The Benefits of Being In Christ
Ephesians 1:1-6
"Paul an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints who are at Ephesus, and who are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 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, just as He chose us in Him before us the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved."
Illustration
A young boy happened upon an old man who was fishing in the mighty Mississippi River. Immediately the lad began to ply the aged fisherman with a myriad of questions as only young boys can do. With the patience of the ages, the old man answered each query. Suddenly their conversation was interrupted by the shrill whistle of the majestic River Queen paddling relentlessly down river. The sight of the ship gleaming and splashing spray in the sunlight caused the surprised spectators to stare in awe and appreciation. Then above the noise of the paddle wheel was heard a small boy’s voice calling across the water; "Let me ride! Let me ride!" The old man turned to the boy and tried to calm him down explaining that the River Queen was too important a ship to stop and give rides to little boys. The young child cried all the more, "Let me ride!" Old eyes bulged in disbelief as that great ship pulled for shore and a gangplank was lowered. In a flash two young feet scampered up and onto the deck. The ship with its new cargo safely on board began to pull back into the main stream. The old man continued to stare after the ship. Then a shock of yellow hair appeared above the rail. It was quickly followed by two blue eyes, button nose, and cherub lips. "Mister, I knew this ship would stop for me. The captain is my father!" (Sermoncentral.com)
There are many benefits of being in Christ. Our text today will give you three (3) important benefits that we have in Christ if we receive Him in our lives as our personal Lord and Savior.
How to be in Christ is the subject of the first three chapters of Ephesians. If you will expose yourself to the light of God’s truth contained here, you will be able to see farther than ever before.
Now, let me ask you an important question: Do you really know who you are in Christ? How do you see yourself as a Christian? Do you see yourself as powerful? Or do you see yourself as powerless? Do you understand of what it means to be a child of God? Do see yourself in rags or in riches?
In the first six verses of Ephesians, we will discover at least three benefits of being in Christ.
I. We Are Valuable (v. 1)
As Paul opens this letter to the church, he addresses it to the "saints". This is a good biblical term commonly applied to all believers. In fact, in some ancient manuscripts, the designation "at Ephesus" is not found at the beginning of this letter. Because of that, many believe that this was a general letter from Paul to be circulated among all the churches. In any case, Christians are commonly referred to as saints. It comes from the Greek word hagios, which literally means "holy." To be a saint, in the New Testament sense of the word, is to be a "holy one." And that’s who we are in Christ.
According to God’s Word, all believers are already saints. From God’s perspective, we are saints, not because of who men say we are, but because of what Christ did for us. We are not holy because of our own good works or righteousness. The Bible tells us that "all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment." (Isaiah 64:6) We are righteous because Jesus died on the Cross so that He could give us His righteousness. We read in 2 Corinthians 5:21, "He {God} made Him {Christ} who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." We are now the righteousness of God in Christ. What an amazing statement! We’re holy!
Illustration
A well-known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $100.00 bill. In the room of 200, he asked, "Who would like this $100 bill?" Hands started going up. He said, "I am going to give this $100 to one of you but first, let me do this. He proceeded to crumple the $100 dollar bill up. He then asked, "Who still wants it?" Still the hands were up in the air.
Well, he replied, "What if I do this?" And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty. "Now, who still wants it?" Still the hands went into the air.
My friends, we have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $100. Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make, and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value. Dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are still priceless to those who love you. The worth of our lives comes not in what we do or who we know, but by WHO WE ARE. (Dan Steadman)
That’s we are in the sight of God despite what men are saying about us!
Sad to say that many believers that even our brethren in Christ despised us.
There is a quotation that says “He who looks up to God never looks on people.”
Paul advised us to “Consider others better than yourselves.” (Phil. 2:3b). That’s the key for good and lasting relationships.
Here is where we find the importance of knowing the truth. Unless we know our true position in Christ, we will never begin to live from that position. In Colossians 3:1-4 our position is described, "If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, and not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory."
We are now seated in heavenly places in Christ. That is our position. And we are saints because of our position in Christ. We are significant because of our position in Christ. This is what we must begin to see by faith. You have His permission to live like a saint.
II. We Have Sufficiency (v. 3)
In verse 3 we read, "blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who had blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ." According to this verse, God has given us sufficiency in Christ.
Look closer at this jewel of a verse. It is not that He will bless us. He has blessed us. It’s a done deal. And what has He blessed us with? He has not just given us a blessing; he has given us every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. It is not just a promise, its reality.
Story: Three pastors of ECCM are discussing to each other about life. One Pastor asked them, “Why all Christians are poor?" The other Pastor said, "because people measures their success with their money or propoerty."
Right! "Sufficiency is found not in having everything you want, but in not wanting to have everything." E.g. Manyan lifestyles
“When you have nothing left but God, you become aware that He is enough”
Now, if you do not know this truth, you will never appreciate it. In Christ we have sufficiency, because we have every spiritual blessing in Christ. And so we must learn to rely on our resources in Christ. In Christ, we are rich. The riches of Christ have already been deposited into our account. We must now begin to draw upon those riches.
III. We have Security (v.5-6)
In verse 4 we are told that God chose us in Christ. In verse 5 we are told that God predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ. And in verse 6 we are told that God freely bestowed His grace on us in the Beloved. So in Christ we are secure, because we are in the Beloved. Some translations say we are accepted in the Beloved. The point is that we are His. We are in Jesus. Therefore, we are secure. Our security rests on our relationship.
Illustration (Golden Gate Bridge in California USA)
During the first part of the construction of Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco USA there is no safety device used. Twenty-five men working fell and died. In the last part of the construction, they put a large net worth $100,000 so that they will be safe. Still many workers fell but they held by the net. They also noticed that 25% more work have been done because of the assurance of safety.
It was God’s will to choose us. He called us in order to adopt us as His sons and daughters. In other words, God has given us what we do not deserve. He has freely bestowed on us His grace and made us part of His family. No wonder John could say, "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!" (1 John 3:1).
“Security is our nearness to God, not our distance from danger” – Kenneth Hendren
God loves us. He has accepted us to give us security in life. God doesn’t change you so that He can love you; He loves you in order to change you. It is His love that changes you. Rest in your relationship in Christ. In Christ you are secure. In Christ you are accepted.
Conclusion
What a powerful passage! We are valuable, We have sufficiency and We have security.
Proverbs 23:7 "whatsoever a person thinks within himself, so he is." If you don’t believe in God’s message today you will not receive the benefits that God had promised us. Or probably you will not even try. But if you live based upon who God says you are, then you can hold your head up high. You are blessed because Christ lives in you.
We valuable, we have sufficiency, and we have security if we are in Christ!
God bless!
