Living in the Kingdom

Are you in God's kingdom yet? Or do you hope you may be someday? These questions miss the point:  the kingdom of God is already active on earth, and has been for almost 2,000 years. How so? Because Jesus began his ministry by announcing that the time has come, and the kingdom of God was near (Mark 1:15).  He said it was
immediate, and that people should respond:  "Repent and believe the Good News!" he said. Repenting, as Jesus explained it, involves much more than being sorry we've sinned; it is changing the way we think about God, ourselves, and others (for a primer, read the 'Sermon on the Mount' and we'll look at that another time), and that process of changing will continue the rest of our lives.

After all, if the reality around us has changed, we have to think differently about it, just as a newly-married couple begins to think differently about their lives than before. Jesus announced a whole new reality:  God's power and influence had broken into the world of Roman and Jewish thought and was creating a whole new paradigm. He showed that the power of God was now in action by healing the sick, raising the dead and sending the demonic forces packing, something no one else had done in the same way. The word 'kingdom' as he and the other writers of the New Testament used it, comes from a Greek word 'basilea' which describes the influence, rule or authority of a ruler, and Jesus showed that authority and influence through his actions and his teachings. 

So when we recognize this reality, and ask God for a change in our thinking to agree with this new reality, we start being changed, by God's own goodness toward us, into the 'image' or a reflection of Jesus Christ. God himself has come to live in us by the Holy Spirit (John 14:15-27), and that is the only way we can become more like Jesus. That influence, rule or authority of God living in us, creates the kingdom of God in us, and so we live in that kingdom.Right now.

That's the reality Jesus introduced all those centuries ago. That's the reality we live in now. The challenge for us is to respond, in every single corner of our lives, to the call of God to become more like his Son. Jesus commanded us "seek the Kingdom of God above all else" (Mat. 6:33) and when we obey, all parts of our lives begin to fall in line. 

So, what are you doing about that, whether you're a brand-new apprentice of Jesus or a long-time follower? We'll continue to look at that question, and our answers, this year and see what God says. Don't worry: he also says "my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light" (Mat. 11:30). I know you'll find the journey a good one. Let's go!