Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil – the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else. Ephesians 2:1-4 NLT
Before Jesus, you were spiritually dead. Obviously, you weren’t dead in a physical sense, but spiritually speaking you certainly were. “Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins” (Ephesians 2:1 NLT). Spiritual death leads to physical death and separation from God.
Before Jesus, you were a slave to sin. Slaves can’t say no. They have few choices, rights, or freedoms. They aren’t allowed to say no to whomever or whatever they serve. They own extraordinarily little and are often looked down upon. Slavery is almost universally regarded as a terrible crime against humanity. We recognize down deep that fundamentally we were created for freedom. Yet Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin” (John 8:34 NLT).
Before Jesus, you were an orphan. It is commonly said that we are “all God’s children,” and while it sounds good, it is technically not true. The Bible tells us that we are all God’s much-loved creations, BUT we are not all God’s children. The Bible tells us very specifically that only those who have received Christ by believing in Him are children of God. “But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn – not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God” (John 1:12-13 NLT).
Before Jesus, you were lost. Jesus describes us as lost and told of His great love for us by telling a story about a shepherd with one hundred sheep. One of them is lost, and His whole audience identifies with Him when He says, “Won’t the shepherd leave the ninety-nine and go looking for the one that us lost?” Then Jesus very specifically said, “For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost” (Luke 19:10 NLT).
There are many pictures of our situation before Jesus. But God knew our condition and His heart for us, His much-loved creation. Jesus came to make a way back to what God intended.
- Who do you know who is “before Jesus”? Commit to praying for them, starting right now.