The Controlling Metaphor of Faith

And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth. Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan. - Ephesians 1:110-11

Over and over again the Apostle Paul tries to help us understand the implications of Christ coming. Paul’s biggest metaphor for this endeavor is that we are now family with God. In this particular passage the emphasis is on us having an inheritance, a guaranteed investment that we have access to now. And the reason we’ve got this inheritance is because before time even began, God looked on us and loved us and adopted us into the family.

Is this the controlling metaphor you have for the faith - that we are God’s beloved family? Or is there another big image you fall back on to understand what Christianity is about? Can you tell where your major image for Christianity came from? Does it make sense to you and does it help you?