Acts 1:6

“So, when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, ‘Lord, is it at this time you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?”

Acts 1:6

As mentioned in Acts 1:3, Jesus had been teaching them about the kingdom of God.  Who can blame the disciples for assuming and wanting Jesus to restore the kingdom to Israel?  To be fair, I have never been in the political situation which they were in.  However, I believe that Jesus wanted to do a new thing, a bigger thing.  I still entertain the notion that,  “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17) was not just about sin, it was about expectations: you will have to change your mindset if you are going to receive what I have to show you.

Maybe the disciples’ question was driven by more than a desire for political freedom: I think that question about ‘restoring the kingdom’, along with the many challenging things that Jesus said to the Israelites, suggests that their identity had drifted. I believe this is a very important point, and is applicable to many parts of the church today.  ‘Is it at this time you will restore America?’ ‘Is it at this time you will bring revival?’  Not that these things are bad things to pray for, but just remember that His thoughts are above are thoughts, and His ways are above our ways.