“Long ago, even before he made the world, God chose us to be his very own through what Christ would do for us. . . . His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family by sending Jesus Christ to die for us.” Ephesians 1:4-5 (TLB)

The whole reason God created the universe is because he wanted a family—and that family is the church. His church is the only reason the universe exists.

Did you know that before God thought of the universe, he thought of you? That's how valuable you are; that's how much you matter to God. 

How can you tell something is really valuable to someone? By looking at what they’re willing to pay for it. Christ died for the church. When someone's willing to give their life for something, it has incredible value.

The Living Bible paraphrase says, “Long ago, even before he made the world, God chose us to be his very own through what Christ would do for us. . . . His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family by sending Jesus Christ to die for us” (Ephesians 1:4-5).

Long before God made the world, his unchanging plan has been to accomplish his purposes through the church—not through nations, governments, or corporations. Earthly institutions are temporary, and they’re not big enough to tackle all the global problems. Only the church is big enough. And only the church will last forever.

Let's put this in perspective. It’s estimated there are about 2.6 billion Christians in the world today. That’s more people than live in China, the world’s most populous country.

So, not only does the church have the greatest participation on the planet, but it also has the highest motivation: God’s love. 1 John 4:19 says, “We love because he first loved us” (NIV).

Isn’t it incredible to know that the church, the whole reason God created the universe, is motivated by God’s love? That’s just another reason why there is no greater privilege than to be part of God’s family.