“Then they gathered around him and asked him, ‘Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He said to them: ‘It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’”
- Acts 1:6-8 -

Jesus' disciples hoped the risen Jesus to restore their nation from the oppression of the Roman Empire. So they asked if Jesus would now ‘restore the kingdom to Israel’ (6). He taught them that the time is in God's sovereignty and that they should entrust this matter into God's hands (7). He also taught them of their part in God; they become His witnesses to the end of the earth. We too have many concerns in our world, so called the 'restoring the kingdom to Israel' such as being freed from the COVID-19 pandemic, recovery of the collapsed economy, the extreme confrontation between progress and conservatives. Myanmar's brothers and sisters are under threat from military coup forces. They are very urgent matters. Yet the Lord Jesus wants us to entrust this urgent matters into the hand of God. He wants us to know that we are called to further the kingdom of God in a world. This is 'a tough calling' that requires us to fight the good fight of faith (2Ti 4:7).

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you that you came to bring us your kingdom on earth. May we see the true urgency of God's kingdom being restored in the life of people. Help us to be committed to it and serve this will of God being infused by the power of the Holy Spirit.