Theme: Our kingdom calling is to live in the space between what already is and what is yet to be.
Introduction: Lent is a season of preparation for Easter, beginning on Ash Wednesday and concluding at the end of Holy Week. It lasts for 40 days, mirroring Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness. This time is meant for reflection and self-examination. Following Jesus is not always easy; we face persecution, health issues, relationship problems, and doubts. We know that one day Jesus will return and all suffering will end. Until then, how do we survive?
1. Our Future Hope: Isaiah’s context (Chapters 40-66) speaks to God’s people in exile, offering themes of comfort, hope, and restoration. The Servant Songs describe one who brings redemption and salvation through his own suffering. Isaiah 55:1-9 looks forward to a time when the exile is over, God’s people have returned to the land, and God has made His home among them. This future promises a life of abundance, security, and glory. However, this abundant life did not fully materialize after the exile. God’s people returned to the land but did not receive the fullness promised. They remained separated from God. Our future hope remains a future hope.
Application: Have you known difficult times or experienced spiritual exile? Did you persevere with prayer and patience, yet did not experience the abundant life described? It seems our future hope remains a future hope.
2. Our Present Struggle: In Luke’s context, Jesus and his disciples are walking to Jerusalem. The crowds are growing, opposition is rising, and time is running out. Luke 13:1-5 mentions two incidents: Galileans whose blood Pilate mixed with their sacrifices and eighteen people who died when the tower in Siloam fell. This is not what Isaiah promised; life remains a struggle. The implication is that personal suffering is a direct consequence of personal sin. Jesus challenges this assumption, stating that personal suffering is not necessarily linked to personal sin. He emphasizes the need for repentance before it is too late.
Application: How do you respond to struggles and suffering in your life? Do you allow these things to lead to bitterness and resentment, or do you let them turn you back to God in repentance and faith? Our present struggle can cause us to seek the Lord while He may be found.
3. Our Kingdom Calling: Until Jesus returns, our future hope remains far off. The best we can say about our present struggles is that they lead us back to God. Is there any good news? In Luke 13:10-17, a woman crippled by a spirit for eighteen years is healed on the Sabbath. This healing is a signpost pointing towards the future hope of Isaiah 55. Jesus sets this oppressed woman free, challenging Jewish tradition that non-emergency medical problems cannot be treated on the Sabbath. The Sabbath is meant to celebrate God’s deliverance of His people. In Luke 13:18-21, two parables are shared: the mustard seed and the yeast. Despite opposition, God’s kingdom will continue to grow until it is fulfilled in glory.
Application: We have a future hope and experience a present struggle. We are called to live in the space between the first and second comings of Jesus. Our kingdom calling is to follow Jesus in this space, where His kingdom rule breaks into our present struggle and our future hope is all we have to hold on to.
Conclusion: Our kingdom calling is to live in the space between what already is and what is yet to be. This is about whether we trust Jesus or not. Do we want to keep control, stay safe, minimize risks, and do it our way? Or are we willing to trust Him, step out in faith, and do it His way? Isaiah 55:9-11 reminds us that God’s ways and thoughts are higher than ours, and His word will accomplish what He desires.