Thought of the day
For generations, Jews and Gentiles weren't just two groups with different preferences. There was real history . . . deep hostility . . . different customs . . . different worship . . . a different understanding of who belonged to God. Nobody expected these two groups to actually become one family.
But Paul says that's exactly the mystery revealed through Jesus: "the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 3:6). Together, three times in one sentence. People who had every reason to stay divided instead became family, because of Jesus.
And Paul says this was the point, not just a side effect. "His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known" (Ephesians 3:10). God wanted the world to look at His church and see something about Him: that His grace can do what nothing else can, bringing together people who would never have chosen each other on their own.
We live in a world that's remarkably skilled at dividing people . . . politics . . . generations . . . income . . . background . . . opinions about things that won't even matter much in ten years. It would be easy for the church to just mirror all of that, gathering into comfortable groups of people who already agree.
But God's plan was never for His family to form around sameness. It was to form around Jesus. That means the person sitting near you this week who votes differently, grew up differently, or struggles with something you've never struggled with, might be exactly the kind of family member Jesus intended to put in your life.
Today, think about someone in your church, your neighborhood, or your life group who you wouldn't naturally gravitate toward. Consider that the unlikely connection might be exactly the point.