IDENTITY SERIES (2)

Ephesians 1 CSB

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will: To the faithful saints in Christ Jesus at Ephesus. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavens in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in love before him. 5 He predestined us to be adopted as sons through Jesus Christ for himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace that he lavished on us in the Beloved One. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace 8 that he richly poured out on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 He made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he purposed in Christ 10 as a plan for the right time—to bring everything together in Christ, both things in heaven and things on earth in him. 11 In him we have also received an inheritance, because we were predestined according to the plan of the one who works out everything in agreement with the purpose of his will, 12 so that we who had already put our hope in Christ might bring praise to his glory. 13 In him you also were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed. 14 The Holy Spirit is the down payment of our inheritance, until the redemption of the possession, to the praise of his glory. 15 This is why, since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 I never stop giving thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. 17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, would give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what is the wealth of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the mighty working of his strength. 20 He exercised this power in Christ by raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavens— 21 far above every ruler and authority, power and dominion, and every title given, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he subjected everything under his feet and appointed him as head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.

If the Letter to the Romans focuses more on God’s work in the individual Christian, Ephesians includes the great themes of God’s work in the church, the community of believers.Paul wrote in

 1 Corinthians 2:9-10 

But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. Ephesians is the fulfillment of this. It reveals the things God has prepared for those who love Him. To the saints who are in Ephesus: In a few ancient manuscripts there is a blank space instead of the words in Ephesus. Based partly on this, some believe that this letter was actually a circular letter written not to any one congregation, but meant to be passed on to many different congregations in different cities.There is little doubt this letter was intended for Ephesus, and Ephesus was an important city to Paul At the same time, we can gather that the letter was also intended in a more general sense — to circulate among Christians as a great statement of God’s eternal plan, worked out in the church and in individual Christian lives. If there is a blank space in a manuscript where others read in Ephesus, it is certainly because we are to put our city in that blank space. So this is still standing true for us today. In ancient Greek, Ephesians 1:3  through 1:14 form one long sentence. We would call it a run-on sentence in English and it's all about what believers possess because of the cross of Christ! Paul begins in verse 3 with worship. He says blessed is the God. And father of our Lord Jesus Christ to bless the name of God is to speak well of him to praise him. Worship is the celebration of who. God is what he has done, and what we trust him to do. God is not interested in spectators. He invites us to praise him. Why should we praise him? Because in Christ, he has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavens. Or we could translate it heavenly places heavenly places R. The spiritual realms where God and satan battle for our allegiance. We live in the physical realm, with our problems, need struggles and sins. But whatever happens in the physical realm, originates in the spiritual realm. That's why we pray, when we pray we are asking God to effect the physical from the spiritual. Paul says God has already done everything he is ever going to do for believers. He's blessed them with every spiritual blessing. In the heavenly, places and Paul will soon say in Ephesians 2:6-7 He also raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might display the immeasurable riches of his grace through his kindness to us in Christ Jesus believers are seated there with Jesus, think of this like a video teleconference in which you're in 2 places at once. Seated physically in one place, but operating in another believers are present in 2 places. At the same time, we're physically located on earth, but operate from heavenly places. God wants our position there to dictate our activity on earth only by operating from a spiritual perspective. What you have access to God's Kingdom, power. And provisions to deal victoriously, with life in the physical realm. Verse 4 Spiritual blessings are accessible because God chose us drafted us before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless sinning is failing to give God glory attempting to make God revolve around us when we're supposed to be revolving around him, it's approaching things wrongly like those who once thought the. Earth was the center of the Solar System, but God created us for himself. For his happiness, Hey chosen us to be holy and blameless. So that the church will bring him pleasure. When we pursue his pleasure, we position ourselves to experience the blessings of God which have already been pre. Ordained for us.

1 Corinthians 2:9–10 CSB

But as it is written, What no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no human heart has conceived— God has prepared these things for those who love him. Now God has revealed these things to us by the Spirit, since the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.