This Is Not A Toothless-Incapable-Incompetent-Puny-Scrawny-Passive-Weak Kingdom
Text: Mark 1:14-20
Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord
Jesus Christ. Amen.
It’s
coming. It is drawing near. It is invading.
What
is coming, drawing near, and invading?
In
our Gospel reading from today, we hear Jesus saying in the opening portion of
the Gospel of Mark that the Kingdom of Heaven has drawn near and is now at
hand! Yes, it is fair to say that there
was no more waiting for the people of the first-century, for the Kingdom of God
had invaded this world and was standing in their midst. The Kingdom of God was staring them in the
face proclaiming a powerful salvific message to them.
But
we may say to ourselves, “This does not sound like a kingdom at all!”
Dear
friends, the Kingdom of God is not like any ordinary kingdom that is restricted
to geographical borders, military armies, and the like. The Kingdom of God exists in a completely
different way and is revealed in a completely different manner. You see, the Kingdom of God, which is
announced by Jesus, is actually Jesus Himself.
That is to say, “The Kingdom of God is present in its fulfillment in the
person, Word and work of Jesus.”[1] Therefore, where you find the Kingdom of God,
you will find the King; where you find the King, you will find the Kingdom of
God. Furthermore, while the kings and
the kingdoms of this world depend on physical territories, earthly resources,
and dominance through worldly wisdom and energy, the Kingdom of God on the
other hand is from outside of this world and is not dependent upon the ways,
resources, and schemes of mankind.
To
get back to the main point though, in our Gospel reading from today it is clear
that that the Kingdom of God is at hand, it has drawn near to the people, which
means that there is no more anticipation necessary. The Kingdom of God—with all of its power,
grace, and glory—is there in the midst of the people in Galilee and is even
pressing inward towards them; it is upon them as King Jesus is before them preaching
into their ears, hearts, minds, and souls.
This
bursting forth of the Kingdom of God in Christ Jesus is not some sort of feeble
invasion where nothing happens though.
That is to say, the coming and drawing near of the Kingdom of power,
grace, and glory does stuff; it is not some toothless-incapable-incompetent
Kingdom that merely takes up residence in a foreign territory while not
imposing or bringing forth its ruling power and influence. But rather, the Kingdom of God reaches out
and into the lives of people in order to deliver something. That something is not merely all the miracles
and healings, but mainly repentance and faith.
For
sure, the Kingdom of God not only collided with the kingdoms and people of the
first-century, but it also collides with you and me this very day in this very
church, thus creating an explosion of repentance and faith in and for you. There is no doubt about it that from Christ’s
churches—this church located here in Gwinner, ND—that our little empires
established by our old Sinful Adam are confronted with power, grace, and the
glory of the Lord. The invasion of the
Kingdom of God into our midst and into our time and space, results in the working
and gifts of repentance and faith to and for us. That’s right, the Kingdom of God came to the
world when Christ was born in a manger; the Kingdom of God came in our Gospel
Reading when Jesus walked into Galilee proclaiming; and the Kingdom of God
comes right into our midst this very day, specifically in the Word, the Water,
the Bread, and the Wine.
Where
is the Kingdom? Where can it be
found? It is where Jesus is.
Where
is Jesus today and right now? He is
before you and me in the Word, the Water, the Bread, and the Wine—just as He
promised to be.
This
means that when we were baptized, when we confess and hear the pardoning words
of absolution, when we hear the Word of God read and proclaimed, and when we are
fed the bread and wine, we are not only certain that the Kingdom of God is in
our midst, but we are also gifted and embraced by repentance and faith. In and by the Word and Sacraments we are reduced
to nothing but beggars, yet by this God given faith the old Adam is slain yet
again as we are raised anew. This is so
because the King achieved victory at the Cross and thus gives that very grace,
power, truth, and glory to us here and now.
This
Kingdom and Lord are not a puny-scrawny-passive-weak Kingdom and King. Rather, the Kingdom and this King grant and
enact repentance and faith to you and to me, as the kingdom and all of its
benefits draw near to us today, tomorrow, and until the very end.
But this
makes it sound like we cannot repent and believe by our own reason or
strength. You, who have ear, this is
indeed what you should be hearing! Keep
in mind that you and I cannot repent and believe by our own reason and power. That’s right, repentance and faith are not, I
repeat, not the actual good news of the Gospel, but rather they are the results
of what happens when the Kingdom of God collides with you and me. Otherwise stated, the Kingdom of God has come
and will continue to come to you and me so that we are repented and
faithed.
Dear
friends do not be deceived into thinking that repentance and faith are something
that you conjure up and bring to the table, as if repentance and faith are your
works that you must present to the Lord in exchange for His kingdom of power,
grace, and truth. It is not a two-way
barter system where you exchange repentance and faith for grace and mercy. If this were the case, would you ever be certain
that you have truly repented and truly believed in the Lord; have you done it well
enough? If repentance and faith are your
efforts and your individualistic contributions to Christianity, would you ever
have enough assurance that you have given it your all? Can you completely repent and completely
believe with all your heart, soul, and mind? No, you cannot and I can’t either. Undeniably, eternal assurance is never
possible if repentance and faith are the work of mankind, for you would only
have assurance as long as you could keep and maintain repentance and faith by
your own strength and afford it by your own merit. You and I bring ‘nothing’ to the table! Repentance and faith are not your work and my
work. They must be gifts that are given
to us!
Praise
be to God that repentance and faith are indeed gifts, things that happen to you
as the Holy Spirit through the Law and Gospel works upon you. Truly, repentance and faith need to happen to
you and me. You need to be repented and
faithed. Not just once, not just twice, but these gifts of repentance and faith
are constantly needed as long as you shall live, for you and I are sinners
until the day we die, sinners whom constantly receive the Kingdom of God that comes
to us in this life and ultimately at the end of the age. In other words, repentance and faith are not
onetime events. You are not filled up
with a limited amount of repentance and faith and then left to ration it
out. No, the life of a Christian is Law
and Gospel; repentance and faith, the one to continue as long as the
other. The gifts of repentance and faith
are to continue throughout your lives as they are granted to you by the Holy
Spirit working through the Word. Our
lives are not only captive to the Word of God, but totally dependent on the
Word of God.
You,
who have ears, hear the Lord’s Word of Law!
‘Repent,’ the Kingdom of God is before you! “Look into the mirror of
God’s standards of perfection and know that you don’t and can’t measure up.
Feel the sorrow and sadness that flow from a broken and contrite heart. Know
the grief of having offended your holy God.”[2]
You,
who have ears, hear the Lord’s Word of Gospel! ‘Believe in the good news,’ the
Kingdom of God is before you! Know that Jesus
Christ lived and died and rose—especially for you. Yes you!
Christ and the Kingdom of God—that which you pray for in the Lord’s
Prayer—has come to you in the midst of sin, death, the devil, and the
world. The Kingdom of God is at hand and
the King comes for you in the waters of your baptism, in the very Word of God,
in the Bread, and in the Wine. He comes
for all of you—nothing left out, nothing of you left behind—all of you with
Him, together and forever.
Repented
and faithed into the Kingdom of God!
Yes, you have been repented into the kingdom of God; you have been
faithed into the kingdom of God. The
kingdom is for you for it has drawn near to you; His gifts of forgiveness,
grace, mercy, glory, and power are yours today, tomorrow, and forever.
May
the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in
Christ Jesus. Amen.
[1] Harold Buls,
“Buls Notes on the New Testament.”
http://pericope.org/buls-notes/mark/mark_1_14_20.htm (23 January 2015)
[2] Wendland, E. H., & Albrecht,
G. J. (1987). Sermon Studies on the
Gospels (ILCW Series B) (p. 127). Milwaukee, WI: Northwestern Publishing
House.
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