“The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed,
and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’
For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.”
There wasn't going to be some absolute empirically verifiable sign or unmistakable announcement that the Kingdom had arrived, because, in Jesus, it already had. Because Jesus was the king the Kingdom was present wherever he was present. But this did not override the freedom of observers to decide for themselves about him. Many were looking for something more obvious. They wanted a fact about which they could not be mistaken. They didn't want to depend on another, on a gift, even from God to receive understanding. They wanted it to come from themselves. They wanted to be the ones in charge of their own understanding. But what they wanted to understand was something beyond the capacity of human reason. It wasn't that they had to make a random guess about him. His words and deeds revealed that he was trustworthy. But to take the next step and accept him as the Messiah and Son of God, as Peter did, required revelation from the Father. It was not merely the logical deduction from the empirical facts. But the answer revelation did provide put those facts in a context that made more sense of them than any other hypothesis.
and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’
For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.”
There wasn't going to be some absolute empirically verifiable sign or unmistakable announcement that the Kingdom had arrived, because, in Jesus, it already had. Because Jesus was the king the Kingdom was present wherever he was present. But this did not override the freedom of observers to decide for themselves about him. Many were looking for something more obvious. They wanted a fact about which they could not be mistaken. They didn't want to depend on another, on a gift, even from God to receive understanding. They wanted it to come from themselves. They wanted to be the ones in charge of their own understanding. But what they wanted to understand was something beyond the capacity of human reason. It wasn't that they had to make a random guess about him. His words and deeds revealed that he was trustworthy. But to take the next step and accept him as the Messiah and Son of God, as Peter did, required revelation from the Father. It was not merely the logical deduction from the empirical facts. But the answer revelation did provide put those facts in a context that made more sense of them than any other hypothesis.
"I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else."
- CS Lewis
The days will come when you will long to see
one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.
In that moment the Son of Man was still with them. Later on they would appreciate the inestimable value of what they then experienced. But it would be still better and was possible for them to appreciate it while he was still there. Rather than looking elsewhere and away for signs or announcements, it was better to fully inhabit the experience of his presence in the moment, to treasure it and draw from it all the many blessings it contained. This was particularly important since he was not always going to be with them in the same way he was then. They needed to really come to know him so that when they experienced this privation of his presence they would not fall for false alternatives or be deceived by people offering salvation and claiming to be messiahs.
There will be those who will say to you,
‘Look, there he is,’ or ‘Look, here he is.’
Do not go off, do not run in pursuit.
If they insisted on looking for more than Jesus offered when he was present, they would likely be readily deceived by those who promised such certainty after he departed. We too have been given the great gift of the abiding presence of Jesus in his Church. But we are often unsatisfied with what we have, making us potential targets of deception ourselves. We're too ready to believe those who make sweeping promises, as long as they're promising the right things. We should instead lean into the gift of faith we receive in baptism and, through that gift, appreciate the presence of Jesus in his Mystical Body. When we spend time in relationship with him we are inoculated against all the lies and false promises of the world, promises of certainty and salvation which it can never deliver. If we do we will surely experience the promise reflected in the Gospel antiphon:
I am the vine, you are the branches, says the Lord:
whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit.
one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.
In that moment the Son of Man was still with them. Later on they would appreciate the inestimable value of what they then experienced. But it would be still better and was possible for them to appreciate it while he was still there. Rather than looking elsewhere and away for signs or announcements, it was better to fully inhabit the experience of his presence in the moment, to treasure it and draw from it all the many blessings it contained. This was particularly important since he was not always going to be with them in the same way he was then. They needed to really come to know him so that when they experienced this privation of his presence they would not fall for false alternatives or be deceived by people offering salvation and claiming to be messiahs.
There will be those who will say to you,
‘Look, there he is,’ or ‘Look, here he is.’
Do not go off, do not run in pursuit.
If they insisted on looking for more than Jesus offered when he was present, they would likely be readily deceived by those who promised such certainty after he departed. We too have been given the great gift of the abiding presence of Jesus in his Church. But we are often unsatisfied with what we have, making us potential targets of deception ourselves. We're too ready to believe those who make sweeping promises, as long as they're promising the right things. We should instead lean into the gift of faith we receive in baptism and, through that gift, appreciate the presence of Jesus in his Mystical Body. When we spend time in relationship with him we are inoculated against all the lies and false promises of the world, promises of certainty and salvation which it can never deliver. If we do we will surely experience the promise reflected in the Gospel antiphon:
I am the vine, you are the branches, says the Lord:
whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit.
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