restoration [ˌrɛstəˈreɪʃən] n
1. the act of restoring or state of being restored, as to a former or original condition, place, etc.
2. the replacement or giving back of something lost, stolen, etc.
3. something restored, replaced, or reconstructed
A couple of blogs ago I asked, could it be that there is more to this life God has given us than just getting people to heaven?
We are a part of something far bigger. God invites people to be a part of the full message Jesus came to teach; that His kingdom is here, it is now and it is active.
The world we live in is damaged, no doubt about that. Just turn on the television or read the paper (or e-news) and you can see just how much injustice is going on in the world.
It wasn’t always this way. There was once a perfect world, where we walked and talked with God. We looked to God for everything and He took care of our every need. We lived in harmony with each other; we looked out for each other. We took care of the planet and in turn the planet took care of us.
But we wanted what we wanted. We chose rebellion and this created damage in the world we knew and every relationship we had. It created a barrier between us and God. It created a barrier between us as humans. And it created a barrier between us and the world in which we live.
We have a loving God that never intended to let it stay in massive chaos. So He sent His son, Jesus, to live a life that showed us what it meant to be fully human. He showed us what it looked like to have a perfect relationship with God, with each other and with our world. He died to bring about restoration of all things.
You see God created all things and He said they were good! He never intended for the world to stay in mass chaos. Through Jesus, we can be restored back to our rightful relationship with God. With Jesus, we can learn how to love each other as we should; caring for each others needs, looking to be a servant, not selfish with our lives.
The world we live in is still a mess, but we are invited to work with Jesus restoring all things back to their garden state; back to perfection. It takes time, it takes patience, it takes commitment.
The real question is who will be a part of it? Who will join Jesus in a revolution to change the world we live in. One person at a time, one injustice at a time.
We, as Christ-Followers, are to be restoration in action.
You see it was never about getting to heaven.
It was always about restoring God’s creation, heaven on earth.
For more information concerning God’s work in this world read “Surprised by Hope” by N.T. Wright and “Based on a True Story” by James Choung.
Justin Cherry 