When God looks at His people, the Church, how does He see them?

Read the following verses and reflect on what the Spirit of God is saying through His written Word.

NOTE: When the Bible says ‘no difference’ it is referring to the fact that in the eyes of God and with regards to salvation, there is no difference between different people groups. In reality, there was racism and discrimination in the times of the Old and New Testaments. Further to this, there were class differences, wealth differences, and favoritism that often stemmed from race/culture. Look up James 2:1-13.

Bible text(s)

Galatians 3

₂₈Faith in Christ Jesus is what makes each of you equal with each other, whether you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a free person, a man or a woman.

Galatians 3:28CEVOpen in Bible reader

Romans 10

₁₂no matter if that person is a Jew or a Gentile. There is only one Lord, and he is generous to everyone who asks for his help.

Romans 10:12CEVOpen in Bible reader

1 Corinthians 12

₁₃Some of us are Jews, and others are Gentiles. Some of us are slaves, and others are free. But God's Spirit baptized each of us and made us part of the body of Christ. Now we each drink from that same Spirit.

1 Corinthians 12:13CEVOpen in Bible reader

Revelation 7

People from every nation

₉After this, I saw a large crowd with more people than could be counted. They were from every race, tribe, nation, and language, and they stood before the throne and before the Lamb. They wore white robes and held palm branches in their hands,

Revelation 7:9CEVOpen in Bible reader

Revelation 14

The messages of the three angels

₆I saw another angel. This one was flying across the sky and had the eternal good news to announce to the people of every race, tribe, language, and nation on earth.

Revelation 14:6CEVOpen in Bible reader

When you read/study the text

WHAT DOES IT SAY? WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

When determining the meaning behind each verse, there are a number of rules for Bible interpretation:

Christ is the rule – All Scripture speaks of Christ, so seeing Him is the key to understanding the passage. Don’t read too much into it – If the plain sense makes common sense, seek no other sense.

Definitions – Carefully uncover the meaning of words as used in their context.

Application – The entire Bible is written for us. It is inspired and profitable, and we’re supposed to read all of it, listen to it, and apply it in our lives. However, not all of the Bible was written directly to us.

Context – A text without context is a pretext. Sometimes we presume the meaning. How does the text fit within the verses preceding and following?

HOW DOES IT APPLY? Write down any thoughts, insights, or questions that you may want to think about and study further.