Monday, May 15, 2006

Am I "Forcefully" laying hold of the Kingdom?

From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. (Matthew 11:12)

I read this verse this past weekend and was challenged by it. I looked up the word forcefully in the dictionary. The definition I found is: characterized by or full of force; effective. Other translations use the words suffered violence or has been coming violently (ESV and KJ).

God's kingdom is advancing from the days of John the Baptist through Jesus Christ and then by the Holy Spirit through men like the apostles and then many other men through out history. And has continued to advance to this present day. The kingdom will continue to advance and will one day be fully established by the return of Jesus Christ. I pray for that day to come quickly. And as I wait for that day, I must allow the Holy Spirit to work through me to effectively advance the kingdom day by day. These advancements which we are mercifully allowed to participate in are a foretaste of that final day.

I desire to be a forceful man who will be used by God to advance His kingdom.

1 comment:

Reegz said...

I agree Bill! I desire to be a forceful woman who will be used by God to advance His Kingdom. Amen!