When I was a child, I was a bit apprehensive about the team games we would play at recess. In my neighborhood, we always knew how the teams would be made up. This was based on age and skill level. Since there were so few of us to choose from, everyone was included. However, at school, this was not the case. At recess and in gym class, each new day meant a new opportunity to be chosen to be on a team, or not. Therein lies my apprehension. I was not the best athlete nor the most popular kid in my school. This created a situation in which I was never sure if I would be chosen or not. And if I was, it was often with the feeling from the captain that he was stuck with me.
But God never allows us to experience this fear when it comes to being on his “team”. In Ephesians 1:4a, we read this, “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world…” There is so much encouragement in these few short words. When as boys, we lined up before the two captains to see who would choose us, we always wanted to be on the team whose captain was the best athlete or the most popular. Even when that happened, there was no guarantee of victory. In this verse, we learn that the captain is God and we have been chosen in Christ. This assures that we will have victory to live abundantly in this life and are assured victory over death and hell. We will live forever in the presence of a holy God.
To get a stronger grasp of this amazing truth, we need to look at the timing of God. The Apostle Paul tells us that we were chosen before the creation of the world. This means that as God was designing the universe and specifically the world on which we live, he tailored every detail specifically to guide us to a relationship with him. We see this in Genesis 1 and 2 where God created a perfect world with everything needed for living forever in his presence. He assured all was in place and in perfect order before even creating man.
Although sin scarred this perfection, God maintained a strong hold on his choice of us and assured we would continue to see him even amid the consequences of sin. In Romans 1:20 we see, “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities–his eternal power and divine nature–have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”
Being chosen to be on God’s team simply requires us to accept the invitation by faith. This assures us of an eternal position in Christ. God did not choose us because we are good enough or holy and righteous on our own. He chose to do everything necessary to get us on his team because of his great love for us. This love compelled him to offer his Son as a substitution for the punishment our sin deserved. So being chosen in Christ reflects the depth of God’s desire to have us with him.
Most captains choose people for their team who will help them win. The motives are self-serving. God chose us so that WE could win. In our own ability, strength, and wisdom, we bring little to the table to help the team. However, once we accept his invitation to join with God through Jesus, he gives us all we need to be successful teammates.
I am chosen by God to join the most rewarding and fulfilling place imaginable. With my decision to accept this position, I assure I will never be sitting on the sidelines hoping to get in the game, but I am specifically empowered by God’s Holy Spirit to be right in the middle of the action.