The Invisible Kingdom

In my last post we heard Jesus respond sharply to those who followed him across the sea.

When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you come here?" Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal." - Jhn 6:25-27 ESV

 Notice their typical response.

Then they said to him, "What must we do, to be doing the works of God?" - Jhn 6:28 ESV

Its always that way. Everyone thinks he has to DO something to get God's blessings. In some way or another we have to get God to forgive us, like us, trade with us and so be on our side to rescue, redeem and feed us. That's called self-justification.

I've been pointing to Abraham Maslow and all his talk about the hierarchy of needs, starting with basic physiological needs and moving on to what he called self-actualization. Self-actualized people, he says, accept themselves for who they are, they're spontaneous and natural, have a mission in life, unflappable, alive in the moment, spontaneous, open to new ideas, and on an on. Maslow believed that everyone has an internal drive to realize those higher levels. Step by step anyone is capable of climbing up to that free, uninhibited uncontrolled, trusting, unpremeditated expression of the self!

Sounds really great. That's why his ideas are so overwhelmingly popular. Motivational speakers use them all the time. Corporations incorporate them into their culture. Popular writers publish books about them by the thousands.

But they all miss the point! You can't ever actualize yourself, no matter what you do.

Remember Jesus' conversation with Nicodemus, one of the wisest leaders of Israel, a man who came to see Jesus secretly?

This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.  

Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." 

Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" 

Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. - Jhn 3:2-6 ESV

Jesus spoke about an invisible kingdom, one you cannot enter unless you are born of the Spirit. In other words, the gates are locked until God opens them and leads you in. And only those on the inside know about and see this kingdom of God. In this kingdom the insider discovers forgiveness for all of his failures. He feeds daily upon God's mercy and love. He finds nurture for his soul and his heart is filled with peace, peace with God, with himself and with his fellow men. He sees the world with different eyes. He sees God's hand at work in his life, even in the midst of suffering, pain and loss. He is vibrant and filled with a hope that reaches far, far beyond the present and on into eternity. He actually believes that his body will be raised from death and that he will spend endless ages with loved ones and friends in a perfect world. And so he is filled with endless joy and with praise to God his Father and to Jesus his Brother, Savior and Friend.

Do you know about this secret kingdom? If you do, then you know why I say that Maslow and all his disciples, as well as any other teachers—be they psychologists, philosophers or priests—don't get it. The gates of this secret kingdom are locked to them.

Listen to Matthew as he shares Jesus' words to his disciples.

He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." 

And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ. - Mat 16:15-20 ESV

The church is built upon Peter's confession: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus is the Rock (Deut. 32:4; Matt. 7:24-25; 1 Cor. 10:4), the immovable foundation against which all the powers of hell and darkness cannot prevail. So Paul writes,

For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. - 2Cr 5:14-19 ESV

The disciples of Jesus are members of this invisible kingdom. They have all been reborn by the working of God's Spirit in their hearts and lives. They are, as Paul said, a new creation. They are the church, the living, active, loving members of Christ's Body. Jesus is their Lord and King and they live to love him, serve him and love others even as he loves and forgives them.

This does not mean, of course, that Jesus has relinquished his kingship over this world. He still controls it and provides us with a certain semblance of outward peace. This we have come to call his kingdom of the left hand. But more about that another day.