Kingdom Building
October 20, 2019
Scripture Reading: Luke 18:1-8
Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. He said, ‘In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. In that city, there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, “Grant me justice against my opponent.” For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, “Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.” ’ And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?’
War in the middle east raises interest among those who await the second coming of Christ. I confess I do not invest time in the second coming. I try to concentrate my work on building the Kingdom of God as the only thing over which I have much control is my own behavior.
I cannot help but think Christ would rather return to a world ruled by love than one caught up in greed, lust for power, hate, and divisiveness. It begs the question with which Jesus ended the parable in the scripture above: will he find faith on earth? It leads me to wonder for all of us who identify as Christ-followers, whether we would be comfortable in a world ruled by love, if we have become so enamored with the things of the world we would feel out of place surrounded by love and would not know how to love either God or our neighbors as we love ourselves. If we imagine the Kingdom of God including only people who look and act like us, I think we will have a lot of adapting to do.
I am reminded of The Allegory of the Long Spoons where when some died, they found themselves in a place where they are provided spoons that are too long for them to be able to feed themselves and they starve. Others with the same spoons quickly saw how to feed each other across the table and they thrived. It is something to think about.
Prayer: Lord, teach me your way and your truth and your life so that I may grow in loving like you. Amen.
*The Allegory of the Long Spoons by Sofo Archon see at https://theunboundedspirit.com/heaven-and-hell-the-parable-of-the-long-spoons/
All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.