Month: April 2021

God’s Inheritance

Jesus didn’t come to establish a religion but a family

The word inheritance brings to mind the physical traits or accumulated wealth passed down from one generation to another. The drama of passing on the family inheritance has been the theme of countless books and movies.  Picture the heirs eagerly sitting around a table as the lawyer opens the will and reads how the family will receive the estate.  Who will get what? 

The theme of inheritance is a significant part of biblical culture.  The laws that governed Israel had strict guidelines for passing on the family inheritance to the next generation.  The well-known parable called the prodigal son is built around the younger son’s demand for his inheritance even before his father had died. 

When we think of spiritual inheritance, we most likely think of the inheritance God promised to us as a result of our faith in Christ.  God’s adopted children are the inheritors of the riches of God’s grace, including our future home in heaven.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, (1 Peter 1:3-4).

The Holy Spirit living in us is our down payment for that inheritance.  The final fulfillment remains in the future reserved in heaven for us, imperishable and unchanging.  What all that involves remains a mystery, but since it is coming from the hand of our loving Father, it will undoubtedly be desirable and valuable (Ephesians 1:11, 13, 14).

Although we may readily recognize the promise of our inheritance from God, we may be surprised that we are God’s inheritance.  God introduces this idea in his relationship with Israel.  Out of all the nations, Israel is chosen to be his inheritance.  

When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, When He divided all mankind, He set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel.  For the Lord’s portion is his people, Jacob his allotted inheritance. (Deuteronomy 32: 8-9 NIV emphasis added).

In his song, Moses says that God’s inheritance (portion) was the apple of his eye, and he shielded and cared for them as an eagle cares for its young.  In the book of Exodus, God’s inheritance is called his treasure, a kingdom of priests, a holy nation (Exodus 19:5-6). 

In the New Testament, Peter picks up this same theme, describing God’s family of faith in similar terms.

But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for He called you out of the darkness into His wonderful light. Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy (1 Peter 2:9-10 NLT, also 1 Peter 2:5).

Paul highlights this inheritance when he prays that we would grasp not only the “hope of his calling” but the “riches and glory of God’s inheritance in the saints” (Ephesians 1:18). 

From the early chapters of Genesis to the climax in Revelation, God is expanding his inheritance:  People created and remade in his image.  There are many pictures that depict our identity in Christ such as children of God, saints, and citizens of his kingdom, but the picture that we are God’s inheritance is a new and humbling thought to me.   

God’s inheritance strategy.

What is even more impressive is that God would use people to attain that inheritance.  When God told Adam to “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth,” he made mankind part of his strategy.  God created the first two people, and all the rest have been begats.  Perhaps one reason for the long lists of genealogies in the Old Testament is to remind us that people come through people.  God’s inheritance of people in his image comes about through people.

This strategy of multiplying people through people is not only a physical one but also a spiritual one.  God’s mission to develop his inheritance of image bearers, is through the strategy of spiritual generations of people begating more people.  In New Testament terms, it is disciples who make disciples.

The training of the twelve apostles set the stage for a kingdom expansion of people by people.  At the end of the age, angels may do the harvesting, but it is people who sow and cultivate the seed.  It amazes me that God would entrust his inheritance to imperfect people, both physically and spiritually.  Children are not only for the privileged, gifted, wealthy, or intelligent.  God makes it possible for all of his children to begat future generations.                                                             

It should come as no surprise that Satan, in his cosmic battle against God, would center on the destruction and distortion of God’s desired inheritance.  Throughout history, Satan has used his power to destroy God’s image-bearers by:

• Eliminating the unborn through abortions

• Destroying the living through wars, homicides, disease, famines

• Disfiguring the survivors through jealousy, greed, and injustice

• Distorting the spiritually reborn through immaturity, apathy, and avarice.

In recognition of this cosmic battle, Leroy Eims (author of “The Lost Art of Disciplemaking”) describes disciplemaking as not just an art but as an act of war. 

Disciples making disciples is God’s plan for his inheritance.  He wants to fill his kingdom with people who share his image from every tribe and nation and he uses people to do it.  One generation reaching another.  A longtime friend and Navigator staff, Larry Glabe, often gives the men he is discipling a small chain with this challenge:  “Don’t’ be the last link.”1 

For Reflection

1.  What does your spiritual lineage look like?

2.  What are other schemes of Satan to thwart God’s plan?

1.  Dawson Trotman, founder of The Navigators, gave a message that has become a classic called “Born to Reproduce.”   In it, he said there were only three things that keep a Christian from reproducing spiritually:  lack of union with Christ, disease/sin, and immaturity.

TADB: 84 Exiles as Ambassadors

The moment we come to Christ in repentance and faith we are transferred from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light (Col. 1:14).  We become citizens of Christ’s kingdom while physically still living in Satan’s. 

The term exile is one way to capture this reality.  It means “resident foreigner” 1 whether voluntary or involuntary.  An exile is different from a tourist.  Exiles plan on living in their host country for the foreseeable future and they feel the tension between their home country’s culture and that of their host country.

The writer of Hebrews referred to the heroes of faith as strangers and exiles on the earth.

Peter recognized this concept when he began his epistle by writing, “This letter is from Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ. I am writing to God’s chosen people who are living as foreigners in the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia” (1 Peter 1:1 NLT).

Historically, being exiled was usually a form of punishment for a serious offence.  It meant being shipped off to a faraway country with no hope of ever returning.  This is the picture we find in the creation account of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.  Their rebellion resulted in being cast out of the Garden with no hope of returning.  Consequently, all mankind has been alienated/exiled from God.

The gospel of Christ is an invitation to return home to the country for which we were created.  When Jesus arrived on the scene he announced that “home” (the kingdom of God) was now accessible.  Through the transforming power of the gospel, our citizenship is transferred from the kingdom of darkness to His kingdom (Eph. 2:19).  There we learn to live according to a culture vastly different from the one we have left.  Discipleship is the process by which we learn to understand, accept, and align with the culture of our new home country. 

However, our life in Christ is more complicated than just learning the culture of our new home country.  Our home country is not only an invisible reality but also a “not yet.”  While waiting to be called to our eternal home, we physically remain in the kingdom of darkness … not as citizens but as exiles.  We are resident foreigners in a Babylonian world.

The story of Israel exiled in Babylon/Persia can be a helpful resource to discover how to live in that world.  Daniel and his friends certainly modeled how to adapt, contribute, and yet sustain their identity as followers of Yahweh. Peter also instructs us as resident foreigners in this world to “…keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls. Be careful to live properly among your un-believing neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when He judges the world” (1 Peter 2:11-12 NLT).  Peter’s instruction to us as exiles is not just to survive but to stay on mission as the Lord’s representatives to those trapped in the kingdom of darkness.  We must remember that the citizens of our host country are not the enemy; they are victims of the enemy just as we once were.   Our mission is to represent Christ and His kingdom to those people. 

As ambassadors we live in various “spiritual embassies” including families and faith communities.

However, as ambassadors we should not simply “hold up” in our embassies and expect to accomplish our mission.  We need to engage and influence our host culture as representatives of our King. We are to share a message of redemption, reconciliation, and reclamation.  We are to impact/influence the host culture by changing the orientation of its people.

In this process of influencing, we should not expect our host to give us power or authority.  Our true power and authority to be ambassadors does not come from the host but from the Lord.      When Jesus sent his disciples out to represent him to the nations, he clearly stated that he was the one who had all authority in heaven and earth and, therefore, they were to serve him under his authority (Matt. 28:18-20). 

In the past, living as Christians in our American “foreign country” didn’t seem all that difficult.  The basic values of truth, integrity, and acknowledging God provided a basis for agreement.  There were differences but they were not glaring opposition nor did they limit our worship of God.  It was like being an American ambassador to Australia.  We usually spoke the same language, had mostly the same core values, and even dressed the same.  Differences did exist, of course, but they were more humorous than substantial.  Living as an American in Australia you would notice that our host country referred to the back of car as a “boot” vs. a “trunk.” But that was an easy translation.  People in our host country also like vegemite, but if you didn’t like it, you didn’t have to eat it. 

What is dramatically changing today is the cultural landscape of our American host country.  It is less like Australia and more like China.  The language, values and worldview of our host country is now drastically different from the country we represent. 

That does not imply that we should develop a strategy of survival and simply hold on until God sends revival or the angelic trumpets!  Rather until we are called home, we have an assignment to be ambassadors, to represent him well, to live properly and to give honor to God. 

We are His ambassadors.  The only question is what kind?  We can either

  • Assimilate
  • Isolate
  • Separate
  • Agitate or
  • Imitate Christ. 

“As the Father has sent Me, so send I you.” (John 20:21)

1 Strongs Concordance

For Reflection:

1.  Why do you think Daniel was able to influence the world powers he served under?

2.  How did Jesus demonstrate living as an exile/resident foreigner?