Lectio –
Read today’s passage through once. Then spend some time praying and asking God
to show you what you need to pay attention to in the text. Read it again. Now
ask God to help you see what this text, and the part that has stood out, may
mean for you. Don’t expect to get a clear word every time but always be ready
to really hear from God through His Word.
DAILY READING
REFLECTION
Already, Not Yet
by Katie Borden
In
“pandemic life”, I’ve learned a lot about myself—the good, the bad, and the ugly.
One of the things I’ve learned is that I manage my time, for better or worse,
according to the principle of “NOW/NOT-NOW”. If something doesn’t need my attention
NOW, it usually just plain doesn’t get my attention. This actually makes me
adept at managing multiple issues at once in a crisis, but a terrible planner
and prioritizer when I’m not up against a deadline. That’s fine when everything
is on fire, but when it comes to living intentionally, I have a lot of learning
and growing to do. I suspect I’m not the only one.
In stark contrast to the “NOW/NOT-NOW” filter through
which some of us live, Jesus lays out a whole different paradigm in this
passage: the kingdom of God operates in an “ALREADY/NOT-YET” fashion. On the
one hand, the kingdom of God has ALREADY broken into this world. We encounter
God’s kingdom in the person of Jesus and through the work of the Holy Spirit. Jesus’
life, death, and resurrection are the ALREADY-available first-fruits of the age
to come, when all is made well and we will live in perfect unity with God.
On the other hand, the full consummation of the
kingdom of God has NOT YET been realized—it is yet to come when Jesus comes
again. If we were ever in doubt of this truth, the raging pandemic, the
political and racial tensions, and the natural disasters of the past year bear
witness to the fact that all creation groans in eager expectation for the consummation
of the kingdom of God.
Do you notice that in both instances (the “ALREADY”
and the “NOT-YET”), the kingdom of God comes in and through Jesus? We encounter
the kingdom of God when we encounter Jesus, and our lives are reoriented to the
things of the kingdom when we are formed in Christ by the power of the Holy
Spirit. My “NOW/NOT-NOW” thinking is often focused on temporal things. But as
Jesus teaches me to view the world through an “ALREADY/NOT-YET” lens, I’m able
to engage in the “here and now” with increasing spiritual vision, and I’m
empowered to engage more fully and intentionally in the world around me. It’s in
Jesus that we find life, and in Jesus we are shaped to prioritize his way of
life and live intentionally for his eternal purposes.
As you pray today, ask Jesus to continue to reveal
himself to you and shape you in his ways. Thank him that he has already ushered
in the first-fruits of the kingdom of God, and ask him to help you live with spiritual
vision “here and now” as he gives you hope for the age to come.
(For even more practical application, check out UALC’s
growth workshops. My small group has been working through the “Following Jesus After
Isolation” workshop together, and it has been a gift to us as we help each
other walk intentionally in the way of the kingdom. Check out ualc.org/grow)
No comments:
Post a Comment