1. Is heaven/the Kingdom of God just a future hope or is it a present reality? Has the Church been hindered by a belief that heaven is a future location rather than a spiritual position or (condition) of being “in Christ” and as the “eternal life” Jesus equated with knowing Him … in the present tense?
2. When we pray, “Thy Kingdom come Thy will be done” why do some of us then look for God to “rapture” us out of here? Is the Kingdom of God now or is it in the future? Yes, it’s both!
3. Why did Jesus say He would “open His mouth in parables” and that He had “hidden these things from the wise and learned”? Do you think it is possible we the Church have missed something in relation to the nature of God’s Kingdom? Do you think it is possible that we the Church deserve to have things hidden from us in the same way the Jews did?
4. Hasn’t the revelation of the Kingdom of God been ever increasingly growing larger? Hasn’t the perennial religious temptation of mankind been to be exclusive with their “tribal god”? Does not the Story of God consistently contain rebukes for those unwilling to admit that God is merciful to one’s enemies? (The Jonahs, Jews, the elder brothers etc.,)