63. Freedom is Now (Redemption #5)
It’s easy to spiritualize the promises of God (detaching them from real life) or even futurize them (punt them to the after-life).
Especially when things look bleak.
Especially when things have looked bleak for a long time (we often think we won’t be disappointed if we feel that things are just *supposed to be this way, that things don’t get better until it’s all over).
I do it all the time… I think, “Geez, things will eventually get better.
🤷♂️ But what if there are lessons available now?
🤷♂️ And what is some of the glory + beauty that we hope for in the future is ALSO for today?
I was reading one morning and noticed something…
The early church looked at it OPPOSITE way that we do— they were SO CERTAIN that the promises of God were for the present that they even relegated to after life to unnecessary.
That’s right. No resurrection. No after-life. No heaven.
Paul corrected their theological error (1 Corinthians 15) and, in doing so, showed us something remarkable.
👉 We don’t have to pick and choose.
👉 The gifts of God are for later… and they’re for now.
Our hope is eternal. It transcends the present to work in the future, it redeems (and restores) our past… and it’s good for right now, wherever we are.