Kingdom of Heaven, Kingdom of God


Each apostle addresses special groups –people of his own heritage or groups to which he is drawn. Matthew speaks of the Kingdom of Heaven over thirty times and closely related to the Kingdom of Heaven is the Kingdom of God.

Modern man is familiar with “Thy kingdom come” and its action, “Thy will be done” as found in the Our Father. Jesus established the kingdom when he came as Messiah, speaking and acting as the Son of God. His teachings and miracles are signs by which the kingdom begins, his divinity revealed, with man called to respond. Man is called first to repent humbly-to change his actions and behavior; he is called to love one another, and by mirroring the forgiveness of Christ, man is following the worthy ideal. Jesus, the holy, venerated standard, opens the kingdom to man. Man can exercises his free will to follow the will of God. Thus the Kingdom of God can grow here on earth.

The finest, truest expression of the kingdom will take place at the end time. Final judgment will be rendered for all men. All power, all authority comes from God. God will gather those who have followed Jesus faithfully into the kingdom; man will be in communion with the Trinity, giving eternal praise.

“No one has ever seen God, only the son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known” (Jn 1:18)


Jesus Christ is the object of our faith, the one sent by the Father so man would know who God is, not just intellectually, but with full commitment to the Word. “I came into the world as light, so that everyone who believes in me might not remain in darkness.”(Jn12:46)

The episode of the Transfiguration brings together many elements of faith whereby man and God come together to say who Jesus is. The Light of the World ascends Mount Tabor just six days after Peter’s great declaration of faith. Jesus brings with him his disciples Peter, James and John. Again and again Jesus has told his disciples he must journey to Jerusalem to suffer and die. It is night and Jesus has come to pray, to be sure he is following the will of his Father. He would take no step without talking to his Father. The disciples are always wavering in faith; the road to Jerusalem with the cross could turn them into unbelievers. They need something to cling to during their time of testing. Before them Jesus’ face and garments change: “His face shone like the sun, and his garments become as white as the light.”(Matt17:2) With Jesus are Moses and Elijah, the prophet who found God not in the wind, and not in the earthquake, but in the small voice, (1Kings:9) and the lawgiver of the Old Testament, whose face shone. (Exodus34:29) Jesus, Moses and Elijah are talking. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Old Testament represented by Moses and Elijah. Everything comes together in this tableau of faith as to who Jesus is. The greatest of the Old Testament bring recognition to Jesus and witness to Jesus that he should go forth. The voice of the Father in the bright cloud confers his blessing upon Jesus: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”(Matt 17:5) The disciples’ eyes and hearts are opened, their faith restored to believe the divinity of Christ. The light of power and divinity, the truth of Jesus’ relationship to the Father come from the same source: God the Father.

Man cannot remain atop the mountain, the place where one encounters Christ. Man must seek Christ’s shining glory on the plains of injustice and poverty. After witnessing the glory of Christ, man can remember, can meditate. Man needs to perceive God’s will for his life and like Christ pray for guidance. Man too needs a transfiguration to remain faithful in times of trial and tribulation. Man offers his suffering up to God; these are man’s altars of praise and glory to God.

Although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned, you have revealed them to the little ones.” (Matt11:25)

Jesus was a teacher; He taught by example. Usually His message had had two teachings: one which was on the surface and a deeper meaning which wash hidden beneath the surface.

 
On the surface, the wise and learned are the Scribes and Pharisee; their teachings, the" yoke of the Torah", impose a heavy burden on the people. The arbitrators of faith are unable to see the mysteries of Christ in the kingdom of God. Like Alice in Wonderland, the above ground logic of Alice will not work in the below ground logic of the rabbit. The little ones are the meek, the humble, the ones the Father has given the grace of His "gracious will," They will form the Christian community; they will know the Father through Christ. The familiarity and intimacy of Christ and the Father (Abba), is such as that of a child and a loving parent. The disciples will have that closeness too; they will be given the inner peace of the spirit in this life which quiets their mind and heart. The disciples will still have trials, frustrations, and sufferings, but the call to discipleship will be lighter with Christ's help. By tying yourself to the yoke of Christ, one sees He carries the heavier burden. His yoke contains all the love He has for His disciples.

The below surface meaning speaks to those who are given power; to those who have authority, the right to govern others, the "wise and the learned." How one uses their power is the core teaching. Does one see himself as standing over others, judging, condemning, punishing? The Scribes and Pharisees did this. An obligation was made into something negative. True authority, true leadership is based on mercy and love.

God uses His authority to love us to goodness. Love is never negative; it doesn't demand; it simply is. An obligation is not a task to be done; it is a labor of love, a prologue to joy.

All of us have some power or authority over another: a mother tells one of her children, "You are in charge." When we are tempted to think of our dignity, our prestige, our rights, our desires, our self-prominence, then we are no longer, “one of the little ones." When we walk alone, we are bound to stumble, to grope, to go the wrong way. When we take up the yoke of Christ, we have our guide to safety, peace; our service to others becomes a joy, not an obligation.

,

.

“…so that the world may know I love the Father.” (Jn 14:31)

“Christ reveals through his humanity the mystery of his divinity- his life and death is a visible expression of the invisible life of the Trinity, where the Son eternally pours himself out in love to the Father.” (Catechism of the Church)

Jesus wants to communicate the love the Father has toward man-God has loved man before man was created. Man was created for love-man was created to be in a “communion of love with the Son” and offered to the Father in love. Jesus, the Word, …”though he was in in the form of God, did not regard equality with God, as something to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of man.” (Philippians 2:6-7) Man, so imperfect, needs a visible sign to grasp the invisible life of the Trinity. Man needs to hold on to perfection to be complete- to be truly human.

Humility, obedience to the will of God, underlined with encompassing love, guided every moment of Christ’s life. Christ’s love for his Father and man reached its apex on the Cross of Calvary. The death of Christ on the cross stands as the greatest moment in man’s history; by the cross man is able to attain eternal life with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Love expressed so vividly marks a man of faith: man feels humbled, loved, and determines to live his life with love, love for all, as Christ lived his life.

Man, in the trials of daily life, struggles to exercises intentional faith, daily prayer and sacrifice. Most men never face martyrdom as did Peter, but by these actions of man, man joins Christ’s sacrifice of love to the Father for His eternal glory and praise.

“The blind men approached him and Jesus said to them, ”Do you believe that I can do this? “ “Yes Lord,” they said to him. Then he touched their eyes and said, ”Let it be done for you, according to your faith.” And their eyes were opened. ( Mt9:28-30)

There are many kinds of blindness: physical, spiritual, mental. All recognize physical; man calls upon Jesus when our pressing needs confront us and our medical resources are exhausted. Jesus is not a magician we conjure up to produce a miracle.

 
Jesus is asking the blind men: “Do you believe in ME?” Do you recognize my presence in your life? Do you trust I love you and have a purpose for this suffering in your life?
When one commits to faith, it is faith in a person- the person of Jesus Christ. Do you trust in ME that I have God’s power to change your life? Can you see that I can see into your own heart? Can you see I am the Source of ALL healing?

If we share, we love; if we love we believe; if we believe, we trust.
The most difficult blindness for man to recognize is the blindness inside himself; it is the blindness that closes his heart to complete trust in Jesus. It is blindness to our own defects, our own bias, our own opinions, our own selfish ideas, our own pride.

 
Jesus asks us to take a deeper look at ourselves to develop a richer, more eye-opening interior life. Man says, “This is the path I am going to take to God.” Jesus says, “I am the path, the Way.” I am going to show you a richer goal, a goal to “contemplative union with God.” This blindness and your acceptance is your living my will; this is your cross to Calvary, your living my Passion. Acceptance is man’s action; acceptance is man’s highest action, the highest adoration of God in a blinded world. “As for me, in my justice, I shall see your face when I awake, with the sight of your glory.”(Ps17:15)

In our present age, the final blindness is the blindness of indifference. It is “not seeing” the suffering of those around us. Our senses are blocked to seeing misery, the plight of the less fortunate, like the rich man who did not see the beggar outside his home each day. Christ is in our midst and man does not see him. Man desperately needs Christ to remove our blindness; man needs God’s mercy to see; man needs to have the faith Jesus is asking of the blind men, so man can see.

While everyone was asleep, his enemy came and sowed weeds through the wheat.” Matt 13:25

We are spending the summer in Door County, Wi, known nationally for its numerous quality galleries, spectacular scenery, and fish boils. Tourist from Chicago, Milwaukee flock to the area each weekend,

On the surface, the county seems upscale: one of a kind properties, with everything “cute”, yet by the numbers, most of its citizens rely on government assistance. This summer the local YMCA will hand out 18,000 free lunches; the Altrusa Club will give 500 kids, back to school supplies; the Boys and Girls Club has seen a 2000% increase in daily attendance in the past three years , teaching education, recreation and life skills in a safe environment. This is not an error, the figure is correct.

Thus in the midst of great wealth, there is great need, which is hidden from wealthy tourists. We see only those who are like us, so therefore it is easy to be hospitable; we become indifferent to the poor in our midst- out of sight, out of mind. We sleep and the homeless do not, the devil slips into our subconscious, sensuality, self-importance emerge. We eat at award winning grills, and some beg for an extra pbj sandwich to take home for supper. This does not take into account migrant laborers; they didn’t come this Spring-too cold, too wet for gathering hay. Cherry picking comes later in the season and migrants will pick the world famous cherries.


Can we wonder that the enemy is here in our country? He comes in the guise of wealth, wealth we have earned, earned for our family; wealth we have used for our own good, acquiring “things.” Poisonous as the darnel of Jesus’ time, wealth and indifference are intertwined with each other in our present time, causing misery for a large portion of our countrymen. Christ wept; I wept, but even more is needed. Not a problem to be solved by reason, but a change in attitude by all; a shift in ethics, not mine but for the good of all. Man needs a philosophy of reflection, a deeper reflection of reality determining what man must move toward, what man must move away from, and always present in our hearts, ”I give you a new commandment:, love one another.”(Jn13:34)

“The feast is ready, but those who were invited, were not worthy to come. (Matt22: )

God, the king invites his special country to the wedding feast of his son, Jesus. It is a joyous occasion; his son will be honored and the wedding guests will rejoice with him. Some men reject, some ignore, some give business or family excuses; their reasoning sounds like man today when justifying why man must miss Mass, the wedding for Jesus.

Man’s free will, man’s wavering acceptance, man’s reluctance to change his behavior, man’s sinful actions toward the Son, apply to the Pharisees and the Jewish communities. The invited guests have declined the joyous invitation.
In God’s mercy, He goes out to the roadside to invite others to the feast, Gentiles, who do not yet have a close personal relationship to Him. The feast is moved from the temple to the new tabernacle, the Church. We, the new Adam believers, become Christians.

What gifts do we bring to the joyous feast? Man’s gifts, presented on the altar for the Son and his Father, are gifts of self-gifts which man has developed, enriched, grace filled by the Holy Spirit. The gifts of man’s faith, hope and love embedded in the bread and wine are returned ten fold to the Creator; the talents and gifts earned by man’s sweat of his brow enrich the offering. Humility, acceptance of suffering, ripen the worthy guests’ meal. The banquet is joyous, reverent, filled with love. Man’s spirit is lifted up to God’s spirit; communion of love flow from one to another.