What Does It Mean to be One in Christ Jesus

We sat together talking about faith in Christ and spiritual matters. As the hours passed I forgot where we were sitting and became absorbed in our discussion about what it means to be a committed Christian. But soon reality set in as a guard announced the end of visiting hours. We hugged and he returned to his prison cell and a guard escorted me to the visitor entrance.

As I walked through the metal detector and then watched the guard wand me, I thought about how as believers in Jesus Christ we are one in the Spirit. Even though my friend was paying the consequences for his poor choices, I was was no better than him. As Paul reminds us in Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

That is the beauty of the Kingdom of God. Despite our differences; despite our history; despite all our failings, we are one in the body of Christ (Romans 12:3-5). Galatians 3:26 tells us, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

As I drove away from the prison, I looked at the towering fence and razor wire that separated us. It was a blessing to be able to visit my friend. It encouraged me greatly to see how God was working in his life through other believers in prison and the prison ministry in the area. I left with greater empathy for his struggles and an understanding of how to better pray for him — a better understanding of what it means to be one in Christ.

Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering. — Hebrews 13:3

#ThrowbackThursday — This post originally published October 2, 2017

© 2017 CGThelen