Believing in the Kingdom

Passage for reflection: Matthew 13, verses 31-33 & 44- 52

This Sunday’s Gospel reading is all about seeing the Kingdom of God as a possibility and working for its coming even if everyone thinks you are mad! 

I continue to reflect on spirituality in this time of pandemic. As some churches have reopened, others are considering reopening after an extensive risk assessment, and others are still saying it isn’t the right time yet, it would be easy to concentrate on buildings being only where God can be met and is at work.

But what is becoming more and more clear to me is that God has been using this uncertain time when everything has been abruptly taken away that we have relied on for our spirituality to keep alive, largely corporate worship and receiving communion, to show us he is at work in new ways if we will only look for them. 

I’m very frightened about the thought of enclosed spaces reopening and being the leader of congregations in them, face coverings and all, no singing and no chatting after the service! I’m very excited about different ways of offering spirituality and being community. I’m hearing stories of deep theological conversations on the phone, pastoral care amongst church people, some of whom have hardly spoken before, creative ways of sharing worship on line and in print, prayers offered when people dial a hotline for them, and many many practical examples of concern and involvement at a safe distance in the locality of churches where ministry should be.

So while some need and want to go back to the church meeting together physically with all that involves, there are others (like me who has been told to shield for the last four months) who would rather think differently at least for now.

 I do believe we will need a varied diet of activity at least until they find a vaccine and that feels okay. But how I get to meet the good folk of eight churches in six week’s time goodness only knows. I’d wondered about folk booking a time to meet me outside in each community by appointment! And how will my welcome service on September 6 be? I’ve wondered whether we can livestream it from a church car park! Anything is possible! :) 

I guess we have to again ask what the Church is for. Is it a thing that is an end in itself, or is it the tool through which God’s Kingdom is heralded? Do we “do Church” in order to “be Kingdom people?” 

There have been days during lockdown that I’ve lost focus and haven’t felt like doing anything, I just sit on the sofa and watch the news roll round and round until it drains me, or I just sit and eat snacks! On better days, I have been active, largely writing sermons for each Sunday, producing other reflective on line material and getting my book written (17,000 + words now in three and a bit chapters!)

 I’m now energised by the prospect of a new appointment coming even if how I minister in it will be very different. While it would be easy to dwell on what I don’t feel safe doing, I’m trying to see how much I can do, forming relationships and discerning, with others, what God might be up to. I’m convinced, you know, that God might be doing something exciting ahead of us, or even right now. Maybe while none of us wanted a global pandemic, it’s given all of us time to stop, think, recreate, and reassess. Some talk of “getting back to normal” - but normal wasn’t working, so why would we want to go back there? 

The hymn says “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God” - there used to be an agenda item for Church Councils called “the work of God.” I’ve been in meetings where God has hardly been mentioned, and certainly not any discussion on his activity! What if now we are called to seek his Kingdom? What if we are called to be mad and radical and risk takers? What if today we let go of what was, keeping what is still precious, but working faithfully to catch up with God’s intentions and surprises, believing something is going to happen? 

So, the Gospel passage for Sunday has four little pictures of utter insanity in human terms but spiritual alertness and passion that sees a different future.

First, we have a farmer planting mustard seed, tiny, yet capable of growing into a huge plant. It will become massive! How fab is it that God’s Kingdom is about small beginnings. The faith in planting something minuscule, sowing little seeds, means we believe in the future. Never decry small acts of kindness - nor small churches that just love their people and those around them. 

Then we have yeast a woman takes and kneads into dough until it is leavened. Yeast is microscopic in size, and only a little is kneaded into the dough. But given time, it spreads. Remember Jesus only started his work with twelve people. Remember also yeast grows from within, so God can change us, and I believe communities can be changed as genuine Christianity works within a culture as an agent of change, slowly changing things from within. Surely a call to us to get involved in things where we live that AREN’T CHURCH !!!

Then we have “treasure hidden in a field.” It lies undiscovered, though available to anyone. Some seek it, persistently. Others may suddenly find it, but when they do, they discover the worth and the joy of recognising God’s love and purpose for them, their joy is overwhelming.

And finally, there’s the “pearl ... of great prIce”. It’s the one thing that provokes utter longing in the one who has heard of it and is willing to surrender everything to possess it.

So the Kingdom starts small.

The Kingdom grows from within slowly.

The Kingdom is to be discovered and unearthed.

The Kingdom is to be enjoyed! 

How about when we reopen buildings we put the Kingdom first? How about we celebrate in what we are able to do now that the Kingdom is being heralded through those things? 

How can we be a radical Kingdom heralding Church again, looking for it, anticipating it and enjoying its values again?

The theologian Fred Craddock maintained that when a church dies, most often it dies of amnesia. It forgets who it is and what it is. It forgets that “church” is a verb, ever growing and changing and doing and going and questioning and trying and laughing and lamenting and celebrating and crying and being.

 A church is a reminder to the world of the presence of Christ and an invitation to be a bit bonkers and think outrageously as we see God’s future together: faithfully planting seeds, kneading yeast, looking for treasure and wanting the precious love of Jesus with us always. 

We worry about the future, of course we do. Can we keep going as a Church? We worry in these times about being safe, so we mask ourselves up and keep our distance from others in case we get infected. But beyond this time as we come out of it one day, can we get some enthusiasm again to discern and see and find the divine in our midst? I hope so. And can we, even while the hard things of the world still hurt, herald that some things might be about to change? 

This Sunday be challenged. Think bigger. Where can God be found? My beloved late college principal Graham Slater used to get very excited about Wolfhart Pannenberg. We used to get tales of “when Wolfie came to dinner” at college a lot! Maybe Pannenberg hits the nail on the head here:

“Because God is the creator of everything and will be the redeemer of everything, theology has to be concerned with everything.”

Like planters and cooks and treasure seekers and coveters of great pearls, whether we make the effort is up to us. But be warned, God won’t stop working. We will just be left behind. Wouldn’t that be desperate?