Found in Translation

Since we've been grappling with "kingdom of God" language, you might be interested in this insight from Brian McLaren, from the current issue of Sojourners magazine:

When Jesus spoke of the kingdom of God, his language was charged with urgent
political, religious, and cultural electricity. But if we speak of the kingdom
of God today, the original electricity is largely gone, and in its place we
often find a kind of tired familiarity that inspires not hope and excitement,
but anxiety or boredom.

Brian says that's in part because kings are anachronisms in today's world, and in part because the term brings up images of partriarchy and imperialism -- not what Jesus was talking about. He suggests six terms that are worth consideration today:

• The Dream of God (living out God's dreams for his people)
• The Revolution of God (overturning the totalitarian regime we've created)
• The Mission of God (We're sent to bring healing to the world)
• The Party of God (I like this one!)
• The Network of God (we're all connected to God and one another)
• The Dance of God (participating in the mutual indwelling of the Trinity)

Which of these images work for you? What other images do you like to use?