How delightful it was to gather around the table again and together look at God’s Eternal Purpose in Christ. We were astounded (again!) at the wonder of God.
“Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.” Ephesians 1:4
This is one of many scriptures we looked at that took our breath away. To think that God had us in mind before he began to create…astounding!
To see God as a loving Father creating an environment for and anticipating – loving his children before they even came to be…astounding!
“God has now revealed to us his mysterious plan regarding Christ, a plan to fulfill his own good pleasure.” Ephesians 1:9
We marveled at the thought that God enjoys pleasure. Why should that surprise us? He made us in his image and he made us to enjoy pleasure too!
How wonderful it was to consider that revealing and accomplishing his plan brings him pleasure.
We also discussed the faith of Jesus Christ and ended with this question for reflection: “How does the faith of Jesus Christ differ from your personal faith in Him? Why is his faith central to our salvation and unity?”
The scriptures to consider here are Romans 3:21-26 and Galations 2:20. Our personal faith is addressed in the first scriputure. The faith of Jesus Christ himself is addressed in the second.
The first verse tells us that we are declared righteous and justified (just as if we never sinned) by our faith in Jesus and what he accomplished for us. This is our personal faith.
The second verse declares that we are crucified with Christ. We no longer live. Instead, Christ lives in us. And the life we live now is lived by the faith of the Son of God who loves us and lives in us.
So when we receive Jesus by our personal faith, He responds, “You are now righteous and I can and will now live in you. And since I am living in you, you also have my faith in you. And my faith, my grace, my love, all my attributes will continue to expand and gain more territory in you throughout your lifetime. Eternally.
The faith of Jesus Christ in us is central to our salvation and unity because it is his life in us that saves us and also unites us into his one body. Unfortunately, we don’t have it in ourselves apart from Jesus Christ to save ourselves or be one.
“There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.” Acts 4:12
Thank you, Jesus!