Kingdom, a free gift

 "Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out devils," seem to be the living signs of the kingdom of God. These signs will be absent when we we can't appear before others as mere human. Often we are under the burden of protective measures which creates barriers for curing the sick, ensuring life, bringing justice, and eradicating evils.

'God' too becomes an obstacle when God is used merely in a 'glorified' sense. There God becomes a way of escape from our human responsibilities to realise the kingdom here and now. We bypass many that deserve gratitude in just a general thanksgiving to God. Often we are concerned about sacrifices and offerings, customs and practices which are expected to bring God's blessings. We shouldn't miss the kingdom of God by overly thinking of godly things neglecting the human responses the Gospel asks of us. The freely given gospel has the deepest touch on our humanity. It is from the same humanity that we can begin to share the Gospel.

These days, neither the preachers like to preach, nor the audience like to hear that the kingdom of God is a free gift. But being in a market world controlled by consumerist values, we make a god who is a businessman. If you pay, the product is guaranteed. It ends up in finding a god like a street vendors who may not be there when one goes with a complaint about the product. Ads were exciting but delivery is poor. See the quality of 'testimonies' these days.