On Earth as It is In Heaven pt. 2

These things cannot be ignored because there is a new, fresh kingdom being established here on Earth. A kingdom where the raggedy, the broken, stinky, worn out, dark, and decaying matter. A kingdom where the world is set right, where justice rules and things are restored to their intended way. This kingdom is upside to what the world is used to, a reality where the richest are the ones with no money. A kingdom where first actually will be made last, and the last will take first. A kingdom for the lowly in spirit and the persecuted, for the righteous, and the compassionate. A kingdom where the only way to find true and full life is to abandon the old ways of living.

In other words, a kingdom where God is king.

When Jesus said things like, “Turn away from your old ways of thinking and doing things, for the kingdom of God is near!” he was proclaiming that this “heaven” (to use that term) was nearer than ever before. Jesus was letting us know that we didn’t have to wait to die or for the magical rapture for God’s will to be done on this Earth. He was telling us that we could experience the freedom, health and restoration characteristic of God’s presence and reign in the here and now.

And Jesus was here to initiate this kingdom, and in true “heavenly” form, it led him to submit himself to the power of the day, Rome, and ultimately to a brutal and humiliating death on a tree.

But Jesus came to not only to initiate and announce this new way, but also to show us and teach us what God’s kingdom looks like. He showed that being a part of the kingdom means to care for the sick and lonely, the downtrodden and forgotten. He taught not to respond to violence, but to resist it at all costs. He taught that the only way to be forgiven is to forgive. He taught us to celebrate goodness. He taught us to value human life, and the human spirit infinitely. He showed us how not to avoid the political injustice and social injustice around us, but how to confront it with courage, submission, and love.

Jesus did not bring a solution that was simply a new place He would take individuals to. He did not promise a solution only for the people that say and do the right things. No, instead Jesus was fixed on setting into motion the biggest and greatest renovation the world had ever seen. And the craziest, yet most invigorating part is that he wants anyone who is willing to help change the world to join Him.

Once Jesus even said that this new kingdom, the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of heaven existed inside of his followers (see Luke 17). Inside each one of those who claim to follow Jesus lays the secret to fixing the world.

See, following Jesus is not some abstract personal religious piety that promises a heavenly eternity after you die; instead it’s hopping on board with the idea that the world is changing because there is someone else now in charge. It’s proclaiming and rejoicing that the old and tired ways which things worked is over, and most importantly joining alongside Jesus to institute this kingdom.

Here’s a few ways you can change the world by bringing the kingdom of God to Earth:

1.     Be a person of non-retaliatory violence.

2.     Participate and care about politics, in hopes of voting against and standing up to injustice.

3.     Expose darkness like sex slavery, and seek to eradicate it.

4.     Hang out where there is extreme decay, poverty, and desolation.

5.     Plant a garden, use you’re car less, recycle more.

6.     Visit the sick and lowly, and imprisoned.

7.     Become a radical peacemaker.

8.     Serve widows and orphans.

9.     Work on becoming poor in spirit.

Perhaps more people would want to be a part of this new kingdom if its members weren’t so set on minding their manners, and following the rules, as they were about joining Jesus in restoring the world. Perhaps less people would abandon following Jesus, because there motivation for everyday would be more about changing the world than leaving it.

And take hope in that Jesus is one day coming to finish the job. Our mission is to announce and partake in the kingdom of God here and now. Eternity has begun, so engage the world no matter how hard and smelly, and broken it is. When you do, it is on earth as it is in heaven.

NT Wright, a New Testament scholar, writer and professor writes about these things in more detail in his books Surprised by Hope, Jesus and the Victory of God, Simply Jesus, and most recently How God Became King.

To go back and read part one, click here.