“If _______________, I would be happy.”
What did you write in the blank?
· “I was healthy again”
· “I was successful…”
· “I was happily married…”
· “I could know that my kids will turn out alright…”
· “I had more (or better) friends…”
There’s nothing wrong with having these desires, of course, and satisfying them provides a measure of happiness. A healthy, successful, happily married, proud parent with lots of good friends is the American dream. In fact, to desire such a life is a fundamental human longing. It’s the human ideal. Even more, the Bible teaches us that God created us for this kind of life and desires us to have it.
Perhaps that’s why the first beatitude is so shocking: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5.3). Poverty of spirit is both socioeconomic and religious. It means you are so deprived that you are driven to God for provision and protection. It means you are utterly reliant on God for every good thing. But poverty of spirit, in and of itself, does not lead to blessedness. Rather, according to Jesus, the kingdom of heaven is what makes you happy.
Although some commentators distinguish between the “kingdom of heaven” and the “kingdom of God,” their distinction is untenable. Matthew uses the terms interchangeably (19.23, 24), and the parallel in Luke uses “of God” rather than “of heaven” (6.20). The kingdom of heaven is identical to the kingdom of God.
But what is it? We Americans typically think of a kingdom as a place, such as the United Kingdom or the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan or—if you’re in Southern California—the Magic Kingdom. In the New Testament, however, a kingdom primarily describes prerogative and power, the authority and ability to rule. Secondarily, it describes the place where that authority and ability are exercised.
The kingdom of heaven/God, then, refers to God’s prerogative and power to rule over the place he has created—the creation and all its inhabitants. Unfortunately, God’s creatures are in open rebellion against the king. God’s authority over creation and his ability to rule it are undeniable, but we human beings stupidly deny it anyway, inviting divine judgment—“the wrath of God”—upon us and our actions (Rom. 1.18–20).
But judgment does not exhaust God’s kingdom. God offers us a second chance to confess that his kingdom applies to us. Jesus’ basic message was, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near” (Matt. 4.17). Indeed, through his words and actions, Jesus proclaimed, “the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Matt. 12.28). The kingdom of God is not just a future reality; it is present. Jesus says, “theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” not, “theirs will be….” Those who repent even now experience the “righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” that are characteristic of God’s kingdom (Rom. 14.17).
So, to fill in the blank: “If I embraced God’s kingdom, I would be happy.”
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