September 24 - Kingdom of God: Shalom

I'm going to interrupt the study of Matthew a little bit to share some of the other fun information I've been gleaning from other courses.  As COOL as the genealogy is, it won't take up seven days of blogging to tell you about it.  The next thing I'm going to be digging into is the birth story found in Matthew 1.  But, that will come later.

Another book I've been reading is Kingdom, Church, and World, Biblical Themes for Today by Howard A. Snyder.

This little book focuses on seven themes that are found around the idea of the Kingdom of God in both the Old and New Testaments.  I got a little excited as I began looking at this.

The first theme he introduces is that of Shalom. For most of us, it simply means 'peace.'  Stop there and we're done, right?  Not so much.  Snyder says that this word occurs nearly 350 times in the Old Testament.  It is part of everything that occurs.  And the meaning is so much more in-depth than simply 'peace.'

It is a complete picture of peace ... not just a cessation of stress or war ... but, a positive thing.  The root of the word means 'to be whole, sound, safe.'  Take just a few moments to think about those words.  God is the source of shalom.  It is a sense of wholeness.  God intends to bring His creation to that wholeness ... to shalom.  Creation lives in harmony, everything working together.

Snyder describes the Garden of Eden as a model for shalom.  If the fall of man hadn't occurred, we wouldn't be afraid, we'd each have our own fig tree and we'd have great relationships with each other and with God.  Shalom ... wholeness ... harmony ... well-being ... peace.

When we get to the New Testament, the first thing that happens is that the angels announce 'peace on earth.'  This is what Jesus' coming means.  His reign on earth brings peace.  If you open your concordance to the word 'peace,' you'll find that Jesus is peace.

So, the first of these themes that flows through the entirety of Scripture regarding the Kingdom of God is peace - not an absence of battle - but as Snyder says (pg. 21) - harmony, balance, health.  While the Old Testament teaches about peace, Jesus is the focus in the New Testament and He defines the Kingdom of Peace.