Questions

Do you remember having some questions as you were growing up? I had lots of them bouncing around in my young head – I finally quit asking because I wasn’t very pleased with most of the answers -- so I started making a list of my questions. Some of our early questions were no doubt answered by our parents in some fashion similar to “Because I said so.” Sometimes the questions were met with a dismissive attitude – or the eye-roll. I might have heard the words, “You’re too young -- you’ll understand later.”

Sometimes I have questions I’d like to ask God -- like why good people suffer, why people are mean, why people do bad things, why people are selfish. I know it’s because we are a fallen people, but I want to understand more about that. But if I ask those questions, I guess I should also ask why some people are kind, why some people give sacrificially, why some people have an enormous capacity for love and grace. And actually, the last set of questions may be even more important than the first! 

In our passage today, the scene is following Jesus’ resurrection. His followers are curious about something too, so they ask Jesus, “Lord, is this the time when You will reestablish the kingdom and restore it to Israel?” (Acts 1:6 AMP)

This wasn’t really an odd question to ask, considering that they are in the presence of the resurrected Christ. And throughout His earthly ministry He had spoken about the kingdom of God. They were probably even thinking that this was a great time for all that to happen – a perfect time for the kingdom to be reestablished and restored to Israel – at least in their opinion.

The days surrounding the crucifixion and resurrection were an emotional roller coaster for Jesus’ followers; and now that He was once again in their presence, perhaps they were hoping things would settle down and the promised kingdom would become a reality. 

Before we get into Jesus’ answer (tomorrow), I want to confidently inform you that it’s perfectly ok to ask Jesus the questions that are on your heart – knowing that He will lovingly tell you what you need to know. You might even show Him your list of questions.

But you and I know that when we see God face-to-face, we won’t need a piece of paper with our list of questions on it. When we see Him face-to-face, He will BE the answer to all our questions – and that will be more than enough.

By Judy Shrout