Be it and Bring it
A month ago the youth groups went to Portland Rescue
Mission, as we do every month to help them serve lunch. We don’t do much really;
we just show up and serve the food they have prepared to the people from the
homeless community that shows up to eat.
We are just a small part of the big, amazing operation that they have
going on there. It’s easy work for us -
it really isn’t a big deal. Portland
Rescue is the big deal. They work
tirelessly to bring the kingdom of heaven to earth. Their mission is to share the love of Christ
with everyone in the homeless community and they do that in a lot of great
ways, from their rehabilitation and housing programs to their meals, to
providing beds, showers and clothing.
They strive to do it well and to make sure everyone leaves there with a
sense of dignity and worth. They have
even added karaoke nights and movie nights to their services, to give the
people a sense of normal life. They are
being the body of Christ in a variety of ways to the homeless community, and
when you are there, you can sense a little bit of heaven on earth. I got to experience one of those moments last
month. PRM wants us to be relational
with the people of the homeless community, especially at lunchtime. They
specifically set up the lunch line with choices for each part of the meal, so
you have to ask them want they want, instead of just giving them something. It’s hard though, when we are only there once
a month, to get to know people. Every
once in a while we do. We get to know
some of the people with big personalities, or interesting quirks, the people
that are hard to miss. One of those
people is T-Bone. T-Bone has been coming
through the line for the five and a half years we have been working there. He is known for being a bit of a troublemaker
and he always has a lot to say. He likes
to hold up the food line telling stories, or lecturing the kids about staying
in school. He is a character for sure, and he and I have hit it off over the
years. Six months ago, T-Bone went missing.
He had said he was going back east to visit family, but you hear those
stories a lot there, and often they are just stories. We had asked the PRM crews about him, but
they didn’t know either. To be honest,
knowing T-Bones troublemaking background, I thought the worst, prison or
death. I missed him when we went down to
serve. Last month though, T-Bone came walking
through the door, and I have to tell you, maybe I shouldn’t be excited to see
someone in need of food and coming through that line, but I was. I couldn’t hold back my enthusiasm. I shouted
out to him, “T-Bone, you’re back! It’s so good to see you!” He looked at me for
a bit, and at first there was pain in his eyes, and I thought I had offended
him by calling him T-bone, or something was going on with him, and I thought
things were going to go down hill fast here. His expression changed though, the
pain was replaced by joy, and he was beaming. His eyes got all watery and he
came over and said, “girl you just made my day”. He then started telling
everyone around him that I remembered him.
He remembered me too. I am a bit
inconspicuous with my tattoos and my daughter and the hooligans that are always
with me. We are told we aren’t supposed
to have physical contact with guests, but when he came around the counter to
hug me, I couldn’t stop it. It was a
moment of heaven on earth. He spent the rest of the time holding up the lunch
line and lecturing Tabitha on staying in school and her goals. He kept thanking the kitchen staff and me and
telling us how great it was to be known. T-Bone felt joy and respect and love
that day; he touched heaven in that line and so did I. Really, it’s all due to Portland Rescue
Mission. They are being the kingdom of
heaven as they follow Jesus and they are bringing it to earth. They work in such a depressing atmosphere,
helping people that are so broken, lost and forgotten, and yet they bring
the love of Jesus into that and make
something beautiful.
I had a part in that for like two minutes, and then I went
home that day and was grumpy about my messy house and the million things I had
to do. I brought it for like 5 seconds
that day, and then I dropped it.
In this passage in Luke,
Luke 17:20-21
New International Version (NIV)
20 Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, 21 nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.”[a]
Jesus is saying that heaven isn’t
just a future concept, that the power and glory of God here with us isn’t some
far off thing or crazy revolution. It is
here and now in our midst. There is argument about whether the Greek word, entos, here means within you or in your midst. Either way, he is saying heaven isn't just a future thing, it's here. I don’t know
about you, but I am missing it. So often
I am living my life, just thinking things aren’t that great, and man heaven
would be so nice right about now. We
have had a rough last year and more than once I have prayed over and over
again, “Jesus just come back now please. I don’t want to live on this planet of
suffering and strife anymore, I don’t want any of us to have to, so please come
back now”. I was missing the kingdom that Jesus started here with his presence
and that he left here with us through his resurrection. Maybe you have been missing it too.
Well it’s time for that to change. We have to BE it and BRING it. That is what we were created for. We were created to live with God in his
presence in paradise. Do you realize
that? The beginning of our story, that
beautiful poem in the beginning in Genesis, you know the one that starts with
in the beginning? In the beginning when
God formed us in his image, using this beautiful imagery, this poetry of
forming us from the dirt, we were living in paradise with him. And God, in his amazing love and mercy, gave
us the freedom of choice in the beginning, we could walk with him in paradise
and obey his word, or we could have it our own way. We chose our own way, and that grieved God
but it didn’t stop him from pursuing us with his love and his grace. We see all through the Hebrew Scriptures,
that God tried to rescue his people back to himself. He saved them from themselves, he gave them
choices, let them screw up and then worked really hard to help them change, and
give them freedom. He raised up prophets
and leaders, all of whom had problems and struggles of their own to call the
people back to himself. Then he sent
Jesus. He put himself into man quite
literally and came here to rescue us. To
bring us back to communion with him. When Jesus came people wanted a
revolution, they wanted to be free from oppressive governments and religious
structures. Jesus brought them one, but
it wasn’t what they were expecting. He
brought them a revolution of love, rooted in sacrifice, his sacrifice. A revolution rooted in living our lives not
for ourselves, but for community, for others, so that all of us can experience
the love of God, and we can see his work, his heaven here on earth. Jesus started the work, and I do believe he
is coming back to finish it, but it is our choice now to allow him to work
through us to continue it.
Whew that was a lot, did you follow me there? Jesus brought that kingdom, that paradise
back and he is entrusting us to be it and bring it. To live in the kingdom of heaven and to share
it to others until one day we all get to share in it together when he comes
back. But how do we do that? How do we do that all the time? I mean we are a mess right, I know I am. I can have a great moment and then instantly
be grumbling about my life and forgetting to work for the good in others lives.
Well take heart, because in the beatitudes Jesus tells us
blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. We can’t do it on our own; we can’t be it and
bring it alone. When we recognize that, and we look to Jesus, we open the door
for him to work through us.
Jesus talked a lot about the kingdom of heaven, and his
followers would get frustrated, because he told parables about it and said
these crazy things, like it’s in your midst, when they wanted an armed
revolution. One of the parables he told
was that of the sower and the seed. If
you have had any background in Sunday School you probably remember it. I just read the arch storybook version I have
had since I was a kid to Elijah last week.
If you are new to all this, though, don’t worry, I have a Lego stop
animation version, found on YouTube, for you all to watch right here www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LvvHXaKZPE.
His own disciples didn’t get what this meant, so let’s break
it down shall we? He is talking about the sower, that’s him, not us. Sowing seeds, the works of God, his Word. Word
means Jesus, it means life, it means God’s teachings to us, and the way he
calls us to live. He calls us to live
differently if we are following him.
Read the sermon on the mount if you want more detail on that. Our lives
are to be about the two greatest commandments, loving God and loving
others. Right? So he is sowing this, he
is planting this all around us, scattering it everywhere. We have to respond to it, but we have a
choice. We are the soils in this
story. We can choose what kind of soil
we can be. Did you get that? You have a choice. God knows we screw this up, but he still
gives us a choice. What a merciful,
graceful God we have. We have a choice
in how we respond. Will we be a hard path,
where the seed can’t get in and birds eat it before it ever has a chance to
take root? Will we not let the kingdom of God rule in our lives, not let Him
have any authority. Or will we listen,
be like the rocky soil, let the seed in, but not give it a rich
foundation. Then we can let the kingdom
in a little bit, but eventually when things get tough, it starts to
wither. Or we can be like the soil that
is good and lets the seed grow, but we also lets weeds grow too, we feed into
things that aren’t good for us, and we let them take root in our lives and
eventually that chokes out the kingdom work.
Those weeds are different for all of us, what you can handle and do and
doesn’t take over your life, maybe I can’t, but there is probably something
else in yours that squashes your ability to see God and others. We have another option though. We can be good nourished soil, full of life
and nutrients, and we can let the word grow in us, and produce a crop. We can
take care of the weeds before they choke out what God is trying to do. We aren’t the sower, it’s not us that all
this comes from, and we aren’t the seed, we are the soil.
We need to be it and bring it. We need to get our soil right. I confess, my
soil has become rocky and dry lately. I
have not been tending to it, and I have been burning out. Maybe you have
too. So how do we be it and bring it,
how do we choose good soil instead?
Irenaeus of Lyon, and I know you all have been following his
blog, keeping up with his writings etc.
He was an old scholarly type saint and he wrote: “For the glory of God
is the human person fully alive; and life consists of beholding God”. I like
that. We are fully alive; we are fully
bringing it when we are beholding God.
We were created remember in God’s image and made to be in his
presence. We are fully alive when we
remember that, when we remember we are loved, and valued and worthy because of
the one who gave us beauty and worthy.
No matter who we are we have a part in God’s kingdom, but when we lose
sight of him we lose sight of that. So
we have to behold him. We have to live
under his authority. Then our soil can
be enriched.
How do we behold God, how do we sit in his presence? There are so many things that need to get
done on a daily basis. I don’t know
about you, but carving out time to be with God just gets harder and
harder. This week was crazy in our
house. The week before was VBS and that
was a non-stop week of going and doing, and then we had to clean that up and
get ready to go to Alaska on Tuesday.
But I knew I had to attempt to be it and bring it today, and I knew I
couldn’t do that if I didn’t spend more time in God’s presence, reading his
word and in prayer. So I tried to fit it
in, getting up a little earlier, and staying up, and sitting down instead of
running around my house cleaning and getting all the laundry folded. I have to tell you, yesterday, two guests
arrived at my house to a mess. Luckily
they are trying to follow Jesus too, so I can hold them to a standard of grace
and forgiveness and mercy. It isn’t easy
to make time for these things, and we cannot do it all. Jesus promises though, seek first the kingdom
of heaven and all these things will be added unto you. He says that in a very
long chapter about worry. Don’t worry
about what you will eat and what you will wear, seek me first, he says. He makes us a promise there.
There is this thing called the Shemah, it’s 3 parts of the
Hebrew scriptures and Jewish people have said it for centuries. Part of it is
from Deuteronomy 6:4-9, 4 Hear,
O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[a] 5 Love
the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your
strength. 6 These
commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 Impress
them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk
along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie
them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write
them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. It comes as God
is reminding them to seek him first, and he says to share it with their
children during the day, to put it on their house, to wear it around their
heads. Little reminders all around them
each day. A short thing said over and
over. Even then God understood us, even then it seems they were having problems
letting things get in the way of them seeing God in their lives, and
remembering his authority, remembering the work he was doing around them. They didn’t have smart phones that were
always buzzing with reminders of other things, or internet, but this is a
problem and always has been for us all.
So God gave them a way, to memorize his word and to always have it with
them. They literally put and still do, mezuzah’s
boxes on their doorposts with scripture, so when they came and went they saw
it. They wore things on them, that had
scriptural symbolism, or scripture itself, and they memorized it. They prayed as they were saying these things.
What can you do, or tie around your wrist to put God’s word
in front of you? Maybe you use post it
notes on a mirror, embroidered pillows with verses, bible memory tools on your
smart phone. Maybe you have carved out a
quiet time in your day, everyday when you can spend time with God by praying in
a journal or reading through the Bible. Maybe you can use your commute time, or
the time you spend running, or walking. I know I have trouble with quiet, and a lot of
times I draw near to God with music, and the words, often words that have come
from Psalms, like the songs we sing here, draw me into God’s presence, and
remind me of his authority. We have to
find ways to nurture our soil, to keep ourselves close to God. How can you be
it, be the follower of Jesus the person living in the presence of God you were
supposed to be?
And how can you bring it, how can you bring the kingdom of
heaven to earth. Being in fellowship
with one another helps us bring it. The
church is a place where we are supposed to encourage one another to be it and
bring it. God brings us together so we
can have an even bigger crop together.
Sharing our resources, our talent and our time. But we aren’t just supposed to bring it to
each other; we are supposed to bring it to Portland. How can we bring the kingdom of heaven here,
all around us?
Many of you brought it at VBS a week ago (Vacation Bible School at MPC was July 18-22, nearly 100 kids attended from outside our church community). You gave your time and your talent, to be
here with the kids. Most of those kids
aren’t a part of our church, but you loved them and made them feel
welcome. They had a great time here and
they experienced the love of Christ through you. One kid came and was kind of grumpy at the
beginning of the week, he was making trouble. On Wednesday we brought the
waterslides out, and he came up to me, and said, “Are we going to the pool, you
guys have a pool here right?” I said no, there is no pool here, just water
slides”. He was upset and kept saying. “Waterslides,
that’s stupid, we should just go to the pool”. Then he got out to the
waterslides and I could see he was excited.
He went down one, and got out and said, “for God’s sake, you should at
least heat the water, it’s cold”. It was
awesome! I could see that he was starting to enjoy himself, but he still just
couldn’t let go. Then a couple minutes
later I saw him zooming down the waterslide, and he got off and he said, “this
is so AWESOME!” and I had to yell for him to quit running, he was so
excited. He came with a hardened heart,
but it softened over the week. He got to
experience a piece of heaven on earth. I
heard from other parents that their kids experienced the same thing. For one week our church brought heaven to
earth, with the seeds God planted. We
were some pretty great soil. But how do
we keep it up?
How do we be people that aren’t complaining about how rough
life is, but are celebrating the goodness of God? There will always be suffering; we live in a
broken world. God mourns with us in that
suffering, but he also wants to bring healing and heaven and we have a part in
that. We can choose to see the good, and
bring the good that he began.
Shane Claiborne, a guy who has gone so far as to live in an
intentional community in the worst part of Philadelphia to better be able to be
it and bring it, tells a story go when he was living in Calcutta India with the
poorest of the poor. They would hang out
with the street kids and give them birthday parties. They would celebrate these kids that were
living on the streets that the rest of the world had forgotten. They would have a party for them, and at one
party, they got the birthday boy an ice cream cone. This boy, who had nothing, took this ice cream
cone and licked it, and then he passed it around to everyone, a lick for you, a
lick for you. Shane Claiborne like me
has a fear of other people’s saliva, but he said even he couldn’t resist taking
a lick of this cone. Instead of focusing
on how bad his situation was, this boy saw something amazing and he had to
share it, he just had to share it with everyone.
We have the kingdom of heaven. We have heaven right here,
right now; we just have to share it. We
have to be it and bring it. I hope that you can be thrilled and excited with
the possibility and the reality of heaven here on earth, so that you can be a
follower of Jesus and bring his kingdom here now.
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