When I was at Laity Lodge, I got to teach alongside my friend David Bailey, founder and Chief Vision Officer of Arrabon. David talked about the biblical contrast between the way of the Empire (think Pharaoh in Egypt, Babylon and Assyria, and later Rome) and the way of the kingdom of God. Jesus intentionally uses kingdom language in order to contrast God’s way with the way of the world. God’s way of exerting power is through peace and sacrificial love and lifting up the most vulnerable.

Empire’s way of exerting power is through fear and control. But, David cautioned, we can easily confuse the two. We have been shaped and formed by many assumptions of Empire, and we need to make sure we don’t assume that God’s kingdom comes by exerting force and control and using fear tactics to strongarm people. God’s way is always one of non-coercive, invitational, life-giving, and generous steadfast love.

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