Gospel: Luke 17: 20-27
People ask Jesus when the kingdom of heaven will come. His answer will be utterly unintelligible to them. He talks about the kingdom in terms of natural, ordinary everyday items: mustard seeds, yeast, fishing nets, and the like. These things make no sense to those who see the kingdom of God in purely political and military terms, who seek it in a powerful leader and military set to trample over others.
So, when Jesus says that the kingdom is already here, their heads explode. How can that be? The Roman are still in charge and our people are not. They do not realize that God's kingdom is God's presence in the world, in the ordinary everyday things and doings of the world. It is not at all a political kingdom. God's presence and love are among us at all times and all places. It is just for us to realize it and recognize it, to acknowledge it and allow that presence to permeate our lives.
Those who would reduce God's kingdom to the political are the great enemies of faith in all times and places. That path only brings violence, coercion, and destruction to the world. It leads people to a loss of faith. It is the great heresy. Today we are reminded where the kingdom really exists in the world and where we can find it and rejoice in it.
No comments:
Post a Comment