Mark 4:26-34 is the Gospel text for Sunday, June 13.
It's all about life in the Kingdom - this part of the Kingdom, here and now. Folk with heaven on their minds, focused only on their personal faith and salvation miss the message of the Gospel of Agape Love and Grace, in that faithfulness to God, according to Jesus, is DOING LOVE - Agape is not a feeling, but active commitment on behalf of the other, even stranger or enemy and especially the most vulnerable among us, here and now.
The Kingdom is like scattering the seed of Agape Love on the foundation of folks' lives. It is inevitable that it will grow, in time and in its course. When that comes to fruition, others benefit from it. It is not about the plant itself alone, but about all the others that benefit from its fruit in the world.
It takes time, effort, patience and persistence to plant the seed of Agape and nurture its growth in peoples' lives. It can be laborious and messy. It can be frustrating. It is always the right thing to do.
No amount of that Agape Love planted in the world is too small to make a difference. Regardless of the size of the seed of Agape planted, it will inevitably grow to be something much greater, even that which sustains other life in the world around it.
It may seem like that is not enough, but it is what God requires, desires and commands. It is no small thing because, when the Holy Spirit of God, relentless and always drawing us to the Agape and Grace of Christ Jesus, gets ahold of it, the result is anything but insignificant.
If we spread this Agape Love in the world around us, this part of God's Kingdom, here and now, it will grow and affect, even sustain lives around us. That is the world that we help God re-create, the world in which we live. It transforms lives and the world to be more loving and gracious. That is sustainable. That is wise. That is faithful. That is what God wants.
Be the someone who participates in the Kingdom of God, here and now.
Be the flesh made Word.
Be the Agape Love and Grace of God in the lives of others in the world around you.
And watch the growth, the fulfillment, the Kingdom come to fruition.
Thy Kingdom come. Thy Will be done on Earth, as in Heaven.
Pastor Jamie
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