The Kingdom of God, the presence of God
I've been exploring recently the tension between Christian Mission as being foccused primarily on encouraging people to deliberately follow Jesus, or as focussed on building the Kingdom of God, of Shalom, of Justice for everyone.
In his book 'Liberal Evangelism' John Saxbee writes of the time when he was at a mission partners conference in East Africa and found himself sharing accomodation with members of the Peace Corps. He asks:
In working towards developing the Kingdom of God with yong people and communities, I might ask myself similar questions. If we see heaven as the Kingdom of God on earth, rather than the literal place you go when you die, what is it that Jesus and the Kingdom of God have to offer the secular youth agencies working twoards fairness, justice and equality don't?
Bosch also raises a challenge to this Kingdom here and now theology in 'Transforming Mission', pointing out that what I see as working towards the Kingdom of God could be seen as a purely humanistic gospel, whereby:
Could it not be seen differently though? Bosch suggests that we are building the Kingdom without the King. I would suggest however, that as we work with young people to encourage them to realise the image of God within them so we work to encourage them to becoming more fully human and therefore maximising their realisation of the image of God within them. In this was we are in fact firmly and undoubtedly building the Kingdom of God around the ever increasing presence of God as King, as those we work with meet, recognise and respond to God in themselves, in others and in the world around them.
Thoughts anyone?
In his book 'Liberal Evangelism' John Saxbee writes of the time when he was at a mission partners conference in East Africa and found himself sharing accomodation with members of the Peace Corps. He asks:
If my sympathies and sentiments lay with them (the Peace Corps)
more than with the evangelical missionary society, then to what extent did I, as
a liberal in poverty-stricken Africka, have a gospel to proclaim thwas in any
way distinguishalbe from the secularized seeumptions of the Peace Corps?
In working towards developing the Kingdom of God with yong people and communities, I might ask myself similar questions. If we see heaven as the Kingdom of God on earth, rather than the literal place you go when you die, what is it that Jesus and the Kingdom of God have to offer the secular youth agencies working twoards fairness, justice and equality don't?
Bosch also raises a challenge to this Kingdom here and now theology in 'Transforming Mission', pointing out that what I see as working towards the Kingdom of God could be seen as a purely humanistic gospel, whereby:
Here not the person of jesus was at the centre but the cause of
jesus; the ideal, not the One who embodied the ideal; the teaching (particularly
the sermon on the mount), not the Teacher; the Kingdom of God, but without the
King.
Could it not be seen differently though? Bosch suggests that we are building the Kingdom without the King. I would suggest however, that as we work with young people to encourage them to realise the image of God within them so we work to encourage them to becoming more fully human and therefore maximising their realisation of the image of God within them. In this was we are in fact firmly and undoubtedly building the Kingdom of God around the ever increasing presence of God as King, as those we work with meet, recognise and respond to God in themselves, in others and in the world around them.
Thoughts anyone?
posted by Nikki @ 10:27 am
3 Comments:
At 11:48 am,
rick said…
As a member of a humanitarian philanthropic organization myself, I have found a higher percentage of practicing Christians than in the general world of work. While the organization is secular, there are so many Christians involved, (in a wide variety of denoms, btw) that we sometimes forget our secularism.
If I were to compare it to something, I would say it's a lot like how yeast works within bread dough. It gets kneaded in, doesn't call attention to itself, yet has a profound transforming effect.
Isn't that how we're supposed to be?
At 9:10 pm,
charity said…
I work with the idea that I able enabling people to see God, whether that be trough their own self knowledge, through vocalizing and acting on issues of justice, or through telling our stories corperate and individual.
Here speaks an evanelism enabler! my aim as such is to help build a road map to those thin places - the places folk can truly meet with God.
At 11:22 am,
Nikki said…
Rick- what sort of things does your humanitarian philthropic organisation do? - Note english spelling of organisation ;)-
Charity- I like that!
Richard- yes- have done.
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