The Mustard Seed and the Leaven

Luke 13: 19-21
He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? 19 It is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.” And again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? It is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, until it was all leavened.”
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The Kingdom of God, not dictated by space or time, is simply the "kingship" of Jesus. This means that we enter the Kingdom of God by acknowledging Jesus as our king, looking to him as our protector and authority, and honoring the laws of His land [The Greatest Commandment].

What does Jesus' kingdom look like? It's a little hard to communicate this sometimes because we have our preconceived ideas about the kingdom of God being equal to heaven. While Jesus will certainly be the king of heaven, we also have the opportunity, and in fact the necessity of living under his kingship now. You see, if you have been fortunate enough to become aware of God's kingdom and Jesus' position as King, then you have been presented with a choice. In fact you are presented with that choice almost every moment of every day as a process of choosing sin or righteousness, death or life. The choice is whether to submit to his authority. If you do submit to it, the implication is that you will accept his benefits, desire to follow his example and spread His love. If you do not accept it, the implication is that you would rather live in your own kingdom somewhere outside the gates of God's love. Why is that such a difficult decision? Outside there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth - which sounds exactly like a world that has rejected love. And I am not innocent from choosing that world. So many times I have chosen to crown myself king of my life instead of acknowledging Jesus as the rightful heir.

Jesus, be my King today!

Interpreting the Time

Luke 12:54-56

He also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat,’ and it happens. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?

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This seems pretty appropriate for our current political and environmental situation. It seems just like Jesus to use the example of reading weather patterns. The divine irony is that now we hear so many voices using the global warming crisis to predict, more or less, the end of the world. Jesus, two millinia ago, used the weather as a pattern to show how we should be able to know what is coming. There seems to be a mix of common sense, faith and science required in the reading of these kinds of signs. I believe that any child can look at the sky and see rain coming. In the same way, we should be able to look at history and see that something truly human and truly divine is at work and at war.

the kingdom

in the n.t. reading jesus specifically talks of the kingdom. vs. 32 "fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." in light of kingdom theology, i thought this was very interesting. i don't want to take one verse and misuse it but i think that this is a call to ask for the kingdom - what is this kingdom? wholeness, healing (physical, emotional, spiritual etc.), deliverance, provision ... eagerly desiring spiritual gifts. our father in heaven desires to give us these things -- do we forget to ask for them? food for thought today. stepping into the kingdom. hey - let's read george ladd's book.

New Every Morning

This blog is a fresh start at regular devotions. God knows I need to press deeper into His Word and His Spirit. I like the ESV for a number of reasons, and this reading plan looks like a good one, so I'm excited to embark on this journey with Esther, my wife. I welcome anyone to read along with us and comment.