Dever: The world is Jesus’ mission!

From the Nation (Jews) to the Nations (Gentiles)

The world is Jesus’ mission! In the plan of God, the church becomes the new Israel. On the heels of Judas’s betrayal and death, the apostles followed Jesus’ practice and maintained their number at twelve. In this, they appear to have been fulfilling the role of Israel with its twelve tribes. This does not means God’s “A” plan had failed, forcing him to move to plan “B.” God had always planned for Israel to be the seed that falls into the ground, dies, and is transformed for the blessing of the nations (cf. John 12:24).

Old Testament.One of the greatest themes in the Old Testament is God’s plan to glorify his name in all nations of the earth through his chosen people. The theme begins in Genesis 12 when God promises Abraham that his seed will be a blessing to all nations. The theme rises and falls throughout the Old Testament, sometimes with more strength, sometimes with less, until Jesus recovers it with full clarity and force.

Jesus’ ministry.Jesus, the seed of Abraham (Matt. 1:1), commissioned his apostles to preach the good news of forgiveness to all the peoples of the earth. And they, the new Israel in him, were to proclaim that Jesus is Lord of all (Acts 10:36; 17:31). Before the events recorded in Acts even begin, the ministry of Jesus and his followers had already surrendered much of its “Jewishness.” Non-Jews, like the Roman centurion (Matt. 8:5-13) or the half-breed Samaritans (John 4), kept coming to faith. Meanwhile, the Jews kept rejecting Jesus.

Pentecost.At Pentecost, the curse of national and linguistic division set upon humankind after the Tower of Babel began to be reversed, as Peter and the Eleven were given the ability to speak in the tongues of many nations (Acts 2:5-12). The emphasis here is not yet on the Gentiles but on the multitude of nations (2:5). Gentiles first become receptive to the gospel a bit later. In chapter 8, “the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God” (8:14).

Dever, M. (2005). The message of the new testament: promises kept. Wheaton, IL: Crossway.

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