Blake Jennings Grace Bible Church - Suthwd Every Spiritual Blessing Ephesians 1:1-14 When life gets hard, chse gratitude. Thank Gd fr the infinite wealth f spiritual blessings He's given yu. Yu were chsen by the Father, redeemed by the Sn, and sealed by the Spirit. Review: We help peple FIND and FOLLOW Jesus - FIND nt because He s lst but because we re lst we help peple find salvatin in Jesus - FOLLOW salvatin is just the beginning f the Christian life teach them t bey Jesus in every area f life = becme His disciples Fall 2017 Gal: Initiate spiritual cnversatins with at least 2 peple far frm Jesus If yur gal is t help peple find and fllw Jesus few bks better t study than Ephesians! - Whle Christian life in ne bk - Titled series: ALIVE TOGETHER The bk tells us hw t find life tgether in the family f Gd - 6 chapters 3 n right beliefs and 3 n right practices - Cvers Trinity, Christlgy, the Gspel, the Church, Spiritual gifts, the Future, Mrality, Marriage, Parenting, Spiritual warfare, Relatinships almst everything yu need t fllw Jesus is fund in this bk. T understand this bk, yu need t knw that ancient Ephesus was a very hard place t fllw Jesus! - Map lcated in mdern Turkey near the western cast Visited Ephesus 2 years ag here s sme f the things I saw - Full f idlatry Full f statues and temples t the gds Nike gddess f victry Hermes gd f shepherds and gd luck The greatest idl in Ephesus: Artemis her temple in Ephesus = 1 f 7 wnders f ancient wrld up there with pyramids hardly anything left f it tday but we knw it was awesme and in the center massive statue f the gddess Artemis cvered in breasts r eggs t symblize fertility All f Ephesus wrshipped Artemis nt ptinal all f city life fcused arund her Our 4 th f July = their annual Artemis festival everyne went where yu fund a spuse yur civic duty t g and wrship her S fr a Christian in Ephesus t nt wrship idls meant cutting yurself ff frm the life f yur city frm business, frm relatinships, frm entertainment incredible sacrifice - Immrality As yu walk the main rad in Ephesus yu will see this symbl shwed visitrs the way t the brthel in the middle f twn Prstitutin was nt under the rug in Ephesus it was ut in the pen fr all t participate in was nrmal, accepted - Persecutin Acts 19 Demetrius, silver smith wh made and sld silver shrines t Artemis, nticed that as peple in Ephesus began t accept the gspel, they stpped wrshipping Artemis, and stpped buying his
shrines. S he riled up the rest f the silversmiths and they came after Paul and led a city wide rit against the Christians. Christianity was nt ppular in Ephesus. Paul left Timthy t pastr the church in Ephesus and he wrte the bk f 2 Tim t encurage Timthy in that wrk. He says in 1:8 read 2 Tim 1:8 T be a Christian in Ephesus was t suffer. Persecutin was nrmal. It was nt like here in CS where fllwing Jesus is relatively easy. It was much mre like fllwing Jesus tday in Afghanistan where yu re putting yur life n the line t call yurself a Christian. S, Paul writes the bk f Ephesians t tell Christians hw t FOLLOW Jesus in an incredibly hard place. S, where des he begin? - If yu want t encurage a believer t fllw Jesus when it s hard, where d yu start? Let s find ut by reading first 14 verses - I wuld usually break up a passage this lng and read it in parts - The prblem is: there are n breaks! In Greek v3-14 is ONE SENTENCE!! Talk abut a run-n sentence! 202 wrds withut a pause! Like when my sn talks abut Minecraft s excited! Desn t take a breath. I think Paul gt really excited in the curse f this intrductin and gt caught up in it and just kept ging in ne breath. - S we re ging t read it all as 1 sentence as Paul intended. Read Eph 1:1-14 S back t the questin: if yu are ging t encurage believers t fllw Jesus when it s hard, where d yu begin? Fr Paul: yu begin with GRATITUDE! That s the big idea f the passage yu see it in v3 read v3 - Uses the wrd Blessed twice tw different ways - First time its blessing directed t Gd = ur praise and thanks ffered t Gd Let us praise Gd, let us thank Gd - Why? Answer s in the 2 nd use f the wrd blessed we bless Gd because Gd first blessed us He s been gd t us and given us gd things - Paul then spends the next 11 verses listing ut Gd s gd blessings in ur lives. - Fascinating t me: desn t start with advice r a t-d list r cnvictin r warnings - He starts with gratitude he reminds them that Gd has blessed them in s many ways - Turns ut Paul was way ahead f his time! Recent scientific studies have cncluded that practicing gratitude leads t a better life Frbes magazine cmpiled a list f 7 scientifically prven benefits f practicing gratitude: Leads t better relatinships Imprves yur physical health Imprves yur psychlgical health Increases empathy and reduces aggressin Helps yu sleep better Imprves yur self-esteem Increases yur mental strength - Gratitude makes everything in life better I cannt tell yu hw many times in life I have been shcked by the emtinal, physical, and spiritual pwer f practicing gratitude. It changes everything fr the better.
- S when life is hard respnd with gratitude. That s yur first step. Befre yu pray fr easier circumstances Befre yu talk with friends Befre yu try t slve yur prblems Start by giving thanks t Gd fr what He s dne fr yu that s always step 1 Paul begins with gratitude: let s remember Gd s blessings in ur lives But what blessings in particular? Ntice what s nt included in the blessings f chapter 1: - mney r pssessins, health, relatinships, educatin, emplyment, vacatins - When we see #Blessed nline it s usually cnnected t a physical r material blessing - But Paul desn t include any f them - Nt because any f thse are bad we shuld give thanks fr them! - But it s an issue f pririties all f ur physical and material blessings pale in cmparisn t the wealth f spiritual blessings we have in Christ - That s why the pr, unattractive persn wh knws Jesus is far better ff than the rich, beautiful persn wh des nt ur spiritual blessings trump everything else S what spiritual blessings d we have in Christ? Paul makes a bld claim: We have EVERY SPIRITUAL BLESSING in heaven thrugh Jesus Yu have everything spiritual yu need in life thrugh Jesus yu are lacking nthing if yu knw Jesus Paul then spends the next 11 verses utlining 3 f the mst significant spiritual blessings we ve received He desn t list all f ur spiritual blessings that wuld take many chapters! He just gives us these 3 CHOSEN by the Father, REDEEMED by the Sn, SEALED by the Spirit Let s lk at each f thse in detail 1. CHOSEN BY THE FATHER - Chsen = t select smething r smene ut f a range f ptins Gd chse each f us ut f all f the human race Verb cnjugated in a way that indicates a very persnal chice, nt a randm chice. In ther wrds, Gd already knew every persn wh wuld ever live in infinite detail all the gd and all the bad each persn wuld ever d and knwing all the facts He chse yu. It was an intentinal, fully infrmed chice. - And just t make sure we get the pint, Paul uses a synnym in the next verse: Predestined = t decide upn befrehand Lng ag Gd made certain decisins abut yur life that must cme true - Nw let s unpack this idea f predestinatin - When did it happen: befre the fundatin f the wrld = befre Creatin - Why did it happen: ut f lve end f v4 ut f kindness twards us end f v5 S predestinatin is NOT based n ur wrthiness r merit r perfrmance based n Gd s kindness and lve twards us. - Out f lve, He chse us fr what? 2 answers: T be hly and blameless His gal fr yu is nt just t get yu t heaven when yu die His gal is t make yu perfect sinless, righteus
He s grwing yu twards that gal nw He will finish the jb when we see Jesus we will be perfected frever T be adpted as sns He predetermined that yu wuld becme an adpted sn Why nt sns and daughters ancient cntext: sns had mre rights; Gd desn t give male believers mre rights than female believers we are all equally privileged in His family S predestinatin and salvatin are less abut getting yu t heaven and mre abut making yu part f Gd s family it s abut relatinship, nt just destinatin. Gd chse yu t becme His child. - The wrd predestinatin tends t pen a can f wrms unleash strng emtins/bjectins Let me try t explain hw I see electin wrking I m pretty sure I m wrng; I dn t think ANY human can fully understand electin because it is TOO BIG fr us. We are finite. Gd is infinite. We are time-bund. Gd is abve time. We simply can t wrap ur minds fully arund predestinatin. S I m sure my explanatin is inaccurate in the abslute sense but I still think it s mre accurate than anything else I ve ever heard Here are 5 key facts abut predestinatin as it s presented in scripture Truth #1: Freewill still exists. Peple really have the chice t believe r nt. When a jailer in Philippi asks, Hw can I be saved? Paul desn t say, Hpe that yu re predestined! He says, Believe, and yu will be saved. Legitimate ffer t anyne and everyne. We have the respnsibility t believe. N ne will be cndemned because Gd didn t predestine them. They will be cndemned because they chse t reject Gd. The universe is nt a puppet shw. Smehw predestinatin and free will exist side by side. I dn t knw hw. It is beynd the scpe f my tiny brain t cmprehend it. But the Bible is clear. Bth are true. Truth #2: Jesus died fr all peple Including thse wh reject Him 1 Jhn 2:2 Jesus is the prpitiatin/satisfactin fr ur sins, and nt nly urs, but als fr thse f the whle wrld. The biblical evidence is plain Jesus death was fr all human sin Result: the gspel is available t all, and anyne can be saved anyne wh believes will be saved Jesus death is nt just fr the elect it is fr everyne Truth #3: Gd wants all peple t be saved We read that last week in 1 Tim 2:2 Gd desires all peple t be saved He des nt want hell fr anyne Nw if Gd wants everyne t be saved, why didn t He elect everyne? I dn t knw. I have abslutely n idea! We ll have t ask Him. The key is that Gd desn t hate the un-elect. He desn't want them in hell. He lves them mre than we d. He lves them mre than they lve themselves. Truth #4: All peple by nature reject Gd Rm 1 Paul tells us that every persn wh reaches an age and mental capacity t see Gd s fingerprints n creatin chses t wrship creatin instead f Gd. That s just what we d. As we saw last week in 2 Cr 4 Satan has placed a veil ver the eyes f unbelievers s the gspel lks flish t them. By nature we lve sin and hate Gd S Truth #5: Salvatin nly pssible if Gd initiates Gd must take the first step twards us because we will never take the first step twards Him
He must remve the veil placed ver ur eyes by Satan He must turn ur rebel hearts twards Him S here s hw I see it: Befre the fundatin f the wrld when Gd lked int the future He did nt lk upn a neutral humanity and chse sme fr heaven and sme fr hell He saw ALL running twards hell and grabbed sme f us kicking and screaming and turned us arund t see the gspel, believe, and be saved Why did He pick me and nt my neighbr? I dn t knw. Nt because I m better r mre likely t believe Nt because He desn t lve my neighbr and want him t be saved I really dn t knw Gd desn t answer that questin fr us - What He des is tell us just enugh abut predestinatin t give us CONFIDENCE That s ultimately what this is all abut: the dctrine f predestinatin is meant t give believers cnfidence We are nt the nes wh chse ur salvatin Gd did, infinite time ag And s if Gd chse us t be saved befre time began, already seeing everything we wuld think, say, and d, then there s nthing we can d in this life that culd surprise Gd and cause Him t revke ur salvatin. His chice was made ens ag when He already had all the facts. Nthing can change that nw. - Yu were chsen by name befre time began t becme a child f Gd nce and fr all. 2. REDEEMED BY THE SON - Read 1:7 - This is HOW a hly Gd can adpt sinful children like us thrugh Jesus, His Belved Sn. - Redemptin = slave language = freeing a slave - We were enslaved t the cnsequences f ur sin Rm 6:23 The wages f sin is death death in every sense f the wrd, bth physical death and spiritual death. We were separated frm Gd and under His wrath. We deserved t be cndemned. - But Jesus saved us frm thse cnsequences f sin by dying in ur place. By His bld, sacrificed fr us, we have been frgiven the guilt f ur sin is erased. We are free frm wrath and cndemnatin - Ntice the wrds Paul uses t describe QUANTITY f frgiveness that Gd has given us in Jesus: the RICHES f His grace which He LAVISHED n us Gd has nt been stingy with grace. He s flded yur life with grace Pured ut a hurricane s wrth f grace int yur life s much yu can never exhaust it Gd s grace f frgiveness is like trtilla chips at a gd Mexican restaurant. They dn t charge yu fr them they re free And yu can t exhaust them they just keep cming n matter hw much yu eat And in a really gd restaurant yu dn't even make it t the bttm f the bwl befre a new bwl s brught ut. That s Gd s grace thrugh Jesus frgiveness is nt LIMITED it is infinite. Yu will never exhaust it. N matter what sins yu cmmit, yu will never get t the end f Gd s frgiveness. As Paul says in Rmans 5 where sin increased, grace increased all the mre grace always exceeds sin - This is the GOSPEL: Jesus died and rse again s that we culd be frgiven n matter hw hrrid ur sin Gd has made that gift f redemptin available t all f humanity But He desn t frce it n us yu must say, YES In faith receive the gift f eternal life thrugh Jesus
3. SEALED BY THE SPIRIT - Read v13 - Referring t wax seals kings and thers in authrity wuld use t claim r secure smething seal carried the King s authrity killed if yu brke it withut his permissin - All my bks in my ffice have a seal with my name If smene takes a bk and sells it n ebay, the seal prves, it s still mine. - The Hly Spirit is Gd s seal n yur life N matter what yu d, n matter what anyne else des t yu, yu always will belng t Gd as His child because the HS has sealed yu permanently - Paul makes a similar pint when he says the HS is a pledge f ur inheritance = a dwn-payment ur inheritance is a resurrected bdy with Gd in the new heavens and the new earth That s what s cming in yur future if yu ve trusted in Jesus Gd didn t want t leave ALL f that fr the future, s He gave yu a dwn-payment n yur future His Hly Spirit living inside f yu nw is His dwn-payment n yur future in heaven the HS guarantees yu will be welcmed by Gd in the next life - That s what Paul means when He says the Spirit is given with a view t the redemptin f Gd s wn pssessin we are His pssessin we ve already experienced redemptin frm sin s cnsequence we will in the future experience redemptin frm sin s presence that will happen when we are reunited with Gd in the next life The dwn-payment f the Spirit is ur guarantee that future, final redemptin is cming Sme f yu drpped yur kids ff in ur children s ministry put a sticker n them prf that they belng t yu and guarantee that they ll be picked up by yu at the end f the mrning! Dn t leave them with us! Be like Gd. Redeem yur kids! That s what Gd has prmised t d fr yu and me at the end f this life. - Pint f all this: ur abslute eternal security We belng t Gd and His Spirit is prf. His Spirit guarantees that yu are Gd s child and will spend eternity with Him. Summarize: When life gets hard, where d yu begin? With GRATITUDE say Thank Yu t Gd Fr the incredible spiritual blessings yu have thrugh the Father, Sn, and Spirit - CHOSEN by the Father t be hly and adpted - REDEEMED by the Sn t be frgiven f every sin - SEALED by the Spirit s yu knw yu will be saved N better way t thank the Father, Sn, and Spirit than by singing the Dxlgy - first published in 1709, ne f the mst famus hymns ever written - we ll sing an updated versin - the gal: t actually d Ephesians 1 t give blessing t the Trinity Father, Sn, and Spirit fr saving us and blessing us infinitely beynd what we deserve