The kingdom age is the time between the first and second advents of Christ. The kingdom is good—the dangers I have in mind arise from the world in which we live. They are also present because of the progressive way that God has chosen to apply salvation to His people. We are not yet all that we will be. We continue to struggle with sin in our own lives and so we face many dangers as we live in expectation of the parousia. In chapter seven, Jesus highlights six of these dangers.
First, there are dangers associated with increased light and understanding, so Jesus warns us not to apply to others a standard we are not willing to apply to ourselves (7:1–5). This, however, does not mean that all judgment is suspended. We must be discerning and not give sacred things to those who have no appreciation of them (7:6).
Second, there are dangers associated with waiting for God while living in the world (7:7–12). One such danger is that of passivity, or sitting around doing nothing, while we wait for God to act. This is not appropriate behaviour for disciples of Jesus. He wants us to ask, and knock, and seek, and assures us that God will respond to our requests for help. Sometimes passivity is joined to a harsh view of God and His goodness. We do not seek help because we think that He will not answer. But this is not the case. God is good and He knows how to give good gifts to His children. Therefore we should be actively pursuing Him and we should believe that He delights to care for His people.
To be continued next time...
1 comment:
Thank you.
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