NOT GIVING UP ON GOD’S PEACEABLE KINGDOM
Isaiah 11:6-9; Revelation 21:3-6
Rev. Paul Wrightman 1/14/24
HOW DOES ONE DISCOVER PEACE?
HOW DOES ONE CREATE PEACE?
THESE ARE QUESTIONS THAT ALL OF US HAVE ASKED
AND ARE STILL ASKING.
THE HEBREW WORD FOR PEACE, SHALOM,
ACTUALLY MEANS FULLNESS OF LIFE
AND INCLUDES PHYSICAL AND SPIRITUAL HEALTH
AND A VITAL CONNECTION TO TRUTH, GOODNESS, AND BEAUTY.
THESES ARE ALL SEEN AS ESSENTIAL AND INTER-RELATED
DIMENSIONS OF PEACE.
(PAUSE)
EDWARD HICKS WAS A ROUGH-AND-TUMBLE CARRIAGE MAKER
WHO LIVED IN PENNSYLVANIA IN THE EARLY 1800’S.
HIS YOUNGER YEARS WERE SPENT IN WILD LIVING,
HARD DRINKING, AND BAR ROOM BRAWLS.
BUT AT AGE 23 HICKS HAD A DRAMATIC CONVERSION.
TROUBLED, HE STUMBLED INTO A QUAKER MEETING.
THE PEACE AND QUIET HE FOUND THERE INTRIGUED HIM.
HE GAVE UP DRINKING AND BRAWLING AND BECAME A QUAKER.
SOON AFTERWARD EDWARD HICKS RECEIVED A CALL TO PREACH.
QUAKER PREACHERS WERE NOT PAID.
FOR YEARS HICKS TRAVELED FROM TOWN TO TOWN,
PREACHING AT SMALL QUAKER MEETINGS.
HE SUPPORTED HIMSELF BY PAINTING SIGNS.
EVENTUALLY, HE QUIT PREACHING AND TOOK UP PAINTING FULL TIME.
IN THE END, UNSCHOOLED, UNTRAINED, UNSETTLED EDWARD HICKS
BECAME THE LEADING FOLK ARTIST IN AMERICA IN THE EARLY 1800’S.
HIS MOST POPULAR PAINTING WAS CALLED
THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM.
HICKS PAINTED IT AT LEAST 100 TIMES.
YOU SEE ONE OF HIS RENDERINGS OF THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM
ON THIS EASEL STANDING BEFORE YOU.
IT IS THE LARGEST PRINT IN THE ART DISPLAY
OF NOTABLE ANIMAL ART FROM THE PALEOLITHIC
TO THE PRESENT FEATURED IN THE ENTRANCEWAY
OF OUR FELLOWSHIP HALL.
THIS SINGULAR IMAGE CAPTURED AND COMPELLED HIM.
EACH RENDITION WAS SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT.
BUT A CHILD, AN OX, AND A LAMB APPEAR IN EACH ONE.
THEY LIVE AT PEACE WITH THE WILD BEASTS:
LIONS AND TIGERS AND BEARS.
SOMEONE ONCE SAID, “WHEN THE LION LIES DOWN WITH THE LAMB,
ONLY THE LION GETS TO SLEEP WELL!”
SOMEONE ELSE SAID, “THAT PICTURE IS GREAT –
AS LONG AS YOU REPLACE THE LAMB EVERY DAY!”
ACTUALLY, THE MOST DANGEROUS FIGURE IN THE PICTURE
IS NOT THE LION OR THE WOLF, BUT THE BABY.
WOLVES AND LIONS HAVE A LOT MORE TO FEAR FROM US
THAN WE HAVE TO FEAR FROM THEM.
BUT IN EDWARD HICKS’ PEACEABLE KINGDOM,
THERE WAS NEITHER PREDATOR NOT PREY.
HICKS’ PAINTING IS MORE THAN ENGAGING ART.
IT’S A COMBINED POLITICAL AND RELIGIOUS STATEMENT.
WILLIAM PENN OF PENNSYLVANIA ALWAYS APPEARS
IN EVERY PAINTING.
PENN IS OFTEN TO BE SEEN IN THE DISTANCE,
NEGOTIATING A PEACE TREATY WITH NATIVE AMERICANS.
WILLIAM PENN WAS EDWARD HICKS’ HERO.
HICKS BELIEVED THAT THE PATH OF NONVIOLENCE
AND RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE – THE WAY OF WILLIAM PENN –
WOULD CREATE IN PHILADELPHIA A CITY
OF BROTHERLY LOVE ON EARTH.
IF ONLY WE WOULD LIVE LIKE WILLIAM PENN,
THOUGHT EDWARD HICKS, THEN CERTAINLY
THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM COULD BE ESTABLISHED HERE.
BUT PERFECT PEACE WAS NOT ESTABLISHED BY WILLIAM PENN.
PENN WAS A GOOD GOVERNOR.
BUT HE ONLY GOIVERNED PENNSYLVANIA FOR TWO YEARS
BEFORE HE SAILED BACK TO ENGLAND.
HE ONLY RETURNED, BRIEFLY, ONCE.
HIS DEPUTIES GOVERNED PENNSYLVANIA POORLY
IN HIS ABSENCE.
PHILADELPHIA, WHICH LITERALLY MEANS
“THE CITY OF BROTHERLY LOVE” IN GREEK,
BECAME STRESSED WITH DISSENTION AND STRIFE.
WILLIAM PENN COULD NOT USHER IN THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM.
(PAUSE)
TWENTY-FIVE HUNDRED YEARS BEFORE EDWARD HICKS
PICKED UP A BRUSH, THE PEOPLE OF JERUSALEM
ALSO DREAMED OF A PEACEABLE KINGDOM.
THEIR HOPES RESTED ON KING HEZEKIAH,
WHO WAS ONLY 25 YEARS OLD
WHEN HE ASCENDED TO THE THRONE.
AT HIS CORONATION, ISAIAH, THE COURT PROPHET,
OFFERED THE MOVING VISION WE HEARD
AS OUR FIRST SCRIPTURE READING THIS MORNING.
ISAIAH SAW THIS IDEALISTIC YOUNG KING –
WHO WAS PROBABLY ONE OF HIS OWN STUDENTS –
AS FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT OF GOD.
HEZEKIAH WOULD KNOW AND DO WHAT WAS RIGHT.
THE POOR WOULD BE TREATED FAIRLY.
PEACE WOULD BREAK OUT BETWEEN NATIONS –
AND IN ALL OF NATURE AS WELL.
IF ONLY HEZEKIAH WOULD LISTEN TO AND OBEY GOD’S WORD,
REASONED ISAIAH, THEN SURELY THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM
WOULD COME.
HEZEKIAH WAS A GOOD KING.
HE WAS A RELIGIOUS REFORMER.
HE TORE DOWN THE SHRINES WHERE IDOLS WERE WORSHIPED.
HE WAS OFTEN IN REPENTANCE, FASTING, AND PRAYER.
STILL, HEZEKIAH TOOK PRIDEFUL RISKS
THAT ENRAGED POWERFUL ENEMIES
AND ENDANGERED HIS NATION.
JUDAH WAS INVADED SEVERAL TIMES DURING HIS REIGN.
THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM WAS NOT USHERED IN BY HEZEKIAH.
(PAUSE)
A FEW YEARS AGO A NEW THEME PARK, THE ANIMAL KINGDOM,
WAS OPENED AT DISNEY WORLD IN ORLANDO.
THE ANIMAL KINGDOM HOSTS OVER 1,000 ANIMALS
FROM 300 SPECIES.
THERE ARE 2.3 MILLION CAREFULLY CULTIVATED PLANTS.
AT THE CENTER OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM
IS THE TREE OF LIFE.
THE TREE OF LIFE IS FOURTEEN STORIES TALL.
ITS TRUCK IS FIFTY FEET WIDE.
IT HAS 8,000 FAKE BRANCHES
WITH 100,000 FAKE LEAVES SEWED TO THEM.
ITS CANOPY STRETCHES 160 FEET ACROSS THE SKY.
DISNEY WORLD DESCRIBES THE TREE OF LIFE LIKE THIS:
“A POWERFUL SYMBOL REPRESENTING
THE INTERCONNECTED NATURE OF ALL LIVING THINGS . . .
CARVED INTO THE GNARLED ROOTS, ENORMOUS TRUNK,
AND UPLIFTED BRANCHES ARE THE TWISTING, TURNING SHAPES
OF MORE THAN 300 ANIMALS . . .”
DISNEY WORLD CONTINUES: “EVERY GUEST IS INVITED
TO STOLL THE TREE OF LIFE GARDEN THROUGH THE ROOT SYSTEM
OF THE TREE OF LIFE.
THIS SOFT LANDSCAPE IS FILLED WITH OTTERS, FLAMINGOS . . .
LEMURS, TORTOISES, AND COLORFUL DUCKS, STORKS,
CRANES, AND COCKATOOS . . .
OR, THE GUEST MAY ENTER A THEATER BUILT INTO THE ROOTS
OF THE TREE OF LIFE. IT’S CURRENTLY SHOWING THE MOVIE,
“IT’S TOUGH TO BE A BUG.”
NEAR THE TREE OF LIFE, “SAFARI” JEEPS PULL LITTLE OPEN CARS
AND VENTURE INTO THE “WILDS” OF ORLANDO.
CHEETAHS, NILE CROCODILES, ELEPHANTS, HIPPOPOTAMI,
AND BLACK AND WHITE RHINOCERI CAN BE VIEWED –
IN SAFETY, OF COURSE.”
THE TREE OF LIFE, WITH ITS SURROUNDING GARDEN,
AND HUMAN BEINGS AND ANIMALS CO-EXISTING IN HARMONY,
ARE INTENDED TO BE REMINDERS OF THE GARDEN OF EDEN,
COMPLETE WITH COMPUTER-CONTROLLED ARTIFICIAL MIST
THAT RISES UP ON CUE!
BUT, FOR ALL ITS CLEVER ENGINEERING AND SPECIAL EFFECTS,
DISNEY’S ANIMAL KINGDOM IS NOT THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM,
EITHER.
BEFORE THE PARK EVEN OPENED,
THIRTY OF THE IMPORTED ANIMALS DIED.
THEY COULDN’T ADJUST TO THE CLIMATE.
EVEN NOW SOME OF THE ANIMALS
HIDE MOST OF THE DAY FROM THE SUN –
AND FROM THE TOURISTS.
EVEN THE MAGIC OF DISNEY AND ALL THE WONDERS
OF TECHNOLOGY CAN’T CREATE A PEACEABLE KINDGOM
ON EARTH.
(PAUSE)
YET THE IMAGE OF A PEACEABLE KINGDOM
PERSISTS DEEP WITHIN US.
MAYBE THAT’S WHY EDWARD HICKS
PAINTED THAT ONE IMAGE AGAIN AND AGAIN.
MAYBE THAT’S WHY WE RESPOND SO POSITIVELY
TO HIS PAINTING.
MAYBE THAT’S WHY MILLIONS WILL PAY BILLIONS
TO SEE AN ARTIFICIAL EDEN IN ORLANDO.
OUR VISION OF A PEACEABLE KINGDOM
IS A YEARNING FOR PARADISE LOST.
THE IMAGE OF A GARDEN OF EDEN,
WHERE ALL THINGS WORK WELL, IS DEEP IN OUR SOULS.
WE KNOW IT IS NOT HERE YET.
HUMAN SOCIETY IS STILL FILLED WITH INJUSTICE AND STRIFE.
WOLVES STILL EAT LAMBS.
AND WE HUMAN BEINGS CONTINUE TO MAKE A MESS OF NATURE.
STILL, WE LONG FOR THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM.
WHEN WILL IT COME?
THE EARLY CHURCH WAS SO CAUGHT-UP
IN THE TRUTH, GOODNESS, BEAUTY, WHOLENESS, AND PEACE
THAT JESUS BROUGHT WITH HIS MINISTRY,
THAT IT COULDN’T WAIT FOR JESUS TO COME BACK
TO MAKE THIS TRUTH, GOODNESS, BEAUTY, WHOLENESS, AND PEACE
COMPLETE.
CHRISTIAN BELIEF IN THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST
HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE CHRIST’S FIRST COMING.
MANY CHRISTIANS, ESPECIALLY FUNDAMENTALIST AND EVANGELICAL
CHRISTIANS IN THE UNITED STATES, SEE CHRIST’S SECOND COMING
AS FILLED WITH VIOLENCE AND DESTRUCTION,
AS FOUND IN PARTS OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION.
OTHER CHRISTIANS, MOST OF US INCLUDED,
SEE THE VIOLENCE AND DESTRUCTION
DESCRIBED IN CERTAIN PARTS OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION
AS DIRECT CONTRADICTIONS
OF JESUS’ OWN TEACHING IN THE GOSPELS.
WE SEE JESUS COMING BACK USING THE VERY SAME MEANS
HE DID IN HIS FIRST COMING: NONVIOLENCE, COMPASSION,
AND GOD’S RELENTLESS GRACE AND LOVE.
MANY OF US BELIEVE THAT THE KINGDOM OF GOD –
THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM – WILL, INDEED, COME
IN ITS FULLNESS WHEN CHRIST COMES AGAIN.
JESUS IS THE “SHOOT”
THAT GROWS OUT OF THE STALK OF JESSE.
JESUS IS THE ONE UPON WHOM THE SPIRIT OF GOD RESTS.
JESUS IS THE LITTLE CHILD WHO WILL LEAD US IN HIS GENTLE WAYS.
THE KINGDOM OF GOD WILL COME IN ITS FULLNESS
ONLY WITH THE RETURN OF CHRIST.
BUT THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS ALREADY PARTIALLY PRESENT.
EVERY TIME EDWARD HICKS PAINTED HIS PAINTING,
EVERY TIME WILLIAM PENN ENACTED A FAIR TREATY
WITH NATIVE AMERICANS,
EVERY TIME KING HEZEKIAH JUDGED FAIRLY,
A BIT OF THE KINGDOM WAS ESTABLISHED.
EVERY TIME WE USE TECHNOLOGY WISELY,
EVERY TIME WE REACH OUT TO THE POOR,
EVERY TIME WE WELCOME THE STRANGER,
EVERY TIME WE STAND UP FOR JUSTICE,
A BIT OF THE KINGDOM COMES.
EVERY TIME WE ARE GUIDED BY THE SPIRIT OF GOD,
EVERY TIME SOMEONE ADVOCATES TO SAVE A WOLF OR A LION,
EVERY TIME WE JOIN IN COMMUNION,
A BIT OF GOD’S KINGDOM IS AMONG US.
THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM IS GOD’S DREAM FOR CREATION.
GOD, IN GOD’S GOODNESS, HAS ALLOWED US TO SHARE THAT DREAM.
LONGING FOR IT AND LOOKING FOR IT AND WORKING FOR IT
IS A GOOD PART OF WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A FOLLOWER OF JESUS.
WE PRAY: “THY KINGDOM COME, THY WILL BE DONE,
ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN.”
ONE DAY – MAY IT BE SOON –
THERE WILL BE A LEADER WHO JUDGES FAIRLY,
STANDS UP TO OPPRESSION, AND REDEEMS THE POOR.
ONE DAY – MAY IT BE SOON –
THE WOLF WILL LIE DOWN WITH THE LAMB.
ONE DAY – MAY IT BE SOON –
THE LION WILL FULFILL ISAIAH’S PROPHECY AND EAT STRAW.
ONE DAY – MAY IT BE SOON –
ONE WITH THE ATTITUDE OF A LITTLE CHILD
WILL LEAD ALL OF CREATION.
ONE DAY – MAY IT BE SOON –
WE WILL EXPERIENCE FIRSTHAND
THE INCREDIBLY POSITIVE AND HEALING VISION
OF GOD’S PERSONAL PRESENCE ON EARTH
AS DESCRIBED IN OUR READING
FROM THE NONVIOLENT PART OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION.
AMEN.