NieuCommunities

For the past few days we’ve had a “NieuCommunities Road Trip” here in San Diego. (www.nieucommunities.org/roadtrips) 6 individuals in their 20’s have come down to do life with us for a few days as they learn what missional life in the context of community looks like. The Road Trippers stay at a youth hostel down town and join us for community meals and rhythms. They learn about San Diego and spend a day with us in Mexico, meeting our friends and neighbors along the way.

Each day we have a couple learning times where someone from our community will facilitate a teaching and discussion on topics like getting out of the boat to follow God’s Call for our lives, world-view and culture, what it means to submerge into people’s lives like Jesus did, how to see and live in God’s Kingdom Realities and finally we help them process what God might be calling them to live out when they get home. Tomorrow we will commission the road trippers back to their home towns and bless them as they go to live missional lives in their own context.

Today I taught a 2 hour interactive learning time on the subject of the Kingdom of God. In preparation for teaching, I re-read the first 3 chapters of Dallas Willard’s, Divine Conspiracy. It was an incredible study time for me as God began to reveal more about himself and what he ultimately wants for all of his creation

Here’s an excerpt from what I wrote and taught today. Hopefully it was meaningful to them as it was for me.

…..
(we first spent some time reading through some of Jesus’ Kingdom parables in Matthew, pulling out what the parable seems to be saying about the Kingdom of God.)

What do the parables of the Kingdom tell us about how life is meant to be lived?
Not many are living it! The Kingdom of God/heaven is presented as an alternative, abundant reality–a contrasting life–that on one hand:
• we’re caught up in (like in net),
• on another we’re called to hunt down (like buried treasure),
• and on another we’re asked to go out and invite others into (like a party)

But in all these cases the Kingdom of God changes our lives forever. It opens up a new and better world to us, to all of us. It transforms us at our core and allows us to live NOW like we were created to live.

JESUS was the living expression of God’s Kingdom rule on earth. Through him we see the possibility and availability of the Kingdom come in ordinary human existence. The life of Jesus had an explosive impact on society in that day. Juke 8:1-3 says “ Jesus traveled from one town and village to another, announcing the good news of the Kingdom of God. The 12 disciples were with him as well as some women whom he had healed and others who just wanted to follow him. He was famous! Thousands would gather to hear his words and see what he would DO. People started going to desperate measures to get to Jesus, like tearing through the roof of homes! What was it about Jesus that was drawing people like this with so much curiosity and passion? Dallas Willard says, “They were only responding to the striking availability of God to meet present human need through the actions of Jesus. He simply was the good news of the Kingdom. He still is.”

In Luke 4:18 Jesus reads the scroll of the prophet Isaiah which says, ‘The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Then Jesus rolled up the scroll and said, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Jesus was announcing the Kingdom Reality. Within God’s Kingdom, the poor find good news of God’s love. Those in prision and captivity, both physically and spiritually will find freedom. Those who are blind will see in God’s Kingdom and the oppressed will be released.

To see with Kingdom eyes means that we see the world through Jesus. Jesus came to proclaim that God could and would reconcile the world back to himself; back to its original intent!

And we are now the “body of Christ” – the Spirit of the Lord is on us, anointing us to preach good news to the poor. Sending us to proclaim freedom for prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed….