Ephesians 1 Good Times
Good Times – Ephesians 1:1-14; NV 3/4/01 AM
OS: Text (A B C D)
3Blessed be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the one who blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ, 4just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and blameless before His face, 5in love, He predestined us unto Himself in adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His purpose and good will, 6to the praise of the glory of His grace which He freely gave us in the beloved one, 7in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the fullness of His grace, 8which He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding, 9having revealed to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He intended beforehand in Him, 10as a plan for the fullness of time to bring all things together in Christ, in heaven and on earth,11in Him we were chosen, predestined according to the plan of Him who works all things toward His purpose and will,12in order for us to be for the praise of His glory, as those first to hope in Christ,13 in whom you also after hearing the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, you believed and were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession – to the praise of His glory.
E Things that become common are most easy to take for granted. Paul reminds us, in the beginning of the Ephesian letter, of the blessings we have in Christ. It is like pausing for a moment and taking a brand new look at something old and familiar and once again appreciating its beauty.
Occasion – Part 1 (Doctrinal) ; Part 2 (Practical)
Unity – Relationships – Marriage – Family – Spiritual Warfare.
With such problems in the church the first place that Paul goes is to the blessings we have in Christ. He takes us on a journey back to the beginning and refreshes our memory of all that God has done on our behalf. In essence he says you fix your eyes on Jesus, and you will see all of life, even your brothers and sisters in Christ, in a whole different light.
q If your marriage is having a problem then fix your eyes on Jesus. struggling with your children If you’re having a problem getting along with people -- Because it is there that our vision becomes clear, and the mist of the world is cleared away.
q It is together that we have been called. It is together that we have the blessings in Christ. It is together that we work and serve to be His body.
q F The very first statement of Paul, “Blessed be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the one who blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ…” If for no other reason we bless God because He blessed us! We bless God by how we treat others. Servant/husband/wife/parent…
q The blessings of God should be the greatest motivating factor of our Christian lives.
So this morning let us remind ourselves of the beauty of belonging to God, and the blessedness of being found in Christ. (Good Times)
I. G It is good times because we have been chosen by God to be near Him. (4-5)
A. Note the text xelevxato hJma'"…katenwvpion aujtou'…eij" uiJoqesivan…eij" aujtovnj
1. He chose us because He wanted to that we could be near Him.
2. It was His will, His own choice, and even to the point of adoption.
3. Why this is wonderful? (Rejection = Greatest fear) date, raise, invitation to church, etc.
B. What about predestination and free will?
1. H Two extremes: (All God with no choice) Vs. (No God with all Choice)
2. The story is told of a group of theologians who were discussing the tension between predestination and free will. Things became so heated that the group broke up into two opposing factions. But one man, not knowing which to join, stood for a moment trying to decide. At last he joined the predestination group. "Who sent you here?" they asked. "No one sent me," he replied. "I came of my own free will." "Free will!" they exclaimed. "You can't join us! You belong with the other group!" So he followed their orders and went to the other clique. There someone asked, "When did you decide to join us?" The young man replied, "Well, I didn't really decide--I was sent here." "Sent here!" they shouted. "You can't join us unless you have decided by your own free will!"
3. It is like getting on a Greyhound bus. The high authority determined where this bus would go, and individuals make the choice to get on and ride. (Before the foundation of the world God, the high authority, determined to choose a bus load of people to bring to heaven.) * It is your choice to be a part of those whom God has chosen. God is involved – working in people’s lives to bring them to Him.
C. The very fact that Almighty God would want me to stand before Him and be considered as His child is good news beyond expression.
1. My inclusion into God’s people should have an effect on how I treat others.
II. I It is good times because He paid the price of redemption. (6-9)
A. Notice: dia; tou' ai{mato" aujtou'
1. Only those who are debt free in the sin category can get on this bus.
2. “If you are willing to get on this bus, and follow me, I’ll buy your ticket.”
3. This is wonderful as well because of that fear that I’m not going to be good enough. Jesus made sure we could be considered as good enough!
B. Never forget the cross! It is there at the cross that your sin and my sin was paid for in the price of blood from the Son of God.
C. Illu – Little boat
III. J It is good times because He has made us secure. (10-14) (fear-I’m not going to make it)
A. Text: ejsfragivsqhte…ajrrabw;n
1. Fruit of the Spirit – The Spirit of God makes Himself known in our lives through the development of our character.
2. Never think that you have goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, etc. on your own without the help of God through His Spirit.
3. That is God saying not only, “This is how you were intended to live.” But also, “See, this is assurance for you to know that I am real and the gospel is true!”
4. The difficult thing is what do we do when we are no longer developing this fruit of the Spirit? To stop striving to grow as a Christian is to take away the sense of that guarantee
B. We are secure as long as we ride the bus! We can choose to get off at any time.
1. K Galatians 5 4 You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. 5 But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope…7 You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth?
2. * Revelation 2 (Ephesus) 5 Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.
C. I consider it to be good times when we have the assurance of salvation!
1. L 1 John 5 13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.
At least 11 times in this passage we have reference to these blessings being found in Christ, and because of what He has done for us. God, through Jesus Christ, has brought us to Himself, and made a way for us to spend our lives here and for eternity to come in fellowship with Him.
What does it mean to be ‘in Christ’?
M Galatians 3 26 You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
There is more to it than the physical form of baptism. To be in Christ is to live under His Lordship. We are in Christ when He is everything to us.