Who Do You Think You Are?
Blessed, Chosen, and Accepted
Today we begin a new series of messages from the book of Ephesians that will take us into the Easter Season to help us find our identity in Christ.
A.) When Paul wrote Ephesians, there was a phrase that he used over and over again, “In Christ.” In fact in the first four chapters alone, I count about 30 variations of Paul expressing who we are or what we have being in Christ, or in Him, (through Christ, by Christ, etc) and so on.
When a teacher says something over and over that much, it’s got to be important. In fact, in all of the New Testament Paul writes about our identity in Christ over 200 times.
B.) Not only is it that important, but I think he repeats himself that much because we are very apt to forget “Who we are” and “Whose we are.”
C.) Do you struggle to remember? For instance, Paul addresses the church people at Ephesus like this: “to the saints who are at Ephesus, and who are faithful in Christ Jesus.”
Do you think that he is just talking to the perfectly faithful Christians? How many would that be? Of course not, what he is doing is reminding them the whole church that though they are imperfect and unfaithful, they must remember their identity is in Christ...that they are covered by the blood atonement of Christ, that God claims them as faithful saints regardless of their faithfulness.
Our identity in Christ is not about our behavior, our standing, or our choices, but in Christ’s perfection.
D.) Do you feel like a faithful saint this morning? Maybe not.
I’m afraid that when we forget who we are and whose we are, we feel unsure and insecure. That leads to wandering and doubts. That leads to compromise, and backsliding.
Then we have an enemy who challenges us and says, “a child of God doesn’t act like that; you couldn’t possibly be a real believer.” Or, “God wouldn’t take you back, you have fallen too far.”
E.) Some of you today are walking in fear that you don’t fit into God’s family. Some of you today are bound by these exact strongholds.
You don’t have to. It’s not who you think you are, it’s who you are in Christ.
Transition: The first chapter of Ephesians lists several realities for the person in Christ. We will consider three of them today:
1. I am blessed.
2. I am chosen.
3. I am accepted.
1.) I am blessed
v.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,
A.) Over the last year I’ve really enjoyed talking about physical blessing that the Lord provides for us. And to be sure, the person who is in Christ can expect good gifts in the physical realm, but Paul wishes to remind us of the “spiritual” blessings that we have in Christ.
We may tend to forget what we have in Christ when we look around for the miracles and we don’t see them happening. When calamity comes and our plans fail. When the sickness takes its toll or when our relationships are rockier than ever.
B.) Paul knows all about being disappointed. He is writing this letter to the Ephesians from a Roman prison where he knows he probably won’t leave alive. While he could use some material things, he chose to remind the Ephesians that our most precious blessings are spiritual ones.
C.) I know that many of us want to witness the blessings that are stored up in the heavenlies come down right now to the earth. And we are welcomed to ask God to do so.
But sometimes we need to be reminded that this world is not our home. Our identity is not wrapped up in how many earthly blessings we receive.
What makes us so special is that God has created us a new person. He has given our spirit life that will go on forever. And while we sit in lack of things we want and sometimes need, when we sit in want of freedom, and when you desire better health and more love, you remember that “every” spiritual blessing is yours through Christ.
D.) Spurgeon asked his congregation what’s better?
A new heart or a new coat?... spiritual blessings. “are the rarest, the richest, the most enduring of all blessings.”
E.) I think it’s very possible that when we focus so much on the physical blessings we receive, we are tempted to think it has something to do with our behavior.
“If I’m being good, God’s going to bless me.” That’s not the point Paul is making. He is reminding you that your blessings in the heavenlies are absolutely not given to you on merit.
Listen to what Paul adds to this in the second chapter:
5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
F.) Paul says “when you remember whose you are, remember who you used to be.” You were dead in sin when God granted you every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies! You did nothing to deserve his blessings, and you can’t do any more now to receive more spiritual blessings. They are already yours.
Maybe you need reminding today who you used to be, where you came from and what God has given you.
Secondly, a person in Christ is chosen
2.) I am Chosen
4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.
A.) I know what it is like to not be chosen on a basketball court or a baseball team. I know what it is like to be overlooked when it came to girls. I know what it is to not get the job I applied for.
In every circumstance, I felt like it was because I didn’t have the right stuff. I wasn’t good enough, attractive enough, had the right credentials or skills. I wasn’t chosen because of my lack of merit.
B.) When it comes to God choosing people to be his own, it is not based on how high you can jump, whether you are pretty or handsome enough or even what skills you bring to the kingdom.
God chooses people with one criteria: “In Him.” That is, you are chosen in Christ or through Christ. Through what Christ did. Through how Christ made the only way for salvation through his death on the cross.
C.) IOW, it is not through any great decisions on our part, but only through the acting of God. For example, notice when this choice was made: “before the foundation of the world.”
So you have been chosen by God to surrender to Christ and receive his gift of salvation, not based on any works, but solely on his loving kindness.
D.) This is why we can be confident in our identity in Christ, because being a chosen person isn’t something that we can control. If it was up to me to make my choice for God, I wouldn’t be standing here today. I make horrible decisions for myself! What makes one think that they would choose to die to self to receive Christ without first God drawing that person to Himself by His election?
We can be confident that our position in Christ is firm because it was made for us before we even existed.
E.) Notice that the verse says that we were chosen to be holy and blameless before Him. That means we have a status of “holy” and blameless before Christ.
This doesn’t mean that God chooses imperfect people and then suddenly expects them to be perfect. These are not terms of behavior, they are terms of standing:
F.) holy means that we are set apart...specially designed and separated for a special purpose.
Blameless means that we are free from condemnation.
G.) The gospel.
H.) perhaps you say, that is all well and good that we have a perfect standing in Christ, but aren’t we supposed to act differently.
Of course, Ephesians is both a doctrinal book and a practical book. The first part reminds us of the doctrinal truth of our position in Christ and then tells us that we must live holy lives.
I like to think of it like this, we are to live like family…that’s what it is about to tell us, that we are accepted into the family of God.
3. I am Accepted
in love, 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. (NKJV)
A.) I know that talk of predestination, election and the like can get people confused, but one thing that isn’t confusing at all is that among difficult language there is love.
Just look at each statement:
• In love…adopted
• According to the (NASB) “Kind Intention of His will”
• To the praise of the glory of His Grace
• Accepted; (NASB)Which is freely bestowed
• In the beloved.
B.) What is the central theme here? Love, grace adoption, liberty...Acceptance…Family.
It is that God personally loves you. By choice, by design, loves you and wants to know that you are family to him.
C.) Who do you know that is family to God the Father? Jesus. So in the same way, God adopts you as a daughter or son to be to Him just like Jesus.
D.) Paul says in Romans 8:15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”
We are reminded that Jesus revolutionized our thoughts of God the Father when he taught his disciples to pray to Abba Father. That is the most personal form of him saying, “Daddy.” God loves you as family.
E.) And no one ever stops being a son or daughter!
Remember that Jesus described the love of our Father in the story of the prodigal son. The Son was demanding and rebellious and left his home, but the father never stopped loving him and awaiting his return. Not to chastise him or make him a slave, but to take up his rightful place as family.
Invitation
Who do you think you are?
A.) Maybe you’ve forgotten that you have a loving father waiting for you to return to his love today. Maybe you would do as the prodigal did, come to your senses and remember you are and whose you are and you would come home.
B.) Satan would have you feel too ashamed at where you’ve been and how you’ve acted. But don’t get caught up in your failures and weaknesses. You were never blessed chosen or accepted based on your works. This is all grace.
C.) Maybe you’ve never been a part of God’s family but you want to today. You’ve always known that He has loved you and is pursuing you to His own. You have a great opportunity today to come to the Father. You can be saved today and if you would like help I’m going to ask that you speak to God in a prayer today.
D.) For others, you needed reminding that were once called out of loneliness, rejection, and sin. You’ve forgotten that somewhere down the road. You have been struggling with doubts and strongholds that are not for those in Christ. You needed reminding that you have all the Spiritual blessing available to those who are chosen and accepted. I need to be reminded of that today.
E.) We have these name tag here this morning, not so that you can write your name on it, but what you feel is the most needed reassurance in your life today. Perhaps you would say: “I am …. Fill in the blank.
