Jesus revealed God as our Father, inviting everyone into that meaningful, mysterious, and wonderful relationship. By relating to God as his son or daughter, we find him as our Father. For Jesus, the kingdom of God is the family of those who accept in faith their status as sons and daughters of God.
Jesus expressed his open and welcoming invitation very diversely. He began his Sermon on the Mount with the beatitudes; the first beatitude is the gateway to the others: “Happy are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God.” If someone comes to the Father or Jesus or one of his gospel messengers wanting to enter the kingdom of God, it is a simple matter. To be poor in spirit refers to sincerity, humility, openness. “Poor in spirit” means “humble” in Aramaic, the language in which Jesus taught; we enter the kingdom as a child, by faith. A prideful person will not enter as a child. Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.” To be born again, to begin the new life as a child of God, we return to the simplicity of our primary relation with our Father.
Divine love does not insist on any particular name. Each person is free to choose the name that expresses his or her relationship with God as they have found him.
The very act of seeking expresses faith. Jesus’ assurance was “Ask and you will receive. Seek and you will find. Knock and the door will be opened to you.” “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” The wise Parent responds with good gifts. Persons who really want to be in the family of God are already happy because their sincere desire is evidence that God has already found them. They are members in the family, and realizing that brings happiness. Jesus’ assurance to the seeker communicates faith and love; the person who receives that assurance discovers the happiness of being welcomed into the family of God.
Jesus used the term “kingdom of God” to communicate with the expectations of his place and time. He expanded their concept by using this term with multiple meanings. In Jesus’ teaching, the kingdom of God was present and future, inner and outer, an experience of the individual and a destiny for the planet, a link between heaven and earth, a joyous celebration, and a living reality that grows from a tiny seed of faith into a total commitment that can cost one’s life. Jesus taught that the kingdom of God is at hand—now. The kingdom is within you—a present experience in the life of the believer. The kingdom is also in our world’s future. Jesus prayed, “Our Father, who is in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Jesus’ total commitment was to the Father’s will—and he showed an equally energetic antagonism to actions that rebelled against the Father’s will. At one point, Jesus defined his family as “whoever does the will of my Father in heaven.” For the most part, the kingdom concept is expressed in family language, which also has multiple meanings. One becomes a son or daughter of God by faith; but it is also true that all are the children of God. Jesus’ parables and his way of loving all people, Jew and gentile, proclaim an inclusive message of a universal family (next post).
What meanings are most real for you as you think of belonging in the family of God? How to you express those realities to others? What obstacles do people experience regarding the concept of the family of God? How do you respond to those obstacles?
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Thank you, Jeff, for yet another revelation of meaning: in this post, it’s ‘poor in spirit’. Without reference to the Aramaic original, we are left with countless speculations as to what it means; and frankly, none has convinced me so far. Now, with this etymology revealed, this expression is at last demystified to me.
The theme of simplicity speaks to me, too. Caeteris paribus, that which is simple is also true, benign, good. Conversely, that which is too complex often reveals itself as false and phony.
Thank you Michael. I have found that I can be blind to the emptiness of my own sophisticated efforts to speak and write in a way that does justice to the complexities of which I am aware.
Thank you, Jeff, for yet another revelation of meaning: in this post, it’s ‘poor in spirit’. Without reference to the Aramaic original, we are left with countless speculations as to what it means; and frankly, none has convinced me so far. Now, with this etymology revealed, this expression is at last demystified to me.
The theme of simplicity speaks to me, too. Caeteris paribus, that which is simple is also true, benign, good. Conversely, that which is too complex often reveals itself as false and phony.
Thank you Michael. I have found that I can be blind to the emptiness of my own sophisticated efforts to speak and write in a way that does justice to the complexities of which I am aware.
As I think about belonging to the family of God, I think about what a tremendous blessing to know the God is my father, and the father of all others. This means that if God is the Father of all mortals, then all mortals must be brothers and sisters. This idea of the Family of God has not been hard for me personally to accept, but I have interacted with many brothers and sisters who have extreme difficulty accepting this great truth.
Most of those who accept the idea of the family of God restrict its definition to those who have acknowledged Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. And some go as far as restricting it further to their particular nomination. Jesus said that if we loved one another, all men would know that we were his disciples. I think that most Christians accept this in principle but have great difficulty in carrying it out. But as time goes on, their attitudes become modified as the spiritualization process continues, and they more and more accept this concept of the family of God.
Personally, I never try to convince anyone who is opposed to this idea of the family of God. I have learned that you can’t change the mind of people who have embraced a particular concept since most feel that to change their theological views somehow endangers their salvation, and also challenges the their present mode of living.
It is only when their present concept fails that they are willing to consider a wider interpretation of their relationship with God and their brothers and sisters. I try to overcome these obstacles by doing my best to love my brothers and sisters as Jesus does. Sometimes this bears fruit; sometimes it does not. A picture is worth a thousand words.
Dr Perry
Beloved Dr. Perry,
I have recently learned more than ever how hard it can be for people immersed in difficulties to accept spiritual teachings. I realize that from my childhood, it was easier for me given my (most of the time) relatively comfortable social situation. By late in my 20s I avidly consumed religious ideas without realizing the depth I was missing. When I see how some people struggle, I am reminded of what layers truth needs to penetrate in all of us in order for truth to become real in us. I’m thinking of a soldier student who would not accept the concept of God because she refused to accept the concept of humankind as a family. She had some horrid experiences of the enemy combined with tremendously strong bonds with her fellow soldiers. Looking back, I wish I had been able to speak with her only individually rather than as a member of a class of 40-some students. I dream of having only introduced the wider concept of the Creator’s love for us all after she had been touched by the experience of God’s surrounding and indwelling love for her. But what a person she was what I knew her several years ago. One of her projects involved extraordinary help for a psychologically needy veteran; her other project involved extending to the whole Kent State community the same readiness to die for them that she had for her fellow soldiers.
Recently I met a person who was intensely frustrated: she had repented, had received divine forgiveness, but her police record was still an obstacle to finding a job. Only when she come back to the cosmic perspective she had developed did she find the peace of mind required to make progress on the difficulties.
I often think of the fact that the Father concept of God is seriously problematic for countless people; I have not the slightest interest in obliging anyone else to use language that doesn’t feel right; but neither will I silence myself about that revelation, so there is a continuous liability for tension to arise where adjustments need to be made and explained.
It seems to me that life is designed so that we more or less continually confront situations that require us to allow the divine spirit to penetrate layers of resistance. Sometimes we manage the turn easily; sometimes we don’t even recognize our own resistance; and sometimes it’s a struggle. It’s a good thing that there are many paths to and into the Way; and a good thing that mercy walks with us, and that the spirit of God takes such remarkable initiatives in bringing home to us what we most need to know. Best wishes on your unending adventure!
As I think about belonging to the family of God, I think about what a tremendous blessing to know the God is my father, and the father of all others. This means that if God is the Father of all mortals, then all mortals must be brothers and sisters. This idea of the Family of God has not been hard for me personally to accept, but I have interacted with many brothers and sisters who have extreme difficulty accepting this great truth.
Most of those who accept the idea of the family of God restrict its definition to those who have acknowledged Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. And some go as far as restricting it further to their particular nomination. Jesus said that if we loved one another, all men would know that we were his disciples. I think that most Christians accept this in principle but have great difficulty in carrying it out. But as time goes on, their attitudes become modified as the spiritualization process continues, and they more and more accept this concept of the family of God.
Personally, I never try to convince anyone who is opposed to this idea of the family of God. I have learned that you can’t change the mind of people who have embraced a particular concept since most feel that to change their theological views somehow endangers their salvation, and also challenges the their present mode of living.
It is only when their present concept fails that they are willing to consider a wider interpretation of their relationship with God and their brothers and sisters. I try to overcome these obstacles by doing my best to love my brothers and sisters as Jesus does. Sometimes this bears fruit; sometimes it does not. A picture is worth a thousand words.
Dr Perry
Beloved Dr. Perry,
I have recently learned more than ever how hard it can be for people immersed in difficulties to accept spiritual teachings. I realize that from my childhood, it was easier for me given my (most of the time) relatively comfortable social situation. By late in my 20s I avidly consumed religious ideas without realizing the depth I was missing. When I see how some people struggle, I am reminded of what layers truth needs to penetrate in all of us in order for truth to become real in us. I’m thinking of a soldier student who would not accept the concept of God because she refused to accept the concept of humankind as a family. She had some horrid experiences of the enemy combined with tremendously strong bonds with her fellow soldiers. Looking back, I wish I had been able to speak with her only individually rather than as a member of a class of 40-some students. I dream of having only introduced the wider concept of the Creator’s love for us all after she had been touched by the experience of God’s surrounding and indwelling love for her. But what a person she was what I knew her several years ago. One of her projects involved extraordinary help for a psychologically needy veteran; her other project involved extending to the whole Kent State community the same readiness to die for them that she had for her fellow soldiers.
Recently I met a person who was intensely frustrated: she had repented, had received divine forgiveness, but her police record was still an obstacle to finding a job. Only when she come back to the cosmic perspective she had developed did she find the peace of mind required to make progress on the difficulties.
I often think of the fact that the Father concept of God is seriously problematic for countless people; I have not the slightest interest in obliging anyone else to use language that doesn’t feel right; but neither will I silence myself about that revelation, so there is a continuous liability for tension to arise where adjustments need to be made and explained.
It seems to me that life is designed so that we more or less continually confront situations that require us to allow the divine spirit to penetrate layers of resistance. Sometimes we manage the turn easily; sometimes we don’t even recognize our own resistance; and sometimes it’s a struggle. It’s a good thing that there are many paths to and into the Way; and a good thing that mercy walks with us, and that the spirit of God takes such remarkable initiatives in bringing home to us what we most need to know. Best wishes on your unending adventure!