An Inheritance to the Praise of His Glory

Ephesians 1:11–14 NKJV

11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, 12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

What is God’s sovereignty and why is it so important?

Ephesians 1:11 (NKJV)

11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,

God’s will vs 1

God’s choice vs 4

God’s predetermination vs 5

The mystery of God’s will vs 9

The predestination vs 11

God’s working all things according to the counsel of His will vs 11

We simply cannot avoid discussing God’s sovereignty as we work our way through Eph.

But why is it so important?

It is what makes God, God

Isaiah 46:9–10 NKJV

9 Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, 10 Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,’

He works all things according to His purpose and He says he will do all His pleasure.

So what does God’s sovereignty have to do with you and me? Why is it important?

Because it impacts everything

Matthew 10:29 NKJV

29 Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will.

In Luke he says But the very hairs on your head are all numbered.

So as we have seen so far in Eph. behind our choice to believe in Christ Is God’s choice. And His choice never fails but it stands forever.

God’s sovereignty is important to us because it is what compels us to praise His glory. As we have seen in verse 6, 12, and 14.

So this is not just some academic idea for scholars to debate. This is a real world practical truth which when God reveals it to you will change how you see everything in your life.

And as we see in our text this morning it is the bases for our hope in the future redemption of our inheritance.

A Secured Inheritance

Something that should become abundantly clear to us from Eph. chapter 1 is that God does not desire His children to live with fear doubting that they are His and that they will receive and inheritance.

The apostle Paul by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit has gone to great lengths to show that our being in Christ and our adoption as children and our hope in Christ is not some fickle thing based only on our faith or our works but it is a mighty reality grounded in the will or God before the foundation of the world.

Ephesians 1:11 NKJV

11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,

So firstly our inheritance is secured because it was predetermined based on the purpose of the great sovereign God who works all things according to the counsel of His will. This is the same God who said in Isa “My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure”

So our first point of confidence of a secured inheritance is abundantly adequate in itself to remove all doubt.

But as is God’s way, in order to meet us in our weakness and confirm and over confirm He gives us an even greater confidence than the first.

Ephesians 1:13–14 NKJV

13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

You were sealed with the Holy Spirit. What is a seal? A seal

Esther 8:8 NKJV

8 You yourselves write a decree concerning the Jews, as you please, in the king’s name, and seal it with the king’s signet ring; for whatever is written in the king’s name and sealed with the king’s signet ring no one can revoke.”

So here as an example we have King Ahasuerus who gives his ring to seal the decree that Mordecai would write. So when a king seals something with his signet ring no one can revoke it.

So Paul says that God has sealed us for our inheritance. If an earthy kings seals cannot be revoke then how much more the seal of God?

Not only that but the seal is the Holy Spirit (God). And Paul says that the Holy Spirit is the downpayment of our inheritance.

So God confirms and confirms again that our inheritance is sure. As He did with Abraham.

Hebrews 6:13–20 NKJV

13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, 14 saying, “Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you.” 15 And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. 16 For men indeed swear by the greater, and an oath for confirmation is for them an end of all dispute. 17 Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath, 18 that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us. 19 This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil, 20 where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, having become High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

Our inheritance which is eternal life with Christ and the redemption our this old body among so many other things is a certainty for all those who are chosen in Christ, and who have the Holy Spirit.

Who is included in this inheritance?

Both We and You

Ephesians 1:11–13 (NKJV)

11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,

12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.

13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,

Who is this “we” and “you”

We are the Jews who first believed

and you are the Gentile believers to whom Paul is writing.

Paul seems to already have in mind here one of the key points of this letter. A mystery made known

Ephesians 2:11–13 NKJV

11 Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands— 12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

This is called a mystery because it was hidden to the Old Testament saints. But the revelation is that the Gentile believers have and equal share in the inheritance with the Jewish believers.

As we can see in the text the commonality is being in Christ. So whether Jew or Gentile, in Christ we are one people of God. This is part of what will be gathered together in one all things in Christ. Perfect harmony and perfect unity in Christ.

So it is God’s good pleasure that He predestined us to receive the inheritance in Christ and that He seal us with the Holy Spirit of promise as a downpayment towards the promised redemption. So why has God done this?

Ephesians 1:12–14 NKJV

12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

Ephesians 1:5–6 NKJV

5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.

To the Praise of His Glory

So the purpose stated for God to do all these things is the praise of His glory. Why does God’s purpose revolve around Him receiving praise for His glory? Is God some kind of ego maniac? Does God need our praise?

Firstly to answer that last question first, no. God does not need anything.

Psalm 50:7–15 NKJV

7 “Hear, O My people, and I will speak, O Israel, and I will testify against you; I am God, your God! 8 I will not rebuke you for your sacrifices Or your burnt offerings, Which are continually before Me. 9 I will not take a bull from your house, Nor goats out of your folds. 10 For every beast of the forest is Mine, And the cattle on a thousand hills. 11 I know all the birds of the mountains, And the wild beasts of the field are Mine. 12 “If I were hungry, I would not tell you; For the world is Mine, and all its fullness. 13 Will I eat the flesh of bulls, Or drink the blood of goats? 14 Offer to God thanksgiving, And pay your vows to the Most High. 15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.”

Acts 17:23–25 NKJV

23 for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you: 24 God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. 25 Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things.

God does not need anything from us. he delivers us He Give to us. We need from God but God needs nothing from us.

So then is God some kind of ego manic? Why does God want us to praise his glory. The best explanation I’ve heard was from C.S. Louis and I can’t remember the book or the quote word for word but the idea was something like this.

Men praise all sorts of things. They praise a sports team that they follow and love, they praise a house or car, a new iPhone or a new restaurant. In fact the full joy of anything is only realised when we praise it. We may experience something great but it’s only when we praise that experience and share it with someone else that we have the full joy of it. And so it is with God. We only fully rejoice and delight in God when we praise Him, when we tell others about what a great God He is. So then God’s desire for us to praise Him is not selfish or conceded. It is an expression of His love for us and His desire for us to be full satisfied in Him. He does not need our praise, we have a great need to praise Him.

So all that God has done with the purpose of the praise of His glory is for His great everlasting love for us.

All of these blessings that we have seen in verses 3-14 are to those who are in Christ. The great promise of a certain inheritance is only to those who have trusted in Him

Ephesians 1:13 NKJV

13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,

Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. Perhaps you would like to trust in Christ this morning.

If you have trusted in Christ are you so full of joy that you praise His glory. Sometimes as Christians we end up praising all sorts of things that have captured our affections. The ultimate purpose of all that we find here in Eph. is that we praise the glory of God. We should ask ourselves whether we praise God more to others or do we praise other people or things. I urge you to praise the Lord this week.