SECRET MESSAGE OF JESUS

The book is essentially about the steps that need to be taken to bring “Heaven to Earth” on a daily basis in living a life that God centered. From the complex to the simple every action we take is essentially advancing one kingdom or another. The question is – who kingdom is being advanced with each respective action I take?

A few thoughts that stood out to me:

* Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount was more of a manifesto than anything else.

* The Lord’s Prayer needs to be more of action oriented entity than just something said for religious purposes. We need to allow that prayer to transform us, shape us and really believe it and it can change everything.

* A person who is “spiritual” brings “Heaven to Earth” but a person who is “religious” has little to no action in their “faith”

* When Jesus said to have “Childlike Faith” it was an understanding that we need to rethink the way we live. Like a child has to learn how to do “normal functions” (walk, eat, talk, etc.) we need to relearn and redevelop our normal functions whatever stage in life we are at.

* The phrase “Eternal Life” as written by John doesn’t refer to a “life in heaven after death” (as many current Christian understand it) but rather to have an interactive relationship with God and son Jesus. The One True God.

* C.S. Lewis describe The Kingdom as one thing – beauty. Each of us find beauty in different things.

* The Book of Revelation is not written as literal as it taken in today’s current context but rather it was possibily written using imagery to trick those in power in Rome. To speak of another Kingdom other than the Roman’s Kingdom would lead to instant death.

* Two great quotes for Frederick Buechner near the end of the book:

“The Kingdom of God? Time after timer Jesus tries to drum into our heads what He means by it. He heaps parable upon parable like a madman. He tries shouting it. He tries whispering it … What He seems to be saying is that the Kingdom of God is the time, or a time beyond time, when it will no longer be humans in their lunacy who are in charge of the world. It’s the time above all else for wild rejoicing – like getting out of jail, like being cured of cancer, like finally, at long last, coming home. And it is at hand, Jesus says.”

“We shed tears not because we caught a glimpse of the Peaceable Kingdom, and it had almost broken our hearts. For a few minutes we had seen Eden and been a part of the great dance that goes on at the heart of creation. We shed tears because we were given a glimpse of the way life was created to be and it not … Joy is home, and I believe that tears that came to our eyes were more than anything else homesick tears.”