When Jesus proclaimed, "The Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news," He wasn’t inviting us to simply listen but to live—to bind our existence to the pulse of the Kingdom.
To truly embrace Jesus is to weave our lives into this Kingdom reality—not only through worship or in-depth bible study, but by stepping into His mission. His connection to the Father’s reign beckons us not to observe from the sidelines but to mirror His service, reflecting His radical obedience in our daily lives.
This call is a cruciform journey, one where we are invited to incarnate His life in the narrative of our own. The Kingdom isn’t a distant ideal; it is a present, unfolding reality we are meant to weave into the here and now. In our encounters with the marginalized, the forgotten, and the broken, the light of both the King and His Kingdom shines through, reshaping us into His image.
Yet this calling has a cost. We bear wounds as we move toward the pain of the world, scars formed in the fight against injustice, and a cross that weighs heavy on our shoulders. But it is here, in the raw places of suffering—on the streets, by the hospital bed—that the Kingdom is at hand.
Lament and hope are deeply intertwined, each feeding the other; our grief waters the seeds of new creation, and in our sorrow, hope takes root and grows.
Amidst the lament, the promise of new creation flickers to life. This is not about chasing the ecstatic experience but about becoming vessels through which the Kingdom breaks into the present. As we bear the scars of love and justice, we carry forward the work of the Kingdom, revealing the hope of a world that is being remade.
To follow Jesus is to walk a path where suffering and hope coexist. It is a journey where joy is born from sacrifice and peace is discovered not in the absence of struggle but in its very midst. Lament and hope are woven together as we bear the cross and are reshaped into His likeness. In this reshaping, the compassionate kingdom, the rule and reign of the Father, is made manifest.
Do not run from concrete reality,
Into a world of romanticised abstractions.
Take courage,
The truth at times will hurt.
Do not romanticise reality,
But look it straight in the eye.
And behold the nightmarish evil that many endure.
Don't dodge or look away,
But lament,
And grieve,
The Kingdom is calling.
Don't dodge or look away,
But listen,
And love,
The Kingdom is Calling.
Do not romanticise reality,
But look it in the eye,
Commit yourself to justice and peace.
Hold the hands of the hurting,
Wrap your arms around the broken,
Hold their gaze, and whisper
‘This is not the way it was meant to be’
Speak truth to those corrupted by power,
Stand up for the oppressed,
Hold their gaze and whisper.
‘This is not the way it is meant to be’
Do not romanticise reality,
But rest a while in extravagant love.
Bathe in his kindness,
Receive his healing.
Do not romanticise reality,
But know that hope is on the way.
Reality will be redeemed,
There is not a hurt he will not heal.
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