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Friday, March 19, 2021

The Great Commission Must Be Our Guide in These Polarizing Times


During these polarizing times where battles for political power or division from cultural struggles are crippling the influence of the Christian church, we need to refocus our attention and commitment to fulfilling the great commission.

Galatians 4:4 says, in various translations, that when the “right, appropriate, set, chosen, fullness” of time had come, God sent his son. Jesus didn’t arrive in occupied Palestine by accident; he, the incarnate God/man, had chosen before all eternity to enter and save his creation at the perfect moment.

Looked at from our perspective, it might not seem like it was such a great time. Israel was a conquered country, occupied by Roman soldiers and oppressed by Roman taxes. The Roman emperors who ruled at the time and the Jewish leaders they used as their puppets are remembered as violent, sadistic demagogues. Caligula, Nero, Herod.

Despite his careful teaching, Jesus’ thickheaded disciples pressed Jesus for an earthly, political kingdom just moments before his Ascension in Acts 1:
6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time [finally??!] going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” [emphasis mine]
It’s hard not to notice that when Jesus is asked, “Is it time to take power and create God’s kingdom on earth?” Jesus answers that he wants them to preach the gospel, convert people and grow the number of disciples in the world. Read More

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