True Belonging: Safety and Security in Christ
What Is Belonging?
There is a spot on our couch where I know Baxter will be. He belongs there. Not in the sense that he is oppressively ordered to stay but in the sense that it’s his spot that he has made his own. Walking inside each day, I can count on the fact that my fourteen year old dog is laying his head on the arm of the couch fast asleep or looking out the window at squirrels and birds. He loves that spot. He is dedicated to that spot. He belongs there.
You know the times when you witness various people fill certain roles on a sports team or a job position or find a spouse. You have that comforting thought of seeing that match and saying, “They belong together.” It’s the type of feeling similar to finally laying on your bed at night undisturbed by others to eagerly get some much needed sleep after a long day of good work. When you pull the covers over you while sinking into the comfort of your mattress, the thought comes to your mind, “I belong here.”
Safe. Secure. Rest. Relaxation. Freedom. Familiarity. This is what it means to belong.
An Eternal Belonging
As great as these experiences of earthly belonging are, they are nothing in comparison to an eternal belonging to Jesus Christ. “I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world” (Jn. 17:6a). Our Father in Heaven—He who is unrivaled in loving kindness—possessed us by virtue of being the Creator of all things. In the eternal decree of our Triune God, the Father gave us to His eternally begotten Son for the purpose of Redemption.
When did this “giving” occur? Ephesians 1:4 talks about how the Father “chose us in Him” (i.e. Christ) “before the foundation of the world”. Before time made its first “tick”. Before any actions occurred. Before anyone moved toward God. Before it all, God—in eternity past and independent of time—sovereignly and freely chose a vast multitude of people to be unconditionally elected for redemption in Christ. In this choosing, the Father gave to the Son all the elect and the Holy Spirit would be their promised seal. This one will of our one Triune God is called Covenant of Redemption. And in this Covenant of Redemption, we find eternal belonging—a belonging that was secured for us even before we existed.
An Intimate Belonging
Belonging to Christ means that He embraces you without a hint of future rejection. It is the undying, unwavering, unrelenting heartbeat of love for you. Despite anything you have ever done or could ever do, His immutable decree reached out to put a ring on your finger and say, “They are mine, and I am theirs.” This is no begrudging acceptance yet it is also not the soft-and-mushy backbone-less type of belonging. It is a holy belonging where God ensured that sin would be graciously and justly dealt with (Rom. 3:19-26).
This eternal decree cannot be hindered by time, actions, enemies, circumstances, or sins. The belonging that you have with Christ is one where He welcomes you with His covenant smile (Num. 6:24-26), nods His head in delightful approval, and unashamedly publicly owns you as His friend. It was in eternity past that God chose to save you, a wicked sinner, so that He might forgive your sins and clothe you with the spotless righteousness of Christ. Within the unfolding of time, Christ would unite you to Himself by the presence of the Holy Spirit who would cry in your heart, “Abba! Father!” (Rom. 8:15).
A Heavenly Belonging
But for Jesus, saving us on Earth is not enough. He longs to be with us in Heaven. “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world” (Jn. 17:24). The word for “desire” in that verse conveys not only the idea of longing but of sovereign willing. Jesus is not vainly “wishing upon a star” but using all His Heavenly authority to bring us home to experience the glorified belonging with Him. No one wants to be with you more than Jesus wants to be with you.
This belonging to Jesus stretches from eternity past into eternity future. You’re safe with Him. He’s guaranteed it. He gave Himself up for you on the Cross so that He might forever have you with Him. You’re one of His members, forming part of His Church, and belonging in the right place.
Dear believers, speak to your anxious and doubting hearts this truth. Say with Samuel Rutherford, “My heart is not the compass that God steers by.” He steers by His eternal immutable decree—a decree that has your name in it (Rev. 13:8)!