Jesus clearly says the kingdom of heaven is among us (Luke 17:21) or “at hand” (Matthew 3:2, 4: 17). One wonders why we made it into a reward system for later, or an evacuation plan for the next world. Maybe it was easier to obey laws and practice rituals for later than to actually be transformed now.
The price for real transformation is high. It means that we have to change our loyalties from power, success, money, and control (read: “our kingdoms”) to the Lordship of Jesus and the kingdom of God. Henceforth, there is only one thing that is Absolute and in relationship to that, everything else is relative – everything – even the church, even our nation, even national security, even our wealth and our possessions, even our identity and our reputation.
Your god is whatever you trust to validate you and secure you, and the Gospel is saying, “Will the real God please stand up?”
Richard Rohr, O.F.M.
