Our Spiritual Blessings

1. Our Spiritual Blessings Ephesians 1:3-14

2. The Lord’s Supper • Come to the Lord's table • Celebrate the remembrance of His death for us • Focus on our salvation • Praise God that He has saved us • Our salvation is fully the work of God • It has been given to us – a gift • All the glory belongs to Him

3. One Sentence • One of the greatest passages of Scripture • God’s eternal plan for the world • The great blessings of God poured out on those who trust His Son Jesus Christ as their Savior • Verses 3-14 - all one sentence • Highly structured • Three distinct sections • the first addressing God the Father • the second God the Son • the third God the Holy Spirit • Each section ends with the phrase “to the praise of His glory” • vs. 6, 12, and 14

4. The One Who Blesses (v. 3) • God, the Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ • God receives all the praise in salvation • God is totally sovereign and all blessings come from Him • This is really Who and what this passage is all about! • God has brought about salvation by His own will, purpose, and design • Salvation does not result from anyone's will or merit • The verb translated "He chose" is reflexive = "to pick for oneself" • God chose us for His own sake -- for Himself personally • His choice of the saved was made before the world began

5. The Description of His Blessings • Every spiritual blessing • God’s best blessings are spiritual, not material blessings • Spiritual blessings are vastly superior to material blessings • In heavenly places • They are the blessings of the inner man • They are permanent and perfect and eternal, lasting forever • In Christ • Spiritual blessings are found only in Christ • He is in heaven and all heavenly blessings are His • He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords and all blessings are in Him • If a person is to experience the spiritual blessings, he must be in Christ • To be in Christ means to believe in God’s Son

6. Our Spiritual Blessings vv. 4-14 • He chose us - v. 4 • In Christ • Our only hope of ever living with God is to believe in Jesus Christ • That we should be Holy and without blame before Him in love • “holy” = to be set apart and consecrated to God • Same word that is used for “saint” in Ephesians 1:1 • “blameless” = to be free from sin, dirt, and filth; to be above reproach • Before the foundation of the world • God determined before the world was ever created that He would have a people... • who would be “in Him,” that is, in His Son, Jesus Christ • who would be “holy and without blame” • who would live “before Him in love”—forever and ever

7. He predestined us to adoption as sons - vv. 5-6 • The dimensions of our adoption • By Jesus Christ • To Himself • According to the good pleasure of His will • To the praise of the glory of His grace • By which He made us accepted in the Beloved • Consider how sinful and depraved we are and how much we have cursed, rebelled, and rejected God • “predestination” (proorisas) = to appoint before, to foreordain • The root Greek word (proorizo) = to mark off the boundaries • What God has done for the believer: • Marked off the boundary of being adopted as a child of God! • The believer’s eternal destiny is determined

8. He redeemed us v. 7a • Through His blood • In Him • “redemption” (apolutrosin) = setting a man free by paying a ransom • God Himself has paid the ransom for our release through the blood of Jesus Christ • Why? - because of the riches of His grace!

9. He forgave us v. 7b-8 • According to the riches of His grace • Abounds toward us in all wisdom and prudence • “wisdom” (sophia) = seeing and knowing the truth • “prudence” (phronesei) = seeing how to use and do the truth • It is seeing the direction to take • It is understanding, insight, the ability to solve day to day problems

10. He made known to us the mystery of His willvv. 9-10 • The key thought and great theme of Ephesians • In the Bible a mystery is not something mysterious and difficult to understand • It is a truth that has been locked up in God’s plan for ages until He was ready to reveal it • The mystery of God’s will • God is to gather together and unify all things in Christ Jesus • All things are to be brought under the authority and glorification of Jesus Christ • God has an eternal purpose and plan for the world • It is His pleasure to bring it about • What He does is all good • A new and perfect and eternal creation will be established for the Lord and His followers

11. He gave us an inheritance vv. 11-12 • God has given us an inheritance • “inheritance” (eklerothemen) = heritage • God takes the believer and makes him His own heritage • The believer himself is made the inheritance of God • Ephesians 1:17-18 • Predestined according to the purpose of His will • To the praise of His glory • We will live forever in the new heaven and earth as the perfect demonstration of His glory

12. He sealed us vv. 13-14 • God has sealed us with the Holy Spirit • “earnest” (arrabon) = pledge, guarantee, a down payment • The Holy Spirit is given to the believer as perfect assurance of his salvation • How does a person receive the inheritance? • By hearing the Word of God • A person has to hear the Word of God before he can ever know the truth, the glorious gospel of salvation • By believing and trusting in Jesus Christ • We know that we are redeemed by the Holy Spirit who lives within us

13. Why Does God Bless Us? • To the Praise of His Glory • 3 Times! • Only God deserves credit for our salvation • His blood • His grace • His purpose • His will • His good pleasure • His glory

14. Why Does God Bless Us? • Jesus said that all who don't believe in God's Son are condemned already - John 3:18 • God in His sovereign grace has chosen to save those who are saved - Romans 9:8-13 • A humbling truth • Why did God choose us and not others? • Not because we deserve salvation but to demonstrate "the riches of His glory" - Romans 9:14-23 • God’s sovereign election does not eliminate man’s choice in faith • God’s sovereignty and human response are integral and inseparable parts of salvation • Exactly how they operate together only the infinite mind of God knows

15. Why Does God Bless Us? • God saved us by His own free will, yet from our perspective we do two things: • we hope in Christ - v. 12 • we believe in Him - v. 13 • That too is to God's own praise and glory - v. 12 • God gives us the power to hope in Christ • Our faith is a gift from Him - Ephesians 2:8-9 • He opens our ears to hear the message of truth, and enables us to believe • The entire process of salvation is powered by the Holy Spirit, without whom no one could ever hope or believe

16. Why Does God Bless Us? • To the Praise of His Glory • Because we are “In Christ” • This phrase qualifies the blessings of God • “in Christ” - a key theme in the passage • Occurs 11 times in the sentence! • Drives the point home • It is only in Christ that we experience the blessings of God • There is no other way to the Father but through His Son, Jesus Christ!

17. “More to Follow”Charles Haddon Spurgeon • Every blessing that comes from God is sent with the same message "And more to follow" • "I forgive you your sins, but there’s more to follow" • "I justify you in the righteousness of Christ, but there’s more to follow" • "I adopt you into my family, but there’s more to follow" • "I educated you for heaven, but there’s more to follow" • "I give you grace upon grace, but there’s more to follow" • "I have helped you even to old age, but there’s still more to follow" • "I will uphold you in the hour of death, and as you are passing into the world of spirits, my mercy shall still continue with you, and when you land in the world to come there shall still be “more to follow”

18. Our only proper response Ephesians 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