Articles
In Exile But Loved
The Israelites during the time of the prophet Jeremiah were in Babylonian captivity for seventy years. The average human lifespan is about 70 years long. As spiritual beings, mankind is in captivity on Earth for 70 years. With souls being homesick and facing turmoil for so long, it is no wonder fears, anxieties, depression, and other negative emotions tend to take hold. How are we ever going to be able to keep our heads straight? The answer can be summed up simply, but the answer itself isn’t so simple: grace through faith.
The extent to which God loves His people is incomprehensible to the human mind. Dying for one’s enemy goes against the very principles of the sinful world that we grow up in. Yet, that is exactly what Christ did (Romans 5:6-11). Even if you were the only person on Earth to have sinned that Christ still would have died on the cross for you (1 Timothy 2:4). Christ is of God and not of the world. God loves you so much that He sent His only son to the cross in order for you to be free from sin. The love and grace of God goes beyond just saving the world from sin. That is because God’s love and grace also unites the world for the purpose of glorifying Him. God’s people are not American, Chinese, African, or Hispanic. Instead we are all one family of Christians.
While living in exile, think of how many Babylonians the Israelites brought back with them as fellow Israelites for God (Jeremiah 29:4-7). This makes one think, just how many people are being brought back to God when we all finally get to go home to Heaven? John 17:16 explains how we are also not of the world but are only in the world. Our purpose being to spread God’s word to all. The prodigal son eventually found his way back to his father. In the same way lost brethren are out in the world with opportunities to find their way back to our Father. They need to be reminded of God’s love for them and that they indeed can return home. Will you be the one to seize that opportunity when it is presented?
Inspired by: Philippians 3:17-21; Hebrews 11:13-16; Jeremiah 29; 1 Corinthians 3:14; 1 John 4:8, 16; 1 Timothy 2:1-4; 1 Peter 2:9-17; Ephesians 1:3-14; Ephesians 2
