Here in Luke 21, Jesus tells the disciples what it is going to be like before the Kingdom of God is fulfilled. It is not a pretty picture to say the least. For those who are living in the Kingdom of God, life will get increasingly challenging. War, strife, pestilence, and all sorts of human challenges will take place. Jesus even goes as far to warn the time will come when the followers will be arrested and dragged before courts. Persecution is coming.
These are not the happy words we like to hear from Jesus. I would much prefer to hear things are going to be okay. Not just okay, rather things are going to be easy. That somehow because I follow Christ there won't be challenges. I have lives enough life to know this is not how things play out, still it is nice to have a dream.
Basically Jesus is telling the disciples, then and now, that we are in the waiting. The fulfillment is still out in front of us, but we are already walking in the Kingdom of God. Our lives to this point have been in the waiting, but we are not to simply sit around. Our waiting should be active waiting. Living now as though the Kingdom has been fulfilled. It is going to be rough, it won't always be easy, yet we are to be the living embodiment of the kingdom now, waiting for the future fulfillment.
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