The Kingdom of God

What Jesus calls the "kingdom of God" (basileia,realm, dominion) is also referred to in Matthew's gospel as "the kingdom of the heavens."
The kingdom (kin-dom) can be "seen" and "entered."
Our descriptive words:
--Paradise
--Utopia
--Fulfillment
--Life
--Peaceful
--"perfection"
--all-encompassing
--powerful
--beauty
--community of God

With regard to "perfection," we referenced Matthew 5:48, when Jesus says (after teaching love of enemy) "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." The term "teleios" might be translated as "whole," "complete," or "fulfilled." We refelcted on those textures of meaning when we considered what it means to be the "community of God."
Matthew 4:17 "Repent, the kingdom of God is at hand ("has come near")." Jesus announces the kingdom of God in our midst. So turn around, be changed, welcome God's realm opening to you!
Matthew 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of the heavens"
Matthew 11:12 "From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of the heavens has suffered violence . . ." Again, in a historical context. The realm of God's nonviolent unbounded love suffers violence, absorbs it, overcomes it. God's realm never inflicts violence.

The parables: The kingdom shall be compared to . . . a man throwing handfulls of good seed ev
erywhere, on rocky and thorny territory just as much as fertile territory. The kingdom is like leaven in a loaf . . .
Mark 9:1 "Some of you standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come in power." What then, is the nature of this power, and how has it come?
Mark 10:15 " It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom." This comes right after a fine young man with many possessions did not follow Jesus because he was unwilling to let go of his possessions and allow them to be converted into that which the poor badly needed.
John 3:3 "Unless one is born anew ("from above") they cannot see the kingdom of God."
Fred Buechner says that the kingdom of God is not a place but a condition. "Insofar as here and there, now and then, God's will is being done in various odd ways among us even at this moment, the kingdom has come already. Insofar as all the odd ways we do God's will are half-baked and half-hearted, the kingdom is still a long way off-- a hell of a long way off, to be more precise and theological.
As a poet, Jesus is maybe at his best in describing the feeling you get when your glimpse (the kingdom). It's like finding a million dollars in a field, he says, or a jewel worth a king's ransom.
It's like finding something you hated to lose and thought you'd never find again--an old keepsake, a stray sheep, a missing child. When the kingdom really comes, it's as if the thing you you lost and thought you'd never find again is you." (Buechner, Wishful Thinking).
Let's continue this week!

The Faith of God

(This is a reflection reprinted from our 2008 "Jesus 101" class)

God's faith in us is always greater than our faith in God. Consider God's faith in us as yet another expression of God's immeasureable grace. What does this mean for our discipleship? The upcoming Christmas narrative will remind us that God comes among us defenseless; in the Christ-child, God's blessed future for the whole world is placed in our hands for our care. The baby is fragile enough to be crushed by human violence, to be set aside and abandoned, or to be received and nurtured to fullness of life. Let those metaphors resonate within you.
The birth narrative further stimulates our reflection:
1) The world's salvation is carried and born into the world by a vulnerable, unmarried, "unprepared" young woman who at first cannot imagine being God's favored one (Luke 1:26-38).
2) Her companion is scandalized by God's action and quietly seeks to excuse himself from the narrative, tempted to deny their connection on "reasonable" grounds. Instead, he responds to the divine invitation not to be bound by fear (Matthew 1:20) and commits himself more deeply to the emerging covenant.
3) In spite of outward appearnaces and worldly wisdom, this fragile birth carries the power to turn the world upside down! (Lukle 1:47-55)
4) It is a harrowing and thrilling life or death story (Matthew 2) in which people from outside the traditional religious community--"foreigners"-play a critical role, embodying a faiththat they were not taught in Sunday School!
The story is full of journeys. God's people are always "on the Way." It is an awesome and peculiar privilege we have, one that is initiated by God's grace, rather than by anything we can muster for ourselves.

Mother Teresa wistfully said: "I wish God didn't trust me so much." Behold her life!

Salvation

It was astonishing (in a good way) that, when we discussed the concept of "salvation," no one said, "You go to heaven after you die!" Your responses were abundant:
--eternal life with Jesus Christ
--healing
--forgiveness
--love
--comfort
--community
--mercy
--grace
--awareness
--assuredness
--know it in your heart
--our faith-------------God's "faith" in us
--patience
--constant possibility of return
--new way of seeing, restored way of seeing the world, others, ourselves*

One of the beauties of this list is that each of the responses offers commentary and texture on the first response ("eternal life with Jesus Christ"). When we understand "eternal" as a reference to unbreakable communion with God, it enhances our perceptions. A sharing of life with Christ which has no boundaries.
The NT Greek verb sozo, translated "to save," can mean:
--to deliver
--to rescue
--to keep from perishing
--to make well, to heal, to restore

We considered three texts:
--Matthew 1:21 "for he (Jesus) will save his people from their sins." If sin is a manifestation of distance--from God, from one another, from the image of God within each of us--then Jesus comes to deliver us from these debilitating distances.
--Matthew 9:21 "If only I touch his garment, I will be made well (a translation of sozo)
--Matthew 16:25, Mark 8:35, Luke 9:24 "for those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save (find) it."
Letting go in order to receive or realize.
--John 3:17 "Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."
Referring to community, it was noted that in the Hebrew scriptures salvation is primarily understood as communal deliverance (deliverance of a people).
The definition of salvation as "a new way of seeing the world, each other, and ourselves" is testimony that the Apostle Paul (aka Saul of Tarsus) gives vividly!
Relative to concepts of heaven and life after death, we do well to understand them as fulfillments of God's will and deepest expressions of God's self-giving love and realm, rather than as destinations.
Feel free to add further thoughts and reflections!

Unbounded Love

The power of God is the power of unbounded love. In biblical language, agape love. The most common expression for this in the New Testament is the verb agapao. This is the self-giving, ever-welcoming love of God that we see and experience in Jesus. It is actively given; enacted. Unbounded love is the only power that can save us. Jesus' self-giving was not hindered by the cross; the threat of or the reality of death. God's love for all (particularly enemies)is poured out toward a future that is the promised full-fillment of God's unbounded love. We live, in faith, toward that future; our love is an investment in it.

Our descriptions:

--infinite/no end

--love no matter what (think of the worst circumstances)

--no limits, boundaries on love (take some time to reflect on all that this means!)

--unconditional (we confess that our love is so often laden with conditions)

--openness--for everybody

--can't earn it

--love not a commodity (no negotiation)

--No "fences"

--"we're all in it together whether we recognize it or not"

--experiential

--gracious

--You are the overflowing cup!

We spent some time pondering Paul's commission in the Letter to the Philippians:

"Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus" (2:5)

. . ."did not regard equality with God as somehting to be exploited, but emptied himself . . .

he humbled himself, and became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."

How is it that we live and act "with the mind of Jesus?" How does the unbounded love of God make that possible?

Think of some ways that we can practice unbounded love! Write them in the comment section. Be as specific as you can.

Tell Me About Jesus

"Tell me about Jesus," I requested.
This is how you described him:

--My friend
--Someone to tell my troubles to (intimacy)
--Son of God
--Our Guide
--Companion ("accompanimiento")
--Savior
--Teacher
--Leader
--Miracle-worker
--Lover
--Brother
--Human
--Chosen
--Amazingly Good Listener
--Friend to the friendless
--Gift
--Toucher of the untouchable
--Lawbreaker
--Wise
--Troublemaker
--Not for Sale
--Outspoken
--real
--Caring
--Compassionate
--Merciful
--Patience to an unbelievable degree
--Shook them in love and bewilderment
--Living Word
--Accompanier
--Source of Knowledge and Affirmation
--Intelligent
--Humble
--Son of Man; i.e. "human one", "true human"

Note the diversity and richness of these responses. They communicate deep levels of expression, of being, of sharing. Consider that your God-given life may be similarly diverse, rich, and expressive.
The life of discipleship is our response to Jesus' beckoning us: "Follow me."
What we are referring to as a "Jesus-centered faith" is the life we share with Jesus.
He is our "interpretive key," not only in our reading of the scriptures but in our discernment of the "way, truth, and life."

A List of Dimensions to Explore

The following are important dimensions of a "life in Christ" that I have suggested we explore. They are deeply interrelated, so the numbered order is interchangeable, with one exception. In the life of discipleship, Jesus comes first.

1) Jesus (a Jesus-centered faith)

2)Unbounded Love

3) Salvation

4)The Kingdom of God

5) The Bible

6) Worship

7) Prayer and Reflection

8) Sacramental Life

9) Thanksgiving

10)Forgiveness

11)Missional Community




Those topics seemed like a substantial list for eight sessions. But you added:


Hospitality

Grace

Teaching and Learning

Communication as Living Word

Boundary-crossing

Limit-busting

relationships to other faith groups

Rebirth

Fellowship

Our collective plate is blessedly full!!!

Faith Is a Way of Life

It is helpful to consider faith as a way of life. Faith is not a "thing" we have or need to get; it is a quality of relationship lived out each day with God and one another.


Let these statements stimulate your thinking:


--"A life of faith is a life free to welcome the kingdom of God."

-- Faith is "living in God's promises, and living toward God's envisioned future."

--"Faith" concerns attentive engagement in a promissory relationship (Brueggemann).

--"Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not (yet) seen." -Hebrews 11:1

--Faith is trusting in God's surprises.

The terms in the New Testament Greek translated "faith" are pistis (noun) and pisteuo (verb).
They convey: belief to the extent of complete trust and reliance; fidelity; to be entrusted. They are relational terms.

In Luke Chapter 17, the disciples respond to Jesus' teachings, which they perceive as too difficult, by demanding, "Give us more faith." Jesus says, "If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea," and it would obey you."
So, the disciples recognize that our faith comes from the Lord. Jesus tells them that they don't need "more" faith; any faith will do. The image of the tiny mustard seed, which Jesus uses elsewhere, intimates that faith is something planted within that is nurtured and grows in healthy relationship.

There is much to study in the scriptures about faith, and much fidelity, entrusting, careful attention, and fruitfulness to experience in our relationships with God. Feel free to comment and add!