Is it now? Is it not yet? Is it both? This Kingdom of God thing intrigues me and leaves me hungering for what it may be both in the future, but also now in my present and in the world all around me.
In what is now my favorite blog, Chris Marshall talks an awful lot about it in ways that make me hunger to see it now, to participate in it now, and to invite others to join me in it.
I think in my preaching I'll be focusing on the Kingdom for a while, who knows? Two passages that have been on my mind this last day our Luke 10:8-9 ("When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick who are there and tell them, 'The kingdom of God is near you.'") and Luke 17:20-21 (Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, "The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, 'Her it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within you.")
Any thoughts on the Kingdom of God in general or as found in those passages in specific?
2 comments:
I really enjoyed Chris's new post about Kingdom. It is to be here and now. But God needs US to bring that about. How open am I to letting the Kingdom come through me and my actions and attitude for Him?
Kevin,
Nice to find your blog, and the topics you are addressing. For me, the Kingdom of God is a metaphorical expression that has been used in many different manners, so the context in which it is examined is very important. If you are asking how they are used in these passages, I believe Jesus was speaking of a current possibility that only requires our participation. If you are asking how I see it in today's modern American context, I see it as an outdated expression that has been corrupted by 2000 years of Church dogma and that is trying to be reseized by an earnest and sincere subversive group of Christians. I think that since we don't live in a kingdom, it's metaphorical importance is blurred and inadequate, but I understand its traditional and linguistic appeal.
Personally, I would hope to find a more universal way of talking about it. Not that the kingdom isn't intended to be universal, but the metaphor is inclusive and thus exclusive due to its common usage. Since I am not a Christian, I try to appeal to similar efforts to bring together humanity into a community of mercy, love, forgiveness, grace, reconciliation, etc. without traditionally religious metaphors, but that's just me. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with the phrase.
Just my input.
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