THE BLESSED PRIVILEGE

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

© God’s Breath Publications

 

Ephesians 1:4 8

“For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.”

 

Have you ever considered the blessed privilege we have as believers? Have you ever thought of where you would be without the Lord? Have you ever thought what your life would be like without the salvation and grace that our Heavenly Father has freely given you? Have you thought back to before you were a Christian and what it was like then? I hope that as I share about the wonderful privilege we have to be called children of God you will thank God for His overwhelming love and grace.

 

Romans 6:23 shows us the contrast of where we were before we were Christian’s and where we are now that we are in Christ. It tells us, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

 

We all sin, you know it and I know it. It doesn’t matter how good we think we are. It doesn’t matter that we are better than Joe or Mary down the street, or that we haven’t killed anyone. The best we can offer, the GREATEST ACTS OF KINDNESS AND MERCY WE CAN OFFER when compared against God’s HOLY standard are worthless to pay for our salvation.

 

Isaiah 64:6 speaks of this when it says, “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.” We are totally dependent on God for our salvation. So before we were accepted as children of God we were under the judgment of God. After we receive His free gift of salvation, we receive eternal life in Him. The gift we receive is spoken of in Isaiah 1:18 “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” Can you imagine the depth of the meaning of this? No matter what you have ever done, no matter what evil deeds you have ever THOUGHT, God forgives you for these, if you believe in the name of Jesus, accept Him as your Savior and seek to live like Christ. What a privilege to be accepted for what we are and adopted as children into a holy family. What a privilege to be forgiven for sins that we could never pay for ourselves.

 

We all struggle for acceptance in this world. We all want to be in the “In group”. We all want to be popular, accepted and loved. We strive to impress people, to please people, to acquire material possessions to gain acceptance. God’s plan does not work this way. We must realize that our salvation has nothing to do with our deeds, abilities, appearance or financial status. God looks upon us and through us. He sees our heart, mind and soul. Knowing our sins, our shortcomings, our failures, our imperfections, He graciously grants us salvation and a place in His family if we only accept His Son’s sacrifice and thereafter live according to the example of His Son; Jesus Christ. What a privilege!

 

Ephesians 2:8 9 is evidence that we are saved by God and God alone. It says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith   and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.” No one can say they saved themselves. No one can say they bought their way into heaven. No one can say they are good enough to be allowed to become a child of God. Grace has been said to be “unmerited favor”, and so it is. We do not deserve God’s love, but He gives it freely. God’s love is so much like the love a parent shows for their child. The child may be deformed, plagued with some disease, rebellious or reckless, but the parent deep down, loves their child. The problem is, even though we love our children as parents, we sometimes fail to show our love properly or consistently. Sometimes we are not good at making decisions concerning things that impact our children. But God is the most perfect parent we could ever have and we should count it a privilege to have Him as our Heavenly Father. God in his perfection always knows what’s best. He has perfect judgment and wisdom for any situation. He will never disown or abandon us. What an honor and a privilege to have a Heavenly Parent such as our God. Perfect love, perfect guidance, always accessible, always looking out for our best interest, describes our Heavenly Father. What a blessed privilege to be called a child of God.

 

What were we before we accepted Christ as our Savior? We were orphans. We were orphans with no family, wandering in a land dominated by the evil one, Satan. We were open for Satan’s attacks, and dominated; whether we knew it or not, by his schemes and oppression. Yet, when we received Christ as our savior, we became members of a Holy and Righteous family, John 1:12 13 speaks of this when it states, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.” We were not born into this family, we were not appointed by someone’s statement or given this high honor by some authority figure, we were given it freely by God Himself when we accepted Christ as our Savior. Now as members of this Holy Priesthood, we have not only the authority to rebuke the evil one, the tempter, Satan, we also can call upon our God for protection from his attacks. What a privilege to know we have the power in Jesus Christ our Lord to withstand anything Satan can bring our way. All we have to do is prepare ourselves with the armor of God, as Ephesians says, and call upon our Heavenly Father for strength and help.

 

I John 3:1 tells it so well when it says, “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” Children of God, what a wonderful thing to say, what a wonderful thing to believe, what a wonderful thing to have, what a wonderful gift to share with others, what a wonderful blessed privilege.

 

Can you fathom the value we have in God’s eyes? Can you understand the worth that He ascribes to us to send His Son to die for our sins? What a privilege to be considered this worthy to have the Creator of the Universe die for us, to sacrifice Himself for us. 1 Peter 2:4 5 speaks of our position when it says, “As you come to him, the living Stone, rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” Do you grasp what this says? Man rejects us, God ACCEPTS us and we are living stones that are being built into a holy spiritual house. We are a holy priesthood. All of us, each one of us are holy priests that are called upon to serve our Father and minister to others, sharing the love of God. 1 Peter 2:9 10 speaks of this when it states, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”

 

What a privilege to be given such a calling! What a privilege to be adopted into a loving family and given a task that is honorable and eternally important. What a blessed privilege it is to be a child of God. Therefore seek to live like Christ to bring Him honor and glory and to show your love for Him as your Lord and Savior.

 

Colossians 3:12 17

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”