Tuesday - building up the Kingdom of God

Prayer:   Spirit of Christ,  have mercy upon us.  Help us to remember that we are the Kingdom of God within our homes and within our community and within our Church.    Use us this day to be the example of what it means to follow You.  Amen.

Read St. Luke 19: 11 – 15

This portion of scripture is the  Parable of the ten Minas.   A mina was about thee months’ wages.       Jesus and the disciples are nearing Jerusalem and the people thought that the Kingdom of God was on hand.     Jesus tells them the Parable of the Ten Minas.

A man of noble birth goes to a foreign land and tries to appoint himself king.  The peoples of the land do not want him to be king.   Before the man goes to the foreign land,  he gives ten of his servants ten minas each.  He instructs them to put the monies to work.  

Huh?  What an odd parable.  What was Jesus trying to tell the people?   Some Scholars suggest that this was an illustration to the life of Jesus.   He is here now but will be crucified and leave the workers in charge of building the Kingdom of God.  Then when Jesus returns,  the workers will have to make an account of how they did building the Kingdom of God.

How well has our denomination  built up the Kingdom of God?    Working in a Military Museum,   I am always surprised by the number of Militia who were Presbyterian and did great things on and off the battle fields from the war of South Africa to WW1 and WW2 and beyond.      Many of our Presbyterians won decorations and awards for their leadership and their sacrifice.   Yet what about today?   Who would we hold up today as an example of a follower of Christ within the Presbyterian Church in Canada who is also an example of leadership and sacrifice within our community?    Have we ended up forgetting about our communities and instead whine and complain about how the Church is lacking in funds?     When we no longer involve ourselves within the community,   we keep the light of Christ hidden and dull.   

Today meditate how the Church can once again be involved within the community so that the light of Christ shines within the community.

Prayer:  Divine Healer,   use us to bring Your light and healing and strength and wisdom into Your world.   Kindle within us the light of Your love so that with great joy and enthusiasm,  we bring Your love into our community.   Amen.