Three seasons of time are spoken of in relation to Jesus, “… yesterday, today and forever…” I would suggest to you that time is a gift created by the Father and given to you along with a place, both are creational gifts given to humanity.     We make the mistake of seeing eternity as a long period of time but actually it is no time, a place where time is not, the place that time was created from as a gift to you and me.      Place and Time are to be celebrated, let us focus on Time for now, time is to be redeemed, time is to be accounted for, we learn to “…number our days…”, asking the Father to teach us to make them count. This is not a heavy judgment but a celebration, looking forward to making each day full in destiny and purpose.

Hebrews 13:8 tells of three seasons whether Christ of God should be found in yesterday, today, or forever, in other words in every day, hour, minute, even second, it encourages us with the statements of “For Jesus doesn’t change—yesterday, today, tomorrow, he’s always totally himself.” (Message).

Within yesterday, today, tomorrow we engage in many activities, many focuses, many visions, all of which require us to draw upon the three resources we have in life, these three resources, time, money and of course people.  In the three seasons of yesterday, today, tomorrow we have three resources people, time and money, it is  the way in which we take hold of these resources and combine them in the seasons that  have a major impact and influence on what we call the Kingdom of God.

Let me suggest to you a further ‘threesome’ that is necessary in life’s scope, to make sense of what would sometimes appear to be a senseless world and bring clarity to confused circumstances. I will offer this threesome as questions, firstly asking  you to ponder them, and consider your ways in the light of each answer

What is the Primary purpose of God in History?

What is the Essential purpose of God in Christ?

What is the Essential message of God for our time?

I have a one word answer for you to ponder, it is the answer to all three what’s –  RESTORATION

What do I mean by that?       Simply as a definition one could say “ bringing things to their final state” or “Progress of God’s purpose to its fullness”. We are not looking to restore back to any particular moment in history or time, but restoration embodies the restoration of Gods full intention when he spoke into being seasons and time.    Restoration to Gods ‘ultimate intention’, what He had in view when he said “Let there be…”

In order to understand the message of God for our time, lets call it the “now” time and word of God we must first note the phrase “Times (seasons) of restoration” Acts 3:21.    We must take note that in the midst of such a time, a season of restoration all that the Christ will see the culmination of God’s plan with him calling an end of this age.  

Seasons – what picture does this word cultivate “times of refreshing” what has been established in our perception as we think of this phrase?

There is much talk about Revival along with the necessity of Revival to transform our world, which I could completely concur with. However Revival alone is not enough and we must keep hold of this, it must flow into Reformation, which in turn must bring Restoration, anything less would be a distraction and a loss of the full intention of God.     Revelation must flow to first find its continuity of thought and practice then it will turn to a season of being established so that every revelation becomes part of life, each previous flowing into the other, each one leading, directing us forward from one to another to achieve the climax of God in order that advance and continuation are walked together.   For far to long the so called new negates and departs from the old by saying “for the sake of the new”, yet in the new is the essence of the old that propels us forward, certainly in understanding and renewing our image of God as its all progressive and accumulative is it not?

Although we look through history, history that we can appreciate unraveled when a season flowed from one season to another such as Luther, Wesley, and Whitfield each had its impact and made its contribution.   In our lifetime we see a variety of seasons, baptism, gifts of the spirit, healing, moving in the supernatural, worship and praise, disciples, faith, restoration of apostles and prophets, kingdom,  all these have had a season, and we have watched as they have flowed, one to another. Yet we are still waiting ‘…times of restoration…’, of fullness. The seasons are accelerating by, rushing into each other, and becoming a part of each other. each one building on the last,  with each  revelation and experience belonging to the whole.

As we look through history, history that we can appreciate as it connects and is clearly continuous, unbroken as we look at season moving form one to another such as Luther and Reformation flowing and the Wesley’s taking advance with Whitfield contribution and so on to toady, each had its impact and made its contribution.    What about in our short lifetime we have see the recapture of truth regarding baptism, gifts of the spirit, healing, supernatural, worship and praise, discipleship, faith in life, restoration of apostles and prophets, Kingdom focus all these of being seasons that I have been involved with and transformed by the truth caught in the season. Yet we are still waiting for the ‘…times of restoration…’ of fullness. These seasons are accelerating by rushing into each other to become part of each other as each one of these revelations and experiences belong to the whole.

This is an unstoppable move of God, as we see the rushing of the Holy Spirit to complete the eternal purpose, bringing the church to its fullness and the final glorious condition where all of creation would see the Christ of God (Heb 11:10,16; 12:22; 1314; rev 21:2, 21:10).    The Holy Spirit is working to bring maturity in the church, making her the instrument of blessing worldwide, not so much as all of us becoming evangelists, although we must all share our faith, but becoming a corporate evangelist, communicating the life of God to mankind in a way that draws them to become the Disciples of Christ. In an incarnational way while being culturally relevant “…explaining the father…” John 1:17 (NASB) to our generation and time is part of our task as well.

This is the Essential message of Jesus.

God fully expressed in mankind “Word became flesh”, you and I might become the incarnation, in order that our Neighbours and work colleagues find the full expression of God in their daily routine of life. This is no science-fiction story but a truth, God’s ‘Tomorrow-Age’ mankind, mankind in its final condition, in the image of God, will rule and fill creation (mankind the lover of mankind, mankind the communicator of God, mankind the disciple maker).    The essential message of Jesus brought mankind and God together to be engaged together, to become one, to be in finally partnered with the Godhead.

The message of God to our time is not so much what we are saying but it is what you and I are becoming.    Are we becoming the word made flesh again? Our words becoming tangible, effecting lives, two questions to ponder and open up conversation on are as follows I think you will be surprised at some of the answers as you listen to the debate.

What we are becoming as individuals in Christ?

What we are becoming as a corporate Christ the church, ecclesia?

This tomorrow aged people flesh out the:

Love of God

Life of God (happy, content, excited, fulfilled)

Nature of God (Light & Love also what he is like Creator, Saviour, Father, James 5:20 disciple)

Being as he was, he is “ perfect” – complete, holy, righteous, well-adjusted

Perfectly at home in humanity

Perfectly at home in God likeness

All this brings demands upon us as we seek to become mature in the fullness of Christ we are to:

Know Godright concept

Know ourselves

Live in reality

Live as a community of the King

Live in the power of God’s life

What is the message of our time?   WE ARE TO BE LIGHT ON A HILL LOVE IN EVERY DAY ACTION WE ARE TO EXPLAIN GOD. 

A closing thought, If ours does not prove to be the final generation of TIME, let mankind look back on who “WE BECAME, WHO WE ARE”, not what we taught in information only but what we walked and hwo transformation and Restoration came to God’s creation. As we serve God in our generation.

His purpose: his interests: his will and goals.

We pray that history of our day, remember yesterday is now part of history, will have more to say about the many, the mature, the full corporate people of God rather than of just about one or two but the full body of Christ being who they are.