An Analysis of Three Upside-Down features by Jesus Christ
Jesus reveals the kingdom of God in a new direction that appears upside-down in the lessons of love, social interactions, and social ladder from chapters nine, ten, and eleven in The Upside-Down Kingdom, by Donald Kraybill. The idea of the upside-down kingdom derived from a student of Kraybill, who reacted enthusiastically to Jesus’ teachings as, “Everything here is so upside down!” (Kraybill, 2011, p. 9). This statement stimulated Kraybill to further discuss many of Jesus’ teachings and how they appear to be lacking order in the midst of the cultures in the first century. Kraybill’s purpose is to retell the stories of Jesus’ teachings with the idea of a new kingdom that appears upside-down. …show more content…
Jesus’ disowned this fashion among society so much so that he himself, did not exert authority over others. Kraybill validates this by writing, “Again and again, according to John, Jesus underscores the root of his authority. It’s not his own. He is steward of God’s authority. He has the power of attorney. He acts on God’s behalf” (Kraybill, 2011, p. 225). In the upside down kingdom, there is not room power and authority over others. In this new kingdom, one who sees themselves as a young child and serves others will receive greatness. Moreover, Jesus calls everyone to treat others with respect, dignity and equality. In the kingdom of God, every individual serves a purpose and is equally …show more content…
With agape, Jesus expects people to forgive others, as God forgives them. The ability to forgive, comes from love and compassion. Therefore, love is the root of all things in the eyes of God. Even when love has a price tag, it should not end, but extended toward enemies. Furthermore, in Jesus’ upside-down kingdom, social interaction is demolished. In the new kingdom, all are accepted as children of God. Jesus does not want his followers to develop social circles, but rather accept and interact with everyone, including women and children. Jesus demonstrates Gods will by helping the helpless and walking and talking among the unworthy. Lastly, in the new upside-down kingdom, Jesus wants his followers to treat everyone with equality. There is no such thing as rank on a social ladder. In God’s kingdom, it is a flat surface, where everyone is seen as equals. Therefore, Jesus calls for his followers to value the children and women, serve the ill and poor. Behave like children and know nothing of status among others. Jesus reminds us in Mark 10:15, “Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it” (The New Oxford Annotated Bible, 2010, p.
Jesus reveals the kingdom of God in a new direction that appears upside-down in the lessons of love, social interactions, and social ladder from chapters nine, ten, and eleven in The Upside-Down Kingdom, by Donald Kraybill. The idea of the upside-down kingdom derived from a student of Kraybill, who reacted enthusiastically to Jesus’ teachings as, “Everything here is so upside down!” (Kraybill, 2011, p. 9). This statement stimulated Kraybill to further discuss many of Jesus’ teachings and how they appear to be lacking order in the midst of the cultures in the first century. Kraybill’s purpose is to retell the stories of Jesus’ teachings with the idea of a new kingdom that appears upside-down. …show more content…
Jesus’ disowned this fashion among society so much so that he himself, did not exert authority over others. Kraybill validates this by writing, “Again and again, according to John, Jesus underscores the root of his authority. It’s not his own. He is steward of God’s authority. He has the power of attorney. He acts on God’s behalf” (Kraybill, 2011, p. 225). In the upside down kingdom, there is not room power and authority over others. In this new kingdom, one who sees themselves as a young child and serves others will receive greatness. Moreover, Jesus calls everyone to treat others with respect, dignity and equality. In the kingdom of God, every individual serves a purpose and is equally …show more content…
With agape, Jesus expects people to forgive others, as God forgives them. The ability to forgive, comes from love and compassion. Therefore, love is the root of all things in the eyes of God. Even when love has a price tag, it should not end, but extended toward enemies. Furthermore, in Jesus’ upside-down kingdom, social interaction is demolished. In the new kingdom, all are accepted as children of God. Jesus does not want his followers to develop social circles, but rather accept and interact with everyone, including women and children. Jesus demonstrates Gods will by helping the helpless and walking and talking among the unworthy. Lastly, in the new upside-down kingdom, Jesus wants his followers to treat everyone with equality. There is no such thing as rank on a social ladder. In God’s kingdom, it is a flat surface, where everyone is seen as equals. Therefore, Jesus calls for his followers to value the children and women, serve the ill and poor. Behave like children and know nothing of status among others. Jesus reminds us in Mark 10:15, “Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it” (The New Oxford Annotated Bible, 2010, p.