Resist the urge to make the kingdom of God real “out there” before it has become real “in here.”
In today’s scripture reading, Jesus tells us that His kingdom is personal, not geographical; spiritual, not temporal; hidden from natural observation, yet growing by leaps and bounds within the life yielded to Him.
As much as some of us might want to Christianize (or spiritualize) the law, the government, the marketplace, the neighborhood, and the school — as the Pharisees desired to do in Jesus’ day; it always becomes a fool’s errand when such changes are imposed from outside. Change that is positive, lasting, spiritual, and liberating always begins within an individual — and manifests itself in the choices that that individual makes.
Is God’s rule (kingdom) growing within you? – Luther