THE TOPSY TURVY KINGDOM

Kingdoms we know about are populated by Kings and Queens, nobles and knights, diplomats and important people. Even in the world of republics little has changed. Presidents, Prime Ministers and Potentates, technocrats, corporations, and money provide a familiar milieu.

The Kingdom of God Jesus tells of is a very different place. One birth is not enough—there must be a second. Important people won’t make it and the rich find it difficult. Little children and those who have the nature of children will lead. Giving away one’s worldly goods brings riches. It is not the warlike who have the earth as their heritage, it is the meek.

If one meets a paradox, chances are it is part of the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God turns upside down our ideas of rule. Those who are powerless are strong. Those who exercise strength are weak.

But this is a coveted kingdom. People will do anything to have a part in it. It is like, Jesus said, someone finding a treasure buried in a field. The person goes away and buys the field to get access to the treasure.

People are filled with regret when they don’t access the Kingdom and discover too late what it is all about. Jesus told of Lazarus and the rich man. The rich man asked for someone to go especially to tell his family. He was told that the message was already there for anybody to see and hear.

The message is so simple that it is easily by-passed by self-importance, by gratifying ourselves with the transient things and values of our time.

But the topsy-turvy kingdom has a price, a great price. It can mean ridicule, cruel gossip, denunciation, even persecution and death. It requires activism, sometimes quiet and unnoticed like leaven lightening a loaf and sometimes much noticed and noisy like tables being overturned in the most sacred of places. It requires acknowledgment of the king even when embarrassment overwhelms us. It requires care and acknowledgment for other inhabitants of the kingdom. It requires above all great love—whole hearted full bodied strong spirited love of God and love for others based on that relationship and what we would want for ourselves.

Kingdom rule, however, is a life for living—and living abundantly with great joy. It is only by living its values that we understand this and comprehend its working and ways.