Understanding the Kingdom of God预览

The King of Generosity

What would a perfectly just society look like? How would it work? What would its people be like? Let us do a little thought experiment. Imagine there is a man who lives a life of great generosity. This man goes out of his way to help whenever there is someone in need. Imagine how great it would be to live near such a man. Now, imagine everyone in the whole city lived like this man. Living in such a city would surely be wonderful.

When Jesus preached the Sermon on the Plain in Luke 6, He had a similar vision in mind. Loving our neighbors is at the heart of what Jesus is all about. When we serve others with generosity and abstain from harming anyone, we live a life of genuine Christ-like love. Loving God and loving our neighbor should be seen as one command. You cannot have one without the other. Now, all of this is very good. But in this passage, Jesus also raised the bar for what it means to live as citizens of God’s Kingdom: We must not only love our neighbors as ourselves but also our enemies.

Jesus compared the Kingdom of God with that of a mustard seed. A mustard seed is one of the smallest seeds. But when planted, it grows into a large tree. In this parable, the mustard seed first points to Jesus. On the Cross, He made Himself of no reputation, taking on the form of the lowest of slaves. He made Himself seem insignificant and small, like a mustard seed. But through His resurrection, He became great. He became like a giant tree that provided shelter for the birds of the air. Jesus gave up all of Himself so that others could live. This was the ultimate act of generosity. His generosity is so great that even those who crucified Him could receive His forgiveness and life. He turned the other cheek. He walked the extra mile.

The mustard seed also points to us as Jesus’ followers. The more we conform to the image of Jesus, the more we become vessels of His generosity. As we follow in the King’s footsteps, we learn to love not only our neighbors as ourselves but also our enemies. For we are the city of God, living in the presence of the Man of ultimate generosity. Let us, therefore, be a city of great generosity.

Reflect on the people in your life. How can you bless them with generosity today?