Snapshots of the kingdom Matthew 13 and 14

There have been numerous world events that have been captured for all to see...

• The moon landing
• Live AID
• The fall of the Berlin Wall
• Nelson Mandela's walk to freedom
• Brant Webb and Todd Russell's amazing escape from a mine in Beaconsfield
• September 11

All these and more, have been recorded and documented. But what about God's kingdom - can you film it? Beam it across the globe? Tune into it? Snap and upload it to the web? What does God's kingdom look like?

Jesus' parables in this section of Matthew are snapshots of God's kingdom...

• It looks small but is growing like a mustard seed into a tree Mt 13:31 or like yeast working its way through dough Mt 13:33
• God's kingdom is the most valuable thing of all. Like a man who sold all that he had to buy a great field Mt 13:44 or the merchant who sold all for that one precious pearl Mt 13:45
  

So what will our response be to God's kingdom? Will we...

• Allow the devil to snatch away the good news of the kingdom Mt 13:1
• Will we turn away because of Jesus Mt 13:21
• Will we get carried away by how good things are Mt 13:22
• Or, will we hear the word take it to heart and go produce a crop Mt 13:23

If we have ears to hear then we will hear, go, and produce a good crop.

It was 20 years ago today...

Last Sunday our Church celebrated 20 years of...

...and that's the thing. What were we celebrating?

Our achievements
Our survival through ups and downs
Our programs
Our religiousity
Our plans and wishes and intentions
or
God's work through us?

It was great to see so many people gathered there - all squashed in under one hot sweaty roof.
It was great to see old faces and discover where they are at.
It was great to see that we didn't sweep the past under the rug. There were no revisionists on stage.
It was great to see so many who helped setup and serve.
It was great to see people who are still following Jesus after all these years.

And it is this that sticks in my mind. It is this we celebrated - God's work through us - then and now. God leads and many follow. Many from our Church.

For this we are truly grateful and humbled.

So will we see another 20 years? That's not the point. Sunday was about coming thus far. Today is another matter altogether. But God is at work; that's what we ought to be looking forward and celebrating.