The Curate Writes

The curate writes…
This page is about talking to not yet Christians about the Living God and His plans. How do you do it?

Many folk like the thought of joining in with a cause. A just cause, a cause that is good, that brings fairness and freedom but not anarchy. Such causes give people purpose. Jesus has much to say and offer along those lines. We church goers call it the Kingdom of God – which was especially appropriate and challenging in Jesus time, especially as folk were all too aware that they were under the Roman Empire rather than in God’s Kingdom or God’s rule in God’s way by God’s people of Israel.

I really like hearing good teaching about ‘The Kingdom of God’. It makes sense to me in all sorts of ways. And of course it features big time in the Lord’s Prayer, where its linked with the will of Father God being done here on earth. It places my salvation in a bigger context than just me, places me in an active relationship with other Christians as well as with God Our Father, and gives us all part in a great big view of the here and now and the future the Lord wants.

Us church goers know this and we are familiar with the words used. And good teaching and seeing it happen thrill and inspire us.

In day to day life though, particularly in the developing nations. ‘kingdoms’ and kings don’t feature that much. It’s an ancient language going back centuries where kings good and bad held real power. Today, to many non church goers, talk of kingdom might fit into a sort of fairy tale bracket, like the kingdoms in Shrek. How can we talk about God’s fabulous starting here and now future with not yet Christians?

Martin Luther gave an inspiring address with words which have become famous in “I have a dream…”. You can watch it below



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbUtL_0vAJk

- but if you don’t want to listen to the lot, scroll it forward and listen to the most famous part from about 12 minutes onwards. That speech would be in line with major aspects of the outworking of the Kingdom of God, release from bondage, justice for the poor, practical righteousness etc. So how about talking of God’s dream for the future? The important thing is to get our description of God’s dream from the gospels and the next generations working out of that dream in the rest of the New Testament – a fulfilment of the Old Testament.

Another word, used by Bishop Tom Wright, is to speak of the colony of God. In that, churches, the people of God living God’s ways together are like an expanding colony of heaven, on earth. That makes sense to me though too- although for some might smack of colonialism and domination. The difference is that any can belong to this colony, any can be invited, and it really isn’t domination

Some folk like to paint a picture of God’s preferred future, an improvement of what Adam and Eve had.

What do you think and speak of when talking about God’s Kingdom? The most shocking and challenging and exciting aspect of Jesus’ teaching is that it actually very close, here, now and not in some distant possible future. So repent and join in, go for it completely.

God Bless you to bless others.
Dave Chislett.