We are going to discuss what it means to be an heir with Christ. 

“The Spirit himself 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.” Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭16‬-‭17‬ (‭ESV)‬‬

What does it mean to be a fellow heir with Christ?

Heir in Greek is the word kleronomos (clay ron om ahs) and means: in Messianic usage, one who receives his allotted possession by right of sonship or one who has acquired or obtained the portion allotted to him. 

This means that because of our sonship, there is a portion allotted to us to possess. We, as fellow heirs with Jesus, have an allotment of an inheritance. What is that inheritance? How do we take possession of this inheritance? 

What is our Inheritance?

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” Matthew‬ ‭25‬:‭34‬ ‭(‭ESV)

Before the foundation of the world was laid, God prepared a kingdom for us to inherit. This is not a physical kingdom, rather it is a spiritual kingdom. Because it is a spiritual kingdom, it has more power, more authority, and supersedes any earthly kingdom. The spiritual always trumps the physical. This is why the physical follows the spiritual. 

Blessings in Matthew 5

In Matthew 5 we have a list of blessings given to us by Jesus. We call them the Beatitudes. In this list of blessings there are a few that Jesus promises us inheritance. Let’s take a look at them now. 

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

”Matthew‬ ‭5‬:‭5‬, ‭9‬-‭10‬ (‭ESV)

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” What does it mean to be meek? The BLB gives us a great definition:

“Meekness toward God is that disposition of spirit in which we accept His dealings with us as good, and therefore without disputing or resisting. In the OT, the meek are those wholly relying on God rather than their own strength to defend against injustice. Gentleness or meekness is the opposite to self-assertiveness and self-interest. It stems from trust in God’s goodness and control over the situation. The gentle person is not occupied with self at all. This is a work of the Holy Spirit, not of the human will (Gal 5:23).”

So those who are meek accept the way God deals with you as always being good, and as such do not resist the way in which God is dealing with you

Those who are meek rely on God to defend them and not on their own strength and power to defend injustices thrown their way.

Those who are meek rely on God to promote them and are not looking to their own interests, but instead they are selfless, generous, and self-sacrificing in order to do and be all that God designed them to be and do.

Example of Abraham

Abraham is a great example of someone who was self-sacrificing in order to further the kingdom of God. How? When God asked Abraham to move to a land far away from all he had ever known, far away from his family and friends, Abraham said, “Yes.” Abraham had faith that God was good, and despite what Abraham may have wanted, he obeyed the call of God on his life. He packed up his wife, and nephew and left for a place he may have only heard horror stories about growing up. I can imagine his family talking about the terrible people who lived in the land God would promise to give to Abraham and his descendants. I’m sure the conversations made that place seem like a big, scary place that they should all stay away from at all costs. Yet, in a few, short years God would come to Abraham and tell him to move to that very place. Abraham obeyed and in Hebrews we are told:

“By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God.” Hebrews‬ ‭11‬:‭8‬-‭10‬ ‭(‭ESV)‬‬

Abraham went to the land of promise, trusting that if God was telling him to go, God would provide and protect him. 

In fact, Abraham grew to understand the God who Provides aka Jehovah Jireh so much he names a place Jehovah Jireh.

“So Abraham called the name of that place, “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”” Genesis‬ ‭22‬:‭14‬ ‭(‭ESV)

Notice that Abraham called the place “The Lord will provide”? He is not exactly calling God The Lord will provide, although it is God who provides. What does this mean? It means that The Lord will provide or Jehovah Jireh is a realm. Jehovah Jireh is a realm we can go to when we need provision. This is a realm within Jesus where we can go when we need him to provide something for us. After all, Jesus is also Jehovah Jireh. 

Hotel Jesus

Dan Duval describes this realm like a hotel. He calls it Hotel Jesus. Imagine going into a hotel with many different rooms. There is the room of provision, the room of peace, the room of healing, etc. 

When we need one of these resources given to us as an inheritance, we can go to Hotel Jesus and go to one of those rooms, or realms and learn the lessons of that realm. 

So when Abraham called the place The Lord will provide, Jehovah Jireh, he was acknowledging this realm. The realm of provision. 

The Realm of Peace

Another realm I discovered this week is the realm of Jehovah Shalom, the Lord is peace. For this realm we go to Judges 6. This is where God calls Gideon to defeat the Midianites. 

First, God tells him to destroy the altars to Baal and Ashteroth and put an altar to Jehovah in their place. Then Jesus, aka the angel of the Lord, came and had a meal with Gideon and told him that he would defeat the Midianites. After the angel of the Lord  tells Gideon that peace is with him, don’t be afraid, and he will live and not die, and then disappears before his eyes we read this verse:

“Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and called it, The Lord Is Peace.” Judges‬ ‭6‬:‭24a‬ ‭(‭ESV)‬‬

Gideon built an altar and called it The Lord is Peace. Again, this is a place, a realm, not just a name of God. Is Jesus Jehovah Shalom? Yes. 

Like Jehovah Jireh, Jehovah Shalom is a realm we can go to. Do you feel like the world is too much to bear? Go to Jehovah Shalom. Learn to live, work, and minister in the realm of Jehovah Shalom. You will then understand what Paul meant when he said,

“do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭(‭ESV)

When we live and work from the realm of Jehovah Shalom, we will never be anxious about anything. We will always be filled with the peace of God that surpasses all understanding. This shalom will guard your heart and mind because you are in the realm of Jehovah Shalom, which is a realm in Jesus. 

I encourage you to talk to Jesus about these realms. Ask him to reveal to you how you can live out of the provision of Jehovah Jireh, and the peace of Jehovah Shalom. You can do the same thing for all the other names of God too! Each name is also a realm where you can go and learn to live. This is very good news my friends!