Now & not yet
“For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face…And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:12-13
Last Friday, I attended our local homecoming game. It was fun and life-giving! The student section was full, the team played well, and it was a beautiful fall night. You could sense that the majority of people were enjoying it. It’s also true that beneath the surface, that same crowd was struggling with all kinds of things– anxiety, depression, health issues, broken relationships, and financial stress. This is a good picture of the world we live in; it is both beautiful and broken. It is also a picture of what Paul says to the Corinthians because the goodness and beauty we experience now is both a dim reflection of the restored world and a manifestation of the supremacy of love. We live in the now and not yet of God’s love being supreme (now) and waiting for God’s love to restore all things (not yet).
Living in the now and not yet of God’s kingdom requires us to accept the languishing of sin, embrace the freedom of grace, and walk in the newness of life.
Languishing
I hadn’t considered the term languishing very much until Adam Grant used it in a NY Times article during the pandemic. Grant says that languishing is the psychological term for when you feel like “you’re muddling through your days, looking at your life through a foggy windshield.” The brokenness in us and around us leaves us all languishing. One part of living in the now and not yet is to accept this reality for everyone. When we do this, it creates empathy for ourselves and others. We accept that we aren’t always able to be the best version of ourselves, and neither are those around us. This acceptance fosters humility because we remember that we, too, fall short.
Freedom of Grace
In Christ, we are free from brokenness defining us, and God’s grace continues to meet us today. In the scriptures, grace is the power that brings realignment, restoration, and resurrection. It sets things on an entirely new path. Think of grace like bumper bowling. Whether it’s a little child who rolls it from between their legs and slowly bounces off each side before connecting with the pins, your errant throw set right, or a clean throw that sails smoothly down, grace is the power that sets things right. Look for it in your life in your attitude, priorities, and relationships this week. Where might grace bring realignment for you?
Walk in the newness of life
Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. (Romans 6:4)
Paul invites the church of Rome to walk in the newness of life that Jesus’ death has accomplished. God invites us to the same. In a recent conversation with some friends, we reflected on how the pressure to perform exists everywhere, sometimes from our expectations and sometimes from others. God’s invitation to walk in the newness of life moves us from performance to relationship as we embrace love as the greatest virtue and the ultimate reality. In our families, this means journeying together through life’s joy and challenges instead of trying to control one another’s lives. At work, it’s prioritizing people’s humanity instead of the task or project. In our community, it’s pursuing the greater good. This shift in perspective is us living the now and not yet of God’s kingdom because we believe that Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection is the dawn of God’s transforming love which will one day fill the cosmos like a noon-day sun
