The Inheritors

A Shelter in the StormReexamining the Mission of the Church The Inheritors Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself. He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die.” John 12:31-33 Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. I Cor.2:6-8 The Victory of the Cross And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him. Col.2:13-15 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. Eph.3:10 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Col.1:12-14 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Mt.25:34 We must embrace the gospel; not of evacuation, but restoration Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven How do we live between the past victory of the cross--the launch of the kingdom, and the return of the King-- the future full realization of the new heaven and earth? Jesus sermon on the mount is not instructions on how to be religious or how to be Jewish or Christian; they are instructions on how to be human. Jesus is revealing to the human race the narrow way that leads to life (as a human made in the image of God), not heaven “Salvation—an entirely new way of being human.” Maximus the Confessor And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:8-10 A kingdom minded church will excel in these eight things: • • • • • • • • Welcoming the poor in spirit Comforting those who mourn Esteeming the meek Hungering for justice Extending mercy Having a pure heart Being peacemakers Enduring persecution # 1 Blessed are the impoverished “Standing around Jesus, as he speaks, are people with no spiritual qualifications or abilities at all. You would never call on them when ‘spiritual work’ is to be done.” Dallas Willard Blessed are those who don’t have it together…. Jesus meets us at our point of poverty, not our place of strength. “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” II Cor.12:9 # 2 Blessed are those who mourn and grieve for they shall create space to encounter comfort from another. “Sorrow is a necessary consequence of loving others and being fully engaged with humanity. If our plan is to go through life minimizing pain and avoiding as much sorrow as possible, we will do so as shallow people, and Jesus has nothing to announce to us in the second beatitude-he simply leaves us in our prosaic self contentment.” Brian Zahnd “The meaning of earthly existence lies not, as we have grown used to thinking, in prospering, but…in the development of the soul. From that point of view our torturers have been punished most horribly of all: they are turning into swine, they are departing downward from humanity.” Alexander Solzhenitsyn The Gulag Archipelago Part IV, The Soul and Barbed Wire #3 “ Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.” Blessed are the quiet and content, the humble and unassuming, the gentle and trusting who are not grasping and clutching, for God will personally guarantee their share when heaven and earth become one. The world’s view: “Blessed are the meek, for even if he comes in last, he’ll be called a nice guy, receive a certificate of participation, and be named ‘Miss Congeniality.” Imagine if you were Roman soldiers listening to Jesus Sermon on the Mount. What would they think of his “meek” message? What do you think of it? “The earth is seized by the aggressive and violent, but it is inherited by the meek and gentle. Inheritance is a family word, a relationship word, a grace word. Seizing is the way of Satan. Inheriting is the way of God.” Brian Zahnd Do not fret because of those who are evil or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away. Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes. Psalm 37:1-7 “Meek” (prays in Greek) used only three times in the gospels First in the Beatitudes—he blesses the meek Mt.5:5 Second, he invites the weary to come to him and find rest-Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. Mt.11:29 Third, describes Jesus as he enters Jerusalem during his triumphal entry-‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble (meek), and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’ Mt.21:5 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. Zech.9:9-10 When Pilate entered Jerusalem on Passover week, he rode a war horse to send a message God’s message to His people—radical trust The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their stronghold in the time of trouble. The Lord helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him. Psalm 37:39-40 The way of violence and aggression is the way of Caesar. The way of meekness and trust is the way of Christ “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” Luke 2:14 Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughterin-law against mother-in-law.” Luke 12:51 So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?” Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” Pilate said to him, “What is truth?” Jn.12:33-38 What is the truth that the church embraces? The world desperately needed to be re-centered. It was off its axis. It was tearing itself apart. Humanity had lost its way—humanity had lost sight of God. Jesus at the cross re-centered the world on a new axis, an axis not of power and violence, but love and forgiveness. “At the hour of death when we all come face to face with God we are going to be judged on love: how much we have loved, not how much we have done but how much love we have put in our action.” Mother Teresa Prayer of Saint Francis Lord, make me an instrument of your peace Where there is hatred, let me sow love Where there is injury, pardon Where there is doubt, faith Where there is despair, hope Where there is darkness, light And where there is sadness, joy O Divine Master, grant that I may Not so much seek to be consoled as to console To be understood, as to understand To be loved, as to love For it is in giving that we receive And it's in pardoning that we are pardoned And it's in dying that we are born to Eternal Life Amen Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me; let there be peace on earth, the peace that was meant to be. With God our creator, family all are we. Let us walk with each other in perfect harmony. Jill Jackson and Sy Miller (1955)