The Time Has Come


Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.” As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending  the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.

The Roman Empire was at the height of its power 2,000 years ago. The Romans controlled everything, and had a say in every aspect of society. Even the Jewish authorities paid allegiance to the Romans, including Herod, who was as corrupt as they come. Enter Jesus, who says four things to kick off his ministry: One: The time is fulfilled. Two: The kingdom of God has come near. Three: Repent. Four: Believe in the good news. The former two are statements of fact. The latter two are instructions to us. Let us consider them one by one. 
First, Jesus says that the time is fulfilled. The ancient Greeks had two words for time: chronos and kairos. Chronos refers to chronological or sequential time, while kairos signifies a critical moment. The time Jesus was talking about was kairos. The time for the appearance of the Messiah, foretold several times over the centuries, has come. Next, Jesus says the kingdom of God has come near.  This is heaven, which all this time has been out of the reach of sinful man. But now with the arrival of Jesus, who would pay the debt we couldn’t pay, we can all return home to the Father. 

Third, Jesus tells us to repent. This is derived from the Greek word metanoia, which is better translated as “to change one’s mind”. It comes from the realization that we won’t gain entry into the kingdom of God because of the wicked life we are leading. Consequently, we change the way we think and live. That’s repentance. Finally, Jesus tells us to believe in the good news. What is the good news? Let’s hear the bad news first. The wages of sin is death. For our sins we all deserve to die. That’s the bad news. Now listen to the good news: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” That, of course, is from John 3:16. 

Now, if we believe in the good news, don’t you think we need to share it with others so they don’t perish but have eternal life too? So how about you share this reflection. These reflections are now being translated into 38 languages, all by people who have stepped forward and volunteered their services seeking no recompense for their services. Only God could make something like this happen. He has done his part, but we need to do ours. So please try to share at least one reflection on social media or via email. You can find all the translations on www.dailyreflection.net or fb.com/newdailyreflection. 


The time has come.


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