Contrasts

Eph 2:19 "Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God," NKJV

 

Last night I woke up periodically listening to something hitting our house. What was it? Snow and sleet. As I woke up this morning and looked outside, I discovered a blanket of white covering my yard…the first snowfall of the season. It won't stay. Tomorrow is going to be 55 degrees. In fact, Tuesday of this week was a beautiful and sunny 69 degrees. Talk about contrasts! That is what they say about weather in Cleveland, though…if you don't like it just wait, it will change.

 

Contrasts are really a big deal in life. If we didn't have them we would never know how good good can be. For example sweet verses sour. Hot verses cold. Strong verses weak. Healthy verses sick. Lush verses desolate. Happy verses sad. Right verses wrong. Truth verses error. Good verses bad. And how about this one: strangers and foreigners verses fellow citizens and members of God's household. Now that is a huge contrast.

 

I was once a stranger and foreigner to God and His kingdom. I was not a part of those He chose to be His special people I was an alien. I didn't belong. I had no home. I was outside looking in. I was not accepted. Talk about hopeless and helpless. But then something happened. Jesus came and invaded this world. Jesus came and invaded my life. Jesus came and took this world's sin and my sin on Himself and died making access to God available…location, location, location…and now I am a fellow citizen and a member of God's household. I am on the same playing field with the saints and apostles. I am a part of God's family. I belong. No longer on the outside looking in, but a part of what God is doing right there with the saints and the apostles…built on that foundation. And the cornerstone, the primary building block, the thing that holds this house together is Jesus. (v20)

 

I am not sure that I get all this. I know that scripture is true and I know that this is true, but does it really sink into this think brain of mine? Does it really communicate with my inner man? No longer a stranger. No longer a foreigner. Now an integral part of God's family. A crazy and wild and true contrast. This is who I am. A fellow citizen. A part of God's household. That should eliminate any insecurity or desire for recognition that I might want. This is my identity in Christ.

 

(If you want to see your true identity in Christ, just take a look at James MacDonald's study on Gripped by the Greatness of God. Powerful stuff.)