Joshua 1:8 (NLT)
8 Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.

1 Peter 2:6-9 (NLT)
6 As the Scriptures say,
“I am placing a cornerstone in Jerusalem, chosen for great honor, and anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.”
7 Yes, you who trust him recognize the honor God has given him. But for those who reject him, “The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.”
8 And, “He is the stone that makes people stumble, the rock that makes them fall.”
They stumble because they do not obey God’s word, and so they meet the fate that was planned for them.
9 But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.

A cornerstone has been laid for us to build upon. So far, we haven’t built as great a home as Christ has called us, but we’ve done a lot – hospitals, schools, water, food – world wide poverty is dropping and even the secular world is getting into it. We’re not close to what God expects, but we haven’t totally failed. We’re not close to what god has planned, but we’re making some progress in the physical things.

Luke 24:48-50 (NLT)
48 You are witnesses of all these things.
49 “And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.”

The western world has taken the things of Christ and made them part of human nature (it’s not and the world was turned 180° and then punted 83 yards down the field by the teachings of Christ). What’s right is right and we’re called to do right.

Acts 2:1-10 (NLT)
2 On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.

The Holy Spirit has hung around too, driving those who seek to embrace it, influencing right and wrong in those that don’t. We have a mission we need to drive toward completion.

Ephesians 6:10-13 (NLT)
10 A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

The evil in the world will work to stop the Lord’s work. Just look around us and see what we’re fighting to overcome. But the Cornerstone has been laid for us to build upon, the Holy Spirit has been sent to mold and guide us, and we’ve been given Armor to fight to move the path forward.