Kingdom-Wisdom from Master Yoda, Part II

The Kingdom of God is “In Front of Our Nose”

Jesus’s favorite topic of conversation was this mysterious entity he called the kingdom of God, and how he usually did so by telling stories that contained metaphors to describe it.  We began to plumb the depths of a modern story to see if it might also contain Kingdom-wisdom.  We were looking at conversation between Luke Skywalker and Yoda from Star Wars: The Last Jedi and pondering how, as much as we value the Bible to help us learn about God, the most important Kingdom-wisdom isn't found in a book. This week I want to focus one short line of dialogue from their exchange.  After Yoda explains that there is nothing in the sacred texts that Rey doesn’t know already, he ends by saying:

Skywalker, still looking to the horizon. 
Never here, now, hmm? The need in front of your nose.

In John 14:6 Jesus says: I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the father except through me. We often interpret this verse to mean: I am the way to follow if you want to go to heaven when you die.  But what if that’s not all Jesus had in mind here? I think that when you delve into the broader first-century-Roman-Empire-context of this passage, there’s a strong argument to be made that Jesus was less concerned with his follower’s eternal destinythan he was with their current reality.  At the very least, I think Jesus had both now and not yetin mind.  And for these early followers of Jesus, who were an oppressed minority living under the heel of Roman occupation, getting through today was the most important question in their minds.  Concerns about the afterlife probably were secondary.  To paraphrase Yoda’s words to Luke, they were more focused on “the need in front of their nose.”

What if Jesus was saying to his followers: I am the way to follow if you want to enter the kingdom of God—today.  Note that the very next verse goes on to say, “If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”  That seems to be saying: from this moment on, if you follow me, you will get to know God. Always the questioner, Thomas presses the issue and seeks to clarify.  “Show us the Father and then we will be satisfied.”  We might sense Jesus getting a bit frustrated as his reply in John 14:9, which in essence says: Thomas, you’ve been with me this long and you still don’t get it do you?!  If you’ve seen me, you’ve seen Him! 

I’ve heard it said that we Christians can be so heavenly-minded that we’re no earthly good.  I think maybe Luke fell into the Jedi-equivalent of that.  He thought his work “here, now” was done.  He also thought he had screwed up royally and didn’t want to cause anyone—including himself—additional pain. He was living out his days on a remote island cut off from the Force, disconnected from engaging all the galaxy’s problems, waiting for the day when he could quietly slip “over the horizon” and merge with the Force 

Maybe some of us can relate to how Luke feels?  Participating in the life of a community of faith week after week can be physically, emotionally, and spiritually draining.  That’s especially true for those of us who take on the mantle of leading others, both laity and especially clergy.  There are certainly moments, when life in community is challenging,  where we might get wounded by the actions of others (even if it wasn’t intentional), and where we might be tempted to quit—to withdraw from the world,  to escape to wherever or whatever Ahch-To is for us and never come back.  But somehow we persevere and endure Sunday after Sunday because we know God has called us to this role.   Our contribution is still needed “here, now” meeting the “need in front of our nose.”

Now, having been a Jedi Master for nearly 1000 years, Yoda surely knows about the challenges of life “here, now”.  He isn’t unsympathetic that his former student is tired and wounded from all that has taken place.  Yoda also presumably already knows a thing or two about the nature of life “over the horizon” at this point, and he knows that Luke will enter that life when the time is right.   But he also knows that it is not Luke’s time yet.  No, he still has work to do “here, now” in his physical body.  Rey and the Resistance need the help of a Jedi Master—and Luke happens to be the only one available.  He does no one—including himself—much good remaining hidden away on Ahch–To brooding over his failure with his nephew.  Yoda’s visit seems to be a “kick in the butt” to remind the aging Jedi that, to use an earlier Yoda quote, there is still “much to learn he still has”.  Of course, as the plot unfolds, Luke learns the lesson.  He reconnects and offers everything he has left “here, now” to save Rey and the Resistance. 

The kingdom of God is both “here, now” and “over the horizon”. Theologians have speculated a great deal about what life is like “over the horizon” and there are lively debates to be had over the details.  However, at the end of the day none of us can make more than make educated guesses about what awaits us “over the horizon” in eternity.  As Paul says in his letter to the church in Corinth: For now we see in part, as if we were looking through a mirror, but one day we will see in full, and know fully, and be fully known—1 Corinthians 13:12.  

Scripture indeed promises us that one day we will see what is "over the horizon"—but it is not this day...  

Today, we have only the world that  is "here, now", with many pressing “needs in front of our nose”.  There is much work to do on Earth, where our actions allow the Kingdom to come on Earth as it is in heaven.  Our actions can make a positive impact for the common good of the world; conversely, our inaction could add to the pain and suffering of humanity.  What we do "here, now" really does matter!  

In the Gospels (e.g., see John 6) we see Jesus responding to the “needs in front of his nose” with compassion, mercy, and grace.  He met the physical needs of the people he encountered every bit as much as their spiritual needs.  For Jesus the two are of a piece.  Notice for example in the story of feeding the 5000 (which is one of the few stories about Jesus that appears in all four Gospels), that the physical feeding comes before the spiritual needs of are even addressed. Jesus sees hungry people and he simply cannot not feed them. 

If we want to discover the Kingdom of God and walk in the way of Jesus, we will need to do the things that Jesus did on a regular basis. 

If we want to discover the Kingdom of God and walk in the way of Jesus, it stands to reason that we will need to do the things that Jesus did on a regular basis.  We too have an obligation to tend to the needs of the least, the last, and the lost in our world, responding to the “needs in front of our nose” just as Jesus did. In some mysterious way the work we do “here, now” prepares us for the work we will continue to do “over the horizon” in eternity.  If we’ve been doing the work of God “here, now” we can expect a smooth and peaceful transition to life “over the horizon”—just as Luke experienced such a transition at the end of The Last Jedi. We can trust God to work out the details of the transaction when the time is right.  

Next: Kingdom-Wisdom is Found Through Success—but Especially Through Failure.