How can I understand what the Kingdom is like?

How can I understand what the Kingdom is like? by Mrs. Judy Edwards

“His disciples asked him what this parable meant. He replied, ‘You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of God. But I use parables to teach the others so that the Scriptures might be fulfi lled:

“When they look, they won’t really see. When they hear, they won’t understand’”

(Luke 8:9-10 NLT).

Was Jesus telling the disciples that He played favorites? Th at He was trying to keep people from knowing the secrets of the Kingdom?

Have you ever hidden eggs at Easter time for young children? We generally hide them in pretty obvious places. Why? Because we want the children to fi nd them. Jesus isn’t hiding the secrets of the Kingdom as much as He’s preserving them for those who genuinely want to fi nd them. He is protecting them from the careless and indiff erent, from those who have willfully closed their eyes and ears. Th ose who are mere spectators and have no interest beyond surface curiosity, like the crowds in the Gospels who were only after the signs and wonders and the loaves and fi shes.

Th e spiritually sensitive who heard the parables, sought to know the deeper truths, while the hardened just heard a story and weren’t really interested in looking deeper. David Guzik’s “Enduring Word Commentary” says this about the passage:

“…when Jesus used parables, He didn’t start

by stating a truth. Instead, the parable was like a doorway. Jesus’ listeners stood at the doorway and heard Him. If they were not interested, they stayed on the outside. But if they were interested, they could walk through the doorway, and think more about the truth behind the parable and what it meant to their life.”

1 Corinthians 2:14 tells us: “But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means.” NLT

Jesus wants everyone to understand the Kingdom, but He knows not everyone wants to. How do we make sure the secrets of the Kingdom aren’t hidden from us? We take the time to look deeper, to do just what the disciples did in this passage – we ask the King! Our King off ers us the opportunity to talk with Him whenever we want. If we want to understand the mysteries of the Kingdom, we need only to walk through the doorway of prayer, to sit at the King’s feet and ask Him to teach us the secrets of His Kingdom. As we listen to Him and ingest His truth, those Kingdom secrets that He has always wanted us to know, will become clearer and clearer and transform our lives. So PRAY! God says, “You will seek me and fi nd me when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13).