Leawood, Kansas, United States - The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection Daily Guide grow. pray. study. for Tuesday, 8 July 2014 "Thy Kingdom come. . ."

Leawood, Kansas, United States - The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection Daily Guide grow. pray. study. for Tuesday, 8 July 2014  "Thy Kingdom come. . ."
Daily Scripture:  Matthew 4: Teaching and Healing
12-17 When Jesus got word that John had been arrested, he returned to Galilee. He moved from his hometown, Nazareth, to the lakeside village Capernaum, nestled at the base of the Zebulun and Naphtali hills. This move completed Isaiah’s sermon:
Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,
    road to the sea, over Jordan,
    Galilee, crossroads for the nations.
People sitting out their lives in the dark
    saw a huge light;
Sitting in that dark, dark country of death,
    they watched the sun come up.
This Isaiah-prophesied sermon came to life in Galilee the moment Jesus started preaching. He picked up where John left off: “Change your life. God’s kingdom is here.”
18-20 Walking along the beach of Lake Galilee, Jesus saw two brothers: Simon (later called Peter) and Andrew. They were fishing, throwing their nets into the lake. It was their regular work. Jesus said to them, “Come with me. I’ll make a new kind of fisherman out of you. I’ll show you how to catch men and women instead of perch and bass.” They didn’t ask questions, but simply dropped their nets and followed.
21-22 A short distance down the beach they came upon another pair of brothers, James and John, Zebedee’s sons. These two were sitting in a boat with their father, Zebedee, mending their fishnets. Jesus made the same offer to them, and they were just as quick to follow, abandoning boat and father.
23-25 From there he went all over Galilee. He used synagogues for meeting places and taught people the truth of God. God’s kingdom was his theme—that beginning right now they were under God’s government, a good government! He also healed people of their diseases and of the bad effects of their bad lives. Word got around the entire Roman province of Syria. People brought anybody with an ailment, whether mental, emotional, or physical. Jesus healed them, one and all. More and more people came, the momentum gathering. Besides those from Galilee, crowds came from the “Ten Towns” across the lake, others up from Jerusalem and Judea, still others from across the Jordan.
1 Peter 2:9-10 But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God’s instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you—from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.
Reflection Questions:
Jesus launched his public ministry, Matthew said, by announcing "the good news of the kingdom" (Matthew 4:23). The "present tense" character of Jesus' message is important for those of us who've tended to think of God's Kingdom solely in future terms. To pray for the coming of the Kingdom is not just a wispy, wistful dream of an idealized future. It is a claim of our true citizenship here and now, and a way of bowing to God as our true king.
How does the Kingdom of God upend ways of thinking and living that you (or others close to you) take as "common sense"? Can you identify one or two ways that this "not of this world" kingdom has changed your life? Have you learned to discern God's will for your life, and if so, how? What spiritual disciplines and practices have you found helpful for understanding God's will?
In Exodus 19:6, Moses received this message for Israel: "You will be a kingdom of priests for me and a holy nation." 1 Peter 2 (also Revelation 1:4-6) applied the same language to all of Christ's followers. God's Kingdom is not a set of lines on a map; it's people who love and follow God, including you. Are you up for the privilege and challenge of being a citizen, a representative, of God's Kingdom each day?
Today's Prayer:
Lord, let your Kingdom come within me, and then through me as I interact with the people around me. Let me live in ways that truly make the coming of your Kingdom "good news." Amen.
Insight from Mark Buergler
Mark Buergler serves as a summer intern in the Technical Arts department at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection.
Six years have passed since the time I took up my cross and became a follower of Jesus Christ. Since then, so much has changed, and my perception of the “good news” has as well. When I was 16, and a recently converted Christian, my perception of “good news” was whenever a friend request popped onto my MySpace feed. How could I, lover of all things “Warcraft,” possibly have people who want to be my friend?
Now, at the age of 22, many of the things that I once thought of as good news have faded: my high level online gaming accounts, new and old virtual friends, picture comments and likes, and MySpace… poof! These material things are what once fueled my faith. Things that now mean nothing at all once defined the entirety of my existence.
As the past fades away, and as I am growing older in my faith, the one thing that remains is the fruit of the Holy Spirit. These are the things that drew me close to God at first, and the things that have consistently given me life beyond this world. With this in mind, I find that the coming of the Kingdom is synonymous with the good news that true love, joy, peace, and goodness is here. Being a part of this Kingdom, I try to practice these things by living out the fruits of the spirit when interacting in my relationships with others. By doing this, I have found the gift that keeps on giving, as well as happiness that is exponentially greater. Now that’s good news!
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