Matthew 4:17

Posted by DJL on Jan 25, 2014 in Daily Bread | 0 comments

From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

Allow just one more word on Jesus’ first, and perhaps most enduring, sermon.

Notice that it is essentially the same message as that preached by John the Baptist. And keep in mind that John’s preaching landed him in jail.

John’s sermon – and now Jesus’ – is problematic because it declares that God is king, that the rulers of this world are temporary, and that one’s full and final allegiance belongs not to the pleasures or powers of this world but to God alone. And those who hold power in, or participate in the pleasures of, this world find that message not just difficult but threatening.

That includes Herod, of course, who will arrest John; and it includes the opponents of Jesus who will eventually encircle him with false charges and send him to his death. But does it also include us? I mean, are we really all that different? Not as ruthless or violent, perhaps, but similarly committed to living as if God were a distant comfort, not a present monarch demanding our allegiance?

I wonder.

Jesus takes John’s words for his own because they are true: God is drawing near, ushering in a different way of being in relation with each other and demanding our allegiance to this rule of justice and grace even if – when! – it means we must surrender our claims to be self-sufficient and independent. That message brought resistance then. And it still does today.

Prayer: Dear God, break our hearts with your grace that we may surrender our claims, our pride, and our fear and sink into your mercy so as to become emissaries of your kingdom of love. In Jesus’ name, Amen.