Having been inaugurated through Christ, God’s already-active kingdom will be fully established when Jesus returns.
In summer, it’s easy to forget the long slog of late winter. I live in the Northeast, where February paints a world of gray and brown, and March brings even more cold, plus rain and mud. These are the days when deep blue skies and canopies of green feel like a barely remembered dream. And yet, those brighter days are just as real as the cold ones. No matter how lifeless winter trees appear, you can see the promise growing in sleeping buds.
Today’s reading from Luke reminded me of this truth, but on a much grander, heavier scale. This passage is part of a larger series of Jesus’s teachings in the temple at Jerusalem, shortly before the events leading to His arrest, trial, and death. In these passages, we see Him responding to the challenges to His authority and debating religious leaders on matters practical and philosophical. After making proclamations about disastrous, future destruction for the temple and Jerusalem, He launches into a dramatic account of the end of the age—of “signs in the sun, moon, and stars,” when “people will faint from fear,” before seeing “the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory” (Luke 21:25–27).
Throughout the Church’s history, there has been much debate and theological wrestling with what these proclamations mean, and yet, Jesus makes one thing abundantly clear: Frightening things will happen, yet we should not be afraid (John 16:33).
It’s the message in Isaiah’s image of the peaceful kingdom. Despite terror and destruction, new life grows from the felled forest. “A shoot will grow from the stump of Jesse” and make all things right, a King we now recognize in Jesus (Isaiah 11:1). We may see fear and destruction as a tragic, yet typical, part of life on earth, but the kingdom of God subverts all that, remaking a world where violence will be undone, where a groaning creation will be liberated (Romans 8:19–21).
When Jesus spoke those words in the temple, He was days away from ushering in this chapter of this renewal story. Jesus inaugurated the kingdom to come, displayed His power and glory, and proved that death and violence don’t have the final word.
Here’s another interesting fact about trees. Those buds you see in springtime? They were grown in the summer, hidden by flourishing leaves. But we usually don’t notice them until we’re sick of winter and looking for hope.
May we, in this never-ending winter of the world, in these cycles of violence and pain and loss, continue to endure without losing heart. May we find the courage to tend the buds of new creation through our love and peacemaking, watching and waiting for the day they burst into life without end.
I’m also struggling friends. I intellectually understand the readings and devotional from today but what happens when the winter is too much to bear? For me physical winter is so much that I moved our family to Southern California because of my seasonal affective disorder. Spiritually I feel like I’m in a winter season and I can’t get on a plane to a better location. Help?
Struggling- we all love you!
I can’t wait for that day when the buds of my Christian life come to full bloom. I learn more all the time.
Lord help me to bloom where You plant me. Allow me to continue to walk in Your love and be a symbol of You and Your ways. Amen.
Have a blessed weekend sisters.
PAMC – FRAN will be in my prayers! She has already demonstrated such strength in the waiting and fighting infection and setbacks. Praying for wisdom for the caregivers and that God grants her the endurance to hang in there and that she will grow closer to Him in this process. You are a blessing for allowing us the opportunity to pray along with you. I remember HEIDI taking screenshots of comments to encourage her husband a year ago. She recommended the same to Struggling today and I agree on that!
Tina, adding my prayers to everyone’s here for you & your friend. Struggling, I was grateful to see your comments. This community is amazing, the love healing, because of Jesus. We love & pray for you & each other & each other’s friends, families….
I have a friend I’d like to ask you might prayer warriors to lift up. Her name is Fran. She has been in a care facility for two (2!) years waiting for them to start knee replacement surgery. She has fought infections, doctors that wanted to just amputate, Covid & those restrictions, being cut off from friends & church. She was Finally scheduled & a snaffu sidelined the surgery again 2 days before …. That was March, and earlier this month. I hadn’t heard anything and finally this morning I got a response…she’s been crying and depressed for a month. Who could blame her! Please, y’all, pray.
Good word, Diana!
I, too, am so blessed by all these insightful comments each day! Thanks to all who share your hearts!
STRUGGLING – I have been there with the inability to cry even when I wanted to. Praying that episode was the dam breaking to allow God’s love for you to flow freely once more. Thank you for allowing us the privilege of sharing your pain and for keeping us posted. Embrace the grace and love.
TINA, you and your friend are in my prayers. What a blessing you will be to her!
Have a blessed weekend, sisters, and keep on hoping!
The reading from Timothy stood out the most to me today. “If we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself.” Jesus is loving, patient, faithful, comforting not because of how others around him act, but because he is all those things and more to his core. May I strive to be like that! To love because I am incapable of anything else. To be patient and obedient because my very being prevents me from being anything else.
This is a beautiful devotion!!! From the study book I wrote down some of the things we are to be doing:
1. Walk in the Spirit
2. Be alert, and aware of the signs
3. Be on guard. Pray for strength.
4. When suffering, keep my eyes on the future glory
5. Hang on to hope
6. Wait with patience
7. Keep my mind sharp
8. Keep my focus on Jesus
Amen, Linda thank you.