{"id":245,"date":"2022-08-07T21:43:18","date_gmt":"2022-08-07T21:43:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ashealliance.org\/?p=245"},"modified":"2022-12-05T17:12:27","modified_gmt":"2022-12-05T17:12:27","slug":"the-timing-of-the-kingdom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ashealliance.org\/the-timing-of-the-kingdom\/","title":{"rendered":"The Timing of the Kingdom"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>WATCH<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"425\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/TtFLWbMylas\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>LISTEN<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Timing of the Kingdom\" allowtransparency=\"true\" height=\"150\" width=\"100%\" style=\"border: none; min-width: min(100%, 430px);\" scrolling=\"no\" data-name=\"pb-iframe-player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.podbean.com\/player-v2\/?i=mvxin-129102c-pb&from=pb6admin&share=1&download=1&rtl=0&fonts=Arial&skin=f6f6f6&font-color=auto&logo_link=episode_page&btn-skin=3267a3\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-black-color has-text-color wp-block-heading\">Setting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>For 40 days after his resurrection, Jesus spoke about the Kingdom of God and that is what the next passage of scripture will address.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paint a picture of the 1st Century<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Roman rule over the nation of Israel<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Unholy gov\u2019t in authority over them<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Last taste of freedom was from the Maccabean revolt [explain]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Israel yearned for freedom and autonomy<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\u200b<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Acts 1:4\u201311 ESV<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, \u201cyou heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.\u201d So when they had come together, they asked him, \u201cLord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?\u201d He said to them, \u201cIt is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.\u201d And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, \u201cMen of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-black-color has-text-color wp-block-heading\">Recap<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ref.ly\/logosref\/bible$2Besv.65.1.4-65.1.5\">Acts 1:4-5<\/a> serves as a recap of what we went over last time:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">\u200bActs 1:4\u20135 ESV<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, \u201cyou heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The command from the end of Luke was to <strong>look<\/strong> and <strong>stay<\/strong>. This is reiterated again here in verses 4-5. Look for the baptism of the Holy Spirit that is almost here, and stay in Jerusalem until it happens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s easy to miss the significance of this. If you remember, in the Old Testament, the Spirit of God would only come upon people individually and could depart. But, this promise was for them ALL to have the Spirit provided collectively (and as they would find out later, permanently). This was mind-blowingly different from what they would have been use to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-black-color has-text-color wp-block-heading\">Outline<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Question<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Answer – Part 1<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Answer – Part 2<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Answer – Part 3<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-black-color has-text-color wp-block-heading\">The Question<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Are you now restoring the Kingdom to Israel?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Why this question?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Remember, Jesus spoke of the Kingdom of God during the 40 days he spent with them, post-resurrection <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, this would be a very natural and logical question to ask, but there are 2 issues with the way they asked it:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>1-<\/strong> <strong>A Physical Kingdom –<\/strong> It seems as though their assumptions of an earthly rule are still lingering. There was a common misunderstanding that the Messiah would come to vanquish the earthly ruling authorities and set up His own, physical Kingdom. You can see this pretty clearly in <a href=\"https:\/\/ref.ly\/logosref\/bible$2Besv.64.6.15\">John 6:15<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">\u200bJohn 6:15 ESV<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You see, it wouldn\u2019t be surprising if the glory days of the Maccabean revolt still played like a movie reel in their minds. Yes, they lost hope in that happening when Jesus died, but now that he is alive and can\u2019t die again, then surely it will happen now, right??? When will this happen, Jesus?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Remember, The Maccabean Revolt took place from 166-160 BC, so this was in Israel\u2019s recent history. The average generational span is between 25-30 years. So, that\u2019s roughly between 5-7 generations between that time until Jesus\u2019 ascension. To put that into perspective, <strong>Peter\u2019s granddad could have been told stories from personal experience by his granddad.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They yearned for the shackles of Rome to be broken and for Israel to be restored to her former glory. That is what the Jews believed would happen and that is why Jesus never fit the false model of the Messiah that was in their heads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, why do I make this assumption? The answer is in the second point…<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>2- An Exclusive Kingdom <\/strong>– They didn\u2019t just simply ask about the timing of God\u2019s Kingdom. They asked when Jesus would restore the Kingdom to <strong>Israel<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Again, they wanted a blissful reign like the time of Solomon governed by their new Messiah. They wanted to see Rome broken at their Master\u2019s feet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They wanted Israel to be established over the nations as God\u2019s holy, chosen people once again. They wanted an earthly kingdom. They desired the exclusivity of their nation to once again be the global superpower. After all, that\u2019s what Daniel\u2019s vision of the statue meant, right? The stone cleft from the mountain would shatter the lineage of earthly kingdoms, establish itself, and fill the whole earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We\u2019ll get to the answer of that question in just a minute, but I want to point out the major flaw in the disciple\u2019s question. For them, it was about a <strong>restoration of a previous model<\/strong>, when in reality, Jesus (and the prophets for that matter), had a better plan\u2026 <strong>a future one that included people from every tribe, nation, and tongue.<\/strong> His plan wasn\u2019t to re-establish Israel alone. The plan was to open the good news of salvation to the entire world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>God made this clear when he wrote through the Prophet Isaiah:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ref.ly\/logosres\/LLS:1.0.710;ref=bible$2Besv.23.49.6\">Isaiah 49:6<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cIt is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the <strong>nations<\/strong>, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The disciples missed that at first. But, once Pentecost hit, it was all they cared about. It should be all we care about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-black-color has-text-color wp-block-heading\">The Answer – Part 1<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>A direct question was given a direct answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">\u200bActs 1:7\u20138 ESV<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>He said to them, \u201cIt is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jesus gave a gentle, but not-so-subtle reminder that it\u2019s not their business to know the timing of the Kingdom\u2019s arrival. That information was above their pay grade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If they had been focused on the timing, they would not have been effective in their mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We have seen that throughout history:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"has-black-color has-text-color wp-block-heading\"><strong>1844 and the Great Disappointment<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Wikipedia:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-black-color has-text-color is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>The <strong>Great Disappointment<\/strong> in the Millerite movement was the reaction that followed Baptist preacher William Miller’s proclamations that Jesus Christ would return to the Earth by 1844, what he called the Advent. His study of the Daniel 8 prophecy during the Second Great Awakening led him to the conclusion that Daniel’s “cleansing of the sanctuary” was cleansing of the world from sin when Christ would come, and he and many others prepared, but October 22, 1844 came, and they were disappointed.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Another prediction for the Rapture of the Church happened in 1988 with the publication of the book: 88 Reasons Why the Rapture Will Be in 1988.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Again, according to Wikipedia:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-black-color has-text-color is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><strong>Edgar C. Whisenant<\/strong> (September 25, 1932 \u2013 May 16, 2001) was a former NASA engineer and Bible student who predicted the rapture would occur in 1988, sometime between Sept. 11 and Sept. 13. He published two books about this, <em>88 Reasons Why the Rapture Will Be in 1988<\/em> and <em>On Borrowed Time<\/em>. Eventually, 300,000 copies of <em>88 Reasons<\/em> were mailed free of charge to ministers across America, and 4.5 million copies were sold in bookstores and elsewhere. Whisenant was quoted as saying “Only if the Bible is in error am I wrong; and I say that to every preacher in town” and “[I]f there were a king in this country and I could gamble with my life, I would stake my life on Rosh Hashana 88.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>When that didn\u2019t happen, he said \u201cwhoopsies\u201d and continued to revise his prediction even up until his death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Surprisingly, more \u201c<em>Predictors<\/em>\u201d came out of the woodworks, Harold Camping being the most recent example. His first major prediction of the Lord\u2019s return was to take place on September 6, 1994, and when that didn\u2019t happen, he re-calibrated his calculator, and discovered that he was off a bit. It wasn\u2019t 1994. It was going to be May 21, 2011. Many of you may remember it, because there was a huge marketing push. I can remember seeing billboards all over the place encouraging people to be ready. Many quit their jobs and sold their possessions, since they weren\u2019t going to be taken away soon. Why bother?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And, of course, it is now August 2022, and surprise-surprise, we are still here. You see, when the focus becomes about trying to unravel the deep mysteries of God, you miss the basic information that God is putting right in front of your eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The timing doesn\u2019t matter\u2026why? Because <strong>we have a role to play<\/strong> which requires our full focus <strong>while God manages the timeline.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2026And its worth highlighting this sovereign timeframe and pattern that the Father has fixed. He hasn\u2019t written <a href=\"https:\/\/ref.ly\/logosref\/bible$2Besv.65.1\">Act 1<\/a> and is still developing the plot and climax of the story. <strong>It is all written. It is fixed. <\/strong>The word in the Greek depicts the finality of laying a foundation for a building. The Hebrew equivalent is in <a href=\"https:\/\/ref.ly\/logosref\/bible$2Besv.1.1.17\">Genesis 1:17<\/a> when God sets the stars in the firmament. In God\u2019s mind, this was a one-time plan that needed no revision. It was designed a particular way and will come to pass in exactly that way, because He did so by his own authority, which is the highest authority there is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"has-black-color has-text-color wp-block-heading\">The Mission of the Kingdom<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Then, in a spirit of reassurance Jesus says, <strong>but<\/strong>…<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">\u200bActs 1:8 ESV<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>This is the Great Commission of the book of Acts.<\/strong> If you aren\u2019t familiar with it, I encourage you to memorize it and meditate on it often. Not only does it describe the geographical area of the spread of the gospel, but it is also your marching order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And, before the map is laid out on the table, Jesus reiterates that this Kingdom is not primarily <strong>physical<\/strong>, but <strong>spiritual<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Why do I say that? Because they were to receive power from the Holy Spirit. The giver is a Spirit and his gift to us is a spiritual power. The world <strong>power<\/strong> here is significant. James Montgomery Boice notes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-black-color has-text-color is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>The Greek word dynamis entered the English language when the Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Bernhard Nobel (1833\u201396) made the discovery that became his fortune. He discovered a power stronger than anything the world had known up to that time. He asked a friend of his who was a Greek scholar what the word for \u201cexplosive power\u201d was in Greek. His friend answered, \u201cDynamis.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Nobel said, \u201cWell, I am going to call my discovery by that name.\u201d So he called his explosive power \u201cdynamite.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>So, by virtue of its name, this power is explosive\u2026 meaning, it makes an immediate and notable difference. You know when a stick of dynamite goes off, right. That\u2019s not something that catches you off-guard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To our shame, we downplay this, don\u2019t we? Because we don\u2019t want to come across as rude, intolerant, or arrogant, we try to make the gospel mild, less the person we are witnessing to be offended. That is the exact opposite of what this power does! Let this be a wake-up call to you and I. If a person is to walk away from a gospel conversation with us, may the impact of the gospel be the one thing they do walk away with!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This <strong><em>dynamis<\/em><\/strong> power is:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>the same power that Jesus discerned flowed from him when the sick lady touched his garment\u2026<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>and for every miraculous work. (<a href=\"https:\/\/ref.ly\/logosref\/bible$2Besv.63.6.19\">Luke 6:19<\/a>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It was the power God used to raise Christ from the dead,<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>and it is the power that he will return with in the full display of his glory.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It is the power in which the Apostles proclaimed the Resurrection of Jesus (<a href=\"https:\/\/ref.ly\/logosref\/bible$2Besv.65.4.33\">Acts 4:33<\/a>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is a power that is not from humans, so no human can take away. It is given by a person who is always with you. And, as we are reminded by Paul, what is <strong>seen<\/strong> is <strong>temporary<\/strong> and what is <strong>unseen<\/strong> is <strong>eternal<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, the real illusion of power is what man has created for himself. The disciples were operating in the the true sense of power as agents of the only Kingdom that will endure for eternity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is the substance and reality of the God\u2019s Kingdom, and it is the mission that has been entrusted to you and I.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-black-color has-text-color wp-block-heading\">The Answer Part 2 – The Incarnation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>That said, just because we aren\u2019t given the details of the Kingdom being fully realized, doesn\u2019t mean we cannot know anything at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The first clue, which isn\u2019t really a clue at all, is given by Jesus himself often as he interacted with the Pharisees:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">\u200bLuke 17:20\u201321 ESV<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, \u201cThe kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, \u2018Look, here it is!\u2019 or \u2018There!\u2019 for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In other places throughout the Gospels, Jesus would say, <strong><em>\u201cThe Kingdom has come upon you.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Not <strong>will come upon you<\/strong> <strong>eventually<\/strong> at some undefined point in the future. <strong>He is it has come. Now.<\/strong> At this very moment in time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jesus confirmed to Pilate that he was indeed a King and that his Kingdom was not of this world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is further confirmed through <strong>parables like the Talents<\/strong> where a Master gave talents to a few of his servants to manage while he was away and upon his return, he rewarded the faithful ones and punished the unfaithful one. In this story, there was a Ruler (or Master) who held authority, who went away, who gave instructions and responsibilities to his servants, and who returned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In Theological terms, this can be viewed as the Kingdom of God having <strong><em>Already \/ Not Yet <\/em><\/strong>come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u200b<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/ref.ly\/logosres\/LLS:LEXHAM-ST-ONTOLOGY;pos=Article$3DALREADYNOTYET$7CArticleLength$3D4534$7CContext$3DNot$2520Yet$250a$2520$250a$E2$80$9CAlready$2Fn$7COffset$3D30$7COffsetInContext$3D10$7CResource$3DLLS:LEXHAM-ST-ONTOLOGY$7CVersion$3D2022-06-16T14:20:26Z\">Lexham Survey of Theology<\/a> says:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-black-color has-text-color is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cAlready\/not yet\u201d is the view that the kingdom of God has already been inaugurated in the person and ministry of Jesus Christ but will not reach consummation until his return in glory.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>When did Jesus bring the Kingdom of God? He brought it with him to earth! It was active during his ministry, and upon his ascension, he put it in the hands of his servants to manage while he is away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Kingdom is <strong>ALREADY HERE!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you are not living as though Jesus is ruling and reigning, let this be a reminder that if you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, you are under the care and authority of the most powerful ruler on planet earth. ALL AUTHORITY is his. Now. Right now, and you are an Ambassador of this Kingdom (says Paul in 2 Corinthians). What you do today matters. What you say, how you conduct yourself, how you care for your neighbor\u2026 all of that has significance in God\u2019s Kingdom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The issue, is that as the world stands today, sin still infects this world, so the fullness of the Kingdom is <strong>NOT YET<\/strong> realized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-black-color has-text-color wp-block-heading\">The Answer Part 3 – The Second Coming<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">\u200bActs 1:10\u201311 ESV<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, \u201cMen of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The disciples stood there jaw-dropped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jesus was enveloped in a cloud and taken back into heaven and the event was so enthralling, that they didn\u2019t see two angels standing beside them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I would imagine that the angels knew about Jesus\u2019 commission to proclaim the good news to the surrounding area and beyond. Surly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If that\u2019s the case, then perhaps God sent them at that specific time to encourage the men to get moving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cHey, what are you doing? I knew the cloud elevator was cool, but Jesus is out of sight now. Why are you still here\u2026 chop chop!!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>This is a great reminder that:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We have been reassured that the Master is coming back. The temporal sequence will have a completion date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We have been entrusted with a task until that day comes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is the <strong>NOT YET <\/strong>portion. There will come a day when the world will be made new, every tear will be wiped from our eyes, and God will sit on his throne in full view of his redeemed people. But not yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All creation groans for this final fulfillment, but as of today, we still live in a fallen world filled with sin, pain, and heartache. This world needs the good news of the gospel:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>We see the effects of our sinful rebellion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>That rebellion has separated us from God and caused us to become spiritually dead and eternally guilty.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Jesus came to pay the debt so that we could be declared not guilty, washed clean, and be reconciled back to God.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>And not only reconciled, but adopted as Sons and Daughters who get to live life wrapped in the love of God now (here on earth), and forever in the eternal Kingdom!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>WATCH LISTEN Setting For 40 days after his resurrection, Jesus spoke about the Kingdom of God and that is what the next passage of scripture will address. Paint a picture of the 1st Century: \u200b Acts 1:4\u201311 ESV And while staying … <\/p>\n<div><a href=\"https:\/\/ashealliance.org\/the-timing-of-the-kingdom\/\" class=\"more-link\">Read More<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":246,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,23,4],"tags":[27],"class_list":["post-245","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-acts","category-series","category-sermons","tag-kingdom"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The Timing of the Kingdom | Ashe Alliance Church<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Sermon 2 in the ACTS SERIES: A question is asked to Jesus and what follows is a three-part response that the disciples didn't anticipate.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" 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