When I was a little girl, I was fascinated by stories of beautiful kingdoms, powerful kings, elaborate courts, and colorful subjects. The worlds of Narnia, Sherwood Forest, and Camelot still hold much intrigue, and it’s easy for me to be sucked in to their captivating domains.

Recently, we walked through the Beatitudes at church. I love that throughout Jesus’ ministry, He used the analogy of a king ruling over his kingdom to explain things to the disciples.

I can almost imagine Him there on the side of that mountain, sitting with the Twelve, compassionately communicating truth that most assuredly seemed counter-intuitive to them. It must have sounded strange to Peter, James, John and the others to hear their mentor repeatedly teach them about this “upside-down” kingdom that He was creating.

1.) How strange that in Jesus’ kingdom, the King would have to die.

2.) In addition, the citizens would look and act differently than those in other lands.

3.) Furthermore, everyone would have to wait patiently, for in Jesus’ kingdom, evil would appear to win. Instead, it would just be a matter of time for the kingdom to be fully instated in all its beauty and glory.

The Beatitudes focus in on that second facet: the citizens of the land. What kind of people live in Jesus’ kingdom? Reading Matthew 5 on repeat has caused me to think about my own life. These eight statements that open up the Sermon on the Mount have both convicted and encouraged me in recent weeks. Through this 2,000-year-old passage, God has been reminding me of His priorities. I’m excited to walk through some of the Beatitudes on a more personal level in the weeks to come.

May God continue to teach me what it looks like to be a citizen in His kingdom. I’m so looking forward to that day when He’ll set all things right. For good. But until then, may I continue to do all that I can to build up His kingdom – right here and right now.