When I went to basic training for the US Air Force, we gathered as a group of 50 guys from all different walks of life and where just all over the map. But by the end of our seven weeks together, we belonged to each other. We supported one another, encouraged one another, helped each other. We were a family.
Paul in his letter to the Galatian churches is revealing to us we also belong to each other. Each of us were created in God’s image and we are part of the family of God…we are children of an incredible God.
That first century church was intensely relational. There were in each other’s business on more than just Sunday morning but every day of the week. Those followers of Christ belonged to each other and to God. Paul in Galatians 3 is working out that we are justified by faith in Jesus or how we are right with God by just believing in Jesus Christ. So many Jewish Christians were suggesting a “works-based” salvation and Paul is saying we belong to Jesus without works but based upon our belief in a risen Savior. Paul gives us four reasons why we belong in Galatians 3:23-29..
We belong to God because we believe. I don’t belong because I perform or earn it or work for it. I belong because I believe in Jesus Christ, period. You don’t have to clean yourself up and then come to God. You can’t do enough to be right before God. You come as you are and God cleans you up. That’s why it’s called the Good News!
We belong to God because we are baptized. When we believe in the saving power of Jesus Christ, we put on Jesus symbolically by joining Jesus in his death, burial and resurrection. Then, we are immersed in the Holy Spirit who lives within us. Why be baptized? Well, one, because Jesus said so but it identifies us with Jesus death, burial and resurrection; it unites us in the Gospel story and gives us new birth.
We belong to God because we become part of the blended family. Jesus removed all the cultural barriers that separated us. All the social, ethnic, and gender barriers are gone in Christ (Galatians 3:28). The point is, there is no favored status in the church family. Everyone has the same connection to God. Each of us, regardless of our ethnic heritage, skin color or background can be a part of the family of God!
We belong to God because we are beneficiaries of the promises God made to us as far back as Abraham. Because of what Jesus has done for me, belonging entitles me to all the benefits of being in the family. Being in the family doesn’t mean sitting on the sideline but actively being a part of what the family does. Using your giftedness to retell the story of Jesus is what it means to be part of the family.
So, know you belong. It’s nothing you have done but everything Jesus did for you that makes you a family member. It’s time to embrace believing in a risen Savior who has given you so very much. He’s removed the barriers that prevented us from connecting to God and given us life and life in the full. Blessings on your journey.