An Unseen Heir and an Unseen Inheritance

1st Peter chapter 1 gives us a wonderful picture of who we are in Christ:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

We are told in Romans 8 that we are joint-heirs with Christ.   And, while a seemingly insignificant birth took place in Bethlehem some 2000 years ago, we now recognize that His birth was significant in God's plan for our redemption.   He was born as a man, lived a sinless life in the flesh, and was qualified to give His life in exchange for our sins - because He did that, we now have the promise of an inheritance with Jesus in eternity, and we here and now have the spiritual riches of His glory dwelling within us through the Holy Spirit.   We are in Him, and He desires to express His life through us.

Romans chapter 8 reminds us of the heavenly heir, the King of Kings, who was born in Bethlehem - the One who has made us joint-heirs with Himself, and has bestowed upon us through His death and resurrection, incredible spiritual riches in Him.
16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.


On Friday's edition, I commented on all of the attention focused on the announcement of the royal baby, who will become third in succession to the British throne.   And, we pause to reflect on the sanctity of life itself and how this new child is being regarded - as a life, a human being with great potential...as every life should be viewed, created by God.

And, during this Christmas season, we think about another royal baby who came into the world under vastly different circumstances.   He was born to a couple that was essentially just part of the crowd, if you were to look through the world's eyes - just part of a throng descending on Jerusalem for a count of people that was decreed by a power-thirsty ruler who was looking to extend his dominance over the people.   To a couple of meager means, who didn't even have a place to stay in that royal city, a child was born.

But, what went unseen essentially in Jerusalem that night was the birth of a royal baby, who was the Son of God, heir to the throne of the King and Creator of the Universe.   A baby whose lineage went back to the reign of King David, and beyond.   A king who was recognized by travelling wisemen, who brought Him gifts, including gold, which was a gift for - royalty!!   A king who was also to be priest, as symbolized by the frankincense, and a king who was born to die, as symbolized by the myrrh, which is a substance used in burial. 

And, this "unseen heir" would bring essentially an unseen kingdom - while those experiencing the earthly ministry of Jesus thought that He would usher in a kingdom and confront the brutal Roman Empire, He spoke of a kingdom that deals with the overthrow of sin in the hearts of men, an inner work revealed through the presence of the indwelling Holy Spirit as His nature is expressed through the way we live.   His kingdom, an everlasting kingdom, is a kingdom of love, based on the powerful elements of love, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit, which are elements that are unseen in that they proceed from the human soul, but visible in their expression through our lives.

And, this seemingly insignificant, unseen, unnoticed child has brought to each of us an unseen inheritance, as we are joint-heirs with Him.   Our inheritance is in heaven, and His Spirit has sealed us, becoming the certainty for what we will receive in eternity and giving us the power to live our lives here and now according to our new nature and our eternal inheritance in Christ.