Finish, then Thy new creation;
Pure and spotless let it be.
Let us see Thy great salvation
Perfectly restored in Thee;
Changed from glory into glory,
Till in heaven we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before Thee,
Lost in wonder, love, and praise.

Charles Wesley, from the hymn, Love Divine, All Loves Excelling

God is already at work in us. As believers, He has once and for all adopted us. He is now in the process of transforming us into the likeness of Jesus. One day, that transformation will be complete. And we have been promised that God is going to see us through to that end.

Already, we can say that God sees us as holy and unblemished. Our guilt has been cleansed. But life as we know it is still full of suffering. Our world is not perfect. We feel distant from God’s presence. We continue to fail. Our friends and loved-ones eventually move away or pass away.

But we have a promise that God will live with us for eternity:

I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, the home of God is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will remove all of their sorrows, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. For the old world and its evils are gone forever.”

Revelation 21:3-4Revelation 21:3-4
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
3 ; I heard a loud voice shout from the throne: God's home is now with his people. He will live with them, and they will be his own. Yes, God will make his home among his people. ⁴ a ; b . He will wipe all tears from their eyes, and there will be no more death, suffering, crying, or pain. These things of the past are gone forever.

WP-Bible plugin NLT

Since we know that this is our future, we have joy to overcome the stings of the present, and the failings of the past. Take comfort in the knowledge that God has good things in store for you, especially his lasting presence. But don’t forget that God has already placed his Spirit inside you.

reflect

God is working on your life now, and will complete the task!

• What is an area of you life that you wish God was already done working on?
• Thank God for His presence in your life now.

Come to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God’s temple. He was rejected by the people, but he is precious to God who chose him.

And now God is building you, as a living stone, into his spiritual temple. What’s more, you are God’s holy priests, who offer the spiritual sacrifices that please him because of Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 2:41 Peter 2:4
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
4 Come to Jesus Christ. He is the living stone that people have rejected, but which God has chosen and highly honored.

WP-Bible plugin NLT

This new life we have in Christ has given us new purpose. We are priests. We are agents of reconciliation. We offer peace to a world in desperate need of it. Our new life is not just to be shared with God and other believers. We must venture out!

This is nothing new, really. You see, the Jews of Christ’s time had a similar calling. They were to be the picture of a nation in relationship with God. They were the priests that were to offer an example of harmony to the world.

Obviously, something went wrong. Along the way, the physical temple became such a focus of their being that they rejected its support, Christ. They were so focused on themselves that God was nauseated by the stink of their sacrifices.

Rather than wait on the world to come to Him, God has commanded us to take the message to the streets. Our daily lives and past experiences are opportunities to offer transformation to a broken world.

Whether we will be successful depends on the content of our message. Do we offer self-help, or Christ’s help? Are we quicker to condemn, or forgive? Are our weaknesses and failures corrected or hidden?

Will they see us, or Jesus in us?

reflect

We don’t talk about priests a lot. But mediation between God and man was well understood by the early Christian and pagan world.

• What is so important about the fact that you are “God’s holy priests”?
• What are the “spiritual sacrifices that please him [God]”?

…you are a chosen people. You are a kingdom of priests, God’s holy nation, his very own possession. This is so you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.

“Once you were not a people; now you are the people of God,

Once you received none of God’s mercy; now you have received his mercy.”

1 Peter 2:9-101 Peter 2:9-10
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
9 a But you are God's chosen and special people. You are a group of royal priests and a holy nation. God has brought you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Now you must tell all the wonderful things that he has done. The Scriptures say, ¹⁰ . “Once you were nobody. Now you are God's people. At one time no one had pity on you. Now God has treated you with kindness”.

WP-Bible plugin NLT
(check out Hosea 1:6,9;2:23Hosea 1:6,9;2:23
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
6 Later, Gomer had a daughter, and the Lord said, “Name her Lo-Ruhamah, f Lo-Ruhamah: In Hebrew “Lo-Ruhamah” means “No Mercy.” because I will no longer have mercy and forgive Israel. ⁹ Then the Lord said, “Name him Lo-Ammi, g Lo-Ammi: In Hebrew “Lo-Ammi” means “Not My People.” because these people are not mine, and I am not their God.” ²³ . I will scatter the seeds and show mercy to Lo-Ruhamah. q Lo-Ruhamah: See the note at . I will say to Lo-Ammi, r Lo-Ammi: See the note at . “You are my people,” and they will answer, “You are our God.”

WP-Bible plugin!)

Each believer was once an outsider, separated from God. But God himself has called every believer out of that place. A change of status has occurred:

• From “darkness” to “light”
• From ”not a people” to “the people of God”
• From “received none of God’s mercy” to “received his mercy”

Hosea adds to this list a people unloved and unforgiven, now being shown love. And as a finale, God declares to Israel: I will say, ‘Now you are my people.’ Then they will reply, ‘You are our God!’

Following the declaration in 1 Peter 2:9-101 Peter 2:9-10
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
9 a But you are God's chosen and special people. You are a group of royal priests and a holy nation. God has brought you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Now you must tell all the wonderful things that he has done. The Scriptures say, ¹⁰ . “Once you were nobody. Now you are God's people. At one time no one had pity on you. Now God has treated you with kindness”.

WP-Bible plugin, verse 11 states a new truth: believers become “foreigners and aliens here [in the world].” Without a doubt, a change of status has occurred!

reflect

Note that this status change has two major components. There is (1) a new status between us and God, and (2) a new status between us and other believers.

• Why do you think God links our status with him (vertical) and our status with other believers (horizontal)?
• What happens to this new status when you fail?

All honor to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for it is by his boundless mercy that God has given us the privilege of being born again. Now we live with a wonderful expectation because Jesus Christ rose again from the dead. For God has reserved a priceless inheritance for his children. It is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay.

1 Peter 1:3-41 Peter 1:3-4
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
A Real Reason for Hope ³ Praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is so good, and by raising Jesus from death, he has given us new life and a hope that lives on. ⁴ God has something stored up for you in heaven, where it will never decay or be ruined or disappear.

WP-Bible plugin NLT

It’s what we long for: We crave life and relationship. Jesus has prepared the way for us by rising from the dead himself. We have a new life, with a new family and a promised inheritance. It is both a promise and a settled truth.

As believers, we have been adopted into the family of God. A family is often known for its commonalities. Some families share physical traits; others share a sense of humor or a common way of dealing with stress. God’s family is to be known by a common love; Jesus’ disciples are to be known by their common willingness to sacrifice for the sake of others.

But God does not expect this sacrifice to be without its own rewards. We are like children away at school. The comfort of our home awaits us. All the blessings of a family home are stored up for a future day when we will share them with Him forever without fear of loss, pain or rejection.

reflect

It is the secret of true discipleship to bear the cross, to acknowledge the death sentence that has been passed on the self, and to deny any right that self has to rule over us.

Andrew Murray

• Which has a greater impact on your daily walk, the truth that you are Jesus’ disciple, or the truth that you are a child of God? Why?
• How are these two truths related?

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you…

Matthew 28: 18Matthew 28: 18
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
18 Jesus came to them and said: I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth!

WP-Bible plugin – 20a, NIV

As we look at what Christ clearly commanded, many of us still cling to the comfort of our favorite chair, scared of the task set before us. But what Christ has called us to do, while intimidating in thought, could never be so bad that we would not receive a blessing by following as He leads.

Christ gave us clear instructions: “GO!” So why are we still sitting? We have glorious news, news that should always spill from our lips, yet I find I’m silent too often. There is a world crying out to us Christians as they struggle to live in this world, people who are hungry. We can meet their physical need for nourishment and Christ can meet their need for “soul food”.

We may not all be called to missions, but we can support missions. We can support missions in many different ways. God has blessed you in some way. Be a blessing to others.

In the words of Caedmon’s Call : “maybe you’ve got money, maybe you’ve got time, maybe you’ve got a Living Well, that ain’t never running dry…share the well, share with your brother, share the well, my friend.”

reflect

If we are the body
Why aren’t His arms reaching?
Why aren’t His hands healing?
Why aren’t His words teaching?
And if we are the body
Why aren’t His feet going?
Why is His love not showing them there is a way?
There is a way

Casting Crowns

• How can you support the spreading of the Gospel over the world?
• Pray for God’s direction in your role in spreading the Good News.