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Good morning my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
In these days of global Coronavirus confusion I wonder if two of the primary problems have been loneliness and loss of identity? Isolation from our friends and in some cases even family has drawn many people into a dungeon of despair. We human beings are designed by God for relationships… mutually beneficial, affirming, enjoyable, refreshing relationships! And that happens with face to face, not mask to mask, contact, communication, touch, laughter and yes, even shared sorrow and tears. We find fulfillment and identity value in relationships, don’t we?
When it was only Adam in the perfect garden of Eden, enjoying a wonderful relationship with God, God saw there was a loneliness in Adam and He said “It is not good for man to be alone, I will make a suitable helper for him.” (Gen. 2:18) And so God designed and made Eve and from their relationship, a family. Family is the core of every society in the world…but dysfunctional family is also the source of great pain for many, many people. COVID-19 has struck right at the core of this, as people are urged to ‘shelter in place’ apart from their friends. Some are hospitalized and their own family are restrained from visiting them. People are actually dying alone in hospitals and elderly care facilities, without family at their side, because of COVID restrictions, and in some cases broken family relationships. Aren’t you glad COVID-19 cannot keep us from God?
Peter wrote “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God.” (1 Peter 2:9) For Jewish Christians who heard this, immediately into their minds came a story their ancestors had told them many times. It’s found in Exodus 19. Moses and the Hebrew slaves, whom God had delivered from Egypt, had been traveling for several weeks and God’s cloud led them to Mount Sinai, the very place Moses had his first encounter with God at the burning bush.
As soon as they arrived at Sinai, Moses hiked up that mountain to meet with God and God said to him: “tell the people of Israel: You have seen what I did to Egypt and how I carried you on eagles wings and brought you to Myself. Now IF you obey Me fully and keep My covenant, then out of all the nations you will be My treasured possession. Although the whole earth is Mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”(Exodus 19:1-6)
These fleeing Hebrew slaves had one thing deep in their DNA that the ruthless Pharaoh and his slave-drivers could not take from them or beat out of them. Their God given IDENTITY. They were a unique people among all peoples on earth. They were descendants of Abraham & Sarah; Isaac & Rebekah; and the 12 sons of Jacob and his 4 wives. A miracle lineage which God Himself had promised to Abraham & Sarah who, in their old years, were childless. (Gen. 15) This huge ‘family’ took on the name “children of Israel” when God changed Jacob’s name to Israel (Gen. 35:10), and now at Sinai, God was inviting them to a very special family relationship with HIM! More than a millennia later, Peter was reminding first century Jewish Christians that they were still God’s chosen, treasured people, only now, because of Jesus Messiah, they had a new and more profound IDENTITY relationship with God.
For 1500 years Jews had considered themselves a ‘people of God’ because they were born into the lineage of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and his sons, but sadly life had been very difficult for this people, as generation after generation they had experienced the harsh reality of the warnings from God which accompanied their drift away from God and their idolatry. (Joshua 23) They’d been driven from their homeland more than once. Jerusalem had been conquered and destroyed several times, and even their great Temple had been destroyed once. They didn’t know it then, but only a few years in their future, (70AD) the Romans would destroy Jerusalem again, AND the Temple. And think about it friends, it wasn’t until 1948 that once again this wonderful land would be called Israel and Jews from all over the world would return ‘home’.
But Peter’s entire letter focuses on the wonderful reality that Immanuel, God among us, Jesus Christ, had made it possible for Jews to have an even more remarkable relationship with God. A personal, family, Father-son, Father-daughter relationship through their adoption by God, (Romans 8:14-17) and a Reconciled relationship with God, due to the Atonement work of Jesus in his death and resurrection (Colossians 1:21-23).
But it was even more than that! Peter’s letter was also going to Gentile Christ followers! Jesus had come to earth not only for Jews, but for ALL human beings whom God loved and with whom God wanted a family relationship. That’s why Jesus so often used the word “whoever”. In Peter’s second letter he wrote this very powerful declaration: “For the LORD is not slow in keeping His promises, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting ANYONE to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)
When Peter wrote “…you are a chosen people…” oh my friends Peter was calling every Christ follower to recognize many things. Consider this…can you personalize it? . . .
* I am ‘chosen’ because God DESIRED me to exist, and HE chose to conceive me! (Is. 44:2)
* I am ‘chosen’ because God DESIGNED me according to who He wanted me to be, and He knew me even before He created me. (Jeremiah 1:5)
* I am ‘chosen’ because God worked diligently, uniquely, meticulously, to DEVELOP me in my mother’s womb, according to Psalm 139:13-16.
* I am ‘chosen’ because God has sustained my life since the moment of my conception, and will do so for all of eternity future (Is. 46:3-6).
* I am ‘chosen’ because God enabled my mind to understand I am a sinner, and I need a Savior, and I can’t save myself from my sin which separates me from God! (Romans 3)
* I am ‘chosen’ because as I confess my sin and turn away from my sin, and trust in Jesus Christ to be my Savior, God forgives my sin, saves me from my sin condemnation, and He adopts me into His family (1 John 1:9; John 3:16; Galatians 3:26-4:7).
* I am ‘chosen’ because I now live in an unbreakable relationship with Jesus as my Savior and Shepherd; but also with God Almighty as my heavenly Father, and with the Holy Spirit of God as my indwelling Counselor! (John 14:14-17)
* I am ‘chosen’ because I have Jesus’ promise that at the moment of my earthly death, He will bring my soul & spirit immediately into God’s presence forever! (John 6:37-40)
* Finally…I am ‘chosen’ to be part of this unique ‘people of God’, Jews and Gentiles, both who have been redeemed by Jesus, adopted by God the Father, regenerated and are indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God, and thus members of ONE family, we are brothers and sisters in Christ! (Ephesians 2)
Now of course this means the ‘chosen family of God’ is made up of people from almost every ethnic people group in the world, speaking almost every language known to mankind. We are a miraculous people, and in some parts of the world we are undergoing just as horrible persecution as they were in the first century Roman Empire. Yet no threats, no persecution, no torture, no execution can ‘separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord’, (Rom. 8:35-39) nor remove from us the DNA of the Holy Spirit of God with whom we have been sealed! (Ephesians 1:11-14)
May I urge us to pause right now and thank God, praise God for this miraculous reality that is available to any and every person around the world..’a chosen people of God’! And if you are one of those who has experienced all of this… oh I urge you to praise God with exuberance and thanksgiving right now!!
Thank you Jesus!!
Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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