Week 2 - Matthew 3-4 - Kingdom of Heaven

The ancients did not have a highlighter.  

Some used repetition, to highlight somethings importance:

Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3

Some used repetitive conjugation:

“For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” Romans 11:36

Matthew used the word “behold” (idou).  

In this section (Matthew 3-4), Matthew wants us to note two things:

1. That identification of Jesus as the Son of God was attested to by not only John’s vision of Heaven and but also by God’s voice coming from heaven to earth (Matthew 3:16-17).  This is notable because two testimonies were required to give evidence (Deuteronomy 19:15).
2. That the angels ministered to Jesus only after His temptation was complete (Matthew 4:11).  This is notable, because Jesus did not have their support (Hebrews 1:13-14) during the testing.  He did not use either His divine nature nor their support to withstand Satan’s temptations.  He was tempted as we are (Hebrews 4:14-16) and unlike Adam, Satan, and David, who all succumbed to the same temptations, Jesus withstood it.

In this way, Matthew declares to us that Jesus is fully God and fully man.

After His baptism and temptation, Jesus begins to preach the message of John.

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Jesus heralded the same message as John (Matthew 3:1-2) and it is the same message, that He later instructs His disciples to herald (Matthew 10:7).  

We are not being asked to cleanup up our act before it arrives.  That is never requested or nor required (Romans 5:7-8).  

The word “at hand” (engizō) is used in perfect tense, just like when the hour of His betrayal and His betrayer (Matthew 26:45-47) arrived, while he was still speaking.

Any sense of “not yet” is limited only to our own acceptance of that kingdom’s authority.