Exalted
How long has it been since you stopped to marvel at this?
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:4-6)
This comes right after Paul talks about Jesus being exalted by God to the heavenly places. That we understand. But us? Exalted to heavenly places…now?
We tend to think more along these lines:
We ourselves…groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. (Romans 8:23-25)
Our hope is future. Right now we groan, longing for the final redemption. This is more what it feels like, isn’t it? And yet, just a few verses later, Paul writes:
For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. (verses 29-30)
Glorified! A done thing! Generally I’ve heard it explained that, since God knows the end from the beginning, our ultimate glorification is as good as done. That’s true, but I’m not sure it’s the whole story that Paul intends for us to think about.
It appears to me that Paul is tapping into the same awe and wonder that John does, in reflecting on what God has already done in us.
See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are… Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. (1 John 3:1-2)
There is a future, yes—a transformation, just as Paul describes. But already, now, we are exalted to the position of children of God Himself! Or in Paul’s wording, He has raised us up to heavenly places in Christ Jesus.
How often do we stop to marvel at the exaltation we’ve already experienced? To be named the sons and daughters of God! This is something the New Testament writers never lost sight of. The rest of Romans 8 has a lot to say about it, for instance verses 15-17:
You have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by which we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
Again, the exalted position of having God as our Father now, combined with the glory to come.
There are quite a number of other passages that reflect the same awe at being God’s children. It’s something to watch for in your reading. And don’t neglect allowing yourself to marvel.
I think all these passages reflect the amazing, intense prayer of Jesus right before his arrest, recorded in John 17. Jesus prayed, “The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one…” (v 22) There it is, the glory already given to us. And, “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory…” (v 24) As Paul put it, exalted to the heavenly places with Christ Jesus. And right there is the exalted status once again, being God’s own children.
We are missing something vitally important, if we think being raised up to be with Jesus as only a future thing. And likewise we’re missing something vital if we only recognize the change in status now. It’s both. We are exalted now, and it doesn’t yet appear what we will be—but we know, it will be wonderful!
Love, Paul