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Reading 1 Peter 1 yesterday was such a joy! While I would like to include the whole chapter here, that seems a bit crazy – after all, you can just go to your Bible and read it. So let me concentrate on the first two verses and then throw in one of the last ones in the chapter.

To God’s elect, strangers in the world…who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood:
1 Peter 1:1-2a

There is so much meat in those verses! Peter makes it clear that he is writing to “God’s elect” – in other words, believers. He goes on to describe them in ways that apply not only to those first century Christians, but to us today. We are:

• “Strangers in the world” – The word translated “strangers” means “alien resident” or “pilgrim.” The moment we accept Christ, we are no longer citizens of the world in which we live physically, but we become “alien residents” in that world and citizens of God’s Kingdom. As such, we have a higher authority than our earthly government and a higher purpose than what we see with our eyes. Additionally, as we are conformed more and more into the image of Christ, this world will feel more and more alien to us. We will feel like strangers in a foreign land.

• “who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father” – As strangers it’s easy to feel separated and alone. It’s at those times that I love to remember that I have been chosen. My choosing wasn’t an accident, it was according to God’s tremendous and glorious plan for my life. I may feel alone here, but God is always with me. Further, Scripture says he places the lonely in families. He does that by planting us in churches where we can develop relationships that help us know our value to God, grow in godliness, find His purpose for our lives and live out that purpose.

• “through the sanctifying work of the Spirit” – Lest we begin to believe that it is our own doing that brought us to Christ, Peter reminds us that it was through the sanctifying – cleansing, purifying – work of the Holy Spirit that we came to know Christ. It is through the continuing work of the Holy Spirit that we are conformed to His image. When we are struggling with a sin our prayers are often too focused on the Lord helping our efforts to resist sin. Perhaps a better approach is asking the Holy Spirit to do His cleansing work in our hearts. This prayer is an act of submitting our will to God’s will. Knowing that it is the Holy Spirit who enables and that we are relying on Him brings a humility to our prayers and our attitudes. It honors God and brings grace into our lives.

• “who have been chosen…for obedience to Jesus Christ” – We have been chosen for a purpose! Now I like to think that means God has a plan for me and my life has purpose – some great purpose even. It does mean that, but the purpose is quite different from what I imagine. I have been chosen for the single purpose of being obedient to Christ. This is both humbling and freeing. God has called me. He has called each of you. He has called you to be obedient to His Word – that is living according to God’s sovereign commands in Scripture. He has also called you to specific tasks that are unique to you. The wonderful thing is that He has called you to be obedient in doing those tasks. The results are up to Him. Success in God’s Kingdom is not defined by the outcome of our efforts, it is defined by our degree of obedience. What freedom that brings! It doesn’t give me freedom to work halfheartedly not caring about the results. No, it brings the freedom to follow God full-heartedly regardless of the results. The results may be thousands of souls won into the Kingdom (think the Apostle Peter) or the result may be years of seemingly futile prophecying and imprisonment (think the prophet Jeremiah).

• “sprinkling by the blood” – We have also been chosen for salvation – that is, having the blood of Christ sprinkled on our hearts (Hebrews 9) so that our sins are forgiven. Scripture is clear – without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sin. Christ’s blood was shed for my sin and your sin so that we might live for eternity with Him. Hallelujah! The Jewish Christians who had practiced the sacrificing of lambs and other animals to temporarily cleanse themselves from sin clearly understood from this phrase that Christ’s blood would cleanse them from all sin permanently. The implications are enormous but I today I just want to remind each of us that this means you are forgiven. Don’t hold on to past sins or false guilt for those sins. If you have confessed the sin to God and asked His forgiveness, that false guilt is condemnation from the devil. “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!” (Romans 8:1)

Whew! What a treasure the first two verses of 1 Peter are! If you’ve read the rest of the chapter, you’ve found that it just keeps getting better. Let me bring us to a verse near the end of the chapter:

Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.
1 Peter 1:13

Because of all this, “prepare your minds for action!” God doesn’t want us to just sit back and enjoy the tremendous benefits of knowing Him. He wants us to prepare our minds for action! He wants us to get in the game! He has called us for obedience to Christ, so set your mind to it and get moving! “Be self-controlled,” and when you need a little more motivation (and don’t we all need it all the time) “set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.”

We have been called to a glorious hope – it’s described in the verses between 2 and 13 of this chapter (and many other places in Scripture, of course). It uses phrases like “inexpressible and glorious joy” and “living hope” and “inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade.” But I’ll leave it to you to read more.

In the meantime, friends, know that you are chosen by God Himself for obedience to Christ. Wow!

For this is the secret: Christ lives in you, and this is your assurance that you will share in his glory.
Colossians 1:27b (NLT)

²⁵I have become [the church’s] servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness—²⁶the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. ²⁷To [the saints] God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Colossians 1:25-227 (NIV)

Over the past two months there has been a constant theme in my spirit. I’ve tried to write about it again and again, but have yet been unsuccessful. Perhaps today will be different, and if it is, perhaps it is a message that needed to be put off until closer to Christmas.

The message, friends, is this: If you know Christ, “Christ lives in you” and that inner life, that life within, is your “hope of glory.” He who lives in you is with you all the time. Let me reiterate that. He who lives in you is with you ALL the time.

The implications of that statement are stretching me. Christ is in me and because of that, He goes with me…to every meeting, every event, every gathering. At this time of year, that means (dare I say it)…He is there when I attend those family events that sometimes bring out the worst in me. I mean absolutely no disrespect to my family. My family is a blessing to me. They are the people God has put in my life to love me and encourage me and…help me conform to the image of Christ.

At Christmas (and Thanksgiving and Easter and birthdays and other family-centered events), it’s very easy to fall into family roles. Those family roles do not always bring out the best in us. Well, in me anyway. I’m guessing I’m not unique in that. But God….But God…(I love the buts of God)…But God can make me different. In fact, He has made me different. In Christ, I am different from that child and young adult that I am so tempted to revert to at family gatherings. I have become a new creation and that creation carries the living God and the hope of eternity with her everywhere she goes.

The message, friends, is this: If you know Christ, “Christ lives in you” and that inner life, that life within, is your “hope of glory”…for you and those around you. Because when you attend those family gatherings (and gatherings of old friends as well), He goes with you. Christ is in the house because you have attended the gathering. He wants to impact each person in the building. And he probably wants to use you to do it!

How? Here are some ideas that challenge me.

• By reflecting Him in you instead of reverting back to that child and/or young adult.
• By showing unexpected kindness.
• By holding your tongue when you want to argue the same old arguments.
• By speaking gently instead of criticizing or speaking harshly.
• By remembering the good things instead of bringing up old hurts and disappointments.
• By embracing instead of walking away.
• By smiling instead of scowling.
• By taking an interest in the lives of others instead of remaining separate.
• By living as the new creation you have become instead of being fearful of what they will think of you.
• By loving.

⁴Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

⁸Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. ⁹For we know in part and we prophesy in part, ¹⁰but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. ¹¹When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. ¹²Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

¹³And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
1 Corinthians 13:4-13 (NIV)

Friends, Christ lives in you and He wants to impact those around you. Let His love shine through at your family gatherings this month.

In my last blog, we looked at Ephesians 1:3 and learned that we have been blessed beyond our understanding – “with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms” simply “because we belong to Christ.” (NLT) I know that I don’t begin to understand the heights and depths of those blessings. I don’t begin to understand how those blessings impact my life even today – although I sure enjoyed meditating on the passage yesterday. Another verse that came to mind – one that we looked at just a week or so ago:

¹Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power. ²Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth.
Colossians 3:1-2 (NIV)

It’s how I want to live my life – so confident of the realities of heaven, so confident that this world is not my home, that the things of this world have less and less power to drag me down. That was the message and application of Ephesians 1:3 for me. Now let’s move on to verses 4 and 6. I’d like to continue looking at the verses in two different translations, the New International Version (NIV) and the New Living Translation (NLT):

⁴For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love ⁵he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—⁶to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
Ephesians 1:4-6 (NIV)

⁴Long ago, even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. ⁵His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. And this gave him great pleasure.

⁶So we praise God for the wonderful kindness he has poured out on us because we belong to his dearly loved Son.
Ephesians 1:4-6 (NLT)

When I read these passages, several words stand out to me, and they make the verses have very personal meanings:

“chosen” – Before the creation of the world (“before the foundation of the world” is how it reads in the King James Version) God chose me. I am not in Christ because of some fluke accident. I am in Christ because I was predestined to be in Christ. Now I’m not going to get into doctrinal discussions about predestination vs. free will because I don’t believe we can fully reconcile the passages in Scripture that address both subjects – but I believe they are reconciled in God. (God’s mind is so much bigger than mine, which is quite a comforting thought!) Suffice it to say that I am fully confident that it is not God’s desire for anyone to perish but for all to come to the point of repenting for their sins and turning to Christ for forgiveness (2 Peter 3:9). Furthermore, I’m confident that I have been “chosen before the creation of the world” and that knowledge changes me. It does something in the core of my being that changes how I view myself and the world around me.

Furthermore, I have been chosen for a purpose – to be “holy and blameless in His sight.” When I view myself as someone whom God has called, chosen and predestined to be holy and blameless, I act differently than when I view myself as someone who is called to a lower standard. I walk taller and am more aware of my actions. I want to please the One who chose me.

The New Living Translation doesn’t use the word “predestined” – instead, it describes it as God’s “unchanging plan.” We serve a God who never changes. His plan has been to bring us to Christ from the beginning of time. The Old Testament tells the same story as the New Testament. God has always made a way for people to find Him.

Why? Because it gives Him “great pleasure.” It boggles my mind that I give God great pleasure, but Scripture is clear about it. Psalm 147 is just one place that tells us that “the Lord takes delight in His people.” God takes delight in me. I love the word “delight.” If you look it up in a dictionary, you’ll find words like “extreme satisfaction,” “great pleasure” and “joy.” Adopting me into His family has given God great pleasure. I’m real good with that!

Lord, thank You! Thank You for adopting me into Your family. Thank You for purposing from the beginning of time – before you even created the world I would live in – that I would become holy and blameless in Your sight. Forgive me when I don’t live up to that calling. It is my great honor to please my King.

Last Sunday was the 4^th of July – in the United States we celebrated the founding of our country. 234 years ago the Continental Congress, as it was called, declared our independence from Great Britain. We would no longer belong to Britain. And from then on, if you were born in this country you automatically became a citizen of the United States of America.

Just as being born in America makes you a citizen of America, there is a second birth that the Bible refers to that makes you a citizen of another world altogether. Let’s look at the discussion Jesus had with Nicodemus from John 3:

¹After dark one evening, a Jewish religious leader named Nicodemus, a Pharisee, ²came to speak with Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are proof enough that God is with you.”

³Jesus replied, “I assure you, unless you are born again, you can never see the Kingdom of God.”

⁴“What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?”

⁵Jesus replied, “The truth is, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. ⁶Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives new life from heaven.
John 3:1-6 (NLT)

Scripture tells us that being what the Bible calls “born again” or born of the Spirit “gives new life from heaven.” And the moment we are born into that new life, we have dual citizenship – citizenship in two very different worlds – the one we live in now and the one we will one day live in for all of eternity.

Scripture has more to say about this new citizenship. In the book of Ephesians, Paul describes how we were once dead in our sins. A new birth would be required to raise us to life.

⁴But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, ⁵made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. ⁶And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms…
Ephesians 2:4-6 (NIV)

Do you see that – if you are in Christ (and I pray that you are) –if you are in Christ, although you are still here on earth, you are also seated with Christ in heavenly realms.

Paul goes on to tell the Ephesians to…

¹²remember that at that time you were separate from Christ…
Ephesians 2:12

That is, before you trusted Christ as your Savior. If you have never trusted Christ as your Savior, you are still separated from Him. Trusting Christ as your Savior means first agreeing with Him that you have lived your life separate from Him, going your own way, making your own (wrong) choices; then turning from your own way (repenting) and asking Him to lead your life. Here’s another description of the process.

remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.
Ephesians 2:12 (NIV)

When you were separate from Christ, you were excluded from the covenants and promises of God. Paul actually uses the word “foreigners” – we were foreigners to the covenants and promises –we were not yet citizens of heaven. But Paul continues:

¹³But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ….¹⁸For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

¹⁹Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household,
Ephesians 2:13, 18-19

Through the blood of Christ, we have become citizens of heaven.

I learned last week that nearly 1 out of every 20 men aged 16-45 died in the American Revolution. They died fighting to win our freedom from Great Britain. Given the population then and now, that would be the equivalent of 3 million men dying today. Their death bought us our citizenship in a new country. I don’t want to squander that freedom – I don’t want them to have died for nothing. I want to live recognizing and enjoying the freedoms that come with being a citizen of the United States of America.

It was Christ’s death that bought our citizenship in heaven. I’m so thankful for that and I don’t want Christ to have died for nothing either. I want to live and walk in the freedoms that citizenship in heaven makes available.

Listen to what it says in Colossians 3:

¹Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power. ²Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. ³For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. ⁴And when Christ, who is your real life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory.
Colossians 3:1-4

I love this passage! Because you have been raised to new life – set your sights on the realities of heaven. Notice that it says the “realities” of heaven – heaven isn’t just some pie-in-the-sky, wishful thinking, pipe dream. It is a reality. And we’re to set our sights on that reality – let it fill our thoughts instead of the challenges of this world. Why? Because your real life is hidden with Christ – where is that? Seated in heavenly realms at the right hand of God! Wow! Wow, wow!

Martin Luther, 16^th century church reformer, founder of the Lutheran church, said this:

“Even in the best of health we should have death always before our eyes [so that] we will not expect to remain on this earth forever, but will have one foot in the air, so to speak.”
Martin Luther – 16^th century church reformer

Let’s live, not only with one foot in the air, but with heaven filling our thoughts!

But you are a shield around me, O LORD;
you bestow glory on me and lift up my head.
Psalm 3:3

David wrote this Psalm at one of the low points in his life. He was running from his son Absalom who was trying to steal the Kingdom from him. Rather than stay and fight to retain his leadership of the kingdom, David runs to avoid losing his own life, the lives of his leadership team and bloodshed in the city of Jerusalem. (2 Samuel 15:14)

An aside: I paused in my writing to discuss David and Absalom with my husband. His summary is perhaps better than mine. Here’s how he describes David’s thoughts at the time: “My son Absalom wants to kill me and become king in my place. Let’s run for our lives…But wait! I have to write this song first!” It made me laugh out loud!

Phil can be irreverent at times, and it’s one of the things that make him such a great teacher. People remember the crazy things he says for quite a long time because of the way he puts them. It’s a gift I don’t have.

Imagine how hurt, embarrassed and afraid David must be. Out of that emotional place, He wrote Psalm 3. When I read verse 3, I was reminded of what we learned from Romans 8:30 in part 4 of my series titled “The Me I Don’t Even Recognize.”

²⁹For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. ³⁰And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
Romans 8:29-30

This passage teaches that those people who come to know Christ have been called, justified and glorified. (Read the whole series if you missed it. There’s some great content about those words.) The word “glorified” relates to our Psalm and means praised, celebrated, held in high honor, and to cause the dignity and worth of some person or thing to become manifest or acknowledged. And from the context of Romans 8:30, we see that God has already done it!

David didn’t have the privilege of having the book of Romans to study from, but he knew the Lord so intimately that in the midst of being chased down by his son, he was able to write the very same thing as Paul: That God bestows glory on His children. Imagine how important that was to David at that point in his life. He was saying “Father, my son may be trying to ruin everything I’ve done in my life and is trying to kill me, but You hold me in high honor. You celebrate me. You lift my head when it falls to my chest in defeat or shame.”

What God did for David, He will also do for you, friend.

I usually interpret the first line of the verse – “You are a shield around me, O Lord” – to relate to protection from physical harm, but seeing it today and coupling it with the second half of the verse, I wonder if David also had in mind that God is the shield around his emotions – the One who constantly encourages so that David is not defeated in his spirit.

I need that God around me, sometimes more often than I’d like to admit. Life has a way of beating us down – there is always more to do and there are always setbacks; discouragement is always nearby. But for those of us who love the Lord, we have a shield against that discouragement. He bestows us with glory. He lifts our heads. He is passionately in love with us.

My walk with the Lord was revolutionized when I came to understand that God is my greatest cheerleader. I mean no disrespect to the Lord – He is so very much more than that, of course – but for the longest time I saw Him as my personal judge – the One who constantly evaluated my performance and found it lacking. I hope that’s not where you are, friend. I hope you’ve come to know Him as I have – the One who sees me as I will one day be, and who is ever encouraging me to become that person. He has already bestowed glory on me; He has already made my worth known; He has already celebrated who I am and He holds me in high honor – already!

He is the God who looks down from heaven and smiles to Himself as He sees me pursue Him in the midst of the life He has given me. He looks down and says “See her – she’s my girl – she’s doing great – she’s so faithful, so loving, so kind, so smart, so passionate, so talented, so…….” Now of course, I’m not all those things – yet! But as He shields me from the discouragement that would be so easy to succumb to, He lifts my head and I can begin to believe that I really am those things.

What He does for me, He is happy to do for you. If you don’t know Him, I encourage you to get to know Him and make Him Lord of your life. He will be your greatest cheerleader, your shield and the lifter of your head.

For a clear presentation of what it means to know God, click here.
For a discussion about what it means to make Him Lord of your life, click here.

²⁸We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. ²⁹For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. ³⁰And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.
Romans 8:28-30 (New Revised Standard Version)

We’ve already learned a bit more about being predestined to be conformed to the image of Christ and being called. Today’s blog will look at the last two actions God has taken on our behalf – He has justified us and He has glorified us.

Justified
“Those He called, He also justified.” Justified – He has made us righteous. He did what we could never do – make ourselves holy enough to stand before a holy God. At the moment we trusted in Christ, we were justified. We dare not take this for granted, although it becomes so easy to do so. God has made us righteous. He has set us apart as holy. The separation between sinful man and a holy God is broken and we can have fellowship with Him.

In the passage we’re studying, God has predestined us, He has called us, He has justified us and He has glorified us. Of those four things, justification is the most important because without it, we would have no relationship with Him and He would not have done the other things.

Glorified
Finally, He has not only predestined us to be conformed to the image of Jesus, He has not only called us, He has not only justified us, He has also glorified us. The word translated “glorified” is doxazo – the same word from which we get “Doxology.” It means:

• To praise, extol, magnify or celebrate
• To honor or to hold in honor
• To adorn with splendor
• To impart glory to, render excellent, or to make renowned
• To cause the dignity and worth of some person or thing to become manifest and acknowledged*

Wow! Scripture says point blank that God has glorified me. He has praised me. He has celebrated me. He holds me in honor. He adorns me with splendor. He imparts His glory to me. He renders me excellent. He makes me renowned. He causes my dignity and worth to become manifest and acknowledged.

And what I love about this is that He’s ALREADY done it! God’s Word says that that I have already been glorified. My dignity and my worth has already become manifest and acknowledged. Are there times when you feel worthless? Are there times when you feel like there is nothing about you that could or should be celebrated? Your feelings are too late, my friend, because you have already been celebrated. Your worth has already been acknowledged. Your feelings are inconsistent with God’s Word because His word says that you have been programmed to be conformed to be like Christ and God has already made you righteous and has glorified you. Hallelujah!

Taking Hold of the Me God Says I Am
Earlier in the year I did a series of blogs based on 1 Timothy 6:12:

Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

I talked about how we tend to think of eternal life as that thing which waits for us when we pass from this life to the next one, but that Paul’s writing to Timothy makes it clear that the eternal life to which we have been called is something we’re to take hold of in this life as well. I wrote several blogs about what it means to take hold of eternal life while we’re living for Christ on earth.

As I complete this series of blogs on “The Me I Don’t Even Recognize,” it seems a continuation of the same theme as 1 Timothy. If we were to take hold of the “me” that God says I am – predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, called, justified and glorified – how differently would we live? I think the difference would be dramatic.

I’d like to shed any old self-image and put on the Me that God says I am. Will you join me? Let’s begin to act as if we are conformed to the image of Christ. Let’s begin to act as one whose name God has spoken in heaven and who has given the title “Christ-follower” in this life. Let’s begin to walk in the forgiveness that enables God to say we are fully justified. Finally, let’s begin to act with the confidence that comes from knowing that God has already celebrated us and made our worth to become manifest – seen and known.

Lord, open my eyes to attitudes and behaviors that belie all You’ve done for me and help me to walk in the identity you’ve given me – predestined to become like Christ, called, justified and glorified.

*All definitions come from Thayer’s Greek Definitions.

²⁸We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. ²⁹For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. ³⁰And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.
Romans 8:28-30 (New Revised Standard Version)

Called – Hallelujah!
I hope yesterday’s blog began to give you a glimpse of a new you. Today, I hope to take it a step farther. Not only have you been predestined to be conformed to the image of God’s Son, but He has also called you. I was incredibly blessed when I did a little research on the word “called.” The word translated “called” is kaleo? and it means several things:

• To call aloud/utter in a loud voice
• To invite
• To give a name to
• To bear a name or title (Thayer’s Greek Definitions)

From the heights, breadth and depths of heaven, God uttered my name aloud to invite me to join Him for all of eternity. He spoke my name – as Jesus did for Lazarus who was dead and buried. “Lazarus, come forth!” I was spiritually dead, and God spoke my name in a loud voice. He said “Sandra, come forth!”

He didn’t delegate it to His angels. He spoke the word Himself. He spoke my name aloud in heaven to invite me to spend eternity with Him.

I don’t know why, but that does something significant and wonderful in my spirit. There is something special about hearing one’s name. I remember watching the television program Romper Room as a child. I think every child’s favorite part of the show was at the very end when she would hold up her magic mirror and say that she was looking out at all the children watching television. Miss Barbara would then say “I see Tom and Sue and Joe and…” What a thrill to hear her say your name! God speaking my name out for all eternity to hear is way bigger than hearing Miss Barbara speak my name!

At the end of time as we know it, God will give each of us a new name, perfect for us and known only to us. At the marriage supper of the lamb, Christ will take me by the hand (you, too) and lead me to His Father and say “Abba, let me introduce you to my bride. I remember when you spoke her in heaven and I have been waiting for this day to present her to you. Father, I present to you Sandra.” And the Father will look at me and say “Daughter, I’ve been looking forward to meeting you in person. And you will no longer be called Sandra, but you will be called __________” I don’t know what my new name will be, but I know it’s special and perfect for me.

In the meantime, He has called me to bear the name Christian – follower of Christ. And He’s enabled me to become that because He has predestined me to be conformed to the image of Christ.

What a privilege to be called by God. It’s so much more than I had understood it to be!

Tomorrow we’ll look at the rest of the verse – we have been justified and glorified. Stop by to read it. You’ll be glad you did!

²⁸We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. ²⁹For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. ³⁰And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.
Romans 8:28-30 (New Revised Standard Version)

Yesterday we looked at verse 28 – God’s promise to work things together for God for those who love Him and pursue Him. Today we’ll begin to look at verses 29 and 30. This is where it gets exciting!

Predestined to be Conformed – It’s a Done Deal!
Setting aside the sometimes controversial question of predestination, let’s unpack what verse 29 says.

For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family.
Romans 8:29 (NRSV)

If you love God, if you are called according to His purpose (verse 28), God has predestined you to be conformed to the image of His Son – Think about that – You have been “programmed” to become like Christ. Is Christ loving? (Yes!) You are predestined to become loving. Is Christ compassionate? (Yes!) You are predestined to become compassionate. Is Christ forgiving? (Yes!) You are predestined to become forgiving. Does Christ know what the Father wants Him to do? (Yes!) You are predestined to know what the Father wants you to do!

Read through the Gospels. Everything you see Jesus doing and being – God has predestined you to do and be!

What an encouragement that is for me! It even changes my perspective on some difficult areas of my life. I am programmed, I am predestined, to respond in love, forgiveness and compassion! That’s not my self-image. I know it’s how I know God wants me to respond, but it’s not how I think of myself as responding. But now I see that it’s not only how God wants me to respond, it’s how God has programmed me to respond. To respond otherwise, is an aberration – it’s not who I truly am. So I can begin to think of myself in those terms instead of any other way.

Sometimes it’s easy for me to think of myself as less than God has predestined me to be. Sometimes I think of myself as unforgiving or uncompassionate. Perhaps your self image says you are stubborn or lazy. Christ is neither of those things. So if your self-image includes those characteristics, your self-image is incorrect. (In other words, you’ve bought lies the enemy has been feeding you.) God has predestined you to become like Christ.

When I think of myself as a sinner, it is easier for me to sin. Now don’t get me wrong. Yes, I am a sinner, as are you and everyone else on this planet of ours. But when I get specific – when I think of myself as a liar, for example, it becomes so much easier for me to lie. If I think of myself as a truth-teller, however, it becomes much more difficult to utter things that are not fully truthful. So if I think of myself as conformed to the image of Christ, I think of myself as a truth-teller. When I think of myself as lazy, it becomes much easier for me to waste time than if I think of myself as being about my Father’s business. If I see (and define) myself as stubborn, it’s easier to justify holding a grudge than if I see myself as merciful, compassionate and forgiving.

How we see ourselves has everything to do with how we respond to people and circumstances. I’m convinced that if we see ourselves as the finished product – that is, conformed to the image of Christ – that we will respond to people and circumstances more consistently with the character of Christ. I am excited to be a person who has the character of Christ instead of what I’ve walked around with for too many years. I am excited that I am patient and loving and kind and merciful and compassionate and forgiving.

Lord, change our self image! You have promised that we will be conformed to the image of Christ. Help us see ourselves in the light of that truth!

Tomorrow we’ll look at some exciting aspects of being called!

While reading about the making of the Tabernacle this week, I began to wonder what it would have been like to actually be making the curtains, the frames, the bronze clasps, gold lampstand or any other element. How much care would I have taken? How many do-overs would be required – stitches pulled out, clasps thrown back into the fire to begin again – before I finished something to God’s exact specifications and worthy of His dwelling place? I thought about the holiness – the hushed awe, the uniqueness – that would embody the acts of creating the elements of the Tabernacle.

I imagined women sitting together sewing “curtains of finely twisted linen and blue, purple and scarlet yarn, with cherubim worked into them” (Exodus 26:1). The room is filled with holy reverence because this curtain – THIS curtain – would surround the Most Holy God – the great and wonderful I AM. I imagined hammering pure gold to create the atonement cover and the cherubim that were to hover over it. What image was God giving them as they hammered out the faces on the cheribum?

Whether performing the delicate work of embroidery, the movements of controlled strength required to hammer the gold, or the hard physical work necessary for framing the Tabernacle, I imagined the expressions of the workers to be intent – intent on getting it just right, intent on the purpose for which their elements would be used. Often, when I am intently concentrating on something, others tell me that my expression looks stern, almost angry. I don’t imagine that the expressions of these workers would be so stern or angry. Rather, they would be so full of awe that it would shine through and even the most detailed or demanding task would not mar the holiness of their countenance.

Even before I had thought through all of this, God reminded me that I am His dwelling place.

Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple.
1 Corinthians 3:16-17

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20

I was challenged afresh by these thoughts in two ways:

To view my life as the dwelling place of God – to live always aware that the Spirit of God lives in me. God’s temple is sacred and I am that temple.

To view all the various circumstances in my life from the perspective of the Lord’s temple being built in me. In other words, some element of the Lord’s Tabernacle, His dwelling place is being created in me – I am being shaped, sewn, fired, hammered, etc., into the perfect element of the Tabernacle that God determined and designed me to be. As I imagined the act of creating the various elements of the Old Testament Tabernacle to be embodied with holiness – can my life be any different? God is creating me as one of the elements in His New Testament Tabernacle – the Church, and the whole process has an indwelling holiness. This is described in 1 Peter 2:

As you come to him, the living Stone — rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him — you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 2:4-5

When I don’t see this in my circumstances, I am simply being blind to it. As such, I am challenged to treat the circumstances in my life (especially the difficult circumstances) as holy moments – moments when I can work with the Almighty Builder/Transformer, to create the Tabernacle where He will dwell. How awesome is that?

Lord, fill my spirit with awe and wonder as I meet each circumstance this week, this month and this year. Help me to always remember that we are building Your dwelling place.

Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
1 Timothy 6:12

As I said in the first blog in this series, I want to take hold of the eternal life to which I was called. I have accepted Christ and seek to give Him full authority in my life. Yet I know that I often limp through this life not taking hold of all that He has for me here and now.

One of those things is living my life free from condemnation. When thinking about this, your mind probably goes to the same verse you’ve heard so many times:

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus
Romans 8:1

We all say “Hallelujah” when we hear this verse, and we should – there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus – none – nada – zip – zilch – zero. There is none.

But I doubt that we live like that. I know that there are many times when I don’t.

It’s interesting to note that the writer of the book of Romans is the Apostle Paul. If ever there was someone who would be tempted to feel condemnation it would be Paul. We first see him in the book of Acts. As Stephen was being stoned to death for proclaiming Christ, Acts 8:1 says Saul, who would later become Paul, “was there, giving approval to his death.” Acts 8 continues:

²Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. ³But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison.
Acts 8:2-3

Paul had a history and his name was Saul. As Saul, he persecuted the church. It’s not a history I would want to have. I think I’d be tempted to feel lingering (or strong) condemnation as I sought to live out my new life in Christ. Yet Paul wrote “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Hallelujah! If Paul can be forgiven so fully that there is no longer any condemnation associated with his former life, surely I can be forgiven, too.

What’s even more interesting is the context in which Paul wrote the verse. Let’s look at the verse in context:

²¹So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. ²²For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; ²³but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. ²⁴What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? ²⁵Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!

So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.

¹Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, ²because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. ³For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, ⁴in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.
Romans 7:21 – 8:4

In making his declaration that there is no condemnation, Paul wasn’t even referring to his persecution of the church before he came to know Christ. He was referring to his life after Christ – that even after coming to know and serve Christ he found himself continually tempted to sin. He is so remorseful about this that he writes “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?” But you have to  love his proclamation in response to his own question –“Thanks be to God – through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

It seems to me that Paul’s focus of being set free from condemnation related to his sin nature and his current proclivity to sin speaks loudly in what it leaves out – it’s as if he’s so free from condemnation from sins related to his former life that they’re not even on his radar any more! That is, if he is free from condemnation of his sinful nature even after coming to Christ, if he is free from condemnation of the sins he does to this very day, how much more so is he free from condemnation for sins committed before coming to Christ?

Paul embraced his new-found freedom in Christ and found himself released from the Law, which required regular blood sacrifice for the atonement of sins. Released from the Law of sin and death, he lived according to the law of the Spirit of life. Living under such a law means living free from condemnation.

Potential Sources of Our Condemnation

It seems to me that condemnation can come from one of four sources:

• Ourselves
• Others around us
• Satan
• God

We’ve already shown that God does not condemn us, so we can rule Him out, but just in case you are still in doubt, let’s look at one more passage. You probably know the first verse, but do you know the two that follow it?

¹⁶“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ¹⁸Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.
John 3:16-18

If you believe in Christ, you are not condemned by God. Period. He accepts and forgives you. Unconditionally.

Satan doesn’t want you to believe that, of course, and he will hound you with accusations for past, present, real and imagined sins. Follow the advice of Peter:

⁸Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. ⁹Resist him, standing firm in the faith.
1 Peter 5:8-9a

Stand before Satan’s onslaughts saying, “I am a forgiven child of God. Christ died so that I might be saved, not so that I would be condemned.” Repeat as necessary!

Perhaps it is the condemnation of others that hurts the most. It does for me, anyway. Especially when it comes from people I respect and/or have had a close relationship with. Earlier today God brought me face to face with an old insecurity of mine. As I wrestled to determine the source of the insecurity, God reminded me of an incidence from my long ago past. Being reminded of the incident, I asked God, “Lord, do you have anything to say to me about that situation?” What I sensed was that the accusation – the condemnation – that was brought against me was brought out of the other person’s insecurity. I also sensed that the entire situation brought pain to both of us, causing us both to walk with a limp for a period of time. These were not limps that God desired us to have.

In Christ Jesus, there is now no condemnation! Accusations that have been waged against us, accusations that we have taken into our hearts and spirits, accusations that we have allowed to grow into cancerous tumors with fingers that choke out our life – Be gone in Jesus Name!

Ask God for healing of past wounds where healing is needed. What He said to me about that long-ago situation brought healing to my heart and spirit. A sadness in understanding the long-lasting affect it has had on both of us, but healing nonetheless.

Don’t let others throw condemnation onto you. Take the condemnations immediately to God and ask Him to remove even the smallest speck of the accusation that might take hold in you.

Finally, we are often our own worst enemy, aren’t we? I have worked diligently over the past several years to change the way I speak and think. There was a time when I would quickly condemn myself for even the most minor failing. When I catch myself in such a thought or word, I immediately speak the opposite. “I am an intelligent, thoughtful, capable woman of God. Even if I wasn’t, God would be passionately in love with me. Who am I to think so wrongly about someone (me) of whom the Lord thinks so highly? Am I calling Him a liar? Am I dissing the forgiveness that He has given me so freely and at such a great cost? I surely hope not! Lord, forgive me, and I will know that once forgiven, I am not condemned.

Scripture is clear: We are not condemned by the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Creator of the Universe. “What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31) That’s a rhetorical question – the short answer is that many people may be against us, but none will prevail unless we give up the ground we’ve been given. Friends, take hold of the eternal life to which you’ve been called – a life that is free from condemnation by God. With that freedom, release condemnation that might be thrown your way by Satan, other people, and yourself. Let your shield against these fiery darts be your knowledge that you stand forgiven by the One who has all power and authority to forgive and that you do not stand condemned. Walk in freedom!