We Are Family
There's something powerful about remembering where you came from. Not in a way that keeps you trapped in the past, but in a way that helps you truly appreciate where you are now. When we look back at our spiritual journey, at who we were before Christ entered our lives, we gain a deeper understanding of the incredible gift we've received.
The Reality of Our "Before"
Ephesians 2:11-22 paints a stark picture of our condition before Christ. We were outsiders, excluded from the citizenship of Israel, foreigners to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God in the world. This wasn't just about lacking religious affiliation—it was about being fundamentally separated from the source of life itself.
Think about what it means to be truly separated from God. We were disconnected from the King of Kings, the Prince of Peace, the Light of the World. Instead of following the ruler of heaven, we were following the ruler of this fallen world. We had no access to the promises God had made throughout Scripture—promises of His presence, His faithfulness, His never-ending love.
Consider all those covenant promises we now cling to: "I am with you always." "I will never leave you nor forsake you." "I will be faithful." Before Christ, these weren't ours to claim. We were foreigners to them, standing outside looking in at blessings we couldn't access.
The Gift We Didn't Earn
Here's where our understanding needs to shift from worldly thinking to Kingdom thinking. In our culture, we're taught that if you don't work for something, you won't appreciate it. Parents worry about giving their children too much, fearing they'll become entitled. We've all heard stories about the kid who got the brand-new sports car for their sixteenth birthday and totaled it within a week because they didn't value what they hadn't earned.
But salvation works differently. We can't earn it—not through good deeds, generous giving, faithful church attendance, or moral living. Every single one of us is a sinner saved by grace, nothing more and nothing less. The ground is level at the foot of the cross.
Yet we must appreciate this gift deeply, not because we worked for it, but because we remember what it cost and what we were without it. When we remember our "before," we can truly celebrate our "now."
The Peace That Changes Everything
One of the most beautiful aspects of what Christ has done is bringing peace—both horizontal and vertical. The world is full of conflict. We fight with each other over big things and small things. We have conflict with nature itself. Even in the early church, there was conflict between Jewish believers and Gentile converts trying to figure out how to worship together.
Jesus took these two groups—the Jews, God's chosen people, and the Gentiles, everyone else—and unified them into one body: the Church. This was revolutionary. For most of history, the world had been divided between Jews and everyone else, with hostility marking that division.
But the cross didn't just address human conflict. It destroyed the hostility between humanity and God. The vertical relationship was restored. We went from being children of wrath to children of grace and mercy.
Does this mean Christians never have conflicts with others? Of course not. In fact, the more we let Christ's light shine through us, the more some people may take issue with who we are. But Christ has made peace available—peace with God and peace with one another.
From Broken to Whole
Every human being enters this world separated from God. That first breath we take is a breath taken in a state of spiritual separation. As we grow and begin to understand right from wrong, we become fully accountable for our choices.
But here's the beautiful truth: God has been reaching out the entire time, trying to draw us home. He didn't push us away. He's been pursuing us, offering to take what was broken and make it whole.
When we accept Christ, something miraculous happens. We become a dwelling place for God Himself. Through the Holy Spirit, God takes up residence within us. The apostles laid the foundation through their faithful testimony and proclamation of the gospel, but Jesus is the cornerstone—the essential piece without which nothing else can stand.
Living as God's Temple
Here's a sobering thought: your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Anywhere God dwells is a temple. If we truly grasped this reality, would we act differently? Would we think differently? Would we treat ourselves and others differently?
Most of us probably act one way when we think no one's watching and another way when we know someone is. We tighten up a bit when the boss walks by. We're more careful with our words when certain people are around. But here's the reality: Jesus sees everything. He knows every thought before we think it, every action before we take it.
The physical presence of someone important changes our behavior. But God's Spirit is always present within believers. We are never truly alone, never truly unwatched. Rather than being oppressive, this should be comforting—and convicting. We are living temples, carrying the presence of God wherever we go.
Welcome to the Family
Perhaps the most beautiful truth of all is this: Jesus has made us family. We are adopted children of God, heirs with full rights and privileges. If God is the King, that makes us royalty—princes and princesses of the Kingdom.
Before the foundation of the world was laid, God had a plan to save you. Not to leave you separated, distanced, without a country or a home. His plan had a name: Jesus. And through Jesus, He has brought us in, made us His own, and given us a family that transcends blood relations.
This is why believers call each other brothers and sisters. It's not just religious terminology—it's spiritual reality. We are family, bound together by something stronger than DNA: the blood of Christ.
Walking in the Truth
So where does this leave us? Are we walking in the reality of who we are in Christ? Are we living as people who remember our "before" and appreciate our "now"? Are we embracing our identity as children of God, temples of the Holy Spirit, and members of His family?
All the promises of God are ours in Christ. All the blessings, all the hope, all the peace—they're available because we have Jesus. Without Him, we have nothing. With Him, we have everything.
Today, remember where you came from. Remember what you were without Christ. And then lift your eyes to see what you've become—a beloved child of the King, brought near by the blood of Christ, made whole, given hope, and welcomed into the family of God forever.
The Reality of Our "Before"
Ephesians 2:11-22 paints a stark picture of our condition before Christ. We were outsiders, excluded from the citizenship of Israel, foreigners to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God in the world. This wasn't just about lacking religious affiliation—it was about being fundamentally separated from the source of life itself.
Think about what it means to be truly separated from God. We were disconnected from the King of Kings, the Prince of Peace, the Light of the World. Instead of following the ruler of heaven, we were following the ruler of this fallen world. We had no access to the promises God had made throughout Scripture—promises of His presence, His faithfulness, His never-ending love.
Consider all those covenant promises we now cling to: "I am with you always." "I will never leave you nor forsake you." "I will be faithful." Before Christ, these weren't ours to claim. We were foreigners to them, standing outside looking in at blessings we couldn't access.
The Gift We Didn't Earn
Here's where our understanding needs to shift from worldly thinking to Kingdom thinking. In our culture, we're taught that if you don't work for something, you won't appreciate it. Parents worry about giving their children too much, fearing they'll become entitled. We've all heard stories about the kid who got the brand-new sports car for their sixteenth birthday and totaled it within a week because they didn't value what they hadn't earned.
But salvation works differently. We can't earn it—not through good deeds, generous giving, faithful church attendance, or moral living. Every single one of us is a sinner saved by grace, nothing more and nothing less. The ground is level at the foot of the cross.
Yet we must appreciate this gift deeply, not because we worked for it, but because we remember what it cost and what we were without it. When we remember our "before," we can truly celebrate our "now."
The Peace That Changes Everything
One of the most beautiful aspects of what Christ has done is bringing peace—both horizontal and vertical. The world is full of conflict. We fight with each other over big things and small things. We have conflict with nature itself. Even in the early church, there was conflict between Jewish believers and Gentile converts trying to figure out how to worship together.
Jesus took these two groups—the Jews, God's chosen people, and the Gentiles, everyone else—and unified them into one body: the Church. This was revolutionary. For most of history, the world had been divided between Jews and everyone else, with hostility marking that division.
But the cross didn't just address human conflict. It destroyed the hostility between humanity and God. The vertical relationship was restored. We went from being children of wrath to children of grace and mercy.
Does this mean Christians never have conflicts with others? Of course not. In fact, the more we let Christ's light shine through us, the more some people may take issue with who we are. But Christ has made peace available—peace with God and peace with one another.
From Broken to Whole
Every human being enters this world separated from God. That first breath we take is a breath taken in a state of spiritual separation. As we grow and begin to understand right from wrong, we become fully accountable for our choices.
But here's the beautiful truth: God has been reaching out the entire time, trying to draw us home. He didn't push us away. He's been pursuing us, offering to take what was broken and make it whole.
When we accept Christ, something miraculous happens. We become a dwelling place for God Himself. Through the Holy Spirit, God takes up residence within us. The apostles laid the foundation through their faithful testimony and proclamation of the gospel, but Jesus is the cornerstone—the essential piece without which nothing else can stand.
Living as God's Temple
Here's a sobering thought: your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Anywhere God dwells is a temple. If we truly grasped this reality, would we act differently? Would we think differently? Would we treat ourselves and others differently?
Most of us probably act one way when we think no one's watching and another way when we know someone is. We tighten up a bit when the boss walks by. We're more careful with our words when certain people are around. But here's the reality: Jesus sees everything. He knows every thought before we think it, every action before we take it.
The physical presence of someone important changes our behavior. But God's Spirit is always present within believers. We are never truly alone, never truly unwatched. Rather than being oppressive, this should be comforting—and convicting. We are living temples, carrying the presence of God wherever we go.
Welcome to the Family
Perhaps the most beautiful truth of all is this: Jesus has made us family. We are adopted children of God, heirs with full rights and privileges. If God is the King, that makes us royalty—princes and princesses of the Kingdom.
Before the foundation of the world was laid, God had a plan to save you. Not to leave you separated, distanced, without a country or a home. His plan had a name: Jesus. And through Jesus, He has brought us in, made us His own, and given us a family that transcends blood relations.
This is why believers call each other brothers and sisters. It's not just religious terminology—it's spiritual reality. We are family, bound together by something stronger than DNA: the blood of Christ.
Walking in the Truth
So where does this leave us? Are we walking in the reality of who we are in Christ? Are we living as people who remember our "before" and appreciate our "now"? Are we embracing our identity as children of God, temples of the Holy Spirit, and members of His family?
All the promises of God are ours in Christ. All the blessings, all the hope, all the peace—they're available because we have Jesus. Without Him, we have nothing. With Him, we have everything.
Today, remember where you came from. Remember what you were without Christ. And then lift your eyes to see what you've become—a beloved child of the King, brought near by the blood of Christ, made whole, given hope, and welcomed into the family of God forever.
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