WELCOME TO THE FAMILY!

“I’m open!”, I called out waving my arms as I raced toward the goal. I had been playing recreational soccer for about three weeks with this group and had yet to have someone pass me the ball. If anything will mess with confidence in one’s soccer prowess, that will. And it did.

I felt left out. This was a group of Spanish-speaking guys, and I was on the outs. I was no pro, but I wasn’t a slouch either. I believed my skill level could keep up, but it was as if I did not exist. In name, I was on the team. In practice, I may as well have been a bystander.

Though trivial in a soccer game, there have also been times when I have felt left out by God. Left out of His promises. A stranger to His blessings. Outside of His favor. Unworthy to “carry the ball”. A lost loser. Prayers ignored. Voice unheard. Tears unnoticed. Wounds unhealed. Feeling overlooked and like He was giving attention to His “favorites” – one of which apparently, I was not. I felt inferior and as though I didn’t equal other members of His family. It may sound dramatic, but when you are drowning in self-pity and believing lies, powerful feelings can distort the perception of reality. Emotions, important as they are, may not always reflect the truth.

But now IN CHRIST JESUS you who once were far off have been BROUGHT NEAR.

We have been talking about identity and what it means to be “in Jesus” from the book of Ephesians.

“In Jesus” changes everything. Knowing WHO we are in Jesus, allows us to understand circumstances, relationships, and experiences truthfully. Emotions should be an expression of our intimacy with Jesus – the joyful laughter, the painful tears, and everything in between. Satan works to exploit every situation with his lies and in doing so, manipulates our emotions into supporting the lie. In the mirror of Jesus’ presence, emotions bolster intimacy with God. Feelings are no longer rogue bandits robbing you of value and defining you as an imprisoned victim.

If you are “in Jesus” but feeling left out of God’s … (whatever it is), consider the lie you are facing about WHO you are.

“Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands— that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” ~ Ephesians 2:11-13

So, here’s where you stand according to Ephesians 2:13:

“But now IN CHRIST JESUS you who once were far off have been BROUGHT NEAR by the blood of Christ.

“Brought near” speaks to both time and place. It is NOW YOUR TIME and it is NOW YOUR PLACE to be IN JESUS. No longer an alien, an outcast, a stranger, without hope – without God. Your time and position have been brought to pass, fulfilled, completed, and kept.

And how is this so? By the blood of Jesus shed for you and me.

God chose Israel and made a covenant with them. Gentiles (non-Jews) were considered “outsiders or aliens” to this relational covenant. The religious Jewish leaders of Jesus’ day had become proud of their favor with God and displayed attitudes of superiority and actions of exclusivity. This was not God’s purpose for Israel.

Israel was meant to introduce the world to Jesus. They were to be a light to the Gentiles, facilitators of divine healing, and freedom – a promise to all the world of God’s plan to save mankind from sin and bring them into perfect relationship with Him (see Isaiah 42:6-7).

An important component of God’s covenant with Israel was the sacrifice of animals for sin. The practice was a foreshadowing of Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice and shedding of His own blood on the cross. The old covenant blood did not provide forgiveness of sins. It only covered sins until Jesus. Only Jesus’ blood cleanses the human heart and takes away the condition of sin (see Hebrews 10:1-10).

By the blood of Jesus, the way was created for us (Gentiles and Jews alike) to enter “into Jesus”! We have been “brought near” to God.

Israel (the nation) functioned as a theocracy, a government ruled by God through priests. To be a citizen of Israel, a non-Jew had to become a proselyte embracing the laws and duties of the covenant with God under the authority and service of the priests.

Jesus’ blood expanded citizenship eligibility into God’s Kingdom. A person “in Christ” is granted citizenship in God’s Kingdom and comes under His divine and benevolent rule and Jesus’ superior priesthood. Gentiles are no longer “strangers from the covenants of promise”. But have been brought into the theocratic commonwealth of the Kingdom of God.

No one passed me the soccer ball. Not because I wasn’t on the team, not because I wasn’t a skilled player, but because I had not been accepted as one of their own.

“In Jesus” you are accepted by God – in position and practice as a member of His Kingdom. You are one of His own! Your value, significance, destiny, and purpose are no less than anyone else in His family. You are not without Him nor are you outside of Him. This is the truth.

I was standing in conversation with a friend. I felt the brush of a little body at my side and then the warmth of a toddler’s hand reaching mine. I took my daughter’s hand and gave it a gentle reassuring squeeze. We were exercising our secret signal. Instead of letting our children interrupt us at will, we were teaching our daughters to respect the attention we show others by waiting patiently for us to finish before turning our attention to them.

A silent squeeze of my daughter’s hand meant, “I acknowledge you. You are important to me. Your need is important to me. Your presence is known and accepted. Wait patiently. You will have my full attention shortly.”

And true to my word, when there was an appropriate stopping point in the adult conversation, I excused myself, knelt, and put my ear close so she could whisper anything on her mind. We were building an intimate relationship of value, respect, and trust.

Are you experiencing a gentle squeeze? Trust the Heavenly Father. You are not alone. You are not far from God. You have been brought near. You are important to Him. Your need is important. Wait patiently.

“Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD!” ~ Psalm 27:14

“Belonging”