Kingdom of God

“... Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.’” Mark 1:14b-15

Peter Mayer, Lutheran song writer and “Parrothead” who plays with Jimmy Buffet’s band, sings a song called, “God Is Loose in the World.” It reminds those of us within the church, we who often times spend too much time inside the building, that God is indeed loose in the world.

If you want to see what God is up to, then you have to look at more than the inside of a church building. You have to look “out there.” God is active 24/7. Even when the church building is empty and the lights are off, God is busy out in the world doing all sorts of things.

God does more than show up for communion on Sunday mornings and that fact should be obvious to anyone who has a vibrant faith. Yet, sometimes we need to be reminded. Most people know God is doing all sorts of things.

The Bible tells us much about how God works. In fact, scripture is clear that God’s work is not random involvement. God’s movement in the world is filled with purpose. God has a dream. God started to build that dream in creation. God continues to work on that dream throughout all of history.

Jesus often referred to God’s dream as the “kingdom of God” or “reign of God.” When Jesus began his ministry he announced his presence by announcing the coming of the kingdom. The gospel of Mark records how when Jesus arrives on the scene. He says. “The kingdom of God is at hand.”

We cannot know everything about this kingdom – it is not yet fully present for us. But from scripture and from Jesus we can begin to learn things about it. The kingdom of God breaks forth and becomes a reality through the activities of God and God’s people in the world. In serendipitous ways, God often surprises us with glimpses of the dream when we least expect it.

The kingdom of God is “already.” But at the same time the kingdom is “not yet.” God is not finished with the world. We, as disciples, have a role to play in building the kingdom. As we participate with God in touching people’s lives we help build the kingdom. Luther said in his explanation of the second petition of the Lord’s Prayer: Thy Kingdom Come, “In fact, God’s kingdom comes on its own without our prayer, but we ask in this prayer that it may also come to us.”

May our new year’s prayer be: “Show me what you are doing in the world, O Lord, and let me be a part of it.”

David Hall

Holy Trinity Lutheran Church