Bringing about the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth.

Matt 25.34+

Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.  For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

I want to share my thoughts on the Kingdom of Heaven and how it relates to Missions.  I think that, as a church, we have distorted and confused missions and mission work by setting it off in a category all of it’s own.  When someone mentions missions work today we immediately think of something that is being done outside the Church or that is auxiliary to the Church.  But I don’t think that that is a correct image of missions.  I believe that in the Body of Christ, missions is a fundamental, even foundational element. 

The same thing happens when we talk about missionaries.  Immediately we envision certain people who are sent outside the church to evangelize far-off lands.  It is not just certain people that are called to do “mission work.”  And they are not just called to far-off lands. 

After his resurrection and before He was taken up into heaven, Jesus spoke with his disciples about the necessity of evangelism.  There are two well known verses which record his instructions.  The first is called the Great Commission in Matt 28.19-20, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”  Listen to what is said here: Go and make disciples, Baptize them, Teach them my way. 

The second is scripture is found in Acts 1.8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”  It is important to note that Jesus tells his disciples that they are to be His witnesses in Jerusalem (their home), in Judea and Samaria (the surrounding regions), and lastly to the ends of the earth! 

Was this command only given to the 11 disciples?  Or was this Commission given only to certain people?  No.  He gave it to everyone who would follow him; he gave it to the entire church.  It is the duty of every Christian to help make disciples, baptize them in the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and Teach them the ways of Christ.  It is the duty of every Disciple of Christ to be involved in Missions. 

But that doesn’t mean everyone has to leave their home and go to a foreign country.  Remember in Acts that Jesus tells his disciples to be witnesses for him in their homeland, in the surrounding regions, and, lastly, to the ends of the earth.  The church is called to be missions-oriented, and individuals are called to be missionaries, but for most people that call is local.  We are called to be missionaries in your neighborhood, at your work, among the people you interact with daily.

So we see that the call to missions is universal.  And that leads us to ask the question, “what exactly is missions and mission work?”

I think of missions as “Proclaiming the Good News of Christ and bringing about the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth.”  Our call to missions is two-fold:  Bringing Jesus and His Kingdom.  There have been times in the past when mission work was solely focused on saving souls.  The rationale was that Jesus was returning soon and that we must save as many souls as we can before He comes.  The intention was good, but they were only preaching half of the Gospel.  Because they were so focused on the eternal they neglected the immediate needs of the souls they saved.  They preached an individual Gospel which saved the individual for eternity, but did nothing to improve his physical and social situation. 

As a reaction to this, some Churches jumped to the other extreme.  Their focus in missions became what is called the Social Gospel.  The Social Gospel movement recognized that the teachings of the Kingdom of Heaven addressed the physical man and the social order.  Unfortunately, this movement was often so focused on restoring balance to the social order that it forgot the first half of the Gospel which is personal salvation through Jesus Christ.

If we preach Christ without preaching the Kingdom of Heaven we neglect the teachings and example of the One we preach.  If we preach the Kingdom of Heaven without preaching Christ we neglect not only the very foundation of that Kingdom but its King as well.  They belong together.  The King and the Kingdom.  Taken together, E. Stanley Jones calls this Gospel the “…total answer to man’s total need.”

This is what we need to be preaching in missions today: the complete Gospel; Personal salvation and social redemption; The “total answer to man’s total need.”  Whether we’re missionaries in a foreign land or missionaries in our neighborhood, we can’t afford to preach only half of the Gospel.  The Good News touches every aspect of life; the spiritual, the physical, the emotional, the social.

I believe that today, as a church, we are doing a good job of preaching Christ and personal salvation.  So, without forgetting that Jesus is the Rock of our Salvation and the Chief Cornerstone, I want to focus on the other half of the Good News, the Kingdom of Heaven.

As followers of Christ we are to endeavor to be like him in everything.  We are to think as He thinks, act as He acts, and teach what He teaches.  And Christ teaches about the Kingdom of Heaven. 

When John the Baptist entered his ministry he preached of the Kingdom.  Matt. 3.1,2 says, “In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, ‘Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven has come near.”  Then he baptized Jesus and Jesus was immediately taken to the desert where he fasted for forty days and was tempted by the Devil.  After this Jesus entered into his ministry and Matthew tells us in 4.17 that “From that time on Jesus began to preach, ‘Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven has come near.’”  Christ was preaching the exact same message as John the Baptist, the message of the Kingdom.   This was the focus of His entire ministry.  Jesus makes somewhere around 40 references to the Kingdom in the book of Matthew. 

                So what is this Kingdom Jesus speaks so much of?  It is the Reign of Christ.  It is everything and every creature redeemed and restored to a perfect union with God the Father.  It is the salvation and restoration not just of the individual soul, but also of society, of the physical body, and all of creation.  We know that this perfect Kingdom is coming with the promised return of Christ.  And Romans 8 confirms that not only we, but all of creation is eagerly awaiting the return of Christ and the redemption of all things. 

                But there is a mystery, the Kingdom is more than a future hope, it is already here.  Like Christ who was, and is, and is to come, so also his Kingdom was, and is, and is to come.  It will only be fully revealed when Christ returns for Jesus and the Kingdom are inseparable.  But because Christ already came, so also his Kingdom is already here among us.  Listen to Matt 13:31-32, “He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”” So the Kingdom has not yet fully ripened, but it has been planted.  Jesus continues in verse 33, “He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.”  So also the Kingdom is like yeast that takes time to raise the dough. 

Listen also to how Jesus responds to the Pharisees in Matt 12 24-28:

But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.”  Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

So the Kingdom of Heaven has come upon us.  It is not just our future hope, but it is a present hope as well.  In addition to the promise we have of a New Heaven and a New Earth with Christ as King, we also have the promise of a better life in the present as well.  We must remember this in missions.  It is not enough to only care for people’s spiritual well-being, we must care for their other needs as well. 

Jesus said, “…This gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matt 24.14). This is our commission as missionaries.  We are to preach the gospel of the Kingdom throughout the whole world! 

So let’s follow the example of our Master.  Matt 4.23 says that “Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.”  Jesus was proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom and he was healing people.  And when he sent out the 12 disciples He instructed them to do the same.  He said:

As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’  Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.  (Matt 10.7-8)

Part of the ministry of the Kingdom was caring for people’s physical ailments.  This is why it is so important in missions that we care also for the physical needs of those around us.  We might not be able to raise the dead, but what can we do?  We can bring health care and training, we can dig wells, provide micro-loans, counsel people in need, vote for righteous leaders, and fight for the cause of the poor and needy.  All these are ways in which we can help bring about the Kingdom of God on Earth. 

Satan is actively opposed to this Kingdom.  He wants every that is contrary to the Reign of Christ.  Jesus says in John 10:10 that “the thief comes only to steal, kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”  Satan’s objective is to cause as much pain, misery, and destruction in this world before Christ returns.  The Kingdom of Heaven is working to restore all things. 

I had a dramatic example of this on our last trip.  A couple from my church came down with me in Oct.  The wife was a dentist, and Keisy, myself, and this couple went to two different tribes to do dental work.  The dentist pulled around 80 or 90 teeth.  Every single tooth was a battle.  They were decayed, fragile, and many time infected and causing the patient severe pain.  It felt like a physical struggle and a spiritual struggle.  By the second tribe I finally realized the significance of our work.  It felt like Satan was working against us, trying to keep those bad teeth in the mouth.  He wanted to keep those people in pain.  That is his kingdom.  He delights in every hardship and misery that he can inflict on people.  Even things as seemingly insignificant as a painful tooth.  But the Christ and the Kingdom of Heaven has come to set people free.  Even from their infected teeth.  So we prayed over every tooth that it would come out easily and that there would be healing in the mouth.  Every day was exhausting for me, praying and watching the physical and spiritual battle.  But it was worth it.  We were helping to bring about the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. 

And, of course, in the evening Keisy or a pastor would minister to the spiritual needs of the people.  This is what missions is all about: bringing both the King and the Kingdom; the whole Gospel.  Addressing peoples’ eternal needs as well as their temporal needs.  The “…total answer to man’s total need.”

Our Father who art in Heaven,

Hallowed be thy name,

Thy Kingdom come,

Thy Will be done,

On earth as it is in Heaven. 

And Lord, grant us the privilege as missionaries, and as your witnesses, to help bring about that Kingdom.

In Jesus’ name

Amen

Is it good to be this comfortable?

I went shopping at Costco.  It was huge.  A massive walk-in refrigerator neatly packed with all kinds of fresh produce.  Multiple flavors of freshly baked bread laid out on spacious tables.  Aisle-long freezers of instant dinners.  Pallets of cereals and canned goods.  Candies, beef jerky, peppercinos and other non-essential food items, all sold in bulk.  And it was all so clean.  Orderly.  Spacious.  Honestly, I was a little shocked.  Where did the crowded streets go?  Where were the merchants selling rotten fruit out of their bicycle baskets?  Vendors frying pastries in the streets?  Trash?  Smells?  And beggars?  Where are all the knock-off imports from India?  The chili candies?  Pollution?  Goat heads?  And desperation?

I have abandoned my orphans.

Poon Hill

I couldn't leave Nepal without doing at least a little trek, so I set aside some time and went on a 5 day circuit to Poon Hill.  The Ghorepani/Poon Hill trek was rumored to have incredible Himalayan views and didn't disappoint.  The main attraction is sunrise at the 10,500' Poon Hill viewpoint.  I missed it, of course.  I'd already seen one Himalayan sunrise alongside 50 other tourists.  And maybe it's just me, but I find it hard to balance the color in sunrise photos.  What I did see, however, was a crystalline midnight sky over Annapurna South the night before.  A breathtaking view magnified by the dead quiet and stillness of the high pass.  Crawling out of my sleeping bag, the chilled air was also quite breathtaking.  The single pane windows provide terrible insulation, but since there is no indoor heating their only real purpose is to block the wind.  I threw on a jacket, popped open a window and set up my camera for a few shots.  The wide angle in this shot captures the buildings below and the starry host above but sacrifices the magnitude and the presence of the mountains.  Here they feel rather small and distant, but in person (and especially in the stillness of the night) they were quite impressive!

I did make it up to Poon Hill later in the morning and found it all the more delightful for having it all to myself...

God vs Self

O God, be Thou exalted over my possessions. Nothing of earth's treasures shall seem dear unto me if only Thou art glorified in my life. Be Thou exalted over my friendships. I am determined that Thou shalt be above all, though I must stand deserted and alone in the midst of the earth. Be Thou exalted above my comforts. Though it mean the loss of bodily comforts and the carrying of heavy crosses I shall keep my vow made this day before Thee. Be Thou exalted over my reputation. Make me ambitious to please Thee even if as a result I must sink into obscurity and my name be forgotten as a dream. Rise, O Lord, into Thy proper place of honor, above my ambitions, above my likes and dislikes, above my family, my health and even my life itself. Let me decrease that Thou mayest increase, let me sink that Thou mayest rise above. Ride forth upon me as Thou didst ride into Jerusalem mounted upon the humble little beast, a colt, the foal of an ass, and let me hear the children cry to Thee, "Hosanna in the highest."       

-- A. W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God --

One of the more dangerous prayers I've heard.  One which I doubt many of us, myself included, are ready to pray.  But could it be that this is truly the key to "victorious living?"  Is this what it means to lose your life in order to gain it?  By surrendering everything at the feet of Jesus and allowing him alone to live and reign in our hearts do we cease to exist as an individual, or do we only then begin to be?  I couldn't tell you.

Then across the troubled waters, Jesus comes to us. We cry out in fear against Him, for we suspect what He will ask of us. He will ask that we cease all this and lose ourselves. And that is exactly what we do not want to do—we want to express ourselves. It is unnatural, ghostly, impossible. But as we strain further into our futilities, He keeps coming, till at last we let Him in. Then we lose ourselves in His will and purposes. We forget about our self-expression. And suddenly, we are at the land where we were going! We are never so much ourselves as when we are most His. We have found ourselves. We have arrived. We have obeyed the deepest law of the universe: “If you cling to your life, you will lose it, and if you let your life go, you will save it.”  

-- E. Stanley Jones,  Victorious Living --

Blessing the Children

Tonight was my third visit to Blessing Child Welfare Home. It is a small orphanage here in KTM run by a single Nepali couple, Bal Bahadur Bishwokarma and his wife Sharmila. Bal and Sharmila just recently started following Christ. Now they all attend church and the kids are learning the Bible stories. Tonight we joined them for dinner. On their own, the kids all pressed their hands together and prayed before the meal. Precious. The children are all very well behaved and seem to get along very well together. They are also very bright kids despite coming from such unfortunate circumstances. Interestingly, the kids are all older than they look. I just found out that Amisha (pictured) is 10. I had thought she was 5; maybe 6. In fact, she's still 5 in my eyes! She deserves that extra five years of childhood...
Read a little more about them here: http://www.blessingchildwelfarehome.blogspot.com/

Pokhara and Dirty Hippies

Everyone raves about how great Pokhara is.  Because of this, perhaps, I was disappointed when I first arrived.  Too many dirty hippies and pushy vendors.  As I walked along the lake front the other day I was entreated, beckoned, approached, or otherwise accosted by no fewer than eight people.  Two of them looking to sell me marijuana.  [Apparently I look like a stoner; must be time for a shower…]  Just making eye contact with a merchant is a mistake: “Come, come!  No buy, just talk!”  “Wait friend, I want to ask you something.”  Or beggars: “Father, mother, sister, hospital. 50 rupees.”  What to do?

Pokhara is in a beautiful location next to lake Fewa, but the smog, pollution, and trash really detract from the scenic allure.  So, like I said, I was disappointed at first.  But by the end I started to see its charm.  It is far more quiet and peaceful than KTM.  It has wonderful restaurants and bakeries which, though in the tourist area, are still reasonably priced.  The colorful rowboats on the lakeshore are picturesque.  And finally, the views of the Annapurna range are stunning on a clear day. 

Bearing the Burden

Here are three grab shots off the back of a motorcycle.  The images are rather poor, but it accurately reflects the hard labor of many of the village women.  In a land where pickups are scarce, women seem to be the main mode of transport.  Everything is packed this way; laundry, firewood, stones, feed for cattle.  Except for babies which are slung around the shoulder, everything else is carried by means of a broad strap across the forehead.  I can't image the strain some of these loads must put on the neck!  What about backpacks? you ask.  Well, I witnessed one woman step off a bus, wrap her backpack and other belongings in the loop of a sari and place it over her forehead.  Then she started the hike to her village.