Sunday Service 18th January

The coming of the Kingdom of God

18/1/26

Call to worship

Hymn 74(JP): He gave me eyes

Time for all  Amanda

Hymn 84(JP):  How lovely are he mountains

Reading:  Luke 17: 20-37

Prayer

Hymn 509: Jesus calls us o’re the tumult

Sermon

Prayer

Hymn 616: There’s a spirit in the air

Benediction

Welcome to our meditation for 18^th January.

Over 25 years ago we had the Y2K crisis. Many thought that that was the end of the world, or was going to be the start of the end of the world.

Everything was Apocalyptic, and to be honest I am old enough to have gone through at least five times when people have been saying the end of the world is nigh.

I don’t bother now.

I think part of it is that I have studied the Old Testament a lot more

and realised that what they called ‘the Day of the Lord’ was more ‘a day of the Lord,’ a time of judgement, but not a final day of judgement.

And then in the New Testament when Jesus was talking of the coming of God’s Kingdom that was blended with the Day of the Lord and the final coming of God’s kingdom. That it would start with a time of judgement and then God’s perfect kingdom would arrive. Since then the  big question has then been, ‘When? When will this happen?’

Which makes it strange that that is not the question that the disciples ask, they ask, ‘Where?’ ... where will the Kingdom come?

But we will look at that after our reading from Gil.

Sermon

‘Some Pharisees asked Jesus when the Kingdom of God would come.’

This was a fundamental question in the time of Christ.

And if we are honest it is a fundamental question today, only we would phrase it differently...but I will talk about that later.

However the twist in the tail is that the natural question that should come from the disciples is, ‘When? When will the Kingdom of God come?’ but the disciples don’t ask that question, the question they ask is, ‘Where?’

But again, I will come to that later.

First, let’s look at why this was such an important question for them.

So let’s begin.

There is something basic you will have to understand.

Whenever a Pharisee or a Sadducee asks Jesus a question you have to ask yourself why they are asking that question, and where they are asking that question.

If they are asking that question in public, then they are trying to trick Jesus into making a mistake.

If they are asking the question in private, then they are seriously trying to get an answer because they want to know what he thinks.

This is a question asked in public, so we know they are trying to trick Jesus.

Th Kingdom of God was thought of as a time when God influence ruled the world.

It would be a perfect time.

And in their heads, the Jews felt it would be a time when the Jewish people ruled the world.

That made sense.

They were God’s chosen people and so God would want them to look after the world on his behalf because they knew the will of God.

This concept was a hope for the people.

When the people had been conquered by the Babylonians and taken into exile they came to believe that it was because they had been unfaithful to God.

They had let the nation drift away from God’s principles,

they had worshiped other God’s,

they had shown injustice to God’s people,

their rulers had been motivated by greed and power rather than leading the people to be Gods people.

but even though they had lost everything, God would still be faithful.

If the people turned their hearts to God again God would act, there would be a day of the lord and the people would return.

And a miracle did happen.

One day the Babylonian Empire was defeated and the people returned to the Promised Land.

And although they were back, although they rebuilt the temple, it still felt less than they expected.

And of course the land was conquered again, first by the Greeks, then by the Romans.

But the concept of the Day of the Lord, the day of judgment, when God would act, and bring in the coming of the Kingdom of God,

when the people of God would rise to power, when God’s rule would be supreme...that idea had stuck.

And at the time of Jesus there was the feeling that enough was enough.

The people had suffered enough; it was time for God to act.

And it is in this context that Jesus’ message of the coming of the Kingdom of God is being heard.

Now the Pharisees don’t care about Jesus’ message, they don’t believe him and think he is a hoax,

and to be fair at that time there were a lot of people trying to stoke up the people to create an uprising.

So the Pharisees come to Jesus asking when the Kingdom of God will  come.

The hope is that Jesus will give a time.

That will be the time of the uprising. And now they will have evidence to bring to the Roman authorities that Jesus is starting a rebellion, and the Romans will then deal with him.

The Romans will arrest Jesus on sedition, probably execute him, and that will be the end of their problem.

That was then.

But this question still lingers today in many of us.

The day of the lord, the day of judgement...I couldn’t tell you how many times in my lifetime the end of the world has been predicted.

I remember one time in secondary school when a huge rumour went round the school that the end of the world was going to happen in such and such a day.

Strangely enough that wasn’t regarded as a valid excuse for not having your homework in the day after it.

‘Excuse me miss, I didn’t do my homework because I thought that the world was going to end yesterday so what was the point in doing it?’

But there are still plenty of books out there predicting when the end of the world will be; when will the day of judgement, followed by the coming of God’s Kingdom be?

The more serious version of that question though still nags at us constantly...’God when will you act?’

I suspect at some point every one of us here has asked that question.

I know when my parents were dying slowly over many months I asked that question.

I know that many that are worried about the state of Christianity in Scotland and the state of many of our churches have asked that question.

I know that many in the war torn countries, and those close to those countries that see instability close to them and uncertainty ahead, are asking that question.

I suspect that there are many countries that are watching their nation literally disappear as the waters rise...

while wealthy countries do nothing about it,

in fact deny the science,

or worse admit that the science is correct but do nothing so that their standard of living is unaffected while other countries suffer political and economic and structural destruction...they are asking that question.

I suspect that there are so many in the world watching their children starve to death as droughts or floods decimate another harvest are asking that question.

God, when will you act?

When will the kingdom come, when will God’s power and influence be seen?

And Jesus answers the ‘when’ question.

In fact this is a strange example in the Gospels of people asking Jesus a question and he just answers it.

More often than not when Jesus is asked one of these trick questions he turns it around and goes off and gives a parable.

But on this rare occasion Jesus just states, ‘You’ll never know it’s happened until it has happened.’

The day before the flood no one knew, no one suspected that the next day they would die.

Noah had tried to warn some folk near him but they didn’t believe him,

there was no history of a flood like that happening before,

there was no proof that it would happen,

no evidence that such a storm could happen.

So everyone just carried on doing what they were doing.

The day before Sodom was destroyed in an earthquake, or a volcano or whatever it was, everyone carried on doing what they had been doing.

There was no warning it would happen.

So they lived their lives the way they had always lived their lives, and then they died.

Likewise it will be with the kingdom of God.

No one will realise it has happened, until after it has happened, and it is obvious for all to see that things have changed.

So if you ever, and I mean, EVER, see a book with the title, ‘This is the Day that the Kingdom of God comes,’ then don’t waste your money.

That is, unless I have written it, if I have written it then not only buy a copy, buy lots of copies for your family and neighbours and friends.

Not because it will tell you when the Kingdom of God will come, but because I will need the money.

Seriously though.

Our natural instinct is to ask the WHEN question, when will the kingdom of God come?

Which makes is strange that the disciples don’t...they ask WHERE?

Which is the real question, the important question.

Where will the Kingdom of God be?

Where will God’s power show itself?

Where will God’s influence dominate and rule?

In our hearts of course, or not in our hearts.

We will either let God influence us, or not.

And the thing is no one will expect it, no one will see the signs; they will see it only after it has happened.

The day before God influences our hearts we carry on doing what we are doing.

And then we allow God’s influence, God’s rule, God’s kingdom...to be the dominant force in our lives.

And that changes us, should change us.

If vultures are attracted to dead bodies because they offer life to them, then how much will people be attracted to us because they see the hope of life for them.

And strange as it sounds...God living through us will be attractive to others, people should notice that influence in our lives.

People might ask us for advice because they see us as trustworthy and honest.

People might see how we reach out to others when they are in need before they ask for help.

People might notice that we have a concern for our neighbours.

That we are less selfish.

That we are less about what we need the world to be like...and more about how the world needs us to be like.

We often spend our lives asking when God will start acting in this world,

when the truth is God wants to act in our lives, so that the world will change through us.

Where is the kingdom of God?

It is either in us, or it is nowhere.

Let us pray

Heavenly Father,

The past has so many lessons to teach us.

The destruction of Sodom, the flooding in the days of Noah; they are sobering reminders that all is finite.

One day working and breathing and arguing and loving and caring, and then all those opportunities are gone.

One minute living the next—gone.

And it is not that we still have those lessons.

The day before Russia attacked Ukraine, the Day before Hamas attacked Israel, everyone was carrying on as if life would always be that way.

There were worries and concerns and hopes and dreams, but life would go on, only for so many it has not.

Lives lost, lives changed.

And even in our own lives we face these scenarios.

We will live today as if it will last forever.

We will waste time or use time

and be busy or be lazy,

we will love or hate or both,

we will move towards others or move further apart from them,

we will be open to others, or close ourselves off from others.

Not knowing if tomorrow is the day that all those opportunities disappear.

Maybe tomorrow they will move away and we see them no more.

Maybe tomorrow there is a diagnosis and our life changes and our opportunities disappear,

Maybe tomorrow the chance to make a difference fades away.

All lost because we did not use the gift of today, because we thought we would have tomorrow.

Too often we have asked you WHEN you will get involved.

Today we ask if you will get involved in our lives.

Too often we have asked you to change the world to make it better.

Today we ask you to change us.

Your Son changed the world, because the love you gave him, he gave to others.

May we change the world, by giving the love your Son offers us, to those around us, those who’s lives we can touch for the better.

This we ask in Jesus name

Amen.