Word of Encouragement (10/19/2021)
And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. 9 And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”
Jesus was slain to pay the ransom for our freedom from the bondage of sin and Satan. But free unto what? This praise reminds us that we are ransomed to be a people for God. Christ ransomed us so that we might no longer suffer as slaves of sin but live as citizens of God’s kingdom. The nation of Israel was to show the glory and blessing of being citizens in the kingdom of God. They were given a land flowing with milk and honey as their promised land, in which they all received an inheritance in the land. We are told in 1 Kings 4:25, “And Judah and Israel lived in safety, from Dan even to Beersheba, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, all the days of Solomon.” We are also told that Solomon made gold and silver as common as stone in Jerusalem (2 Chron. 1:15). What a contrast from their days in Egypt as slaves!
But we can imagine that the prosperity and safety Israel enjoyed in the land of Canaan was just a faint shadow of the richness of the kingdom of heaven. If you remember, the Levites did not receive any inheritance in the land. Can you imagine God depriving the priests, who served Him in His temple, of the inheritance in the land? Shouldn’t they receive a greater portion since they served God so close by? If they didn’t receive a portion in the land, it must be because the land of Canaan was not the Promised Land. It was so from the beginning: “By faith [Abraham] went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God” (Heb. 11:9-10).
So, instead of a portion in the land, God said to the priests, “You shall have no inheritance in their land, neither shall you have any portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance among the people of Israel” (Num. 18:20). This foreshadowed our inheritance in the kingdom of heaven as a royal priesthood (1 Pet. 2:9). If by grace we are citizens of the kingdom of heaven, God, who is the Fountain of life and the Fount of every blessing, is our Inheritance. If God is our Inheritance, how rich we are!
And of course, if we are a people for God, we are under His protection and care: “If God is for us, who can be against us” (Rom. 8:31); “My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand” (John 10:29); “I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse” (Gen. 12:3). What security and peace are ours if we are God’s people!
But we must not forget that we are a “people for God.” That means we exist for God and His glory, not the other way around: “...everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made…; the people whom I formed for myself that they might declare my praise” (Isa. 43:7, 21). This is not just about God’s creation; it is also about God’s redemption of His people, which is God’s re-creation. What is amazing about this is that God doesn’t demand us to live for Him on the basis of His authority as God, which He is more than entitled to do. Instead, it is on the basis of His self-sacrificial love, by which He ransomed us from sin. “We love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19).
God created all things for His glory—to show His power, wisdom, and beauty. Everything that is created exists and should exist for the glory of its Maker. But we have been redeemed by the costly ransom Christ paid with His precious life so that we might be a people for God. And we have been blessed with God Himself as our inheritance. He tells us not to be anxious about anything because “your heavenly Father knows that you need them all” (Matt. 6:32). Instead, He wants us to seek that which is good and true and beautiful, worthy of praise, eternally significant—that is, to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. As you start this day, say to yourself, “I live to glorify God and love those around me!” May that thought be at the forefront of your mind all day long and in all your interactions with others!