“Once upon a time” alerts us that the story we are about to hear is a fairy tale. There is sure to be a wise and wonderful king ruling over a magnificent kingdom and a difficult quest which the hero will have to undertake before finally living “happily ever after.” We know the story is too good to be true; it is only a fairy tale.

Sometimes the story of our faith spelled out in the Bible may sound to us somewhat like a fairy tale. It took place long ago and far away. There is a king and a kingdom described in fantastic terms. But it gets better. The radical good news of the gospel is that the difficult quest is not required of us. Jesus has already taken care of that part of the story.

That’s not all. In this week’s gospel lesson, Jesus tells us, “…it is the Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” The king isn’t selfish. All that God has is ours for the asking. The Lord doesn’t intend for the kingdom to be a mythical place hidden somewhere on a mountain top that only comes to life for a mere twenty-four hours every thousand years or so. God wants us to take his kingdom and make it real in this world here and now, a kingdom of love, and compassion, and cooperation.

It is God’s delight to give us what it takes to live “happily ever after” in his presence. All we have to do is accept the gift God has prepared for us, trust the life-saving grace with which God desires to fill us. There is nothing we can do to earn the kingdom. No heroic deeds are necessary. We are home free. Happily ever after, as impossible as it may seem, is possible after all. In scripture, it is called eternal life. It is not a fairy tale!