The Best Place to Live
Which world do you live in? I’m seeking to live in a world invisible to many, a world Jesus described as within you, among you, and within your grasp.1 It is a world of reality, while the world in which so many choose to live is an illusion, pure fiction; a world filled with lies —
Make this much money, and you will be happy. Land a prestigious job, and you will be somebody. Live in this place and enjoy life to the fullest. Marry this person, and all your dreams will come true. Elect this party to power, and the problems in your nation will be solved. Pass this law, and justice will roll like the rivers.
Are there elements of truth in these things? Yes. But here’s the thing - they are half-truths. And half-truths are, ultimately, lies. They serve as distractions to the real source of life, to the invisible world that Jesus promises those who place their trust in Him and the reality of his kingdom among us.
“I have come into the world to bear witness to the truth,” was Jesus’s answer to Pilate when asked if he was a king with a kingdom.2
“What is truth?” Pilate responded as he turned and walked away.3
Like many in our world today, and dare I say, many Christians, Pilate wasn’t really interested in hearing the answer to that question. That’s because it’s so much easier to create our own little “bubble world” where we, along with other like-minded people, form communities walled off from the others “out there.”
And it was to those “others” that Jesus shared the good news of God’s kingdom. A kingdom where the poor are blessed, the meek inherit the earth, and peacemakers are called God’s children.4
I find myself living more and more in the world of “others,” the world of God’s kingdom among us, within us, and within our grasp. There are so many wonderful people in this world. And together, we demonstrate the power of God’s kingdom to tear down dividing walls, celebrate diversity, and live lives not obsessed with being right but rather living right.
It’s a peaceful world. A world not stirred up by the talking heads on the news or the politicians who seek to dehumanize and demonize their opponents. A world where God’s pure, peace-loving, considerate, and merciful wisdom reigns supreme.5 A world where others, all others, are seen as created in the image of God, given respect, freedom, and room to make choices, even wrong choices, because God only knows we’ve all made plenty of them.
There are no laws or walls, no doctrine or public policy that will ever be able to create this kind of world or, for that matter, hinder it, and keep it from coming. It’s like yeast in the flour and a mustard seed in the ground.6
You can’t stop the kingdom!
Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
In Christ,
Dan
Check out my podcasts from Church on the Edge and my books on Kindle.
You can listen to my weekly messages at Embrace Church, High Point.
Luke 17:20-21.
John 18:37.
John 18:38.
Matthew 5:1-13.
James 3:17.
Matthew 13:33, 17:20.