Kingdom of Love

“Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part, but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. For now we see only a reflection, as in a mirror, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. And now faith, hope, and love remain, these three, and the greatest of these is love.”
-1 Corinthians 13:8-13

Ethicist and theologian Lee C. Camp opens his book, Scandalous Witness: A Little Political Manifesto for Christians, with this line: “The faith of the Christian is the last great hope of earth.” This statement may strike some as arrogant or alarmist until one realizes that this is the same claim of every technological advancement, scientific endeavour, and economic development of the last century–and things continue to deteriorate. Perhaps this statement strikes you as self-evident, but even then, it is worth examining what we mean. 

We believe that God has redeemed the world through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, that we are renewed by the Holy Spirit, and that we are called to join God in the work of building toward the Kingdom of God. This Kingdom of God is both a present and a future reality. As Paul says, now we understand only in part and we see only in part, but we believe that God is faithful and so we trust that in the fullness of time the Kingdom shall emerge and on that day we will see and know God fully. Until that day we are called to be faithful, hopeful, and loving toward a world that often thinks us strange. 

About out collective work El Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero once said, “Let us not tire of preaching love, for this is the force that will overcome the world.” Similarly Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” 

I wholeheartedly believe that the witness and work of the Church are the best hope for our world. Indeed I believe that they are the only things that can change hearts, minds, relationships, and societies in ways that point toward the Kingdom of God. 

But this is neither easy nor is it safe. It’s worth mentioning that both Archbishop Romero and Rev. Dr. King were murdered for their witness. Sometimes following the Crucified King also means sharing in his fate at the hands of the world. Remember that to declare “Jesus is Lord” is to imply that Ceasar (or whatever mordern version Christians around the world find themselves living under) is not. We should not be surprised when our declaration that Christ if King is met with jeers and calls that, “we have no king but Ceasar!” 

And yet…I believe in the words of Jesus, Paul, Camp, Romero, and King. I believe that loving our neighbors and our world in word and deed is the best (and perhaps last) hope for us all. I believe that this is the way of the Kingdom and I will work toward it until my last breath. Join me, won’t you?

Rev. Ryan Young