Coffee Shop Conversations: Making the Most of Spiritual Small Talk by Fincher Dale & Jonalyn Fincher

Author:Fincher, Dale & Jonalyn Fincher [Fincher, Dale]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Zondervan
Published: 2010-04-26T16:00:00+00:00

Jesus told us about the kingdom of heaven, the kingdom of love, but hardly anyone was ready to hear this. They said, “What are you talking about; I don’t feel the peace that you have.” You don’t have to do this. Just imagine that his message of love is possible and you will find that it is yours.6

Notice how Ruiz recasts the kingdom of heaven as the kingdom of love. Then he tells us the trademark of the “kingdom” is this “feeling of peace.” Whenever we read the Gospels, memoirs, we have to remember Jesus’ definition of the kingdom of heaven. This phrase means something specific.

When Jesus talked about the kingdom of heaven (Matthew uses the phrase “kingdom of heaven” while Mark and Luke use “kingdom of God”), he meant the literal reign of the God of Israel on this planet, brought about by the Jewish Messiah, Jesus. Jesus opens the gospel of Mark by explaining that the kingdom of heaven is at hand.h For many Jesus’ kingdom didn’t feel peaceful, his kingdom felt like a sword, dividing loyalties and requiring a new kind of citizenship.i

By the end of The Four Agreements, Ruiz tells us all religions are the same. He says, “This way of life is possible and it’s in your hands. Moses called it the Promised Land, Buddha called it nirvana, Jesus called it heaven, and the Toltecs call it a New Dream.”

In trying to make a case for his spirituality, Ruiz manages to insult nearly every major religion. Moses, Buddha, Muhammad, and Jesus would all feel misunderstood by Ruiz. Moses believed the Promised Land was a location on the earth along the Mediterranean Sea. Buddha believed nirvana is a state of losing the self into the ultimate reality that unites us all. Jesus taught heaven was an actual place where you awaited the bodily resurrection.

In trying to make a case for his spirituality, Ruiz manages to insult nearly every major religion.

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