Kingdom Arrival: The Good News That Changes Everything

A written sermon on Mark 1:1 - 18

Carl Bloch: Sermon on the Mount

The Kingdom Has Arrived

We live in a world where kingdoms rise and fall—where power structures shape the way we live, and where many of us sense that something is not quite right. We long for something better, something truer, something that does not shift beneath our feet.

That longing is not misplaced. It is, in fact, the heartbeat of the biblical story: the story of a kingdom.

From Genesis to Revelation, Scripture tells the story of God’s kingdom—His good and perfect rule, humanity’s rebellion against it, and His relentless mission to restore what was lost. And in Mark 1, we reach a decisive turning point in that story: the arrival of the King.

Preparing for a King

We prepare for the things that matter. Weddings, exams, important meetings—our preparation reveals what we believe is truly significant. And when something matters deeply, we do not prepare casually.

But what if a king were coming?

In 1861, Queen Victoria visited Muckross House in Ireland. The Herbert family received word that the Queen would stay in their home for two days. They understood immediately what was at stake. This was a rare honor—one that could elevate their standing or bring public shame if they were found unprepared.

With years to prepare, they spared no expense. The house was renovated, the gardens redesigned, and servants trained — everything shaped to honor the Queen’s coming.

As the day of her arrival approached, the household lived with growing anticipation and tension. Every movement was rehearsed. Every greeting practiced. And when Queen Victoria finally arrived, the home bore little resemblance to what it had once been. Everything had been shaped around her coming.

But her visit was brief. The Queen departed. Life returned to normal. The changes remained, but the presence of royalty was fleeting.

Now imagine the King of the universe coming—not for a short visit, but to bring His kingdom and reign.How should we prepare?

The Story So Far

To grasp the weight of what Mark is showing us, we need to step back into the larger story of Scripture — because Jesus does not arrive out of nowhere.

In the beginning, God created the world as His kingdom, a place where humanity lived under His good and life-giving rule. But Adam and Eve rejected that rule, and the result was not freedom but chaos, shame, and separation. From that moment on, the story of Scripture becomes the story of a world longing to be restored.

God chose Israel to represent Him among the nations, to live under His rule and reflect His character. Yet they too rebelled. Instead of blessing, they experienced exile. Still, God did not abandon His purposes. Through the prophets, He promised a second and greater exodus — not only for Israel, but for all nations — a return from exile that would reach far deeper than geography.

This is the moment Mark wants us to recognize.

Mark’s Gospel begins with a bold declaration: “The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.” These words deliberately echo Genesis 1. God is not simply adding a new chapter to history; He is beginning something as radical as creation itself. A new era is unfolding.

In the ancient world, “good news” was a royal term. It announced the birth of an emperor or the victory of a king. Mark is making a claim that would have sounded startling to his first readers: Jesus is the true King.

Before this King appears publicly, God sends a messenger to prepare the way. John the Baptist stands in the wilderness calling people to repent — to turn, to realign their lives, and to be ready for what God is about to do. And strikingly, his call is not limited to obvious outsiders. Everyone is summoned.

Through baptism, people publicly marked a decisive break with the past. This was not mere religious symbolism; it was a declaration that life could no longer continue as usual. Something new was coming.

John’s ministry fulfills the promises spoken by Isaiah and Malachi — promises of a messenger who would prepare the way for the Lord. But this preparation was never about geography. It was about hearts. The wilderness was not just a place; it was a condition.

John’s call to repentance was not only about individual failure. It was about a people being made ready for a new exodus — a rescue not from political captivity, but from spiritual exile — as God moved to restore His world through Jesus.

The King’s Arrival

When Jesus finally steps onto the scene, He does not arrive as a political conqueror or a ruler demanding immediate loyalty. Instead, He comes quietly and humbly, identifying Himself with the very people He has come to save.

He steps into the waters of baptism — not because He needs to repent, but because He chooses solidarity. From the very beginning of His ministry, Jesus aligns Himself fully with humanity and with the purposes of God.

And as He is baptized, something extraordinary happens.

The Spirit descends upon Him, marking Him as the anointed King — the one who will lead God’s people into a new and different kingdom. The heavens are torn open, signaling that a barrier has been broken. Just as the curtain of the temple will one day be torn at His crucifixion, this moment declares that access to God is being restored through Jesus.

What is unfolding here is nothing less than the beginning of a new exodus. Just as Israel once passed through the waters of the Red Sea into freedom, Jesus now passes through the waters as the one who will deliver His people from sin and death into the freedom of God’s reign.

And then God speaks.

“You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

These words draw together Israel’s deepest hopes — the promise of a royal Messiah and the calling of the suffering servant. This is who Jesus is. And this moment marks the beginning of His public ministry, the arrival of God’s kingdom in a form that will challenge every expectation.

The Upside-Down Kingdom

Yet this kingdom is not what people were expecting.

Israel longed for a Messiah who would overthrow Rome and restore national power. But Jesus came to confront a far deeper enemy — not merely political oppression, but sin, death, and the forces of darkness that hold humanity captive.

Earthly kingdoms impose their rule through power and coercion. Jesus does not. He invites people into His kingdom through repentance and faith — a turning of allegiance and trust.

Instead of demanding tribute, this King gives gifts. Most remarkably, He gives the Holy Spirit — God’s own presence among His people.

In this kingdom, fishermen become leaders. The rejected are welcomed. Greatness is no longer measured by dominance or status, but by humility, faithfulness, and trust.

And unlike the rulers of this world who remain distant from their people, Jesus enters fully into our world. He shares in our weakness. He bears our suffering. This is the kind of King He is — and this is the kind of kingdom He brings.

The Invitation: Repent and Believe

The first words of Jesus’ public ministry in Mark’s Gospel are clear and urgent:

“The time has come. The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news.”

This is not a suggestion. It is an announcement that demands a response.

Repentance is not simply feeling bad about sin. It is a radical reorientation of life — a turning away from old allegiances and a turning toward a new reality under the reign of God.

Mark immediately shows us what this looks like. When Jesus calls Simon, Andrew, James, and John, they do not hesitate. They leave their nets and follow Him. Their nets were not sinful, but they represented a way of life that could no longer remain unchanged if Jesus was truly King.

To enter the kingdom, they had to let go. They had to trust that life with Jesus would be better than the security they already knew.

And this is where Jesus’ invitation meets us.

Repentance still looks like this today — a willingness to release the world’s way of thinking, trusting, and securing life, and to step into the way of Jesus instead. The question is not whether the kingdom has come near. The question is whether we will turn and follow.

The Gospel: The Best News Ever

Mark calls his account good news — but that raises an important question.What makes this news so good?

The good news is not simply that Jesus has come, but who He is and what He has done. Jesus comes as the rightful King, bringing the reign of God into the world He loves. Through His life, death, and resurrection, He confronts and defeats sin and death — not from a distance, but from within our brokenness.

This kingdom is not reserved for a select few. It is open to all who will repent and believe — all who are willing to turn and trust the King who gives His life for His people.

And this is why the gospel is more than the promise of heaven someday. It is the announcement that heaven has begun to break into earth now. God is restoring what was lost. He is healing what is broken. He is answering the deepest longings of the human heart — not by removing us from the world, but by renewing us within it.

This is the good news Jesus proclaimed. And it is still good news today.

Preparing Our Hearts

So how do we respond to the arrival of this King and His kingdom?

The truth is, we cannot fully prepare our hearts on our own. Left to ourselves, our efforts will always fall short. But this is where the good news deepens. Jesus, our King and Shepherd, does not simply call us to follow — He goes before us. Through His Spirit, He prepares the way and begins the transforming work within us.

Like those who gathered around John the Baptist, we are called to prepare our hearts. That preparation begins not with self-improvement, but with honesty and trust — acknowledging where we have resisted God’s reign, releasing our old ways of securing life, and opening ourselves to what God desires to do in us now.

This passage is not merely a history lesson. It is a call to response — and at the same time, a call to dependence. We do not prepare alone. The same King who announces the kingdom also draws us into it, step by step, reshaping our hearts to reflect His ways.

The King has come.

His kingdom is breaking in.

And we are invited — not to earn our place, but to receive it.

The kingdom has arrived. Will we respond?