Ephesians 1:3-4 ----Praise for Gods Soverign work in Salvation
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· 8 viewsGod sovereign work in salvation is the believers hope.
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Tough passages
Tough passages
There are reasons why many pastors do not preach through books beginning to end.
Because if you do, you have no choice to handle the weighty and more challenging passages.
If you are hopping all over the bible, you preach the sugar stick passages so to speak and never address the more indepth ones
In our text today, this is one that does contain words and theological terms that are more difficult because of how we have been taught and peoples opinion.
However, I believe, this passage should be the sugar stick of every believer because it tells us of the deep love of God for his people
To what extent God went to secure his people.
So as we walk through Gods word today, my desire would be that you feel the depth of Gods love today from eternity past.
Two weeks ago, we introduced the books of Ephesians
The pagan city that experienced tremendous spiritual growth in that all of Asia heard of the Gospel because of its work in the hearts of believers
3 years Paul was there, Timothy and John both were elders there at one time.
Paul writes this letter as a letter of encouragement and practical living
Encouraging because of God has done to redeem his people and practical living in light of that
Probably the perfect example of what a church should live like.
Vs3- Blessed- Praise be to- God himself
Make no doubt about of Pauls intentional attachment to God and Father to our Lord Jesus Christ
Believers are attachment to the Father is just as real as the Sons attachment to the Father
I and the Father are one.”
This is a crucial point for any of those heresies concerning the deity of Jesus
So why should God be praised?
-Because of his blessing to us in Christ
-A commentator made note that Zeus would was never to prosper or give specific benefits to anyone
-He is said to cause good luck or fortune
But the greek word used leads to the idea of specific bestowed goodness
all of it comes in Christ
But what blessings are these? Spiritual blessings
Not physical, tangible things like gold or silver but ones listed in the verses to come
Could also be seen as the fruit of the Spirit
But the spiritual blessings Paul expound upon in Christ are the fact that every believer is chosen by God, presented holy and blameless, predestined to be sons and daughters in the kingdom, we have been redeemed by Christ blood, forgiven of our trespasses, lavished grace upon us, given us an inheritance and secured that inheritance by the HS.
What a list of blessings, AMEN!!!
These blessings are secured in the “heavenly realms”
Just as their are two ages- this one and the eternal one to come
In this age or time period- evil is rampant but our salvation is outside of Satans and all other evils reach
But these are not just benefits that we get in future but have been applied to every believer who is in Christ now
This is the great hope we have now as well
You have been chosen, predestined, redeemed, forgiven lavished with grace and sealed by the HS till the time comes where our faith is made sight
Under the inspiration of the HS, Paul offers this defense to the previous claim
He chose us in him before the foundation of the world
Vs 4- I looked up the Greek word for chosen here and it means chosen
-To be selected
It clearly means before God made anything, he knew his people and set his arrow upon them so to speak
That is what it means to be a child of God
A divine pursuit of His holiness and love
Some may feel a little squeamish here but we see it all over the Scriptures
Abraham was a pagan idol worshipper- why did God choose him?
Why did choose Jacob over Esau
Moses and not Pharoah
Israel and not Egypt
Peter but not Judas
Except for nothing else but the grace of God in the lives of Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Israel and Peter.
The natural question that flows out or the natural thing that people say in defense is its because they believed
Although belief is needed but we have gotten the order of salvation out of sequence
Man is dead to sin- slave to sin- capable of moral good deeds but incapabale of saving himself
According to Romans 3- has no natural desire to seek God
the only reason why the Abrahams and Jacobs and the you’s and me’s believe by grace through faith is because your were his divine pursuit that he brought from death to life
We call that regeneration- to be made alive in Christ
Salvation doesnt begin in mans heart or by mans plan- It began in Gods
Which should cause us all to cry out in awe and wonder and absolute joy because you realize you and I are epitome of the work of grace
Before we get to far here I want to back this up some other passages
22 times choosen or choose is used- all of them refer to specific selection of people
And if the Lord had not cut short the days, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he shortened the days.
And when day came, he called his disciples and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles:
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
The God of this people Israel chose our fathers and made the people great during their stay in the land of Egypt, and with uplifted arm he led them out of it.
For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:
For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.
Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,
For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you,
who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began,
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,
As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious,
Thats only a few of them
The elect, the called, the chosen--- all the same people
The name for the church in greek is “ekklesia”- “the called out ones”
Called out of what?
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Its God who redeems and its God who calls
Some may say thats not fair- Why doesnt God save everyone?
The real question isnt why doesnt God save everyone but more so why does God save anyone?
We have ran from Him, killed his Son, disregarded His word and mocked Him to His face- do we really want to talk about what is fair or just
The just thing for God to do with judge all man the first time they sinned and sentence them to hell- what they deserve
By the plan and purpose of God- He has chosen to redeem a people by His own power and grace
You may ask- what about my faith and my belief? I choose to believe
What about all the passages about the “whosoevers” and “if you will believe”
I dont know who the chosen ones are, but God does
So we preach the Gospel like this- God forgives and redeems all who come to him and repent
Because no man comes to God on his own
He must first be drug out of darkness and put in the light
God himself must first breath life into his spiritually dead body
Beloved do you remember the conviction of HS upon your life as you God was calling you to him?
It was something of which no one else can explain- Its was if you experienced life for the first time
What once enslaved you(even though you didnt know it) was revealed to you for the first time
If your here today as a Christian, a called, a chosen, an elect, a beloved by God- You know what I mean
The arrow of God grace- landed firmly in your heart and it did what it always does- redeem
Because from that great redeeming work- we respond in faith by believing and placing all we have in him
“Oh victory in Jesus, my savior forever
He sought me and bought me wiht his redeeming love
He loved me ere I knew him, and all my love is due him
He plunged me to victory, beneath the cleansing flood”
Beloved just listen to that language
He sought, he bought he loved- and all my love is due him
He plunged me to victory
I can dive into something or I can plunge into something
But if someone else plunges me in- thrust me in- I cant say I did a thing
But I certainly know when it happens and you do to
Why was this great work from eternity past necessary?
So we should be holy and blameless before him
To be called, chosen, a child of God is an immense spiritual gift that carries great responsibility
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
So the goal of Gods calling people to himself in Christ- is that when we see him face to face we will be able stand holy and blameless because of Christ
Dont be confused here and think that it doesnt matter how I live here and now
Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.
We are to be in practice what we have already been declared
We call that sanctification- growing in Christlikeness
T&G catechism book says it this way
45. What is sanctification? It is God making sinners holy in heart and conduct
That is exactly what God is doing in hearts of his people
Is that not happening to you?
Is God not shaping your life and making you more like him?
There is probably a real and simple answer to that- You probably are not His
Because
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
God will do that for his people
But judgement awaits all others
But Gods sovereign plan in calling people is up to him- Today and every time I stand before you, to take Gods word and put before
To tell you what “thus sayeth the Lord God”
For some it has watered needed roots
For some it was alot like the seed that hit the path- it has already been snatched away
But for some- it has found good soil and God is calling you to himself today
Come and be saved- believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and have eternal life that only God can give