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NASB | Matthew 11:11 "Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Matthew 11:11 "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater [in privilege] than he. |
Subject: "Least in the kingdom of God"? |
Bible Note: Zsuzsi, Look at John 1:12-13 in this context of being born of a woman or born of the Spirit. It is the the Spirit that give birth to etrnal life in the new Covenant. Yes, the OT saints were saved by faith, but thgat was only realized after the cricifixion of Christ when the New Covenant in his blood was established. His Kingdom was esatablishe with the Ascension and all the references to his dominion are mentioned in Daniel 7:13,26-27; 22:69 Acts 7:56. It is the least in the Kingdom that are identified with Christ because they are in Christ and rule with Him as we see in Daniel 7:26-27, Matt 25:45 and various places in the book of Revelation. I think you are on the right track, in the sense that jesus allowed himself to become one of us, but I still beleieve in the passages in question, i.e Matt 11:11 He is referring to his disciples in the Kingdom (Church) who are identified with Him and so greater than those of the OT who were identified with Moses (Romans 10:20). the Pharises were unwilling to stop identifying with Moses and start identifying witrh Jesus. That is a lot of what Romans and hebrews is all about. John the batizer was the greatest of the OT saints becasue he share more fully than any of them in the Messiah's mission even though he died before its consumation on the cross. He was filled with the Holy Spirit even in his mother's womb in order to prepare him for his mission as the forerunner (Luke 1:15,41. It is Jesus Himself who contrasts the Old and new Covenants in various places succh as the anaology of the Old and new Wineskins. He inaugurates His mission by changing water into wine. It is He who called it the New Covenant in Matt 26:28. I am now off the point of the "least" but found it har to stop connection the jots and tittles. Praying you have a Spirit filled Pentecost. Emmaus |