Reconciled Before the Foundation of the World

Our very origin is in the face of God, in the living expression of God—the Word that was life. In that life was the light of men. God was so happy and blessed in Himself that He desired to create someone to share Himself with. So, He created man in His own likeness and image. And not only that, He created all that is—nothing exists outside of Him.

Then the Word, Jesus, the living expression, became a man and dwelt among us. As a man, He entered into our darkness, rebellion, and disobedience, and reconciled us to God. Jesus put death to death, entered into it, destroyed it, and then burst forth from the tomb with eternal life. Here’s the incredible part: you and I were included in all that Jesus did.

He gathered up humanity in His humanity, as the last Adam. He died, and we died. He was buried, and we were buried. He rose, and we rose. He is alive and seated in heavenly places, and so are we. That’s why scripture says,

“I have been crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me.”

Second Corinthians 5:14 says, “It is Christ's love that fuels our passion and holds us tightly.”

That’s part of my desire in writing this post—that you might realize the love God has for you.

God told Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in your mother’s womb, I knew you."

Before your body was formed, God had thoughts of you. He knew you. He associated you with Christ before the foundation of the world. Then Christ, as a man, hammered out that relationship with the Father. Blow by blow, He pushed back the flesh and lived in communion with God.

The life we now live is His life. The very life of Christ is our life. It’s a shared life. He lives in us, and we live in Him.

Second Corinthians 5 goes on to say, “Since one died for all, then all died.”

That’s not just theological theory—that’s reality. We don’t evaluate people by outward appearances anymore. We see people through the lens of what Jesus has done.

Anyone who is enfolded into Christ is a new creation. The old has vanished. Everything is fresh and new. God has reconciled us to Himself and given us the ministry of reconciliation.

What does that mean? It means God, through Christ, was reconciling the world to Himself—not counting people’s sins against them—and He gave us this message to share. As ambassadors, we carry this message: Be reconciled to God. He made the one who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

And it’s not just a possibility—it’s already done. We are included in Christ. We are seated with Him in heavenly places.

That’s the good news. That’s the Gospel.

I hope this gives you something to chew on today. I don’t claim to have it all figured out, but I just want to share what I’m seeing and learning.

And as I reflect on all of this, I’m struck by how deeply personal it is. Before time itself, we were loved, chosen, and included in God’s heart. Every breath we take is a reminder of that love, and every day is an invitation to live from that truth.

-James