The Transcendent Kingdom
What does it mean to transcend?
Three Transcendentals: The True, The Good, and The Beautiful
Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount
The “upside-down” kingdom
The Kingdom is like a
Reading it upside-down
1. The True
Skepticism about truth leading to anxiety and nihilism
A
Luke 6:47-49 (NIV)
“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”
Truth exists
Don’t take that for granted
But you have to dig
Don’t settle for the shallowness of modern trends
Theory isn’t enough
You don’t know until you try, learn in the doing
2. The Good
Goodness can’t be grown without a foundation to build on
Luke 6:43-45 (NIV)
“No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.
We need to take regular
Luke 6:37-42 (NIV)
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
He also told them this parable: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into a pit? The student is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher. “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
We can get so busy doing that we don’t slow down enough to ask is what I’m doing good?
Why or why not?
It has to start with you
All the law summed up in
“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
Love is always at the center
Love always transcends time and place
The greatest commmand
3. The Beautiful
The transcendental we are least versed in
The result of truth and goodness
This is what reaches people
Beautiful attitudes
Beautiful ways of being
Luke 6:20-23 (NIV)
Looking at his disciples, he said:
“Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
Blessed are you who hunger now,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who weep now,
for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you,
when they exclude you and insult you
and reject your name as evil,
because of the Son of Man.
“Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.
Beauty involves the
Beauty is often not immediately obvious
It takes some wrestling with
Luke 6:24-26 (NIV)
“But woe to you who are rich,
for you have already received your comfort.
Woe to you who are well fed now,
for you will go hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you will mourn and weep.
Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you,
for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.”
Not just
If it’s truly beautiful there will be goodness and a core of truth
Beauty requires a discernable pattern, order, harmony
… now one more time, from the top
How to read it as disciples
Not the same way as sharing it with others
Luke 6:17-19 (NIV)
He went down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of his disciples was there and a great number of people from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the coastal region around Tyre and Sidon, who had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. Those troubled by impure spirits were cured, and the people all tried to touch him, because power was coming from him and healing them all.
Leading with belonging and beauty first
Then inviting them to try out the behavior
And finally offering an acceptance of the truth
“Make religion attractive, make good men wish it were true, and then show that it is. Worthy of reverence because it really understands human nature. Attractive because it promises true good.” – Blaise Pascal
Love Your City
The end of the journey is only the
Action Step: Seek the Transcendent