In Matthew 24, Luke 21, and Mark 13, we saw the judgment that came upon Jerusalem in 70 AD. This closed or fulfilled the Mosaic Covenant and instituted God’s New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34).
Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21 mark the transition from the old to the new. The warning of deceivers, false Messiah, wars, rumors of wars, famines, pestilence, and earthquakes… The destruction of Jerusalem was the Great Tribulation they spoke of and John in Revelation also.
Why was the Mosaic Covenant ending? Because its purpose was complete. The Mosaic Covenant, the Law, was meant to show the Jews they couldn’t keep it. The Law was meant to lead them to receive the Messiah so they could be reconciled with God. Their rejection of Jesus finished the purpose of the Mosaic Covenant. The Mosaic Covenant was meant to fulfill God’s promise to Abraham. What did God promise Abraham? We see this promise in Genesis 12:1-3.
How would the Mosaic law fulfill these promises? Since the Jews couldn’t keep the law, they were enslaved to sin. This brought them under the curses they agreed to in Deuteronomy 27. This would require judgment upon them for breaking the Mosaic law. So God sent his “Servant,” his “Son,” who was a Jew by birth from the tribe of Judah and the family of David, to be the one the “Curse” of the law would fall upon. Therefore, he became the Israel of God, and with his death, he ended the power of evil over the “Elect” of God, having the punishment for their sin exhausted on himself. Therefore, all who have faith in the salvation brought by the Son’s sacrifice are children of Abraham, children of faith…
In Galatians 3:6-14 Paul says that God promises to bless all the nations through the same faith as Abraham.
With the resurrection of Christ, death was defeated, and the New Covenant began, and the kingdom of God was established in Heaven and on Earth.
The Great Tribulation that took place in 70 AD was the pivot from the old paradigm of darkness to the new kingdom of God’s light. This was the shaking of the heavens and the passing away of the earth. Jesus states this in the parable of the fig tree (Matthew 24:32-35).
Mark 13:28-31 is exactly the same as Matthew, but in Luke, there’s a small difference. In Luke 21:29-33, Jesus says, “In the same way, when you see all these things, recognize that ‘the kingdom of God is near,’ In Mark and Matthew, it says, ‘He is near’ instead of ‘the kingdom of God is near.’ What does this show us? That ‘He’, Jesus, is the ‘kingdom of God.’ This is why the Jews missed their Messiah then and why so many miss who he is today. The kingdom is the king; the king is the kingdom. This is mind-blowing.
The old heavens and earth (Jewish religion, rituals, sacrifices, leadership, and land) would be shaken and passed away, and a new heaven and earth would be instituted. Paul says this in Philippians 2:6-11.
Before the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, no one knew who he was. He had no influence (Colossians 2:13-15; 13).
The prophet Isaiah says in Isaiah 51:6 everything else can be destroyed but his salvation will never be destroyed.
Paul acknowledges this pivot in Romans 8:1-2.
That generation that Jesus was speaking to would not pass away before the old heaven and earth would be removed, and a new heaven and earth would be revealed. The writer of Hebrews confirms the new paradigm in Hebrews 12:24-29.
Yeshua Hamashiah (Ha-ma-she-a) Jesus the Messiah or Yeshua (Salvation) Hamashiah (anointed one).
When Jesus died, something happened that made the world a different place. The first indication of the world-changing was three days after his death, he rose from the dead; death was defeated. With the death of Jesus, God exhibited his love for mankind through His Son, exhausting the consequences of the sin of humanity upon him, and with his resurrection, God proclaimed the glory of His Son as the ruler of heaven and earth.
The death of Jesus destroyed the old heavens, and his resurrection destroyed the old earth.
We now live in a new heaven, where Jesus is seated at the Father’s right hand with all the power and authority in the visible and invisible creation. We now live in a new earth where the Gospel of the kingdom is overtaking the entire world.
Jesus taught his disciples to pray; “Our Father in heaven, your name be honored as holy. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Jesus is ruling in heaven right now, therefore he is also ruling on earth right now. God’s will be done on earth!
