ESTABLISHMENT OF THE UPSIDE-DOWN KINGDOM

This summer, the Upside-Down Kingdom wove its way through communities across the country. Each Thursday over 5 weeks, we wanted to remind you of a few aspects of this Kingdom that we hope you will continue to talk about and live into long after this summer’s mission trip.

 

 

Watch this video on YouTube.

 

For a long time, it seemed bigger was always better: Bigger houses. Bigger closets. Bigger events. But recently, technology has highlighted small: Small cars. Small cameras. Small cell phones. It’s a novel idea… but not as new as you might think. In the midst of everyone clamoring for “Big… Big… BIG!” Jesus, too, declared, “small.”

 

He claimed small was better in a time and place where the Roman Empire was BIG. The Jewish people were forced to be part of this large political structure, to pay extra taxes and to be subject to Roman law. In the midst of it all, they hadn’t forgotten that God had told them a savior was coming who would rescue his people and establish a new Kingdom. The people had BIG expectations about the establishment of this Kingdom.

 

Some of the Jews thought the savior would make a BIG grand entrance, maybe coming down from heaven with thunder and lighting. And with the savior would come this new Kingdom, accompanied by a lightshow in the sky for all to see.

 

Other Jews thought maybe the Kingdom of God would be made of great cities and castles and lots of land. The savior would be a BIG military hero; so BIG that he would crush Roman oppression with the force of his military might.

 

Like I said: There were BIG expectations. But Jesus showed up quietly – no thunder and lightning included, no army in tow. Then he tells the Jewish people what the establishment of the Kingdom will be like, and it turned the people’s expectations upside-down.

Read Luke 13:18–21.

One would think that the God of the Universe would create a Kingdom more like an elephant that can take down anything that stands in its path. Or that Jesus would say the Kingdom is like a hurricane that will display its power for all to see! But Jesus says the Kingdom is like really small things.

 

Jesus says the Kingdom is like a mustard seed. Mustard seeds are little round seeds that are only about one or two millimeters in diameter. But from that seed a mustard plant could grow up to nine feet tall, and become a place where birds come to live. It starts small and grows big. Jesus says the Kingdom is like something that could go very unnoticed at first, but it grows and takes root and becomes a place to live.

 

And Jesus also says the Kingdom is like a pinch of yeast. Now, if you add just a little yeast to a bunch of dough, you can’t really see that it’s mixed in there. As you roll out the dough, it won’t look like anything has changed. But if you give it time, the yeast spreads throughout the batch and as the bread cooks the yeast makes it rise; it affects and changes everything it touches. Jesus says the Kingdom is like something that might be hard to see at first, but given time, it will change everything it touches.

 

Jesus told people that the Kingdom he established was not what they expected. And he was right! If we look at Jesus’ life and ministry, we see this small start with a baby in a manger born to an ordinary family in a small town. Jesus’ first followers were common fishermen and tax collectors, and he kept company with unpopular and forgotten people. The Kingdom Jesus talked about did not force its way, but began very small in a way that seemed very upside down to what people expected.

 

Like a seed, though, that Kingdom took root and grew. Like yeast, that Kingdom worked its way into the world, throughout history and across continents, transforming everything it touched. Two thousand years later, we are still seeking to follow Jesus, still telling others about Jesus and still eager to be part of the Kingdom he told us about. The Kingdom that Jesus established has grown!

 

But the Kingdom is not yet fully established.

 

There are still children who go to bed hungry. There are still families with broken relationships. There are still people groups who suffer oppression. There is still war, disease and hate. There is still enslavement to sin. There are still places the Kingdom has not yet reached.

 

But the Kingdom is growing. It continues to spread into communities and into relationships and into lives – often in small ways that sometimes go unnoticed. But one day, God’s Kingdom will be fully grown, God’s good rule will be fully known and Jesus’ presence will reach into every part of Creation.

And so, our role in all this is two-fold:

1. To take part in the ways God is growing the Kingdom right now.

2. To seek the Kingdom where it has not yet taken root.

God is establishing the Kingdom in all contexts. Remember, the Kingdom is established wherever God is making things right – in and through God’s people as they follow Jesus. Consider where you have seen God’s Kingdom at work in the world, in your immediate community and in your own life. Take time to mourn the places where the Kingdom has not yet reached – in the world, in your community and in your life.

 

Where do you think God will plant the Kingdom next? Pray for the places that are in desperate need of God’s Kingdom to take root. Then, after you pray, take part! Participate in the places where God is establishing the Upside-Down Kingdom.

 

CONSIDER…

1. Where have you recognized God’s Kingdom being established in the world? Where has God’s Kingdom not yet taken root in the world?

2. Where have you recognized God’s Kingdom being established in your community? Where has God’s Kingdom not yet taken root in your community?

3. Where have you recognized God’s Kingdom being established in your own life? Where has God’s Kingdom not yet taken root in your life?

4. What’s keeping God’s Kingdom from reaching that area of your life?

5. What is one way you can participate in the work God is doing to build the Kingdom in one (or more) of the areas above?

Set aside some time to simply recognize and lament the places God’s Kingdom does not seem to be reaching in the world, in your community and in your life. Talk to God or write down your thoughts and feelings. Then, spend some time recognizing and celebrating the places in which God’s Kingdom has been established in the world, in your community and in your life. Conclude with a prayer for God’s Kingdom to come in each of the contexts lamented, and invite God to involve you in the establishment of the Kingdom.

 

 

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Sam Townsend helps write training, programming and marketing materials for YouthWorks mission trips. When he isn’t hanging around teenagers at church or digging into seminary homework, he is generally looking for a good conversation and a hole-in-the-wall restaurant to have it in. Sam still considers his first couple summers working for YouthWorks in Virginia and Pennsylvania communities some of the most transformative times of his life.