Wednesday's Devotion from Epiphany
Luke 13. 18He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it?...20And again he said, “To what should I compare the kingdom of God? (NRSV)
Two things immediately come to mind here. Jesus rarely talks about himself but, rather, he talks a lot about the kingdom of God. Secondly, Jesus rarely repeats himself so I guess he thought this was really important.
The kingdom of God is totally unlike that which most of us experience. It can be an eternal place but I think it is, more importantly, the way that we live our lives together. I, along with a few others refer to it as the kin-dom. It is a place of peace, a non-violent place. It is a place where we no longer erect barriers, one from another. It is a place where no poverty exists— poverty of wealth, poverty of health, even poverty of spirit. It is a place where nations beat their swords into ploughshares and the lion, indeed, lies down with the lamb.
The Baptizer was more right than he knew when he proclaimed the kingdom at hand. Somehow I think that they were a lot closer then than we are now. Somehow I think that we have spent 2000 years moving further away. There have always been glimpses of the kingdom, but that is all. What must we do to grow closer?
The kingdom, O Lord, is that thing just beyond our grasp if and when we reach for it. Help us, then, to work to make our world more kingdom like so that we might recognize Your Kingdom when it comes. Amen
Two things immediately come to mind here. Jesus rarely talks about himself but, rather, he talks a lot about the kingdom of God. Secondly, Jesus rarely repeats himself so I guess he thought this was really important.
The kingdom of God is totally unlike that which most of us experience. It can be an eternal place but I think it is, more importantly, the way that we live our lives together. I, along with a few others refer to it as the kin-dom. It is a place of peace, a non-violent place. It is a place where we no longer erect barriers, one from another. It is a place where no poverty exists— poverty of wealth, poverty of health, even poverty of spirit. It is a place where nations beat their swords into ploughshares and the lion, indeed, lies down with the lamb.
The Baptizer was more right than he knew when he proclaimed the kingdom at hand. Somehow I think that they were a lot closer then than we are now. Somehow I think that we have spent 2000 years moving further away. There have always been glimpses of the kingdom, but that is all. What must we do to grow closer?
The kingdom, O Lord, is that thing just beyond our grasp if and when we reach for it. Help us, then, to work to make our world more kingdom like so that we might recognize Your Kingdom when it comes. Amen
posted by John | 12:15 AM
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