Seven Spiritual Blessings
Part 3
Predestined Adoption
Foundational Text: Eph. 1:3-14
Text: Eph. 1:5-6
Intro: We have been looking for the past couple of weeks at spiritual blessings
- these are blessings that we overlook many times
- that we have a tendency to take for granted
- the reason it is so important for us to recognize and apply these spiritual blessings to our lives is because we are spiritual beings
We make decisions based on our spirit
- if our spirit is week we will make our decisions based on emotion and feelings
- if our spirit is strong we will make decisions based on righteousness and the word of God
- for this very reason Gods greatest blessings for your life are spiritual
Last week we looked at our first spiritual blessing Holy and Blameless
- Jesus made it possible for us to be above reproach
- Without guilt and shame
- This means the devil can no longer approach God and accuse us of our past sins
- We are above reproach
- We are protected
- The only way the devil can lay claim to us again is to tempt us or entice us away from God
- He can not come in and get us he has to draw us out
Read foundational text:
Ephesians 1:3-14 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
8 Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;
9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.
Our focus tonight is going to be on Vs 5&6
Let’s look at it again
Ephesians 1:5-6 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
I. Predestinated
I want to look at this word for just a bit
- there is a lot of confusion around this word
- there are even some groups that believe in what they call predestination
- in other words there are only a chosen few who will make heaven and there is nothing you can do ether way to change it
This is not what this scripture is talking about
This is not what this word even means
Adam Clark gives us a good definition of the word
“It is a boundary or a limit”
- a fixed purpose
- A predetermined boundary
- A border
It was originally a term used in geography
In our text this word was used to make the point that God had predetermined or that God had a fixed purpose and that purpose was that the gentiles would be able to receive the same blessing as the Jew
In other words
- You and I as adopted sons and daughters can partake of all the blessings that God has for His people
- This wasn’t something that God thought up at the last minute
- This was something He had predetermined from the beginning of time
- He had a predetermined purpose for you and me
- He never intended to leave us out of His plan
- We were a part of His plan before the foundation of the world
Ephesians 1:4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world…
Our text goes on to say in Vs 5 this was Gods pleasure
- God found pleasure in making a way for us
- God not only planned
- He not only purposed to adopt us
- But He found pleasure in it
- He wanted us
Do you understand the blessing here
What a blessing to be a part of a family that wants you
- you were not a mistake
- you were not an after thought
- you were not an accident
- but you were planned for
- this is why all heaven rejoices when one comes to salvation
Kids are born every day into families that do not want them
- they were an accident
- they were not planned for
- they were a mistake
Because of this they are treated different
- they are not treated as one of the family
- they are neglected
- they are abused
- they are mistreated
As a result of this they suffer from many things
- a spirit of rejection
- a feeling of being unloved and unwanted
- a feeling of being useless and unnecessary
- say things like I would have been better off if I had never been born
- my family would have been better off if I would have never been here
- many times they suffer from a spirit of guilt
- they feel they have messed up their mother or their fathers life
- because many times they are told just that
- they go through life feeling they are a constant burden and weight upon the family
- many commit suicide
The truth is many serve God with these same kinds of feelings
- they feel they are this constant burden to God
- they feel unwanted and unloved
This is one of the great strategies of the devil
- he tries to get you to feel like a unwanted burden
- like you were just an after thought on the mind of God
- like you were just an accident
This is why you hear people say things like, “there is no love in this place”
- the pastor doesn’t care for me
- nobody likes me here
- how could God love me
We know these things are lies
We know that God loves them
We try to explain it to them
- why would people have you over to their home if they don’t care for you
- why would they spend their fuel money to pick you up for church
- why would they call you on the phone to try to encourage you
We know it is all a lie but the devil has got them to buy into this spirit of rejection
- once they bite into that spirit it takes a miracle for them to be free
- they begin to wallow in self pity
- they become blinded by there emotions
- everything becomes an issue
- small things like pastor forgetting to shake your hand become devastating
The strategy of hell is to make you feel unwanted in the Kingdom of God
This is what our text is trying to make clear to us
The word predestined or foreordained does not mean that God chooses some persons for salvation and everyone else must go to hell in fact the word of God teaches us the exact opposite
John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
What our text is telling us is
- God wanted us
- He chose us
- He had a plan for us from the beginning
When the devil comes to you with lies of
- rejection
- feelings of being unloved
- unwanted
You can tell him
- God chose me
- From before the worlds were formed God had a plan for my life
- He had made a plan so that we could spend eternity together
- Not because he had to but because he wanted to
God loves and wants each of us
He wants to spend time with us
He enjoys your company
It is amazing to me how God always found time for Adam and Eve in the garden
- ever afternoon He would come down and fellowship with them in the cool of the evening
- it is the picture of a father that comes home from work and gets down in the floor with his children and plays with them and loves them
- this is how God feels about you
II. Adoption
The word adoption in our text means to place as a son
We have looked at this before when doing our study in Galatians
But let’s look at it again
What does it mean to be adopted?
It is a picture of what God has done for us
As we noted before in Roman law adoption was a serious matter
When a child was adopted in Paul’s day three legal steps were taken
1st the adoption was permanent
- you could not be unadopted
- the only way to loose your rights and privileges to that family was to choose to be adopted to someone else
- this is what backsliding is all about
- it is a choice you make to no longer be a part of the family of God
- the devil can not and did not make you do it you chose to be readopted back into his family
2nd the adopted son immediately had all legal rights as the legitimate son
- as children of God we have available to us all the blessings that Jesus has available to Him
- this is why Jesus was able to say, “and greater works than these shall ye do”
3rd the adopted son immediately lost all rights to the old family
- the devil no longer has claim on you
- the old debts are forgotten
- the old sins are cast away
- we become children of God
Galatians 3:26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
1 John 3:1-2 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
God planned from the beginning of time to adopt us
- He was just waiting on us
- What a blessing it is to be called a child of God
- What a blessing it is to be adopted into his family
- We were not accidents we were chosen
In one of Dr. J. Wilbur Chapman’s meetings a man arose to give the following remarkable testimony: "I got off at the Pennsylvania depot as a tramp, and for a year I begged on the streets for a living. One day I touched a man on the shoulder and said, ’Mister, please give me a dime.’
"As soon as I saw his face, I recognized my father. ’Father. don’t you know me?’ I asked. Throwing his arms around me, he cried, ’I have found you; all I have is yours.’ Men, think of it, that I, a tramp, stood begging my father for ten cents, when for eighteen years he had been looking for me to give me all he was worth!"
So the heavenly Father is waiting for you. Why not receive the unsearchable riches in Christ now?
—Moody Monthly Encyclopedia of 15,000 Illustrations
