Aloha Dearest Family,
There was a movie a while back that I rather liked called "Ever After" (oh no, not another movie reference) that starred Drew Barrymore, which was a retelling of the Cinderella tale. In the film the Prince, played by Dougray Scott, was not ready to take his rightful place as the crown prince of France. He would frequently run away from his Father who was trying to get him to rise up and take up his proper responsibility, but the Prince was too immature.
Many of God's children are like this prince in the movie. As sons and daughters in God's family we are born again to royalty. We are meant to reign in every aspect of our lives,
"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one (Adam) much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:17)
Let us look at Galatians chapter 4,
“Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differs nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father. Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”The phrase "adoption of sons" is a poor translation. It should more accurately read," the placing of a son". When the prince is young he needs to be taught and trained properly. In this way he is no different than a servant. But when the prince comes to full age the King places him into his rightful place with great authority and privilege. God has "already" placed us in this position. It is a wonderful thing to be a child God Almighty, but He is also waiting for us to rise up take up responsibility.
Let us remind ourselves about the kingdom that we belong to.
“Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us (giving us citizenship) into the kingdom of (by) His dear Son:” (Colossians 1:12,13)God pulled us out of Satan's realm and gave us citizenship into His kingdom, which we are forever residents. The world where we are currently abiding is NOT our home. We are true citizens of heaven itself and when Christ returns we will finally get to go home.
“For our conversation (citizenship) is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 3:20)Now that we know who we are and where we come from, we can better be representatives of God and do what we were born again to do.
"Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." (II Corinthians 5:20)We as children of the most high God, are also called to be ambassadors for Christ. When the United States sends out an ambassador to a certain country, that ambassador is the ultimate representative of his home country and has the responsibility to speak in the name of the President of the United States on affairs of state. When the ambassador enters the room, it's as if the United States has entered the room. He speaks for the country. We, as ambassadors for Christ, have been given great responsibility and authority because we are his representatives. I am not saying that we should move to another country and become a missionary (unless God is leading you to do so). You can be an ambassador right where you are at. We just tell people what God has done for us. Just as the crown prince represents his kingdom, we are representing our homeland, heaven.
And remember that the life we now live is not about us. We no longer live
for ourselves but for Him,
"..and ye are not your own. For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.” (I Corinthians 6:19b-20)Once the crown prince takes up the mantle of responsibility, his life is no longer his own. We do not seek our own will but the will of Him who called us to the kingdom. This is why Jesus Christ was so beloved by the Father. He placed God's will above his own will. Even in facing death by crucifixion. As Jesus said,”not my will but thine be done."
This is how we truly "reign in life." By taking up our responsibility and doing what God has truly called us to do we will find joy in life. When we do those things that please God we will discover a life that is more than abundant. A life that the Father wants us to have.
Love Always, Ray
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