Missio Dei: Phoenix

As Jesus calls us to follow him and his Kingdom, we see there are clear rhythms and practices his disciples live out. These are not how one becomes a disciple or how a disciple proves belonging to the Kingdom, but rather an outpouring of being with and like Jesus.

We use the acronym B.L.E.S.S. (Bless, Listen, Eat, Speak, Sabbath) to encourage one another to engage in the rhythms and practices of Kingdom living. This first week we examined how we have been blessed to be a blessing to others.

This Sunday we shared a meal together while we looked at the parable of the hidden treasure Jesus told in Matthew 13. Plus, we commissioned our MC’s and sent one another out as ambassadors of Jesus and his Kingdom.

Note: Since we did not keep the recording of praying over each of our MC’s and hearing the stories of what God is doing in them, the audio for this may seem like it jumps around a bit.

Jesus said the Kingdom of God is like a little yeast in a lot of dough, or a mustard seed growing into a large tree for birds to nest in. Hyperbole? Maybe. But the point seems to be that God’s Kingdom is surprising and beautiful nourishing life can grow out of unexpected places — and that growth is for the sake of others.

Weeds wreak havoc on a yard. But poisonous plants disguised as food are a problem on another level. Jesus told a story about how the Kingdom of God is growing in the midst of another kingdom, and which one will remain at the end.

Jesus gave a lot of pictures of what the Kingdom of God is like, or will be like when it comes in full. One of those images was a story of a master who entrusted his servants with different amounts of money while he went away. What they did with it exposed something about their trust and partnership with the master’s work, but even more, Jesus’ story exposes something about the multiplying nature of God’s Kingdom.

While Jesus was tired and grieving, he had compassion on the crowd. Not only did this compassion lead him to speak good news to them, but his compassion led to feeding and nourishing their bodies as well as their souls. But Jesus chose to do this in a powerful way, by inviting the people into the miracle. The food came from among the crowd, the act of service and distribution from the disciples, and the power from God.

What does the Son of David have to do with the blind? What does his healing mean to the world? Explore these questions with us this week as we look at the healing of the two blind men in Matthew 20.

In Matthew 14 we look at an iconic scene where Jesus walks on water to meet his disciples as they rowed across the sea in a storm. How could he defy physics in such a way? Jesus was displaying the full power of the Creator, in the flesh of a man. And what’s perhaps even crazier is that he invites a regular human to come and follow him out there.

In Matthew 9 we get a highlight reel of Jesus performing miracles, and the faith of the people who come to him for it. The people recorded are diverse and come from different places in society, but one thing they have in common is they have a great need and they recognize Jesus as the one who can meet it.

“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD!”

This was the welcome Jesus received as he entered into Jerusalem in Matthew 21 — a quote directly from Psalm 118. But did the crowd really understand what they were saying? Do we? What kind of king are you looking for to come and rescue?