I received this from a friend:
The problem with most Christians is that we don't want to do God's will; we want to do our will in Jesus' name.
We don't seek God to discover what He's doing; we seek Him to bless what we're doing. If people knew that Jesus was not going to return for fifty years; if they could pin Him down to an exact date, the week before He returned, they would pray, love and make things right with those they've sinned against.
I believe that, at least in part, this was what moved the Pharisees to ask
when Jesus thought the kingdom of God was coming. Yet, Jesus gave them an answer that we, too, need to grasp. He said, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or, 'There it is!' For behold, the kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:20-21KJ).
They wanted to know when the kingdom was coming; Jesus told them where it would first be revealed. People always want to know when Christ is returning, not because they long for His return, but so they can continue to live selfishly and then, during the week before His return, make things right with God and man. But, God doesn't reveal when He's returning because He wants us to be dressed in readiness, living each day with godly passion and vision.
Oh, how addictive, how deceiving and self-justifying our selfishness is!
The Lord doesn't want just the last week of our lives; He seeks all we are
every day! He is not looking for "summer help" or "weekend warriors." The
Living God seeks a people in whom He can dwell, a people who will become His kingdom on earth!
Listen to the writer of Hebrews as the Holy Spirit revealed the unfolding of God's works in the earth. He wrote, "And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, 'Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heaven.'" And this expression, 'Yet once more,' denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, in order that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.
"Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with
reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire" (Heb 12:26-29).
The problem with most Christians is that we don't want to do God's will; we want to do our will in Jesus' name.
We don't seek God to discover what He's doing; we seek Him to bless what we're doing. If people knew that Jesus was not going to return for fifty years; if they could pin Him down to an exact date, the week before He returned, they would pray, love and make things right with those they've sinned against.
I believe that, at least in part, this was what moved the Pharisees to ask
when Jesus thought the kingdom of God was coming. Yet, Jesus gave them an answer that we, too, need to grasp. He said, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or, 'There it is!' For behold, the kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:20-21KJ).
They wanted to know when the kingdom was coming; Jesus told them where it would first be revealed. People always want to know when Christ is returning, not because they long for His return, but so they can continue to live selfishly and then, during the week before His return, make things right with God and man. But, God doesn't reveal when He's returning because He wants us to be dressed in readiness, living each day with godly passion and vision.
Oh, how addictive, how deceiving and self-justifying our selfishness is!
The Lord doesn't want just the last week of our lives; He seeks all we are
every day! He is not looking for "summer help" or "weekend warriors." The
Living God seeks a people in whom He can dwell, a people who will become His kingdom on earth!
Listen to the writer of Hebrews as the Holy Spirit revealed the unfolding of God's works in the earth. He wrote, "And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, 'Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heaven.'" And this expression, 'Yet once more,' denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, in order that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.
"Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with
reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire" (Heb 12:26-29).
