Working in God’s Kingdom
It’s good to have the Eastern Kentucky mission team back after their week of hard work. They were there to help some of the flood victims. I haven’t had a chance to talk to everyone who went yet, but all of those to whom I have spoken said it was a great trip. There was a lot of work accomplished, and everything else went well. I know that those families whose homes received repair are thrilled. So thank you to all of those who supported the team financially. Thanks to all who went and served for the week. Special thanks to Steve Dennis for his organization and leading skills. The group is planning to show some pictures from the trip during the potluck on Sunday.
As I said yesterday, the life of a disciple is to learn from Jesus’ example, and then to go out to continue the mission of God’s kingdom. Doing work like the mission team did last week is just one way we can continue the mission of Jesus. We can also do it in much smaller ways in our daily lives as well. When we are kind to those around us, or when we help others out in small ways we can also show the love and compassion of Christ.
Next week in Mark 4 we’ll see Jesus using parables to tell about what the Kingdom of God is like. One of these parables is probably familiar to us. It’s the story of the sower and the seed and the four kinds of soil. Another parable is a bit less known. It starts out similarly—a man sows seed, but then the point of the parable is that the man has no idea how the growth takes place. Then there’s the parable of the mustard seed. Though it’s a small seed, it becomes a great plant that provides shelter to many. These parables are important for us as we think about the nature of God’s Kingdom and especially our role in it.
Remember that Sunday we’ll be having our potluck with the Annual Meeting to follow.
God bless,
Brian
Mark 4:1-20—What do you notice about the parable of the seed and the sower?
Mark 4:21-41—How do you think these parables describe God’s Kingdom?
Isaiah 6—Why do you think Jesus quotes this passage when he tells these parables?
2 Corinthians 4:1-12—What does Paul teach us here about how we share God’s Kingdom?