend on it to give us our roots, to ground our identity as God’s people, and to help us express our faith in Jesus.
Connection
4 SUMMER 2023
Jesus’ kingship took on a more poignant meaning
PRESBYTERIAN
presbyterian.ca
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Presbyterian Witness at the Queen’s Coronation in 1953
Every year the Assembly sends loyal addresses to the Prime Minister, the Assembly of First Nations, and this year, for the first time, a loyal address was sent to King Charles III. The cor- onation for Charles took place on May 6, 2023. The following is a memory from 1953.
The Rev. Dr. John A. MacIn-
nis (1886–1964) was born on a farm in Mira, Cape Breton. Before ordination, he served in the Canadian military service in Britain and France during World War I. He held degrees in theol- ogy from Queen’s University in Kingston and Union in New York.
John first served a congrega- tion in Por t Alice on Vancouver Island, B.C., before being called
to be the assistant minister at First Presbyterian Church in Edmonton, Alta. While in Ed- monton, he married Marjorie McQueen, who was the daugh- ter of the senior minister at First Presbyterian Church. After leav- ing Edmonton, John and Marjorie went on to serve congregations in New Liskeard (now City of Temiskaming Shores) and Orillia
in Ontario.
In recognition of John’s vig-
orous, dedicated ministry and wise leadership, Knox College honoured him with the degree of Doctor of Divinity in 1947. In 1952, he was elected Modera- tor of the General Assembly and thus represented the church at the coronation of Queen Eliza- beth in 1953.