We’re Blessed

Introduction- EXPERIENCING FEAR WHEN WE EVANGELIZE

When the Praises Go Up, The Blessings Come Down

Were Blessed by Fred Hammond & RFC

Let me hear you say blessed Say blessed, yeah Blessed, yeah, blessed, yeah, blessed  In the morning (blessed) In the new day (blessed) In the evening (blessed) Yeah

Blessed, blessed, blessed, blessed This side say Blessed, blessed, blessed, blessed Blessed, blessed, blessed, blessedBlessed, blessed, blessed, blessed Blessed, blessed, blessed, blessed What you say now? What you say now?  What you say now?In the city In the field What you say now? What you say now? What you say now?

Blessed, blessed, blessed, blessed Blessed, blessed Blessed, blessed, blessed, blessed Blessed, blessedIn you your school At your home With your mom And your dad And your son And your daughterWe're blessed, blessed, blessed

We're blessed in the city (come on sing) We're blessed in the field (come on sing) We're blessed when we come and when we go  We cast down every stronghold Sickness and poverty must cease (for the devil is) For the devil is defeated We are blessed

Hymn- Count Your Blessings 1 When upon life's billows you are tempest tossed, When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost, Count your many blessings, name them one by one, And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done. 

Refrain: Count your blessings, name them one by one; Count your blessings, see what God hath done; Count your blessings, name them one by one; Count your many blessings, see what God hath done.

WHY EXPERIENCING FEAR WHEN WE EVANGELIZE ISN’T A BAD THING – FEAT. GREG STIER AND MARK MITTELBERG

S: IN OUR CURRENT CULTURE, WHAT IS THE THING THAT HINDERS PEOPLE FROM TELLING PEOPLE ABOUT JESUS?

 G: It’s the same thing that has always held us back: fear.  People are afraid of being marginalized or mocked. They are afraid of losing friends, of being labeled, and often we think we are not qualified to share our faith. I think sharing faith is central to discipleship. If we are not going with our faith, then we are not growing in the gospel. When Jesus said, “Be my disciple,” that meant picking up your cross, dying to self, and following Jesus.

Luke 9:23–24 ESV

23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.

Psychology: Fear of groups (The Jerusalem Post)

Fear of groups, and particularly speaking in groups, is more common than you may think. About eight percent of the population – men and women almost equally – have some type of social phobia or shyness problem that shows up in group situations. Although a common problem, social group phobia is not well understood by the general public or even among practitioners. Since few people with social group phobia have ever heard of their problem, they think they are the only ones who have these symptoms.Psychologists have identified that people who are afraid of groups are making cognitive errors in their thinking that can cause a lot of anxiety, insecurity and a strong desire to avoid such experiences. These vulnerable individuals spend a lot of time unconsciously thinking that people are judging them. An underlying and common fear is that of being humiliated and embarrassed in such situations.In other words, while feeling comfortable being around one or just a few friends, the group seems to take on this overwhelming structure that needs to be avoided at any cost.

GOD wants to be shown off among His people. He wants to be revealed among His people. He doesn’t want apologies. I mean, any man who would apologize that his wife is by his side, is a fool. Any woman who would apologize that her husband is by her side is a fool. And any Christian who apologizes for belonging to the Lord Jesus Christ is a fool!385

Evans, Tony. Tony Evans' Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More Than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (p. 128). (Function). Kindle Edition.

Transition To Body- Paul Adversaries Against The Gospel

Ephesians 1:1–2 ESV

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 16:8–9 ESV

8 But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost, 9 for a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.

Acts 19:8–10 ESV

8 And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God. 9 But when some became stubborn and continued in unbelief, speaking evil of the Way before the congregation, he withdrew from them and took the disciples with him, reasoning daily in the hall of Tyrannus. 10 This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.

Acts 19:23–27 ESV

23 About that time there arose no little disturbance concerning the Way. 24 For a man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought no little business to the craftsmen. 25 These he gathered together, with the workmen in similar trades, and said, “Men, you know that from this business we have our wealth. 26 And you see and hear that not only in Ephesus but in almost all of Asia this Paul has persuaded and turned away a great many people, saying that gods made with hands are not gods. 27 And there is danger not only that this trade of ours may come into disrepute but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis may be counted as nothing, and that she may even be deposed from her magnificence, she whom all Asia and the world worship.”

Acts 19:28–34 ESV

28 When they heard this they were enraged and were crying out, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” 29 So the city was filled with the confusion, and they rushed together into the theater, dragging with them Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians who were Paul’s companions in travel. 30 But when Paul wished to go in among the crowd, the disciples would not let him. 31 And even some of the Asiarchs, who were friends of his, sent to him and were urging him not to venture into the theater. 32 Now some cried out one thing, some another, for the assembly was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together. 33 Some of the crowd prompted Alexander, whom the Jews had put forward. And Alexander, motioning with his hand, wanted to make a defense to the crowd. 34 But when they recognized that he was a Jew, for about two hours they all cried out with one voice, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”

Ephesians 1:3 ESV

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,

Body- We’re Blessed By

Our Heavenly Father’s Gracious Love

Ephesians 1:3–6 ESV

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 to himself 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.

Blessed be God

An Exegetical Summary of Ephesians 1:3

It pertains to the worthiness of God to be praised

Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains 33.362 εὐλογητός, ή, όν

pertaining to being worthy of praise or commendation—‘one to be praised.’

Blessed us

Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains 88.69 εὐλογέω; ἐνευλογέω

to provide

Blessing

Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains 33.470 εὐλογέω; εὐλογία, ας; κατευλογέω

to ask God to bestow divine favor on, with the implication that the verbal act itself constitutes a significant benefit—‘to bless, blessing.’

Predestined

Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains 30.84 προορίζω; προαιρέομαι

to come to a decision beforehand—‘to decide beforehand, to determine ahead of time, to decide upon ahead of time.’

Blessed Us In Te Beloved

Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains 88.66 χαριτόω; χάρις, ιτος

to show kindness to someone, with the implication of graciousness on the part of the one showing such kindness—‘to show kindness, to manifest graciousness toward, kindness, graciousness, grace.’

Our Heavenly Father’s Gracious Love (Ephesians 1:3-6)

Jesus Christ’s Redemptive Sacrifice

Ephesians 1:7–10 ESV

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 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.

Redemption

Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains 37.128 λυτρόομαι; λύτρωσις, εως; ἀπολύτρωσις, εως

to release or set free, with the implied analogy to the process of freeing a slave—‘to set free, to liberate, to deliver, liberation, deliverance

Lavished

Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains 59.54 περισσεύω

to cause something to exist in an abundance—‘to provide in abundance, to provide a great deal of, to cause to be abundant.’

John 10:10 ESV

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

Our Heavenly Father’s Gracious Love (Ephesians 1:3-6) Jesus Christ’s Redemptive Sacrifice (Ephesians 1:7-10)

Our Election To Be God’s Image Bearers

Ephesians 1:11–12 ESV

11 In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, 12 so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.

Matthew 5:16 ESV

16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Our Heavenly Father’s Gracious Love (Ephesians 1:3-6) Jesus Christ’s Redemptive Sacrifice (Ephesians 1:7-10) Our Election To Be God’s Image Bearers (Ephesians 1:11-12)

Security Of The Holy Spirit’s Power

Ephesians 1:13–14 ESV

13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

Guarantee

Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains 57.170 ἀρραβών, ῶνος

the first or initial payment of money or assets, as a guarantee for the completion of a transaction or pledge

Transition To Close- The Cost Of Our Salvation

CREDITCARD companies send mass mailings to people with amazing news of great grace. The recipients have not applied for a new card or a new level of credit, but the credit card company freely offers unsolicited spending power. These gracious companies write customers to tell them they are prequalified or preapproved. The only thing left for the customer to do is to accept the offer and spend! The limit has already been negotiated and all that’s left to do is use it. By accepting Christ, we have accepted His terms and are prequalified for the spiritual benefits and resources available to us.37 [Grace; Provision, God’s]

Rom. 5:17; Eph. 2:8

Evans, Tony. Tony Evans' Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More Than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (pp. 23-24). (Function). Kindle Edition.

A MAN one day was low on funds and all he had was one valuable thing to his name—a family ring that had been passed down for generations. He didn’t want to part with the ring that so full of memories, but he needed money to survive. He took his ring off, took it to the pawnshop, and gave it to the pawnbroker. The pawnbroker gave him a few dollars for it accompanied by a ticket. On the back of the ticket, a redemption price and date were listed.

The gentleman intended to buy his ring back but the date rolled quickly and he still did not have the money. He came and pled with the pawnbroker not to sell his ring in his shop. He begged for more time but the pawnbroker would not budge from the original agreement.

The next day was the day for the ring to be sold. The remorseful seller came by that day only to find his beautiful ring polished and sitting in the shop window. It now cost twenty-five times the price he sold it for.

Some of us today have pawned our lives for a pittance. We pawned our souls and we don’t have what it takes to redeem it. But, two thousand years ago, God sent Jesus Christ to pick up the tab for the lives we pawned. The beautiful thing about the Lord Jesus Christ is that He can afford to pay the price.787

Evans, Tony. Tony Evans' Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More Than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (p. 261). (Function). Kindle Edition.

Close- The Free Gift Of God

Ephesians 3:18–21 “may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

Romans 6:23 ESV

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

For God So Loved The World!

John 3:16–17 ESV

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.