Opening the Road to the Kingdom of GodVzorec

THE COMING OF THE KING

MAIN IDEAS

• The unfolding of the divine plan presupposes the involvement of the supernatural. The events that take place go beyond natural and human powers.

• Mary was a righteous woman who bravely put herself within the reach of God. She did not have miraculous power or position in the hierarchy of the KINGDOM OF GOD.

• God communicates to us within our limits. He is not impressed by social status or by position but is attracted to people who humble themselves.

• JESUS will not expect of us anything that He has not done. He left the comforts of heaven and humbled Himself, coming to earth where He experienced suffering and shame. Therefore, He is justified in asking His disciples and even us today, to go to the very edge of the earth to carry the good news of the Gospel.

• There is an ongoing struggle between the earthly and the spiritual. He who is of the earth wants to suppress Him Who is heavenly.

• Only those who have faith can accept God’s way of thinking and can pay the price for doing His works.

Shortly after the proclamation of the birth of John the Baptist, the angel Gabriel brings to the Virgin Mary the news that she was chosen to give birth to the promised Messiah. This news is shocking and difficult to understand, and it infers God’s miraculous involvement. How could it be that a virgin, having no relations with any man, would get pregnant? It’s beyond the power of human understanding and yet, it happened. Everything is part of the divine plan, which bungles human thinking and human logic altogether. The angel Gabriel recognizes that the Virgin Mary has been given the grace to have a role in the course of the divine plan. Just as Eve was the gateway of sin into the world, Mary becomes the gateway of the Savior- "the seed of the woman who will crush the head of the snake”… However, she did not hold – nor does she hold now – any miraculous power or any position in the hierarchy of the Kingdom of Heaven. We are left, nevertheless, with her example of pure and complete obedience by agreeing to serve God through faith. After the birth of Jesus – her firstborn – Mary and Joseph had six more children of their own, who are mentioned in the New Testament. JESUS, a King whose Kingdom is of Heaven, was only temporarily here on earth to introduce His Kingdom to the people and to invite them to join Him there. We can also say that by coming into the world, JESUS was the first and the greatest missionary Christianity has ever had – the Son of God Himself.