Last Sunday we began our study of the Book of Ephesians and discussed
the author of the book, the Apostle Paul. From Ephesians 3 we made note
of the fact that (1) He knew who he was; (2) He knew his authority; (3)
He was willing to obey God. Of special note are the words in Ephesians
3:3 “…by revelation He made known to me the mystery …”
I love a good mystery story. Occasionally we watch the television program
called MONK. He is an emotionally unstable detective who has a keen ability
to unravel mysteries. The smallest details seem to be the best clues!
But God has the most wonderful mysteries … some of which He has revealed
to us and some which are yet to be revealed! Paul was given the ability
to unravel some of the mysteries of God in the book of Ephesians. Please
read with me in Ephesians one …
Eph 1:3
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed
us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
Did you know that the God of all Creation, the One who is called Our
Father by those who are born again, has blessed us with every spiritual
blessing in heaven? Isn’t that great? But what is a blessing? The Greek
scholars describe it this way: A blessing is a benefit bestowed … a gift
to prosper you … someone who speaks well of you. You and I have the benefit
of all of gifts of God which He has in heaven, He has made us to prosper,
because He speaks well of us! We are blessed and highly favored!
But how would you describe those blessings? Well, Paul described them
for us:
Eph 1
4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that
we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
Please underline the word “chose us” in your Bible. I know I’ve asked
you to do that before but I want to remind you. You and I were chosen
by God before He created the heavens and the earth. We didn’t choose
Him. He chose us! This is His grace in action! In love, He reached out
to the unknown and the unresponsive and called them to Himself, that
we might become holy and without blame before Him!
Notice this! The blessing given to us is that we are chosen … so we
can become holy and without blame before Him. We are not chosen to be
blessed … we are chosen to become holy! We have not been chosen so we
can continue in sin … but that we would become blameless before Him,
being released from the bondage of sin.
The mystery of this is still evident in the world around us. If you
ask the average person of the world, regardless of the nation he comes
from, about the best method of receiving God’s best blessings, he will
probably tell you that God’s blessings must be earned. Within Christianity
you will probably find a number of Christians who believe that God’s
blessings must be earned! But the revelation to the apostle Paul of God’s
mystery is that God has chosen us to be blessed with holiness! You have
been chosen by God!
And in His choosing, He predestined us!
5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself,
according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory
of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
I must admit that I do not understand God’s choosing, nor the depth
of what He means when He says that we are predestined to become be adopted
as children of God, but mark these words in your Bible. He “predestined
us” and He “adopted us.”
Some have construed the meaning of predestination to mean that God
arbitrarily chose some people to become Christians … and He chose others
to not become Christians. The problem with that idea is that it doesn’t
ring true in the light of other Scriptures in the Bible. Specifically,
2 Peter 3:9
(Our Father) is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should
perish but that all should come to repentance.
To my understanding, God’s foreknowledge of who would chose Him in
time would allow Him to predestine before time all of those who would
be adopted as sons and daughters of God. God’s desire, however, is for
all to come to repentance. We should therefore continue to reach out
to those around us and speak to the lost about Christ!
Before we leave Ephesians 1:5 let us look again at the word “adopted.”
Those who are adopted into the family of God have all the rights of a
child born into God’s family! Do you know the name of the child who was
born into God’s family: the Son of God? Jesus! As God’s Son He owns everything
that belongs to His Father! But did you know that He gladly shares all
of His Father’s possessions with those who are His adopted brothers and
sisters? We’ve been adopted into God’s family! Paul writes in Romans
…
Rom 8:17 (we are) heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ,
Wow! We are blessed, we are chosen, we are predestined, and we are
adopted! We have in this life all that Jesus had in this life … and we
have in heaven all that He has been given! Isn’t that incredible? Doesn’t
that strengthen your faith? We have been given the right as sons and
daughters of God to avail ourselves to the power of God to overcome sin,
to cast down destructive habits, to cast out demons, to heal the sick,
to preach deliverance to the captives, and to open the eyes of the blind!
Let’s do it!
What else did God reveal to the Apostle Paul?
7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins,
according to the riches of His grace 8 which He made to abound toward
us in all wisdom and prudence,
Not only were we chosen to become holy, but in Christ we have been
given the ability and the power to become holy! By His grace we have
redemption and the forgiveness of sin!
Underline those words as well! Redemption – Forgiveness – Grace. The
reason we are not required to work hard to please God in order to get
His blessings is that (1) its impossible to do enough to desire His favor,
and (2) He provided His blessings for us through His grace! Our Father’s
gracious and benevolent character is displayed in the death of His Son
on the Cross. The blood of Christ redeemed us (bought us back) from sin
and provided forgiveness for before the Father.
It was God’s wisdom that provided the plan of redemption. The world’s
wisdom demands continued punishment to mankind as well as continual demands
of good works and sacrifices in order to find favor with God. But that
wasn’t God’s plan. God’s plan was to provide one perfect sacrifice that
would be sufficient for all people for all time! Jesus died on the cross
to provide forgiveness and redemption! That is God’s plan of grace!
But God wasn’t through! Now we know the revelation of one mystery …
He reveals another one!
9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His
good pleasure which He purposed in Himself,
10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather
together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which
are on earth — in Him. 11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance,
being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things
according to the counsel of His will,
12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His
glory.
After revealing the plan of redemption, He wanted us to know that we
have also obtained an inheritance in heaven. We are redeemed from sin
in order that we would live a holy life, so we can show forth His glory
in Heaven. Eternity will be a time when God says … “Look at my family
… see how well I’ve blessed them! Their joy and fulfillment is a reflection
of my loving provision.” His design is to give us His best for all eternity!
He wants to show us off! Peter said it this way …
1 Peter 2:9
you are a chosen generation , a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His
own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called
you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
We are blessed to be chosen! But the mystery reveal doesn’t end here!
Paul adds two more verses to this part of the revelation:
13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel
of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with
the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance
until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His
glory
We have a guarantee of our inheritance! The Holy Spirit is the One
who drew us to Christ, and when we believed and trusted in Him, it was
the Holy Spirit who applied the blood of redemption to our lives. Then
He stamped the seal of God’s approval on us as a promise of future blessings!
We are not alone in maintaining a relationship with God through faith
in Jesus Christ! The Holy Spirit of promise is the Helper who is called
to help us make it until the day of our final redemption. And He promises
that He will help us! The Holy Spirit guarantees His help! These are
not empty words! He will call us, correct us, reprove us, teach us, draw
us, and push us until we finally stand before our Father in heaven! He
cares that much! That is His guarantee!
This is all a mystery that cannot be understood by those outside the
Body of Christ!
By Grace we are:
Blessed
Chosen
Predestined
Adopted
Redeemed
Forgiven
We have an Inheritance
We have the guarantee of the Holy Spirit
!
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