ADVANCE // KINGDOM

Last night, we talked about expectations. We talked about how hyped we can get about a movie, when it is coming out-- and how, sometimes, the movie just doesn't meet our expectations. We also talked about how, if we're honest, there are times that Jesus' coming and His proclamation that "the kingdom of heaven is near" doesn't seem nearly as awesome as it sounds on paper. With all the things that we're hoping to happen and all the things that have yet to change in this world, how can we still keep hope (and focus) in this "already but not yet" kingdom?

The encouragement is this. Since Jesus came in the way that He did (fulfilling all the prophesies He did), we can TRUST God even in the midst of our doubts. Since Jesus died and rose again in the way that He did, when we accept His invitation, we can TRUST that God is for us. And, since we've been given the gift of the Holy Spirit, we can TRUST that God is going to continue to advance within us, bringing to life every aspect of our being.

The bottom line is that we are to be about the advance of God's "kingdom" in this world (helping people to know that God has invited us into having real life). And, although some things haven't worked themselves out YET, we can trust that, while we wait for all those things, we can advance!

"While we wait, we advance."