yes, but...

so, the last couple weeks we've had some pretty significant conversations about the gospel (i.e. what is it and do we believe it?). do we believe Jesus when he says that, in his coming, the kingdom of God has begun to be revealed on the earth?... that, in his coming, the day of salvation has begun?
and then this passed sunday, we dove into a 1st century understanding of being a rabbi's disciple: to be with the rabbi, that we might learn from the rabbi, how to be like the rabbi... how to do what the rabbi does... for this is what Jesus is inviting us to in His call to follow Him (matthew 4:19, mark 1:16f).
as i keep saying, the implications of all this are truly life-altering. especially since so many of us live like Christian deists (as though God created everything, got the ball rolling, told us/showed us how to live, at present isn't around, but will meet us at the end). the gospel (the reality that the kingdom of God is at hand) invites us to live in a new way. to live in faith for God to be at work in and around and through us... do you live like that? not just do you believe that, but do you live like that?
do we live and pray in expectation for God to heal the sick? do we live and pray in expectation for God to bring deliverance to those caught in the grip of sin? do we live and pray in expectation for God to reveal Himself to those who can't see Him? do we live and pray in expectation for God to break in to the darkness that creaps in on us and others?... cause that is what the gospel is all about: we live in the day when God shows up... to save.
yes but...
its that "yes but" that is so difficult to get passed.
fact is the kingdom has not yet come in its fullness. sin is not a thing of the past. disease and death still happen. injustice still has its grip. brokenness remains.
and because of this--because we live in-between the times (the kingdom is already here but not yet in its fulness)--it sometimes seems easier not to get our hopes up. not to set ourselves up for disappointment... not to pray for the sick (cause what if they aren't healed). not to expect deliverance (cause what if no relief comes). not to pray for revelation (cause what if we/they never see and truly believe).
sometimes it seems easier to not believe. sometimes it seems better to not believe.
and thats where i hear Jesus saying, "yes but.." but what about those times when he does truly desire to heal, to bring deliverance, to break in... through our prayers and faith? if healing is only going to come to 10% of those we pray for, why not pray for 100 people, instead of stopping after 3 disappointments? if we choose to set up camp in the land of the not yet, we are going to miss out on so much of God's desires for us. if we choose to set up camp in the land of the not yet, so many others are going to miss out on God's desires for them.
are we willing to embrace disappointments in love for others? are we willing to embrace disappointments in the expectation that there will also be victories? are we willing to embrace disappointment for the sake of those few who will be healed/saved/restored through our prayers?
if we are going to take the gospel seriously, we need to believe the gospel in the face of abiding brokenness. and not let the possibility of disappointments dissuade us from acting in faith for the kingdom to be revealed in and through us...
... i'll stop there. thots? stirrings? wrestlings? amens? yes buts?
may God's kingdom come and will be done, on earth, in and through us, as it is in heaven...
your companion in the journey, scott b. anderson