One summer, my wife and I decided to plant flowers next to our house. In the past when we had done this, we went to the fruit market and bought plants and transplanted them. This particular year, we decided to plant seeds. We were not too familiar with this concept. We went to the store and browsed through the packets of seeds. We selected several that had appealing pictures on them. One envelope contained morning glory seeds. I prepared the soil and planted the seeds. Over several weeks, I faithfully watered them and fed them something called “Miracle Grow.” The plants sprouted and grew bigger and bigger each week. A strange thing began to happen. The morning glories began to take over the neighborhood. My children were very young at that time. I began to fear for their safety, when they went near the morning glories. Their vines even covered the sunflower plants that were six feet tall. I could not stop the plants from spreading even by uprooting some of them. The tiny seeds had grown and spread to enormous proportions. “ And he (Jesus) said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.” Mark 4:30-32 What is the Kingdom of God? “And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.” Luke 17:20-22 In the first century, under the oppressive thumb of the Roman Empire, the Jews eagerly awaited the Messiah. They expected him to come as a conquering king. A warrior, who would drive out the Romans and save Israel. They expected a very observable Kingdom of God. There enemies would be vanquished and God would be their king. Jesus, or Yeshua, came upon the scene as Ha’Mashiach , the Messiah. He brought the reign of God in a different way than the religious leaders of His day expected. Jesus told Nicodemus that he had to be born again to see the Kingdom of God. He spoke of a regenerated life. A person being born anew by the work of the Holy Spirit. A life submitted to the leadership of God. “Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, “You know nothing at all! You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.” He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one.” John 11:49-52 (NIV) Occasionally a battle would be settled by a single warrior engaging with the opponents champion, as in the case of David and Goliath. Jesus conquered by becoming that warrior. His battle was fought on a bloody Roman cross. He was punched, mocked, and spit on. His beard was plucked from His face. He was beaten with a whip that had shards of pottery imbedded in its leather thongs. It cut Him to the bone. He was forced to carry the cross to the place of His execution. He fell several times and was beaten along the way, while the crowd jeered at Him. Jesus was then attached to the cross with nails that were driven through His wrists and feet. After three hours on the cross He said, “It is finished.” The sky grew dark, the earth quaked, and the veil in the temple the separated man from God’s presence was torn in two. Jesus was taken down from the cross and placed in a grave. On the third day, the stone at the mouth of the tomb rolled away and Jesus walked out alive. He had conquered hell and death and brought the Kingdom of God within reach of anyone that would call on His name. Jesus spent the next forty days appearing to his disciples and teaching them. “For what I (Paul) received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.” 1 Corinthians 5:3-8 (NIV) After watching Jesus ascend to heaven, the disciples began to tell the story. The good news, the Gospel. They turned their world upside down. The Kingdom of God began to spread like my morning glory plant. Are you part of God’s Kingdom, is Jesus the Lord of your life? If not, call on Him today. Confess your sins. Ask Him to forgive you and make you a new creation, a brand new person. Though your sins are as scarlet, His blood can wash you white as snow.
Posted on: Wed, 28 Aug 2013 03:29:52 +0000
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