The Mystery of the Kingdom: Radical Loyalty, Radical Welcome
by Ken Wilson
We sometimes forget gospels were written to a specific audience: Those Jesus communities that followed in wake of his life, death, rising, outpoured Spirit. What does it mean for communities of Christ followers to pursue his vision of the kingdom of God? This is the concern of gospels.
Jesus overturned popular understanding of kingdom. Kingdom was a hoped for set of outcomes: insurgency that would overthrow Roman occupation force then establish a theocracy eventually extending to whole earth. Much speculation concerning the kingdom as a program: what it would look like? Kingdom questions were where & when?
Jesus shifted the focus to who & how? He said, the key to the kingdom is the king; the path is love; everything else is details
When Pharisees asked "where & when will the kingdom erupt?" Jesus answered, "The kingdom is in your midst" (Luke 17:21)
His call to the kingdom wasn't a call to arms or a call to national unity. It was a call to personal loyalty. Want the kingdom? Follow me.
Today, look at a section from Luke's gospel that might be titled, The Mystery of the Kingdom: Radical Loyalty, Radical Welcome
PART I: RADICAL LOYALTY Luke 14: 25-27 Jesus demands a loyalty only appropriate for coming king. But clothed in the mantle of the ordinary: without robes, without scepter, without the trappings of kingship, just the essence of kingship--divine love in person.
The language is stark, because the claim of the king is absolute, unequivocal, non-negotiable.
When Jesus, who is love in person--who loved people as no other ever loved them, who healed, delivered, gathered in name of love as no one before him ever did--uses word "hate" it gets your attention.
He is not advocating literal hatred. He loved his mom & dad. He rebuked the Pharisees for religious loopholes that had the effect of dishonoring father & mother. He rebuked his own disciples for keeping the little children away.
He is highlighting by contrast the loyalty he demands: A loyalty with higher claims than all earthly ties.
Anyone who thinks discipleship means tossing him some leftover time, money, loyalty, is mistaken. He is Lord or lunatic, no middle ground.
He is only after disciples who have bet the farm on him…
The whole of your heart or none of it: that's what he's after.
Yes, it is supposed to make us squirm…to give us pause.
Imagine crowds following him, enjoying the show, along for the ride,
and then he turns to face them and lays this at their feet.
Did they cheer? No. Laugh with delight? No.
Were they offended? Yes, many of them.
And in that offense, they were sorted.
Some stumbled over these words.
Others heard in them the desire of the everlasting hills beckoning.
Loyalty and of a sort that exceeds all human, all sacred loyalties, all family ties, all tribal obligations--that's the way of his kingdom.
What are you doing out of sheer loyalty to Jesus? Something tied to heart (money, relationships) Is your Christianity costing you anything?
Luke 14: 28-34 The kingdom is a great undertaking: something wonderful is to be built like a tower, a city rising from the earth…
The kingdom means something will be conquered: like a king in a battle against enemy forces (evil itself, injustice, powers of hell)…
The kingdom is about something to be preserved: everything good & true, everything wonderful about this wonderful world, everything of the image & likeness of God in us preserved, like salt preserves food for the banquet…
But at what cost? A single payer system: the heart's unconditional, unequivocal loyalty to him. Not commitment to a program, adherence to a system (not even to a set of correct beliefs, per se.) Something more direct, more primal, more personal: Loyalty to him.
A new dad told me that a week before his wife gave birth to a healthy daughter, she woke him in middle of night: "Matt, I haven't felt baby move in a full day." Called midwife: "Get to hospital right away." He said , "I'm usually pretty calm but I was beside myself as we drove to hospital." I said, "Your heart was invested, all in." And we just nodded our heads, because we both knew what that feels like.
The heart in you that is capable of a fierce, unequivocal, all-in love--that's the heart he's after. Everything else is details. And if you try to pursue his kingdom without yielding to that claim on your heart, the kingdom is destined to rot in your hands if you dare to touch it.
The way of the kingdom is simply this: give him your heart, then follow. "He who has ears, let him hear!" (Lk 14: 36)
PART I: RADICAL LOYALTY PART II: RADICAL WELCOME
Where will the kingdom take us that might exact a cost? What path might get us into same heap of trouble our master got himself into? That's the next concern of this text: Luke 15: 1-2
Religion as it's administered by the powers that be, adheres to a certain sequence: believe-behave-belong. First, you start believing the right things, then you start doing the right things, then you belong (so long as you keep believing and behaving.)
But Jesus is overturning the tables of business as usual religion.
Instead of believe-behave-belong, it's belong-believe-behave. Like babies. First you belong to family. Then in context of belonging, you get oriented, neurons connect and you develop a point of view on the world (believe.) Then you behave, shaped by your view of world.
Maybe some can make it into kingdom via believe-behave-belong, but not this crowd. So Jesus said, let's flip it. Come to dinner with me. You belong. Then we'll talk and see what you find yourself believing (might actually start believing that you belong!) and then things will start changing in your life. Not outside-in, but inside-out.
"Tax collectors & sinners" were recognized classes of people in Israel. The tax collectors were just your basic greedy low life traitors to the national cause whose only cause was their own.
"Sinners": common people of Israel who were unable to maintain laws of Israel. Unable to live up to obligations of the holy nation. Normally because they had more pressing business like making it thru the day.
It's not that they were the only ones who sinned. The righteous also sinned. But the "sinners" couldn't work the covenant: keep kosher, make it to feasts, offer tithes, arrange sacrifices, observe ritual law.
Like great mass of humanity, they also sinned as we think of sin: their sexual lives disordered; their tongues slander & gossip-prone; making promises couldn't keep. And worse…but who's to say what's worse when it comes to sin? It all stinks in God's nostrils.
Thing is, many of them really liked Jesus. Felt drawn. Enjoyed his company. When he taught, put down paper, pulled out ear-buds and listened. If he invited them a meal with him, they were all over it.
The ones who were drawn to him, he didn't cast out because of their faulty beliefs or mis-fit behavior. No. He did something unexpected.
He welcomed them. To welcome someone is to say: you belong.
If they would have Him, he would have them.
Gk. prosdechomai: receive, welcome, accept; wait for, anticipate
So what was the problem? Seems like nothing but good news!? Why would this come right after the section about the cost of discipleship?
His approach meant criticism from powerful people who could make life miserable….the believe-behave-belong crowd went apoplectic.
Muttering: "Giving riff-raff a free pass? Dangerous! Unorthodox! Need to stop him, sanction him!" Jesus' way of the kingdom put him at odds with the kingdom experts of his day. Bad career move.
This is the conflict leading to the cross: "To what shall I compare this generation? Like children in marketplace calling to each other: 'We piped for you and you didn't dance! Wailed and you didn't weep!' John came eating no bread, drinking no wine and you say, 'He has a demon!' Son of man came eating & drinking and you say, 'A glutton & a drunkard--friend of tax collectors and sinners!' (Luke 7: 34-35)
Think about it. If this is the kingdom path: radical loyalty, radical welcome, what group of sinners today does it not apply to?
+ the improperly divorced and improperly remarried?
+ the single moms who are single moms for the wrong reasons?
+ the gays and gender-confused?
+ the homeless?
+ the down & outers, the up & outers?
+ the liberals when the church leans conservative?
+ the conservatives when the church leans liberal?
+ the illegal immigrants?
+ anyone in this room?
Do we get to pick & choose which category of sinners it does not apply to?
If they come to dinner, do we get to say, "In your case, you have to straighten up before you belong because your form of sinner is a special category"
If Jesus is our center,
If the bible is our book,
If the gospel is our message,
If love is our aim, I don't think so!
He warns us about cost of discipleship because he is taking a controversial path to the kingdom. Equivalent to over-turning the tables in the temple. Anyone who follows is likely to incur some wrath, especially religious wrath. Don't even come with me, he said earlier, unless you're willing to pay the price. Unless we're willing make a bad career move.
Then, to sharpen his "belonging first" point, he tells three stories. A woman loses a coin, searches high & low. Because it belongs to her.
-
A shepherd who notices a sheep has wandered off, and he goes to claim it. Because it belongs to him.
A father whose low life son ran off with the inheritance and comes back because he's hungry and has nowhere else to go. Father doesn't first demand a reformed life or a detailed repentance.
Just runs out to meet him. Which only creates more family tension, because the older brother thinks it's not fair. It's too easy. His father has gone soft. Isn't upholding proper standards. Sound familiar?
Food is important as the sign of belonging. Who will you sit down and eat with? Jesus sat down with tax collectors & sinners, before vetting their beliefs or behavior.
Each of the stories ends with a party, which always involves food.
The third story ends with a banquet feast inside, the older brother outside steaming, criticizing, objecting: "That son of yours belongs, before it's clear what he's sorry for besides running out of food?!"
Why food as sign of belonging? Because Jesus communities, to whom gospel is addressed, had a meal together called communion.
Some say, unless you're in full communion with the Roman pontiff, you're not welcome to this table. Others say, if you don't believe in the real presence, or you're not part of our club, you're not welcome to this table. If you're divorced, don't come.
Which is it? Believe-behave-belong, the safe way of religion?
Or Belong-believe-behave, the risky way of the kingdom?
If Jesus is our center, If the bible is our book,
If the gospel is our message, If love is our aim,
It's radical loyalty, radical welcome: belong-believe-behave.
[Ministry: call to all-in discipleship]
Kid Minute:
Building a spiritual framework for kids calls for the laying down of some rythms.
Routines, regular pathways, recurring events, touch points.
Nothing fancy. Easy does it.
Something doable. Sustainable.
Like a little advent observance at dinner or before bed.
Donnell & Maria put together that candle lighting ceremony.
Use it, adapt it, make it fit your little ones attention span, but by
all means, turn down the lights and light a candle. Always a hit.
You can buy little advent thingies that have a little thingamajiggy to open every day.
Or you can set up a crèche scene in one part of the living room and the figures of mary and joseph making the trek to Bethlehem on the other part of the living room. Each day, you move 'em a little closer.
And here's a good one: TDH for kids….