God’s Love: We are Rich and Famous
Ephesians 1:3-10
August 10, 2014
Last week we started looking at what it means for God to love us. We took a look at the words of Isaiah in chapter 30, when God told the Israelites He didn’t like what they were doing in trusting the Egyptians for protection. They should be trusting God, but they didn’t. Yet, inspite of God’s anger and disappointment, He promised that when the people finally turned back to Him, He would be there — ready and willing to listen to their prayers and to bless the people. That’s a great God, folks!
We may reject one another, but God will never do that to us. God will never, never fail us, He will not abandon us, He will not forsake us. God always holds out . . . waiting for us to return to Him, and that’s part of the amazing power and strength we gain through God.
Today, I want to build on that just a bit, and all of this really is a precursor for our series we do beginning September 7, when we start a 30 week series called Believe. It’s going to be great, because the goal is to look at what we believe and why we believe, and ultimately, for us to think, act and become more like Jesus. That’s the goal of the series. Well, today, I want to look at Ephesians 1:3-10. Ephesians was written by Paul and is found in the New Testament. Let’s look at God’s Word ~
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,
4 even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him.
In love 5 He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will,
6 to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed us in the Beloved.
7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace,
8 which He lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight (go beyond what’s expected)
9 making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His purpose, which He set forth in Christ
10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth. — Ephesians 1:3-10
These are amazing words. In the Greek, this entire section, all the way through verse 14 — — was one sentence. It’s believed Paul was so excited about what he was writing that he didn’t really take a breath, but gave praise and glory to God for what He’s done for us.
Have you ever been so excited about something that you just start and you don’t even think of taking a breath, because your story is so great. That’s the image we have of Paul in this section of scripture. He was so excited about what he was saying, that it was one very long run on sentence.
If we take this passage slowly and really look at what Paul’s telling us about our relationship with God, we should be overwhelmed. We should realize how really wealthy we are. Do you remember that program, “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous?” With host Robin Leach? All those people who lived in such wealth and opulence - - - we are wealthier.
If you’re a sports fan, you know what happened to Paul George who plays basketball for the Indianapolis Pacers. Two weeks ago, he broke his leg, had surgery, and is expected to miss all of next season. To make himself feel better he bought this car. That’s a Ferarri 458 Spider. With modifications for his 6'9" body, the car cost him just under $400,000.
We can’t compare to that kind of wealth. But that car, and I’m not making a statement about Paul George’s faith, that car is not going to heal his spirit and his heart. In fact, he can’t even drive the car yet. And it won’t heal his leg, and really, it’s a pretty dangerous car. It goes from 0-62 in 3.3 seconds. I’m not sure where you can drive like that unless you own a racetrack. Plus, it only gets 17 mph on the highway, so who would want that car?
Now, listen to what Paul said in 2 Corinthians 8:9 ~ 9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became POOR, so that you by His poverty might become RICH.
Who would do that for you? Who would be rich in everything and give it all away, so they could become poor, and you would take on their richness? I don’t know anyone who’s willing to do that. We might give a few dollars to those in need, and that’s great. But are you willing to become poor, so I or anyone else here could become rich?
Jesus did that for you and I. He was willing to go to the cross for us. He was willing to leave the perfection and joy of heaven for you and I. He was willing to be rejected, beaten, mocked . . . for you and I. Yes, He became poor for us. Just leaving heaven meant He automatically became poor for us. Even to be born in a stable to poor parents. All so we could be viewed as righteous before God.
So, let’s look back at what Paul is telling us in Ephesians ~
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,
Notice how Paul looks at God. He says blessed be God? Why give praise and honor to God, because as Paul tells us, God has blessed us with the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ. Not only that through Christ we have how many spiritual blessings? Just a few right? Tell me how many blessings to do we have in Christ? EVERY spiritual blessing! Amen to that. Is that fantastic or what?! We have the opportunity in this world to experience EVERY spiritual blessing.
If we are willing to claim the blessings God has in store for us. We must have the eyes of our heart, spirit and mind open to the working of the Holy Spirit so we can claim and experience these spiritual blessings. God wants us to experience His blessings. He isn’t holding back on us. We’re the ones holding out on God, not trusting, not believing, not expecting, not being obedient. So we miss out on the blessings, then we wonder why God isn’t blessing us. It’s us, not God!
Then add to that, the fact that our blessings are not just here in this place, on this earth, but they are in the heavenly places. That’s our future home and a place which should give us great hope! We know that life may not always be what we want it to be on earth. We will have sickness, death, loss, grief, troubles, sorrow, frustrations, people won’t always like us, you can add whatever to that list . . . but you know what, it’s okay. It’s not fun, but it’s okay! It’s okay if people don’t like my posts on facebook and instagram. It’s okay if not everyone likes me. It’s okay, not that I like it, that I face trials, troubles, loss and more. I don’t like it . . .
But I know that one day, hopefully about 10,000 moons from now, I will have the joy and honor of experiencing the joy of heaven. And I know there will be no problems. There will be no hunger, no thirst, no frustrations, no sorrow, no pain, no death. It will be pure joy and power and glory. It will be so, so good and sweet! I will realize the total fullness of God’s perfect love and will totally know EVERY spiritual blessing. That’s what this God of ours has in store for us.
And that’s great news!! Amen?!
Now, Paul doesn’t stop, he’s just getting started. I love what Paul said here. How can you not like this? He said, God chose us. He chose you! You were first on His list of people He wanted to redeem, people He wanted to hang out and know and have you know Him. I know I’ve spoken about what it’s like to be picked for teams when you’re not athletic. It’s defeating and really hits our self image. But – that isn’t happening with God. He calls you and wants you for Him. He picks you. Even if you’re hiding behind others, God sees you and wants you on His team. There’s no better feeling than to be picked in the first round.
And friends, you have been chosen. Do you get that? He chose you. That’s intentional. It’s not a mistake. It’s not that you were the last person standing. NOPE! He chose you. Why? Because He wants you to be in relationship with Him. He loves you that much, so He could give you EVERY spiritual blessing.
And when He chose you . . . get this, He chose you to be in Him, and He in you. You are His, you are nobody else’s but God’s. You’re identity isn’t based on what you’ve accomplished, it’s not based on your home, your job, your education, your wealth, it’s based only on your identity in Him.
And . . . oh it gets better! He chose you before you were ever a twinkle in your mama’s eyes. Yup, God chose you before the foundation of the world. Before there was water, you were on God’s heart and mind. Before the world was created, God already had your picture on His refrigerator. Before you could do one good thing . . . before you could do one bad thing . . . God had you picked out. He wanted you and by doing it this way, you can’t take any credit for earning your salvation. It’s a gift from God. BUT, also you can’t say you’re so bad — there’s no way God could love me. Because it’s a gift from God. He loves you — no matter how bad you’ve been His grace and forgiveness is even greater. Jesus did not go to the cross to suffer and die so that God could condemn you! No way!
And we’re still not done with verse 4. That’s just how great this passage is —
so a quick recap so you don’t forget ~
we are blessed in Christ
we receive every spiritual blessing
we are chosen by God
We’re chose by God to be in Him
we can’t be good enough to earn our salvation
we can’t be so bad we can’t be forgiven . . .
Now Paul tells us we are holy and blameless before God. Do you hear that? You holy? HA! No way. Not the you I know! No way God views you as holy AND blameless? You’ve got to be kidding me?
Ooh, this is so cool folks. I had goose bumps as I was writing this. You see as I am typing I can hear myself saying this. I can so vividly picture this very moment.
God looks at us as holy and blameless. Only God is holy. You know how many people in the Bible were described as blameless? Noah and Job! That’s it. Others had moments, but God describes these two men as blameless. So, what does it mean to be holy and blameless? To be holy literally means to be “distinct or different.” It takes on a further connotation that we’re set apart. We’re called to be different from the world because we are like the Lord. We have been set apart because we have been called by God.
To be blameless means we are without blemish, without defect, and I like this, we are unblameable and faultless. I like that. I’m unblameable and without fault. Do you get it, that’s how God now views us because of what Jesus did on the cross. Because of His death and His resurrection, we are now viewed by God as holy and blameless.
Theologically it’s called imputed righteousness. Because of the work of Jesus, God views us as righteous. It’s not anything we ever did. It’s what Jesus did for us.
Whew! We’re just getting started. But I want to stop, because there is too much I’m pouring into your hearts and spirits this morning. I want you to stop and consider, even reread these verses.
Understand in your heart, spirit and mind what God has done for us. Just in these 2 verses, God has so richly blessed us.
we are blessed in Christ
we receive every spiritual blessing
we are chosen by God
We’re chose by God to be in Him
we can’t be good enough to earn our salvation
we can’t be so bad we can’t be forgiven . . . and
God declares us holy (set apart) and blameless (without fault).
Drink that in every time something bad happens this week! Hold onto His Word, His blessings and know, trust and believe God is with you . . . always!
