Can Humanity be saved?

Between apocalyptic visions and glimmers of hope:

Chapter 17 of the Gospel of Luke deals with the essentials: 
What matters in the grand scheme of things? 
What is important in life? 
What is the meaning of life? 
What does the future hold for us?

Jesus is bombarded with all kinds of questions about life and eternity. And he responds with various images and examples. The message of hope, “The kingdom of God is among you,” stands in the midst of threats and worries. In the same chapter, we also find sentences like these:

• “Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life will save it.” (Luke 17:33)
• “The time will come when you will long to live under the rule of the Son of Man—just for one day, but you will not see it.” (Luke 17:22)
• “Things will happen that will turn people away from me. But woe to the person who contributes to this. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone around his neck – at least better than to turn one of these little ones away from me.” (Luke 17:1-3)

Jesus describes life with all its challenges and difficulties. Living according to Jesus' teachings is no walk in the park. It is not cheap grace. It is not possible to reserve a place for yourself in Jesus' eternity while at the same time losing sight of your fellow human beings and their needs. 

No thanks, no glory, no praise!

And those who serve their fellow human beings should not expect any reward for themselves. Those who do good to their neighbors or strangers in the spirit of Jesus do not need to receive thanks for it. Jesus is not concerned with reward, prestige, or showing off. 
Rather, he is concerned with the essential: helping those who suffer. Healing the sick. Caring for the poor. Without conditions. Without expectations. 
Simply because it is God's command to lovingly care for the helpless!

The Kingdom of God is dawning

And yet it is precisely in the midst of these difficulties that God's kingdom dawns or grows. That is Jesus' message of hope. 
We do not have to wait for better times or pray for better living conditions. Life in the kingdom of God is not reserved for the future; it can already be felt here and now. Namely, precisely where people are seen who feel overlooked in their environment. 
It dawns among children who are inspired by Jesus. 
It grows when a person thanks God for the gift of life or health—like the stranger in Luke 17:19 to whom Jesus says, “Your faith has saved you!” 
The kingdom of God is noticeable when people share their wealth with others so that everyone has enough to live on. 
Every contribution to a social project adds a little bit to God's kingdom!

A glance into the future

When I look to the future during the Month of Creation in September, I feel as if I am in the middle of the Gospel of Luke. I hear gloomy predictions about the future of our planet and of human life. Not enough is changing in terms of climate-damaging behavior, and what is being done is far too slow. 
The wars and crises in our world have still not been overcome.

But at the same time, I feel a spark of hope burning inside me, sometimes even lighting up strongly when I read or experience how people are working to shape a better future. In Austria alone, there are now 16 partner organizations of “Fridays 4 Future” (including “Religions 4 Future”).  People from very different backgrounds are already working for a healthier life today so that there will also be a healthier “tomorrow.”

In this selflessness, in this vision, I sense something of the Kingdom of God.

And when I doubt humanity once again and ask myself whether all hope is lost for this world and its people, I draw courage from Jesus' words in Luke 17:28: 
“What is impossible for humans is possible for God.”