The Coming of God's Kingdom

Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge Him. As surely as the sun rises, He will appear; He will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.   Hosea 6:3

While having supper in the backyard with the grandkids last night we looked up to the sky to see the storm clouds gathering. As soon as we were done eating we picked up all of their toys because we just knew it was going to rain. Wherever you live, rain is a big deal but especially in Kansas where our crops are so very dependent on rainfall. If we have little rain or a lot of rain within the year, the weather makes a huge impact on us. We have entire television stations dedicated to the weather around the world. When the possibility of severe weather happens stations interrupt their regularly scheduled broadcasts. We pay a lot of attention to the weather as we depend on this information to plan our day’s activities.

There is nothing wrong with following the weather patterns, but Hosea is stating that as surely as we acknowledge the sun and rain coming, we need to acknowledge the coming of the Lord. Jesus rebuked the people for acknowledging the signs of the weather but not acknowledging the signs of the Lord. In Luke 12:54-56, Jesus said to the crowd: "When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, 'It's going to rain,' and it does. And when the south wind blows, you say, 'It's going to be hot,' and it is. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don't know how to interpret this present time?"

Jesus was announcing an earthshaking event that would be much more important than the year's crops—the coming of God's Kingdom. Just as dark clouds forewarn of a rainstorm, there were signs that the Kingdom would soon arrive. But Jesus' hearers, though skilled at interpreting weather signs, were intentionally ignoring the signs of the times.  Be aware of the signs of Jesus’ return and keep looking up!

Your pastor and partner in ministry,

Kyle