Seasons Part 2

(1 Cor. 11:19, Mark 13:31-33)

I have written earlier this year of 2020 on this topic and sense the Lord would have me address it further.  I wrote that God is eternal but His working in the world has seasons.  The world, the cosmos, the universe are all terms we use to describe the material creation.  We know that God loves the world, the cosmos and His love is so great He paid a great price to redeem and save it.  He has raised up a people, a nation, to cooperate with Him in His redeeming work.  We, who are born of His Spirit, are that people.  Through the history of mankind and the cosmos, He has been working toward His purpose, according to His plan and wisdom.  His goal is a vast family of heavenly children, conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ.

The gospel has a great simplicity to it.  Yet, we have journeys and pitfalls and many experiences by which we learn and are more perfectly aligned to God’s single purpose.  It is all focused on His Son.  I am learning a new level of grace as I discern what seem to be distractions among His people.  Often, others have a different calling, are seeing another aspect of God’s working and moving with it.  On the other hand, the Lord does expose wrong motives and does bring separations.  I am reminded of the Corinthians and Paul’s words that divisions among them must exist that those who are mature would be evident.  God’s approval rests on those who are mature among us.  Those are the true leaders whether they hold a position in our so-called churches or not.  I wrote that sharply to focus our attention on our definition of church.

To be sure, no specific assembly or gathering of believers is perfect, that is without fault.  But are we growing together?  Also important, is it static, or does it see a flow in and out?  When someone leaves, do we question their choice and react in an attitude that they are missing God?  The messages from Jesus to seven churches of Asia have an eternal aspect to them and need to be heeded by every gathering.  Are we distracted from hearing what the Lord is saying?  This applies individually and corporately.  I sense in this day a tension to accurately hear what God is saying.  As I live in America, I see this in the church here.

A dear sister and I recently traded emails on a national, American issue.  She rightly focused on our identity without using that word.  We must see that in Christ, we are neither male nor female, young in years or old, European or African, US citizen or Israel citizen, but we are members of a new race, that are a people that are born of the Spirit of God.  That is not a doctrine or Christian concept.  It must be a reality by a spiritual experience.  A difference between being a creature only and a child of God exists.  This is a troublesome thought to many but is rather simple in truth.  God has our entire lives to bring us to Himself.  He loves all men and is patient toward all but we must yield to Him when He shows up in our lives.  We know of those who are resisting Him at this very moment.  Pray that they have an encounter with Jesus Christ by the Spirit.  Then they must choose to receive Him or not.

Earthly citizenship cannot define us in relation to Christ.  It is no more profitable to our spirits than being listed as a member of a church organization.  It is part of our created nature that we look to be part of a family.  Only one family is eternal, that is God’s family that started with the first born son, Jesus.  Some may question concerning all those who lived before Christ.  The Spirit was always working but many did not want the truth.  It was so perverse in the days of Noah that God intervened intensely.  The story is in Genesis and Jesus referred to it in Matthew.  Perhaps you should read it, or read it again.  A time is coming when the Father, the Almighty God, will execute the fullness of mankind’s redemption and this present evil age will close.  Then will we see the new heaven and new earth.

I have been considering citizenship of earthly nations and realize what we all should know.  All of these will pass away.  Every earthly kingdom has had a season.  The Babylonian Empire had a season, The Medes and Persians followed, then the Greeks and the Romans.  And Christ’s kingdom came and all the nations came under His dominion.  Every so-called empire that followed was weaker and weaker.  As the systems of this world fail before us, remember Jesus’ words, “Be not deceived.”  Rather, “Watch and pray.”