It is said that when Leonardo da Vinci was painting “The Last Supper” that when he painted Judas he used the face of a man he couldn’t stand. However, he later shared that he was unable to paint the face of Jesus until he removed the face of Judas. Once he painted the face of Jesus, he no longer held a grudge against the man whose face he used for Judas. Judas’s final painting is simply a face he conceived after his bitterness subsided.
Jesus said to his disciples: “But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly I say to you, many prophets and righteous men have desired to see the things that you see, and have not seen, and to hear what you hear and have not heard” (Matthew 13:16-17). The things they had seen and heard were miracles and grace and the coming of the Kingdom of God, a Kingdom without end and a Kingdom where people live differently.
The history of the world is the history of the battle between two Kingdoms, one the Kingdom of Light and the other the Kingdom of Darkness. For those who experience the grace of Christ, their new center is the Kingdom of Light. It was this realm that influenced da Vinci to put aside his wrath. In this new realm there are different ways of living that are not bound by cause and effect, an eye for an eye, reactive life.
Paul would share that this Kingdom also has a visible expression when he wrote, “For the kingdom of God is not food and drink, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 14:17). Along with the inner changes of heart and attitude, there must be an outward expression of holiness, peace, and joy.
Holiness is to be set aside, peace is about a quiet confidence in our right standing with God through the grace of Christ, and joy is about being happy in our everyday lives. When Jesus said that the disciples were “blessed” to see and hear about the Kingdom, he was saying “how fortunate” or “how happy you are” to know the secrets he has revealed.
Indeed, knowing that his kingdom has come, let his will be done, on earth as it is in heaven is where eternal hope resides. There is sin and destruction in the world. The apostles would share this evidence that there are still two kingdoms at odds with each other, but one day one kingdom will win and all things will be made new.
Much pessimism has been written about this outcome, suggesting that the Kingdom of Darkness eventually wins and the world ends. However, a consistent reading of the Scriptures makes it clear that Jesus did not secure a victory for another world in eternity, but for the here and now. In fact, when Daniel had the great vision of him, he saw a stone destroy the statue that represented the systems of the world. That stone is Christ, but that stone does more than destroy the alternate kingdom. Daniel shares: “The stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth” (Daniel 2:35).
The stone, Christ, destroyed the statue, and the kingdom it brought became a mountain, then it filled the whole earth. That complete filling is not yet complete, but it does not defeat evil, it defeats stone, what is more, it will continue to grow even on earth as it is in heaven.
