"Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God,15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.” Mark 1:14-15.
This is the Gospel; the Good News. To repent and and believe for the Kingdom of God has come near. We do not have to go somewhere for the Kingdom of God comes to us. Jesus ascended as a human to God in order that we could be in God's presence again. To allow the Kingdom to come to us.
This past Sunday's sermon was on this very topic and I had the privilege of hearing it twice. As I sat in my pew I scribbled down as many notes of what the Pastor said that I could. It was an excellent sermon and I felt that God was both up to something then and there and also planting seeds for us to follow throughout the week.
We see signs of the Kingdom in healing, in love, in brokenness being mended, and in restoration. We see the Kingdom of God when we are invited to participate in it. The Holy Spirit has empowered us to do what Jesus was doing: To heal, to cast out demons, to empower others. We are called to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, and all the Ends of the Earth. What are we doing sitting around waiting til a certain time? We need to go out and do what He has called us to do. As it says in Ephesians he has given everyone different gifts and callings, some to be Apostles, some Evangelists, some Shepherds, some Teachers, and some Prophets. We are all given different gifts in order to participate in the Kingdom in-breaking. Often times when God decides to do something in our lives we only hear how it affects us, personally, but it is so much bigger than us. It is about salvation for the entire cosmos; not just our individual salvation.
How are we being witnesses this week in Lent?
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