Are you waiting for the end of the world?

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     I read a devotional recently that basically said that things are getting worse in the world so the kingdom of God is coming soon.  What a terrible bit of theology.  And I have heard it many times before.  I think it is mistaken.  And I think it affects how we go about our lives.  Running from the world as if we would be tainted by it. Focusing on the bad things in the world. Look at history.  It just isn't true that things are getting worse.  Think of our lives now compared to lives in ancient times, or in the middle ages.  Isn't life immeasurably better now?  We are free, most of us, from the shackles of desperation that characterized peoples short, violent lives.  Lives are better, and longer and more fulfilling with every generation that passes.  Even better than our parents and grandparents.  And let's take a look at the theology.
     What if there is another way to interpret the end times scriptures?  In revelation, the picture of the end times is the kingdom of God coming down to earth.  And other places say we can have a hand in bringing that to pass.  What if we are called to bring heaven to earth now, in our daily lives.  What if we are commissioned by God to improve the world around us and so bring the kingdom closer?
     Wouldn't this change our view of the end? Then the end is not the end of the world, but the
beginning of the kingdom on earth.  We would get involved in the world.  Pursue causes that bring goodness and healing to the world around us. Help our fellow man find the life in the kingdom.  And I don't think we do this by spouting scripture and "truths" from the bible to the people we meet in our lives.  No, we are to bring people to the kingdom through attraction, like Jesus did.  Living good lives of peace and love, and so people would say, "I want what he's got." "How can I get this peace and love for myself?"  And then we could share what works for us.
     We would look for hope in the world.  Not shake our heads and look for the bad in the world.  We would look for signs that the kingdom is coming, that it is on its way. Coming through the acts of kindness and love and the spreading of the good news that will bring it to
pass.  We are to be the hands and feet of God on the Earth.  The body of believers - the people with Jesus in their hearts.  The sons and daughters of God.  The people with a purpose.  To bring the kingdom here, now.  And to live with expectation for that kingdom to be revealed through the actions we take to bring it closer. It would engage our creativity and drive us to look for ways we can bring that goodness to the world.  I think this is a much more biblical way to live.  And it is exciting that we could have a hand in such a wonderful enterprise!
     No, we are to bring the kingdom to Earth.  It is our commission.  It is our purpose.  To love God and to spread that love in the Earth.  So that the kingdom would come down and bless the people we meet.  What an exciting way to live!

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