You belong to Christ Jesus

Ephesians 2:13-18 New Living Translation

But now you belong to Christ Jesus. Though you once were far away from God, now you have been brought near to him because of the blood of Christ. For Christ himself has made peace between us Jews and you Gentiles by making us all one people. He has broken down the wall of hostility that used to separate us. 15By his death he ended the whole system of Jewish law that excluded the Gentiles. His purpose was to make peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new person from the two groups. 16Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death, and our hostility toward each other was put to death. 17He has brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and to us Jews who were near. 18Now all of us, both Jews and Gentiles, may come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us.

I wanted you all to see these verses from a different perspective. Even in the New King James version it was a little cloudy.......or not real clear or understandable. But in this version if lays it out very well. I'm usually not a fan of using too many different versions but I do really like the clarity found in the NLT as opposed to other more "modern" versions. Whichever version you use......PLEASE make sure you read it. Many folks get hung up on which version to use, I being one of them. But I would rather someone read a version that I don't completely agree with than not read at all because they aren't reading with understanding. I read it in the New King James but didn't put two and two together to fully grasp that it was speaking of the former differences between Jews and Gentiles.......under or through the blood of Christ, all are the same. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free.......all are equal under the blood of Jesus. Woooooooohooooooooooo.

Isn't it funny that we, as Christians, only notice the outward appearance. It's not unusual and in fact, was quite common, even among God's greatest servants. Remember Samuel with David..........he was looking to the stronger and healthier young men......the better "looking" ones. He was sure the king of Israel was going to be one of them. But when they brought the scrawny kid out from tending the sheep, the Lord spoke to him that he should anoint him king of Israel. We too often look at outward appearances. We all have flaws........and many are unseen by the naked eye, so we assume no one knows, or no one sees them. We are quick to point fingers at Christians who may still smoke or drink.......but we neglect the hidden, less obvious flaws in ourselves........our propensity to manipulate people (which is basically witchcraft) into doing what we want them to do, gossip, hate full words, gleefully rejoicing at the downfall of someone who's wronged us........so many things we can fill in the blanks with. Perhaps you don't do any of the aforementioned things.....but you can, if you really think about, find an area where you need improving. We all do. We need to realize that we're not all the same. When I came back to the Lord and finally gave up.......the desire for the alcohol and drugs left me........but I still smoked. For some, it doesn't happen that way. Perhaps they need to go through a program in order to completely stop their habit/habits. I shouldn't look down on them because they didn't get set free the same way I did. Nor should I look down on them if they are still struggling......because I know how that feels. It's a horrible feeling. Remember Jesus' words regarding the speck in your neighbors eye? Get that plank out of yours first.......remember? If anyone had the right to look down upon anyone....it was Jesus......He is perfect, and was perfect (without sin) all His days on the earth. He could have judged anyone He wanted to........yet He had compassion. Now He wasn't so with the religious who should have known better........the ones who were supposed to be living and teaching God's word who were far from doing either. And believe me.......folks don't need to hear "You're going to hell if you're still doing _______." Jesus blood washes away all our sin. It is He who will move upon their hearts with His Holy Spirit when it is time for them to let go of the last things they're holding on to. You don't know what pain may be in their hearts........God knows. Maybe they're still afraid to completely trust the Lord with that hurt.......so they still must self medicate with the drugs, booze, or cigarettes. I've been humbled recently into realizing that it's not up to me to change anyone. There's an old saying, "The Lord says, 'You catch them, and I'll clean them.'" Of course it's He who catches them too.....but it's a funny and truthful saying. We just read that it's no longer about this regulation or that one.........but it's about the blood of Jesus washing us. Each person will know within him/herself when it's time to let go of things. And again.......for some......maybe even for most.......it will happen within the first year of their walk with the Lord. Or maybe not. I heard a story about an old preacher who for whatever reason still smoked cigarettes. One lady approached him after church and said, "Pastor, I'm praying for you." Being humbled by that, he thanked her. Then she added, "I'm praying that the Lord will snatch those nasty cigarettes from you." Afterward he smiled and added, "Yea, and I'm praying the Lord will teach you to mind your own damn business." Did that pastor have some issues he needed to deal with? Sure, and so did that meddlesome lady. As Christians we can say some pretty dumb and hurtful things. And yes.........as we read in Proverbs 26:17 "He who passes by and meddles in a quarrel not his own.....Is like one who takes a dog by the ears." What happens if you take a dog by his ears.........you're going to get bitten. Let's pray for one another.......and not belittle each other by pointing out each others visible faults. Let's pray and ask the Lord to reveal to us areas where WE need to change. Remember......you belong to Christ Jesus! Have a great day and God bless. :-) PJ