Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Devotion - Tuesday, September 29

In Matthew 4:17 we learn that Jesus begins to preach, saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"

To "repent" is to turn our lives around.  To repent is to acknowledge the actions in our lives which may not be pleasing to God - and change them.  To repent is to follow more nearly the way of Jesus.

We would want to "repent," knowing that the kingdom is at hand.

But is that the only reason to repent?  Do we examine our lives and make the necessary changes only when we think the crucial visit is about to occur?

I remembered the sticker given to me some fifteen years ago which read, "Jesus is coming:  Look busy!"  Do we pretend or deceive or give the illusion of a repentance?  When in fact we are perfectly content with the way we are living our lives.

We cannot fool Jesus.  Our attempts to look busy will not mask a life devoted to the pursuits of worldly aims and objectives.  

The call to repent is constant and continuous.  Every day and every moment we are to look at the steps we are talking and evaluate whether they are moving us toward the kingdom or away from it.  The kingdom is at hand when we live in the reality of that kingdom and serve its objectives.

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