Soulhacker ∙

Soulhacker ∙

I have become all things to all men, so that I may, by all means, save some. – 1 Corinthians 9:22

1 Corinthians 9:19-23

 19 Even though I am a free man with no master, I have become a slave to all people to bring many to Christ.

 20 When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those who follow the Jewish law, I too, lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law.

 21 When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law, I, too, live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ.

 22 When I am with those who are weak, I share their weakness, for I want to bring the weak to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone, doing everything I can to save some.

 23 I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings.

Biohacker is a relatively new word in the English language. A biohacker seeks to find ways to extend their personal capacity and stretch their capabilities. They experiment with ways to optimize their body and intellectual abilities. Sometimes it involves major internal and external transformations. Biohacking comes under the general category of regenerative science or regenerative medicine. Regenerative science aims to biohack the body’s natural cellular function and up-regulate it. Biohackers come from all walks of life.

Perhaps one of the first biohackers was the apostle Paul. His human limitations were continually exceeded through the power of the Holy Spirit within. He was able to become whatever he needed to be to reach people with the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul was, in many ways, a soul or spirit chameleon. He was a soulhacker.

Paul was “all in” in serving the Lord Jesus Christ. Once he made that primary and ultimate decision, the rest was easy. He was willing to serve anyone and everyone, wherever Father took him. Although he had complete freedom, he chose to become a servant to others to win all he could for Christ (1 Corinthians 9:19).

He was willing to become all things to all people. He was able to live without partiality, prejudice, or bias. He had that rare ability to get along with people. He adapted his method and content as needed for different groups. He found common ground and was able to meet people wherever they happened to be. Yet he never compromised his integrity, his convictions, or his doctrine. He never watered down the gospel nor the truth of the word of God.

Some people puzzle over his methodology; to the Jews, he became as a Jew; to those who are under the law, he became as under the law; to those who are without law, as without law; to the weak, I became weak. What exactly did he mean?

Many people overthink this. It is really quite simple. Paul identified with people. He adopted their appearance and customs when he was with them. As much as possible, he fitted in.

Timothy had a Jewish mother and a Greek father. But Timothy did not follow the Jewish faith and never became circumcised. By Jewish law, the child of a Gentile father and Jewish mother was considered Jewish. As such, Timothy being uncircumcised was offensive, if not insulting. To work among the Jews and assist Paul, he had to be acceptable to them; he needed to be circumcised (Acts 16:3).

A simple illustration much closer to home is dressing appropriately for the occasion and circumstance. If you are invited to a formal event, dress up. If you are going to a casual situation, dress down. It is a matter of simply fitting in. Of course, there needs to be a bit of shrewd wisdom here and knowing your own limits. For some, tongue piercing and colorful tattoos might be appropriate, but for others, not so much. Your demeanor, confidence, discernment, affability, and the Father’s wisdom and presence are the most remarkable thing about you.

REFLECT & PRAY

Choosing to be someone else’s spiritual servant for the sake of their eternal destiny is never easy, but when the Father asks this of you, it is the right thing to do.

Father I want to be all things to all people. Encourage me and strengthen me to be just that.

INSIGHT

He was not bound by man-made culture, customs, or tradition. Therefore, Paul was able to set aside his own rights and expectations and freely serve others. He adapted his approach to different groups . . . When he preached to Jews, he started with the Old Testament patriarchs; but when he preached to Gentiles, he began with the God of Creation. Paul did not have a “stock sermon” for all occasions (Wiersbe).

If Paul had a singular, overarching motto, it probably would have been, “For me to live is Christ” (Philippians 1:21). But Paul’s motto for practically working this out may well have been, “I do all the things I have mentioned because I want the gospel to go forward …” or “I do all these things to help the Good News about Jesus to spread” (USB).

A good ambassador for the Lord Jesus Christ builds bridges, not walls. “It is worth noting that our Lord followed the same approach. To the highborn Jew, Nicodemus, He talked about spiritual birth (John 3); but to the Samaritan woman, He spoke about living water (John 4). Jesus was flexible and adaptable, and Paul followed His example. Neither Jesus nor Paul had an inflexible ‘evangelistic formula’ used in every situation (Wiersbe). 

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 9-21-2

© Dr. H 2022

Psychological health and aging

Psychological health and aging

A tranquil heart leads to a healthy body; envy is rottenness to the bones. – Proverbs 14:30

Proverbs 17:22 A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

Proverbs 15:13 A glad heart makes a happy face; a broken heart crushes the spirit.

Proverbs 12:25 Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up.

Proverbs 18:14 The human spirit can endure a sick body, but who can bear a crushed spirit?

A 2022 study, “Aged by Sadness and Loneliness,” suggests that feeling unhappy or lonely could speed up aging. Worry and brokenness are more deleterious than smoking or even some diseases. It turns out that people have both an actual age and a biological age. Our biological age is a measure of wear and tear on the body. Our biological age can reduce or increase life expectancy, regardless of our actual age.

“Using data scientists from nearly 5,000 Chinese adults, scientists built a so-called aging clock. This analyzed 16 biomarkers, along with pressure, body mass index, and lung function, to provide a biological age. When the researchers used this model to assess an additional group of Chinese adults, those who smoked had a biological age 1.25 years higher than the healthy control group, and those with a history of smoke, liver damage, or lung conditions had a biological age of 1.5 years higher.”

“But the biological age of those who reported strong feelings of unhappiness and loneliness were even higher. “Taking care of your psychological health is the greatest contributor that you can have slowing down your pace of aging.” Study co-author Fedor Galkin tells The Guardian. ‘Your body and soul are connected – that is our main message.’” (The Week Magazine, October 14, 1922).

The Scriptures reveal a connection between the human spirit and physical well-being. “The internal psyche has the power to heal as well as to destroy the body. One’s internal demeanor affects physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional health” (Bland).

Psychological well-being and health discoveries of the 21st century correspond to what the Scriptures revealed regarding the human spirit. The Scriptures contrast a healthy spirit with a crushed or downcast spirit.

Proverbs 18:14 The human spirit can endure a sick body, but who can bear a crushed spirit?

What differentiates a healthy spirit that supports mental and emotional health from a broken spirit?

The Hebrew word translated as spirit is ruach. Ruach is typically translated as breath, wind, or spirit. Here it is used in the special sense of an individual’s inner life or mental attitude. So by analogy, ruach refers to an individual’s emotional, mental, or spiritual condition. TEV has translated spirit as the will to live. It has the sense of “desire to go on living” or “desire to stay alive” (UBS).

The implied answer to the question posed in Proverbs 18:14b (but a crushed spirit who can bear?) is “no one” (Miller).

REFLECT & PRAY

Laughter “is a bodily exercise precious to health” (Aristotle).

Father I long to experience Your joy in the depths of my heart. May my face reflect the deep joy and pleasure that You provide my innermost being. Thank You for repairing my crushed and wounded heart.

INSIGHT

Proverbs 17:22 A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

A downcast or crushed spirittranslates the Hebrew word nakhe. Nakhe literally means defeated or beaten. It refers to something subdued or brought low in condition or status. It comes from the Hebrew verb naka, meaning to whip, flog, strike, scorch, or conflict. Here it is a word picture of being emotionally and spiritually beat up and brought low. It connotes despair or discouragement.

The Hebrew word translated as joyful or cheerful is sameach. Sameach has the sense of being happy, joyful, merry, full of, or producing joy.

Proverbs 15:13 A glad heart makes a happy face.

A joyful are glad heart is like a fountain within the innermost being. When the joy of the Lord is present, it overflows and bubbles up. It makes a happy or cheerful face. A glad heart is the key to a full, healthy life (Garrett).

Proverbs 15:30 A cheerful look brings joy to the heart; good news makes for good health.

A cheerful look [lit., the light of the eyes] indicates a positive attitude toward life. Can bring joy to the heart, in the same way that good news gives health to the bones [lit., makes the bones fat] (Proverbs 15:30). A happy heart is especially conducive to good health (Proverbs 15:13, 15, 30; 17:22) (Miller). Inner joy becomes their precious possession all the time (Proverbs 15:15b).  

The Hebrew expression meor-enayim is translated as a cheerful look or bright eyes. Meor-enayim literally means the light of the eyes. This metaphor connotes the outward manifestation of inward vitality and joy.

The light of the eyes refers to the radiant glow on the face of a happy person (UBS). Bright eyes are indicative of deep inward joy. Cheerful looks uplift and encourage others. A cheerful look brings joy to the heart. The eyes speak louder than words (Waltke).

This idea has been translated as “Smiling faces make you happy” (TEV) or “A friendly smile makes you happy” (CEV). Rejoices the heart connotes the idea of lifting the spirits of those that observe a joyful, cheerful countenance.

The Hebrew metaphor refreshes the bones may be translated as makes for good health, puts fat on the bones, or gives health to the body is the translation of tedasheb-atsem. Tedasheb-atsem in Hebrew literally means it makes the bones fat. Fat bones are considered healthy bones. Refreshes the bones is a figurative expression connoting well-being. It includes an individual’s physical and psychological health and well-being (Constable, UBS, Waltke).

Proverbs 17:22 A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.

The Hebrew word translated as good medicine is geha. Geha is only used once in the Old Testament. It connotes healing or a cure. Good medicine is literally written as “does good to the gehah.” It connotes, “A cheerful heart [joyful] causes good healing.” This can be expressed as “causes a sick person to recover,” “makes for good health,” and “helps and heals.” This thought may be expressed as “If you are always happy, sickness will not spoil your life” (UBS).

A downcast spirit has a sense of “despair” or “discouragement.” Dries up the bones contrasts with “makes for good healing” and means “to lose energy,” “go downhill in health,” or even “to die away,” that is, “to die slowly.” It may be rendered as “a despairing heart takes away a person’s strength” (UBS). A crushed spirit weakens or degenerates the whole being.

A joyful heart will not reverse aging, but it may well slow it down a bit.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

© Dr. H 2022

What you ought to say ∙

What you ought to say ∙

The Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say. – Luke 12:12

Exodus 3:11-14

 11 But Moses protested to God, “Who am I to appear before Pharaoh? Who am I to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt?”

 12 God answered, “I will be with you. And this is your sign that I am the one who has sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God at this very mountain.”

 13 But Moses protested, “If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they will ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what should I tell them?”

 14 God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. Say this to the people of Israel: I AM has sent me to you.”

Speech therapy involves the assessment and treatment of communication problems and speech disorders. The techniques used in speech therapy improve communication. They include articulation therapy, language intervention activities, and others depending on the type of speech or language disorder.

Speech therapy is often required for speech disorders that develop in childhood or speech impairments in adults caused by an injury or illness, such as stroke or brain injury.

Some children of the King have difficulties communicating well. Occasionally they need help with saying what they mean or perhaps what is most appropriate. They may have diminished social, language, communication, hearing, or fluency skills. This is often called a “Speech and language impediment.”

While Solomon got it right, “Even a fool, when he keeps silent, is considered wise; When he closes his lips, he is considered prudent” (Proverbs 17:28). Restraint is possible even for a fool, although unlikely (Proverbs 18:2). When he “does not talk” or “keeps his mouth shut” he gives the impression that he is wise. Thus even fools appear intelligent and prudent when they are silent (UBS).

“The proverb aims to admonish the disciple to hold his tongue when provoked, not to conceal his stupidity as in the Abraham Lincoln’s witticism: ‘It is better to keep your mouth shut and let them think you a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt’” (Waltke).

However, speech impairments are never an obstacle for the Father.

The Father is always at work, and He invites us to participate in accomplishing His will and plans on earth. It may seem overwhelming when we contemplate what He asks us to do. We do a fast self-check and respond much like Moses did, “who am I?”

The bottom line is that it really doesn’t matter who we are. What matters is Who He is. He is “I AM.” The Father, the Lord God, omnipotent who He reigns from heaven above. There is no one and nothing like Him, no force, power, or created thing.

Our confidence does not come from our abilities but from His abilities. We are the “are nots” (1 Corinthians 1:28). Perhaps, as some might say, “a bucket of deplorables.” The Father loves to use weak, despised, and “inconsequential” things, people, and events to demonstrate His majesty so “that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us” (2 Corinthians 4:7) (Stanley).

1 Corinthians 1:26-29

 26 Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you.

 27 Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful.

 28 God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing that the world considers important.

 29 As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.

REFLECT & PRAY

Unlimited power, knowledge, and ability are the resources available to any child of the Father. When He asks us to do something, He will give us what we need to accomplish His task when we need it.

Father thank You for always being at work and asking me to participate. I trust in You alone for the ability You alone provide.

INSIGHT

This world is dark and toxic. It offers a suffocating miasma of despair and futility. We are sent out as sheep in the midst of wolves. We are the light of the world. Jesus was under no illusions as He sent His disciples out to serve. He knew what was waiting for them – and He knows what is waiting for us. Still, He sends us to represent Him under the protection of His Father (Stanley).

Matthew 10:19-20

 19 Don’t worry about how to respond or what to say. God will give you the right words at the right time.

 20 For it is not you who will be speaking– it will be the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

This marvelous promise becomes a reality as the Holy Spirit teaches and empowers us to speak. The words may be totally of the Spirit of the Father. They are instantaneous in the moment. Yet, while spontaneous, they may represent years of training, experience, and walking with Father. A pastor was once asked, “how long did it take you to prepare that sermon?” His answer was 40 years.

Consider that our present difficult circumstances and trials and our reaction to them are the stuff from which the Holy Spirit later constructs the words we speak.

Luke 12:11-12

 11 And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say,

 12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what needs to be said.

We are qualified to do the Father’s work, not because of our own talents or abilities or training, but because the Father is with us. And if He is not with us, then no amount of skill or experience will make us qualified (Stanley).

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 9-11-2

© Dr. H 2022

Ambiguous loss ∙

Ambiguous loss ∙

On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb while it was still dark and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” – John 20:1-2

Luke 24:9-12

 9 So they rushed back from the tomb to tell his eleven disciples – and everyone else – what had happened.

 10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and several other women who told the apostles what had happened.

 11 But the story sounded like nonsense to the men, so they didn’t believe it.

 12 However, Peter jumped up and ran to the tomb to look. Stooping, he peered in and saw the empty linen wrappings; then he went home again, wondering what had happened.

Doug Horner tells the story of Gene and Sandy Ralston, a married couple in their 70s. They spend much time every year traveling to search sites or on the water. They are recognized experts at searching for and finding missing bodies of the dead. They have a fantastic talent for doing so (Theguardian.com, 1-16-2020).

When people drown without a trace, it is very difficult on friends and family. Without the body’s recovery, there is little chance for “closure.” But in addition to that, there is something called “ambiguous loss.” The absence of the body creates legal problems for courts, banks, insurance companies, and creditors. According to Robert Jarvis, a law professor at the Shepard Broad College of Law in Florida, such a circumstance “freezes the person who is missing, it freezes all of their assets, and it freezes all of their loved ones or anybody else who’s depending upon them.”

Perhaps the most well-known of all missing bodies is that of the Lord Jesus Christ. We all know the story. He died on a cross and was buried. On the third day, the stone that had sealed the tomb was rolled away, and the body was missing. It was perhaps the most “ambiguous loss” of all time.

Lies were immediately spun. Fake news was immediately spread via word-of-mouth.

Matthew 28:11-15

 11 Some of the guards went into the city and told the leading priests what had happened.

 12 A meeting with the elders was called, and they decided to give the soldiers a large bribe.

 13 They told the soldiers, “You must say, ‘Jesus’ disciples came during the night while we were sleeping, and they stole his body.’

 14 If the governor hears about it, we’ll stand up for you so you won’t get in trouble.”

 15 So the guards accepted the bribe and said what they were told to say. Their story spread widely . . .

Who Moved the Stone was first written in 1930 by Frank Morison. He was an investigative journalist and a skeptic of Christianity. He set out to disprove the Christian faith by showing the resurrection of Christ to be a farce.

The strangeness of the Resurrection story had captured his attention. He decided to prove once and for all that the story of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ was only a myth. He probed, he investigated, and he went over and over the New Testament writings that referenced it. He focused on the Gospels. But something amazing happened!

The evidence demonstrated beyond all reasonable doubt that the Lord Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. It was the only explanation that fit all the known facts of history. Only one thing was needed to prove that Christianity was a farce. The missing body of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The body would never have been found even if Gene and Sandy Ralston had been on the scene and thoroughly investigated. The Lord Jesus Christ was no longer dead but miraculously raised from the dead.

REFLECT & PRAY

1 Corinthians 15:17 If Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins

Father I pray that I will be able to understand the incredible greatness of Your mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him in the place of honor at Your right hand in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 1:19-20).

INSIGHT

As Paul Harvey used to say, here is the rest of the story.

Matthew 28:1-8

 1 The new day was dawning; Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went out to visit the tomb.

 2 Suddenly, there was a great earthquake! An angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled aside the stone, and sat on it.

 4 The guards shook with fear when they saw him and fell into a dead faint.

 5 Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.

 6 He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come see where his body was lying.

 7 And now, go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and he is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there. Remember what I have told you.”

 8 The women ran quickly from the tomb. They were very frightened but also filled with great joy, and they rushed to give the disciples the angel’s message.

John 20:3-9

 3 Peter and the other disciple started out for the tomb.

 4 They were both running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.

 5 He stooped, looked in, and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he didn’t go in.

 6 Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there,

 7 while the cloth that had covered Jesus’ head was folded up and lying apart from the other wrappings.

 8 Then the disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in, and he saw and believed–

 9 for until then, they still hadn’t understood the Scriptures that said Jesus must rise from the dead.

The fact that the stone was rolled away and the tomb was empty is an undeniable historical fact. That the Lord Jesus Christ was raised from the dead was no “ambiguous loss.”

He lives, Christ Jesus lives today!

In 1 Corinthians 15:13-19, “Paul argues ad absurdum to show how futile the Christian faith would be if there were no resurrection of the dead. If there is no resurrection of the dead, then how can Christ be raised from the dead? If Christ is not raised from the dead, then everything based on that belief collapses in a heap of broken dreams” (Garland).

If only Gene and Sandy Ralston could be caught up into heaven, they would have solved the greatest body hunt of all time. In all of His glory, they would see not a long-dead lost body but rather the living Lord Jesus Christ seated at the right hand of God the Father. Instead of an “ambiguous loss,” it would be quite the opposite, a decisive, straightforward miraculous find.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 9-07-2

© Dr. H 2022

Bad girl, bad boy ∙

Bad girl, bad boy ∙

He has made us accepted in the beloved. – Ephesians 1:6

Romans 8:1 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.

How many of us grew up in dysfunctional families? One or both of our parents were over the top with harsh demands and judgmental attitudes. Over and over again, we were told, “bad girl,” “bad boy,”  “you will never get anything right,” or “you will never amount to anything.”

Others grew up in religious homes where they went to church regularly. The fear “of God” was drilled into them repeatedly. Charles Stanley remarks, “The church I grew up in could sum up much of its theology in one statement: ‘Thou shalt not . . .’”

What a terrible legacy to burden our lives with. Indeed, we are damaged and wounded. Some of us carry this all of our lives.

In both situations, two vitally critical fundamental truths are totally lacking – sound teaching on the Father’s love and acceptance.

Stanley reminisces about his life and remembers, “I do not recall hearing about the Father’s love or how to live the Christian life. What I learned was that a wrathful God would punish me if I did not follow all the rules. And there seemed to be rules for everything – including what I could read, what I could wear, and what I could do.”

“As a teenage boy, I spent a lot of time begging the Lord to forgive me for one foolish thing or another. And I carried around a constant weight of guilt and worry everywhere I went. I just could not seem to be good enough. In truth, the rules were a burden to me, and since I thought God made them, He was a burden too.”

Regrettably, this is too often the case. The Father God is entirely different than what many have been led to believe. Sin, guilt, and shame are entirely dealt with by the death of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross and His subsequent resurrection. We are totally accepted and forgiven. We rest in the loving arms of our Father God, secure and safe, and totally beloved. There is no reason to fear.

Our distorted self-image is simply that “distorted.” We have to replace it entirely! Wherever there is error and incorrect understanding, it must be replaced with the truth of Scripture. We must choose to believe what the Father says about us as His beloved children.

It is simply time to stop believing lies, half-truths, partial truths, and outright deceptions that are only intended to drive a wedge between our Father and us and make us ineffective in His service. We have to totally abandon the fiction and myth that because of what we have done, we will never be good enough to be truly accepted and loved.

It is as though we have been working in a coal mine all day and are completely covered from head to toe in coal dust. We need a good scrubbing and cleansing to get rid of all the grime and filth.

Our souls and spirits become polluted by half-truths at best and erroneous, false teaching and distortions at worst.

The problem is twofold. On the one hand, we have a totally false conception of what the Father is truly like. Part of our misunderstanding is derived from our fears and dreads. This is analogous to the proverbial monster that lurks under our bed in the dark of night. We think to ourselves, “if I just hide under the covers, I will be safe.” The rest comes from our learned deformed and misinformed self-concept and self-image. It may haunt us throughout our lives.

What is the Father’s solution for false information, misinformation, or disinformation? In a word, Truth. What has the Father provided for erroneous and deformed self-image? A total makeover and transformation from the inside out.

The Truth is that whatever we have done in our lives before our adoption is totally forgotten by the Father when we become His children. The Father, who knows everything all the time, has chosen to forget!

Let that sink in.

He took us as we were, sinful, in some cases utterly horrid, and adopted us into His Forever Family. The act of adoption expunged the record of grievances He had against us. We start with a completely clean slate. He totally and completely accepts us. He places into His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

REFLECT & PRAY

“We cannot make ourselves acceptable to God; but He, by His grace, makes us accepted in Christ” (Wiersbe).

Father I can hardly imagine the incredible truth that You love me, favor me and have completely accepted me just as I am. But You have. You, my dear Father, have a special place for me in Your heart. Nothing can ever take that away.

INSIGHT

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic nearly shut down planet Earth. The death toll may never be completely known. But the truth of Scripture always stands firm, unmovable against short-term, although exceedingly deadly, awful, life-altering circumstances.

When we think poorly of ourselves, we are in direct conflict with what the truth of Scripture says. The Father does not lie. What He says is always true. If there is a disagreement between what He says and what we believe, it is time to abandon our way of thinking and align with His.

Romans 8:1 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.

It has never been about who we once were or what we once did. Instead, it is about who we are and where we are now. We are the adopted children of the King. Each of us has been placed into Christ in some mysterious and mystical fashion; we are united with Him. We are precious in our Father’s sight.

In fact, being in Christ, His beloved Son, we are also beloved to the Father.

Ephesians 1:4-8 

 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.

 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.

 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son.

 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.

 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.

This passage is so very rich. The heart of this passage is Ephesians 1:6. Seeing it in several translations provides a bit of insight.

NAS Ephesians 1:6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.

ESV Ephesians 1:6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.

NLT Ephesians 1:6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son.

KJV Ephesians 1:6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he has made us accepted in the beloved.

NIV Ephesians 1:6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.

The Greek word translated as freely bestowed, glorious grace he has poured out, freely given, and accepted is charitoo. The noun form of charitoo is charis. Charis means grace or unmerited favor. It is getting something we could never deserve.

“The apostle is speaking about the love or grace of God as shown in our redemption. He has predestined us to be adopted as his sons, to the praise of the glory of his grace, which grace he has exercised towards us in the remission of sins . . .. Therefore, here ‘he has freely given us means to accept, to treat with favor” (Hodge).

Simply stated, the Father has “graced us.” He has favored us and given us what we could never deserve, adoption into His Forever Family and total acceptance and love. The very idea is beyond the capability of our human comprehension.

Perhaps an analogy we can grasp would be going to a pound, finding a battered, mistreated, and abandoned puppy, and adopting it. Bringing it home and welcoming the pup as a beloved family member. The puppy did nothing to deserve it. But his life is forever changed.

He is part of a new family and is dearly loved and cherished.

And so are you!

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 4-05-2