Faith Under Construction

I’ve been watching a new house being built down the street from us. Week by week, I could see the house take shape from the laying of the foundation to the walls and roof. It reminded me of our Christian walk as we grow in our faith in Christ Jesus. Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:8: “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast (NASB).” When we believe in Jesus and choose to follow him, this becomes the blueprint for our life.

With new life in Christ, a foundation is laid down with Jesus as the cornerstone. As Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:19: “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone.” Our faith in Christ is also being built on the faithful who came before us, the apostles, prophets, and those who ministered to us.

With the foundation secure, your house of faith in Jesus begins to take shape. Slowly, as you deepen your faith, drawing closer to God, people around you can see your new life being built up on the foundation of Jesus. Paul described it as, “the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit (Ephesians 2:21).

Our lives become a temple of the Holy Spirit, nestled among other believers of Jesus into a neighborhood of faith. We become a home for the Spirit of God at work within us. With this new home, this new life in Christ Jesus, we can invite people into our life and show them our new home built on the foundation of Christ, and all the believers who came before us.

© 2024, Chris G. Thelen