The Kingdom of Heaven is...

Below is a paper that I wrote at the beginning of a my last master's class.  In the future I will post my concluding paper on the Kingdom of Heaven.  I have not edited it for this blog.  I have also included the description of the assignment.  After reading, what are your thoughts?  How would you describe it?

Assignment: Students will submit a 500-600 word paper by April 16 titled, "The Kingdom of Heaven is..." This should be a succinct articulation of the student's concept of the meaning of the kingdom. This is not a research paper. Rather, it is a reflection of the student's current understanding of the kingdom.

Response:

            The Kingdom of Heaven is difficult for me to describe.  This is partially due to the lack of teaching and preaching that I have heard on the Kingdom of Heaven.  In contrast, the little I have heard about the Kingdom of Heaven from different pastors and professors has been either ambiguous or contradictory to what others have told me.  I, however, can best describe the Kingdom of Heaven as an “already-not yet” reality.

            The Kingdom of Heaven is, in a sense, already a reality.  On the other hand, it has yet to come.  The fullness of the Kingdom has yet to be realized.  This “fullness” will come upon the return of Christ.  Often times, it is this future sense of the Kingdom that people most often refer to or understand “The Kingdom of Heaven” to refer to. 

            In fact, many believe that we “usher in” the Kingdom.  Now I am no eschatology expert, and I can’t even say that I have formed any opinion on what I believe will happen or the timeline in which it will happen.  I do not, however, believe that we bring in the future Kingdom of God.  I do believe that the Kingdom of Heaven is a present reality.  What we do on Earth does not speed the coming of the Kingdom, but it does have eternal effect on the Kingdom.

            When we pray “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,” I do not think that we are praying for a future thing.  We are praying for God’s will, for God’s kingdom, to be a present reality on earth.  The passage of scripture that has best helped me understand this present-future tension is Philippians 3.  Paul explains that our citizenship is in heaven.  Paul’s argument though is about the present life.  Since our citizenship is currently (not just in the future) in heaven, because the Kingdom of God is our “commonwealth” rather than the earthly “kingdoms,” it should change the way that we live our present lives.

            There are two aspects to kingdom living I think.  First, personal holiness. We must live our own lives as members of the Kingdom of God rather than the kingdoms of this world.  Second, as members of Christ’s Kingdom we must act out social holiness.  We must make our world look like the Kingdom of God by acts of compassion and social justice.  This is where we truly pray that God’s Kingdom come – that the Kingdom with no more suffering or pain may be here now.  Though pain and suffering will not entirely disappear until the fullness of Christ’s Kingdom is realized, we can make an eternal impact in the Kingdom by making a difference in the lives of others now.

            The Kingdom of Heaven is present.  If that were all it was, it would be a great disappointment.  The Kingdom of heaven is future.  If it was just in the future, we would have little purpose in life.  Because the Kingdom of Heaven is both present and future, it guides the way we live now and gives us great hope for the future.

kingdom living

The past few months have been a journey for me as I began to truly realize what it means to live as a Kingdom citizen, particularly as it relates to ministry to the "least of these."  As I shared a couple weeks ago, I noticed a disconnect, a gap, between what I believed and how I was living.  This gap led to some tension, tension that I wanted to explore and learn more about.

While on this journey I invited my youth group to come along with me.  We learned about the Kingdom of Heaven as a present-future reality.  We learned about our Nazarene heritage in ministry to the "least of these."  We had a couple guest speakers come talk about social ministry and mission trips, as well as how to be a "missionary" in your very own community.

In the midst of this our church did a work day at a Compassionate Ministries Center/Church in downtown Cincinnati.  There was an overwhelming response by our teens to participate in this!  I was excited, and am proud of them!

But then our schedules got busy...

It isn't about doing occasional projects.  It isn't about doing my one good thing and then marking it off a list.  But why has my "unrest" disappeared?  If it is still there I must just be ignoring it because I haven't noticed it for a couple weeks.

As I think about being a Kingdom citizen, it is not just about ministry to the least of these.  I obviously can't do that all of the time.  I can, however, use my time in God-honoring, Kingdom-furthering ways.  As Paul writes in Philippians 3, our citizenship is in heaven (our commonwealth is heaven).  We are not to live as people in the world live - our kingdom is not this material world.  Yet Christians find themselves living as members of the worldly kingdom!  It is hard to avoid it...

I don't think I've been choosing to ignore the gap, at least not directly.  I did not sit down one day and say, "I am going to ignore this."  I think this goes to show that being aware of the gap is not enough, it is not enough to just "know the gap."  We must give attention to it, do something about it, be intentional.  When we are intentional about minding the gap we find ourselves closing that gap. Gaps don't close by themselves - but by God's grace we can be all that he desire for us. 

God help me to live a live that has eternal impact for your Kingdom's cause.  I want to live as part of your kingdom, not the kingdoms of this world.

Conversations on Holiness - A Brief Review

Last night I finished up Conversations on Holiness, edited and inspired by Keith Davenport (my brother).  Because I want all my readers (probably only family members at this point) to read it themselves and enjoy it for it's full value, I will not be going into much detail on the book, so this will be a very brief review.

     I used to be a person who would always skip anything that came before the first chapter of a book, whether that be the forward, preface, or introduction.  College taught me otherwise, and I am so glad!  The introduction of this book is absolutely essential as it lays down the premise and inspiration for the book.  Davenport starts out by saying that holiness is good news, but "why aren't we talking more about it?" (9).  He then tells the story of my life (and many others'), that we have all heard holiness talked about in so many different ways, with different terminology, that none of us are all that sure what it is.  The book is a collection of the work of multiple contributors in order to give many perspectives on holiness, and tying  them together, the reader gains a well-rounded understanding of the call to holiness and its implications on the life of the believer.

Generally speaking, this book is a quick read and easily understood (with the exception of one chapter).  I appreciated how each author described holiness differently, and with different analogies, but the common themes of holiness were evident throughout.  They used different language to describe the same things, which I found very helpful.  If I, as one who has received theological training, found the simple language and variety of terminology helpful, I am sure that those who are not familiar with theological terms will find it even more helpful than I did.

It is not, however, just a theology book.  It is not just about having a theological understanding of holiness.  Most contributors explain not just what holiness is, but what that means for the believer.  They give multiple examples of what holiness looks like for the individual, the church, and the Kingdom of God.  Direct implications are drawn that helps the reader move from understanding holiness to living out holiness.

What I find most appealing about this book, however, is the analogies used to help the reader understand holiness.  There are multiple analogies and I do not want to take away from your reading experience, so I will not discuss them in detail.  My favorite one, however, compares Entire Sanctification to being pregnant (Davenport).  I think I will leave you in suspense over this one...  Overall, these different analogies not only helped me gain a fuller understanding of the different aspects of entire sanctification (holiness), but also gave me some tools for ministry in helping others understand it.

 Though I have never included one of the endorsements in a book review before, I wholeheartedly agree with Dr. John C. Bowling when he says "Here one finds a breadth and depth of perspectives that enrich, rather than divide, our collective understanding of God's call to and provisions for a holy life" (back cover).  This book is written in such a way that any reader could grasp the concepts and gain a better understanding of holiness.  I highly recommend not only reading it, but also talking about it!

Kingdom Living as JOY rather than a burden

To make a long story short, in Sunday school this morning I said that some natural disasters could be a result of our pollution of the world and the climate changes it causes.  I was then asked this question, "Is pollution a sin? Do we all really have to go green?"  Of course, this question came about 30 seconds after we were already supposed to be done, so I did not have a chance to answer it (thankfully). I want to say "yes," but how far do we go with that?  Don't use paper products?  What about water usage? there are a lot of questions...

Does God desire us to "go green?" Does kingdom living require us to be conscious, even intentional, about our care of the world and the environment?

Add to these thoughts my post from the other day about documentaries - asking questions like "is it sinful to eat things that harm the body?"  I'm not talking about drugs here, I am talking about processed food, fast food, synthetic additives and such. 

This makes Christianity sound burdensome. Obviously, these are not evangelistic topics - "Christians must go green" or "Christians must be vegans" (I am not saying that either of these statements are necessarily true). 

Even to the students, going green and considering pollution a sin did seem burdensome.  For many, not eating processed foods sounds crazy.  Strangely, today, I realized I am EXCITED to explore these questions.  I am not fearful of "having to" go green or take good care of my body.  I consider it a joy to be the best citizen of the Kingdom of God that I can.  It is not a burden to live as part of God's Kingdom, but a joy!


I thank God for the joy and excitement that he gives me as I explore what all he has in store for me and my life. I do hope to come to conclusions on these issues in the near future, and as I do I will share my thoughts.  But remember, serving Christ is not a burden or an obligation, but a privilege.  Today, I truly feel this way!

Documentaries aren't that boring

I recently find myself almost "addicted" to documentary movies - specifically those found on Netflix (since that is all I have access to).  Part of this may be that I feel like my tv time is better spent being informed about something than watching a fantasy of some writer play-out before me and in my imagination

I find myself easily persuaded by most of the documentaries that I watch. I wish there were always documentaries that told the other side of the coin. One in particular is "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price."  Watching this movie makes me want to personally boycott Walmart, but are the "facts" really "facts?" Walmart doesn't think so... The jury is still out on this one.

Others are not as agenda-driven or political.  I have enjoyed watching many concerning diet and eating healthy foods.  This is not as boring as it sounds.  The more I watch - the more I want to watch.  They have recently influenced how I eat - recognizing the benefits of plant foods and the dangers in processed foods.  No, I am not going vegan or even vegetarian.

Don't stop reading yet! I have been thinking about this from more than just the practical side of things, but also theologically.

Does it not make sense that eating natural foods would be healthier than synthetic foods?  Whatever your belief about creation, there is no debate to be made about available food sources for the first man - there was nothing "man-made," genetically engineered, synthetically fertilized or processed.  Everything was natural. 

If what I am watching is true - that a truly plant-based  (organic) diet, avoiding all synthetic and processed foods really does make a person healthier, prevents (even heals) chronic illnesses, and possibly even cures cancer (I'm a little skeptical of this one...) - then it is a testimony of God's perfect order of creation.  When we eat what God has given us we are healthier and happier, and more fully human. 

When you think about what you put into your body - all the additives, chemicals, carcinogens, etc - and all the harm that it can do, it only makes sense to STOP. 

I believe that my body is a temple, and I believe that I am to take care of it.  Is there a disconnect between what I believe and what I am doing? This is one of those things that I wish I did not know about (and maybe you do too), because then I would not be forced to make a decision. 

Again, I am on a journey - I don't know where I will end up.  I invite you to come along.  I would love have a conversation about this.

Documentaries found on Netflix that I found influential:
Hungry For Change
Food Matters
Fat Sick and Nearly Dead

There were others that had bits and pieces, but generally on other topics  - there are plenty out there on "holistic healing" and "holistic therapies." 

Something New

Blogging is new to me.  I blogged at a previous time in my life, about ten years ago.  That blogging was different - it was more of a "social blogger" before the Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter all went viral.


So why blog now?

I find myself on a journey.  Yes, I know that it is cliche to say life is a journey, but it is.  This journey that I find myself on right now is pretty new.  God has revealed to me some things that are simply not connecting in my life.  There is a disconnect between what I believe and what I am doing.  This is not the case for every aspect of my belief - but it is for some.

This was realized as I read and studied about ministry to the "least of these" (Matthew 25 phrasing).  I know what the Bible says, and I believe that people need to be taking care of, and that it is the church's job to do so.  But what am I doing?

Being a youth pastor does not excuse me from getting my hands dirty and doing that ministry myself.  It is not enough for me to teach students that they are supposed to be doing those things.  God has called me to minister to the least of these as well.


A blog about what?

No, my entire blog will not be about this particular journey.   I hope to do two things with this blog:
1. Share my journey (journeys) in the hopes that it may help others on their journey.  Drawing particular attention to gaps in my life - the disconnect between what I believe and what I am doing

2. Give attention to the gaps between biblical mandates for Christians and what we are doing.  I hope to draw attention between our theology and our practice.  This is concerned with both the church and our culture.  Cultural issues are bound to intersect with politics and social movements.


This is something new.  I don't know what it will look like.  But we are about to find out!