If the kingdom is to...
Illustration
If the kingdom is to come, changes must be made. And change is painful -- even change for the better. A few years ago the United States and the USSR arrived at an arms control agreement which called for the elimination of a certain class of intercontinental ballistic nuclear weapons. The result was that the possibility of the two nations being involved in an all-out nuclear conflict was greatly diminished. You would have thought that this would be an occasion of unrestrained joy and celebration for our two nations and, indeed, all the world. But then came the news that a congressman was asking Congress to pass a bill that would give relief to thousands of people in his district whose job was to build and maintain those particular weapons. Even change for the good is painful. Every change will be resisted. And everyone who works for change will feel the status quo. That is the cross Christ willingly took up. We have two choices: We can avoid conflict by accepting things as they are, even though we know they are wrong. Or we can take up the cross of Christ and work for the changes that must be made if God's kingdom is to come on earth, knowing we will incur the anger of those who refuse to change. -- Welborn
