In the Vineyard, our confession is that the Kingdom has broken through upon the earth in Jesus and has begun establishing ‘territory’ in the hearts of believers in Jesus. We also believe that there’s a fuller ‘dimension’ of Kingdom presence yet to come. We express it as the ‘now and the not yet.’ The ‘not yet’ is what we set our sights on and what we yearn to see in our day. It’s the tantalizing stuff of our hope, not unlike the aroma of a delicious meal being prepared. But ‘the now’ is no less a feast. So, follow me, if you will, as I delve into the present (‘now’) Kingdom banquet.
For instance, ‘May the mind of Christ be in you’ (Phil. 2:5). I can’t help but wonder what Paul is urging here. I mean, what, exactly, is the mind of Christ? At first glance, it seems too obscure, and I’m tempted to skip it and read on. But somewhere recently, the Beatitudes in Matthew 5 came to my attention. Does that ever happen to you? Something triggers a split-second rabbit trail and you land on something that, just a second ago, wasn’t at all what you’d been thinking about (weird). Anyway, in this passage, Jesus talks about those who: are poor and needy, in mourning, humble, hungry and thirsty for justice, merciful, pure in heart, work for peace, are persecuted for doing right, are mocked and ridiculed and lied about and have all sorts of evil things said of them. Jesus calls (present tense) those people blessed.
A most strange grouping of folks who are, in the present, told they have received blessings, riches, fulfillment. Does Jesus really know the plight of some of those before him while he’s teaching? Is he really looking into their faces and accurately reading what is etched there? Does he not care about the multiple sufferings of the crowd? Or is there more?
It recently hit me! Jesus is living all those things, and at the hands of his own people, too! Since coming to earth and living fully as a man, these realities are his! So that’s how he knows and can speak with such surprising assurance! Now the shocker – in light of these, not despite them, he tells them he’s blessed! And he’s blessed because his mind is stayed on God and not on the inescapable trials of life on earth (Isa. 26:3). He’s in sync with the Father!
My takeaway is that, I too, can ‘fix my eyes on the goal’ and by so doing, dis-empower all momentary, burdensome circumstances, and empower the ‘now’ to triumph in my spirit. I think that’s ‘the mind of Christ.’ I think I’m on to something. Thanks for following. PD
