When the religious leaders asked Jesus when the Kingdom of God would come, they were expecting God to step in and completely change their situation. The Jewish people had spent years living under Roman rule, and they believed God would send the Messiah to defeat their enemies, restore peace, and establish a physical kingdom on earth. Since Jesus had not yet changed their situation in the way they expected, many questioned whether He could truly be the promised One.

Jesus responded by corrected their understanding of the Kingdom. He told them the Kingdom of God was not something people would be able to point to. Instead, the Kingdom was already among them because Jesus Himself was there. Jesus came to do more than simply fix eternal problems. He came to reconnect people to God by changing hearts and lives from the inside out. While many people were focused on changing their circumstances, Jesus was focused on changing them.

Many of us still think the same way today. We want God to quickly fix our problems, remove our pain, or make difficult situations disappear. When life stays hard, we may wonder where God is or if He is really working. Sometimes God’s work happens within us before it happens around us. He often uses difficult seasons to grow our faith, shape our character and teach us to trust Him more deeply.

As followers of Jesus, we are called to live differently. This week, consider how your life reflects the rule and authority of Christ. Ask God to help you trust His promises, submit to His leadership, and represent His Kingdom well in your everyday life.

Getting Started

  1. If you could instantly fix one small inconvenience in your daily life, what would it be?
  2. Have you ever waited for something exciting that ended up looking very different than you expected?

Let’s Get Personal

  1. Is there an area of your life where you need to stop focusing only on changing your circumstances and instead ask God to change you within them?
  2. The Pharisees expected Jesus to immediately change their circumstances. Have you ever struggled with disappointment because God did not work the way you expected Him to?
  3. How would you live differently if you truly believed that God was in control?

Take the Next Step

  1. Spend time this week identifying moments where you can intentionally live as a representative of God’s Kingdom at work, school, home, or in your relationships. What might that look like practically?
  2. As you close out this time, pray together and ask God to open your eyes to see His Kingdom at work in your everyday life.
  3. Want to dig deeper? Take a look at the following passages: Luke 17:20-21; Ecclesiastes 8:4; Psalms 47:2; Luke 4:43; Matthew 3:2; Jeremiah 23:5; Isaiah 11:2-5; Mark 11:10; Jeremiah 33:15-16; John 20:31; John 3:3; 1 Corinthians 2:14; Revelation 1:7.

Renew Your Mind

Now having been questioned by the Pharisees as to when the kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or, ‘There it is! For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst.”

– Luke 17:20-21