Chosen and Blameless

During this series, God Likes You, we’ve been working through a letter in the New Testament written to a church in an ancient city called Ephesus. Despite the passing of time, this church is much like Gateway. The people came from different ethnic and religious backgrounds. They had been involved in all sorts of struggles, addictions, and challenges, but they were learning that when your identity is rooted in Jesus we overcome. Our identity is that we are created for a loving relationship with the God. Yes, God loves you, but even more, He genuinely likes who you are, who He created you to be. He knows you, accepts you, wants to do life with you. But, there’s another part to the story that explains why it’s not so easy—evil hates you.

Throughout history followers of Jesus have experienced the importance of having the support of other believers to stand up against tyranny or persecution. We can see many instances where the church would have crumbled had the body of Jesus followers not stood together against a government or ruler that wanted to twist the church for their own purposes. The importance of the body is made evident during these moments as one person, or small group, discovers others standing with them in their most dire moments. From these seemingly hopeless moments, candles are lit, and the light grows person by person to pierce and envelop the darkness that seeks to surround them. What does this mean for you? What can you do to light a candle to pierce the darkness?

Why do we desire love so much? And, why do we often misinterpret love and accept something less that leads to all kinds of hurt and disappointment? We find ourselves being manipulated into aiming our desire at the wrong target, and as a result, end up being robbed of the very thing we desire. What is God’s plan for love? How can we receive it? How can we share it with others? How can we find ourselves deeply rooted in love?

Ever wish someone would walk up to you, nudge you on the shoulder, and simply share what the point of your life is? Wouldn’t that change everything? Instead, we find ourselves giving life our best shot, slogging through, trying different things, and working to discover our purpose. We wander through life often unfilled and dissatisfied. How can we discover our purpose? What is our identity? What are we supposed to do in this life?