Jesus told the disciples, now Apostles, to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came upon them, and in a short time, the Spirit did come upon them; this and its aftermath is described in Acts chapter 2. Whatever their initial reactions may have been, the Apostles took the building of the Kingdom seriously, as we know from the story told in Acts, and in the letters they left behind. We also know from the writings of the early church fathers that their work was continued in the generations that followed them. Even more, the history of record for the many centuries after that contain the stories of those great men and women of faith who worked tirelessly to build His Kingdom. Yes, of this there can be no doubt, even though along with the great heroes of the faith, we must admit that there were also those who were not heroes, but villains; some things never seem to change.
The Devil didn’t sit still during these centuries of course, things haven’t always been easy, mistakes were made, and many chose the wrong path, but even so, the Kingdom went forward, and that brings us to the here and now. Do we have a role to play in building the Kingdom of God; or are we merely spectators? We may be spectators when it comes to history that is already done, but what about the history that is being made now?
Are you a spectator or a participant?
All of us like to consider what Jesus has done for us on the cross, and take comfort in the fact that He paid the price for our sins. We also like to say that because of what He did, we have the gift of eternal life, and that just as He rose from the grave, so shall we. It is perfectly proper and accurate to say such things. At this point, each of us must ask ourselves if that is all there is to the story. Jesus came and did this great stuff for me. Jesus loves me. For God so loved… me.
Is it just really all about me?
I would love to hear what you think about this!
Life Project Blog 
What He did for me was so He could conform me unto His image so I could serve others.
Well said
The war rages on. The Lord taught us to pray, ‘Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on Earth as it is in heaven’. So I count it as a call to usher in His kingdom and Christ and the love of God and His mighty works by the power of that same Spirit.
Good! Thank you!
We all have our part to do for the church. The problem is determining where your calling lies. Not everyone is called to evangelize, and many of those who are, or think they are, spend too much time stealing sheep than on true evangelization.
True, very true…
Thank you! I am very thankful for what He did. I don’t have to earn that love, it’s finished! But out of gratitude and out of His Holy Spirit working, I get to serve Him! 😀 Some days better than others lol
” I get to serve Him!”
Well put!
After the resurrection Jesus ask Peter:
John 21:15-17
15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
16 Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”
17 The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.
I believe this is what it is all about. It is about feeding Gods sheep in whatever form that may take.
Ruben! Well done!
I was wondering if anyone was going to mention what comes next in the text!
Love is this really strange thing. Love is alive! Love is hyperactive! Love cannot sit still, but its very nature. All those “look what Jesus did for me, isn’t it cool?” things you listed… they aren’t love, they are trophies. We can sit in a corner, put those on a shelf, admire them all day long…. and miss the plot entirely.
But to GET IT… really GET IT… is simply to realize… Jesus… loves… me. All the way through. Just like this, just as I am, warts and all… right here right now.
And that… when that love really hits… all they way through, top to bottom… sitting in the corner admiring our trophies (or even a mirror) just won’t cut it anymore. I have a wise friend who teaches that God’s love and grace are like “electricity”, that can only exist when they are in motion. You can’t really bottle them up, when you stop the flow you stop the power. So, truly to embrace and enjoy the love God has for us individually, we simply MUST pass it on to others, or else it just fades away.
What does God want of us? Seek justice, love mercy, walk humbly with Him? Love others as He loves us! No religion required… love, kindness, honesty… He’ll take care of the religion part. If we can just love in His name.
Grace — LM
Well stated as always, LM; thank you!
By the way, are those the trophies that at last I lay down>
I’ve always wondered what that line was supposed to be about)
Jesus came to the earth, not for Himself but for everyone in the world. He saved me (and all other believers) not for myself but to love, worship and serve God. The best way to love God is to tell others about Jesus. We show our love and worship by our obedience.
My heartbeat should be the same as that of Jesus–to see the world saved. So Jesus died for me to be saved to be able to tell others also a I worship and serve God. It is not about me but the world.
Nicely said Tom, thank you!
When you are loved as I am loved, there is no “question” to ask or answer. Just as there is no one way or one “work” to follow.
There is living love – loved and loving.
And when someone asks I tell. And when no one asks, I look around, show up – and get out of the way. It’s becoming a way of life
Music to my ears, Brother Paul! 🙂
Yes, He has something for all of us to do. When we love Him, we want to share Him others someway. I am thankful that my blog is one of those ways to share His creation of birds and His Word. Small though it may be, it is traveling the world and He promises His Word will not return void. You and those of us who do Christian blogs will never know until eternity what effect our little bit has done. Praise the Lord for our salvation and peace He gives us.
Thank you Lee… and Amen!