By Ethan Maple
In the midst of a long trip, from the bowels of the backseat, we hear the inevitable “Are we there yet?”
This may bring to your mind the image of a child bellowing to her parents. However, for me, this is a perfect representation of my soul crying out to God … especially during this never-ending season of COVID and all the havoc it has left in its wake.
Life is indeed a long, long trip with moments in which we desperately just want to get there. But where is “there”? Often, we as Christ-followers believe “there” is the Kingdom of Heaven. What if there wasn’t there? What if there was here?
What if the Kingdom of Heaven wasn’t some far-off land or different dimension that we are waiting to experience? What if the Kingdom of Heaven was available to us in the here and now?
“And [Jesus] began to teach them, saying: ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven’” (Matthew 5:2-3).
We have been taught the Kingdom of Heaven is a place we will experience when we die and are enjoying eternal life through Jesus Christ. While I believe this to be the case, Jesus seems to be offering us an additional perspective — that the Kingdom of Heaven can be experienced in this world by those who realize their need for him, a.k.a. “poor in spirit.”
The Kingdom of Heaven is all around us, ready to welcome those who emphasize Jesus in their lives into its realm. For the Kingdom of Heaven is where God dwells.
Dallas Willard, a Christian author, philosopher and theologian, once defined the Kingdom of Heaven as the place “where what God wants done is done.” But if that’s the case, how can we ever experience the Kingdom of Heaven in this world? With COVID, earthquakes, hurricanes, war, divisions and so much more, clearly this world doesn’t represent what God wants done.
Maybe the kingdom of this world and the Kingdom of Heaven can both exist at the same time in the same place; maybe it’s a choice you make. Those who focus on what they lack in this world will inevitably be defined by the kingdom of this world, but those who realize their need for God (poor in spirit) will be able to experience the Kingdom of Heaven … today.
Until we leave this world, we will continue to feel caught between these two kingdoms. The existence of one does not negate the existence of the other. And so we strive to experience the Kingdom of Heaven in this world by longing after Him, living for Him and loving as Him. At the same time, we do everything we can to help others experience the Kingdom of Heaven in their lives as well.
It is so easy to feel trapped by the circumstances of this world, falling further way from the Kingdom of Heaven as we deal with the heartache and pain around us. This long trip of life doesn’t have to be peppered with our “Are we there yet?” cries, for when we live for Jesus, “there” can really be here.
I believe there will come a day when this battle between kingdoms no longer exists, for we will be fully in the presence of God. While today we can experience the Kingdom of Heaven in the midst of the kingdom of this world, there will come a time in which the kingdom of this world has faded away and all the promises of God are realized.
But until that day comes, live in such a way that you experience the Kingdom of Heaven in the here and now.
Ethan Maple is pastor of Mt. Comfort Church. This weekly column is written by local clergy members. Send comments to [email protected].
