I remember writing this: “Surprisingly, it turns out that we are the first wave of the Second Coming of Christ into the midst of Creation. We are the seeds of a new hope for Creation. Christ is the first born of a new way of being with Creation, and we are the continuation of something new come into the midst of the world. The power of the Spirit of God has been given to us, and is within us, not for ourselves, but for the sake of the world. It is all happening now! Wake up and realize the time is now, not in some distant future. We are not to sit, wait and pray for some distant far away future, but we are to actively spread God’s kingdom, so that it comes on earth just as it is in heaven. We are to turn away from the ways of the world, and be faithful to the ways of God. We need no super being to rescue us; with God we are enough in ourselves.
Jesus told his generation, alive as he was speaking, that they would see the Second Coming of Christ into the world, and so they did. However, it is not clear they knew what they were seeing. Those who expect a literal coming of Christ in somewhat the same way as Christ came in the “First Coming” cannot and will not see the “Second Coming.” In other words, if you expect to see Christ embodied in a single, finite human body again, located in one finite place, coming in clouds on a white horse, riding with the armies of heaven to conquer and punish the world, you will not see what God is already doing in our world. If you cannot see what God is doing, how will you be a part of if? If you don’t even know you are supposed to be a part of this great venture, how will you enlist?
The Second Coming of Christ into the world is taking place in us, through us, around us. We are the Body of Christ, and therefore we are very much part of the Second Coming of Christ. It is very simple. I cannot say this enough, and I wish there was a way to shout it to the reader. Open your ears, open your eyes, open your hearts, and wake up to the good news – God has come into our world, is with us, staying with us, living in us, and yearns to transform and bless all of Creation through us. God comes to share life with us. Christ is embodied in us. We are the incarnation of God, the real presence of God. The Spirit of God has been given to us, is all around us, and is within us. This surprising new way for Christ to be incarnate in the midst of Creation is much more exciting than most people realize or can imagine. “
Yes, I still believe that we are the second coming of Christ. It is when we lose sight of this reality that things can go wrong. There is a song that amazed me the first time I heard it for it expresses well what is meant by Christ being embodied now in us. Go listen to it now and then come back to read the rest of this blog. Go HERE.
The refrain from the song is revealing.
It’s not up to God alone to listen to prayer.
It’s not up to God alone to answer.
But when the people of God become what we pray,
the kingdom of God is revealed.
When the people of God become what we pray,
the kingdom of God is revealed.
Christ did not come to die on a cross so we could avoid hell and get ourselves to heaven. He came to show us what it means to be fully human and to show us how God wants us to live right here on earth. Basically, Jesus is God’s show and tell. What God wants is the restoration of a love relationship and partnership with humanity. This is what it is all about – the restoration of broken relationships with God, with each other, and with all of creation. God wants partners who will help build the Beloved Community of justice, kindness, and trust. Jesus was confident in God’s love, and this gave him confidence in his mission for God.
We have no need to earn God’s love; we are loved already, and God’s love is abundant and poured into our hearts for the taking. This means love is available to us so we can change old patterns of thinking and behaving. Jesus’ purpose is to bring heaven to earth by inviting us to live in God’s world today. We are invited to live as God lives—with justice, mercy, and love. Those of us who have embraced our baptisms with understanding come to realize that we have been baptized into Christ and we are now partners with God in the great mission of building the Beloved Community of God — the kingdom of God.
It is no good to pray and then sit back waiting for God to do something. It is up to us to do the doing! God will guide, enable, and support us in this task. God is serious about wanting humanity to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with the One Who is Our Source. It begins with us.
And so I wrote: “It was a terrific surprise when Christ became incarnate in one human being, Jesus, over 2000 years ago. The incarnation was an unexpected event, and many really couldn’t accept it. The idea of God becoming human was too incredible. Many still find the idea too fantastic to believe. I suppose it is even more incredible to believe that Christ is now incarnate in us. It is especially difficult to believe we incarnate God when we look back over the history of Christianity, and see the many ways it has failed in its mission. How can anyone believe Christians are the embodiment of Christ, if Christians themselves do not believe it? How can anyone believe Christians are the embodiment of Christ, if Christians behave just like anyone else in the world? How can anyone believe Christians are the embodiment of Christ when they fall back into the old pre-Christian ways? How can anyone believe Christians are the embodiment of Christ when they have brought about so much violence and harm themselves?”
Too often we over-spiritualize Christianity, so it is too heavenly minded to be of any earthly good. God is actually quite practical and gives humanity good advice about how to choose life instead of death. (Matthew 25: 35-36) We are to feed those who are hungry, make sure the thirsty have enough clean water to drink, welcome strangers and invite them to join us, make sure everyone has enough so their needs are met (like clothing), look after those who are sick and take care of them, and visit those who end up in prison or detention. Micah 6:8 is the verse in scripture that is meant for all of humanity — we are to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God. In other words, treat each other well and don’t do to anyone what you would not want done to you.
Our country is failing dreadfully right now when it comes to living as God would have us live. This is not the time for the Body of Christ to sit back and wish that someone would do something. As the embodiment of Christ for the world today, we are to listen to the prayers of the poor and suffering of our country, and of the world, and be the answer to those prayers as best we can. The amazing thing is that God is so patient with us and believes that we will one day “get it.” God has a persistent hope in humanity and never gives up on us.
So, let us work as if all depended on us; pray as if all depends on God. Keep the Beloved Community in mind at all times and work to achieve it. This is an achievable goal. You can find pockets of this Beloved Community everywhere in the world. We just need to keep working without giving up and continue bringing the kingdom of God to earth as it is in heaven. Build small communities of justice, peace, and love everywhere!
Bishop Kedda
Bishop Kedda 