What does it take to get the message? Parents will often say something like that to their kids when they keep making the same mistakes. Employers say that to employees; coaches to players; generals to soldiers.
But the truth is we do continue to make mistakes when we should be learning from them. Paul said it this way in Romans 7:18-20, “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.”
Any honest believer can completely own those words. Jesus said in Mark 14:38, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
However, sometimes the right story, the right time, or the right person saying it, can hit home perfectly. That’s why preaching is important; maybe someone else saying what you’ve been thinking about helps it all to make sense. (Just consider why there are four gospels, or why there were over 40 authors of God’s inspired word?!)
Jesus told parables as a huge part of His teaching ministry. But they weren’t just cute stories about God; they were memorable ways to get the concept of God’s kingdom into our minds. Ultimately, the parables serve as a kind of “chewable” version of what the Bible has spent over 1500 years explaining how God’s kingdom would function.
In God’s kingdom, the people are the important piece, not the crown, or the castle, or even the titles. He values each person, and He wants every last one of them to accept the invitation to join Him at the Table to celebrate His Kingship together… (2 Peter 3:9) “…[He’s] not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
God’s kingdom functions upside-down from the principles of this world, but it takes a great deal of faith and maturity to bear up under what seems “unfair” or “unjust” (Ephesians 4:2-3) and trust that God’s will has the power to overcome anything – in this life or the next!
People want things to function like they’ve always seen it function. Sometimes, even if it doesn’t work very well! As we’re trying to “get back to normal,” let’s try to explore what we need to do in order to function more like the image of God’s kingdom rather than our culture.
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