Ephesians 1:1-6
Strengthening My Foundation
kindly toward, bless, provide benefits
He has so placed us in blessing, that we are surrounded
Paul thinks of the purpose of God’s choice. God chose us that we should be holy and blameless. Here are two great words. Holy is the Greek word hagios, which always has in it the idea of difference and of separation.
The person who had been adopted had all the rights of a legitimate son in his new family and lost absolutely all rights in his old family. In the eyes of the law, he was a new person. So new was he that even all debts and obligations connected with his previous family were abolished as if they had never existed.
The second blessing in this passage is that God the Father in love adopted us as sons. God has determined beforehand (predestined) that all who believe in Jesus Christ will be adopted into his family.
This passage does not deal with earthly temporal blessings, but with heavenly eternal blessings believers now have in Christ.