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The past is finished and gone, everything has become fresh and new.(2 Cor. 5:17)

One of the beautiful things about our faith is that Jesus has given us a future, a glorious future. And Jesus has severed our sinful past – all is forgiven and the slate is clear.

And in the present, we have abundant life.(Jn. 10:10)

But there is even more. We have an inheritance. God has grafted our branch onto the tree trunk of his people.(Romans 11) The long history of God’s relationship with his people has become ours as well! We read the stories of Abraham, Moses, the patriarchs and the prophets and they have become our stories as well.

Old Testament history is our history.

That should not seem strange. American citizens “adopt” the history of our country, even though our ancestors lived nowhere near it. July Fourth is our holiday, whether our ancestors fought the Revolution or not. “We” overthrew King George” even if our ancestors were British. (Mine were!) The Civil War is part of our heritage even if our ancestors lived thousands of miles away at the time.

When the Bible says “A wandering Aramean was my father,”(Deut. 26) we accept that as truth even though biologically he wasn’t.

But he was. Spiritually. So guess what? Spiritually matters way more than biologically. Spiritually matters more than anything else!

A certificate hangs on my wall in the study in parsonage. It is the naturalization certificate of my grandfather (1928). He became an American. He was from Germany. He would have died to prove he was American, not German.

I hope I am willing to die to show that I am a Christian.

Pray with me? Dear Lord, Thank you for bringing me into the covenant of your people. Jesus is my salvation. Thank you for making me your own. Please claim me and hold me and use me. in Jesus’ name. Amen.