If you would like to turn with
me back to Ephesians chapter 1, I have titled this Ephesians
chapter 1. I'd like for us to just consider
this chapter, just simply consider what our Lord has said to us
through His apostle right here. Ephesians 1 verse 1 says, Paul,
an apostle of Jesus Christ, By the will of God, to the saints
which are at Ephesus and to the faithful in Christ Jesus, grace
be to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord
Jesus Christ. That is such a sweet introduction. That is such a sweet introduction. God has a particular people. Saints, He calls them. That's
a word that He gave to describe His people. Saints. Faithful in Christ Jesus, He
calls them. I hear that and I think, what
an unworthy title. Faithful in Christ Jesus. God
has a particular people. that He has known, and He has
loved, and He has chosen, and this is what He's chosen
for them. Verse 2 says, grace and peace. That's what He chose
for them. A particular people, unworthy,
but He chose them. He loved them. He knew them. And he said, this is what I purpose
for them, grace and peace from God, our father, and from the
Lord Jesus Christ. Amazing, isn't it? Not cruelty
because of our sin against him, but grace. Not harshness in return
for our sin against him, but peace, grace and peace. through the payment of the blood
of Christ. That song that we love so much,
Complete in Thee, I love that song. It says, yea, justified,
O blessed thought, and sanctified salvation wrought, thy blood
hath pardon bought for me, and glorified I too shall be. Your
blood bought my pardon. Your blood paid my price." That's
the grace and the peace that is promised to God's people from
God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Verse 3 says, Blessed
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed
us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. Like we quoted this morning from
Job, he said, blessed be the name of the Lord. Blessed be the name. David said
in Psalm 103, bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within
me. Bless his holy name. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ. What an announcement. What is a spiritual blessing
from God? He said, blessed be the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. And here's the reason why. He
blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places
in Christ. What is a spiritual blessing
from God? Well, He's about to tell us that
election is. That was a spiritual blessing.
What a blessing. All of God's people are crying,
why me? Why me? It's a spiritual blessing. He's about to tell us that predestination
is. Don't you love predestination? He's about to tell us that adoption
is. You talk about a spiritual blessing
in heavenly places, adoption. He's about to tell us that acceptance
is, acceptance with God. Redemption is, forgiveness is, our eternal inheritance is. Everything from God is. Everything
from God is. And he said all of it is found
in the Lord Jesus Christ. All of it. He is the object He is the contact. He is the source. He's the place
where God and man meet together. How do those blessings come to
us? Where do we lay hold of the blessings? Where does all of this meet?
It meets in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is where
mercy and truth met. There was a truth on me and you
wasn't good. And that truth was met when mercy
came together in the Lord Jesus Christ. All the truth against
us, God dealt with that mercifully in the person of the Lord Jesus
Christ. He is where righteousness and peace kissed each other. All of God's dealings with his
people were in Christ. All of them, start to finish,
always have been, always will be. All of God's dealings with
his people were in Christ. He says right here, starting
with election, starting with election. Verse four says, according
as he hath chosen us in him, in Christ, he did not choose
us in ourselves. He chose us in Christ. That's
how he chose us. There's no room for boasting.
Paul kept saying that. Where's boasting in this? He
didn't choose us in ourselves. He chose us in Christ. What that
means is He didn't choose us because of ourselves. He chose
us because of Christ. He didn't choose us because of
what He saw in us. He chose us because of what He
saw in Christ. That's the reason why. Men love to believe that God
looked down and saw what man would do and made his choices
accordingly, but that's not so. He didn't choose us because of
anything in us. He chose us because of everything
in Christ. Don't turn over there, but Isaiah
42 verse 1, God the Father said concerning Christ his son, he
said, behold my servant. I love that line. What he's saying
is, look at him. Just look at him. That's what
God the Father is saying. I want all eyes on him. Behold
my servant, whom I uphold, my elect. in whom my soul delighteth." He said, this is my beloved Son
in whom I'm well pleased. The Father said there in Isaiah
42, I put my spirit upon Him. I put it upon Him. I choose Him. I choose Him. I have put the
souls that I've purposed to save in Him. They are elected, they are chosen
because of Him. Verse 4 says, "...according as
He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world."
Nothing could be credited, nothing could be attributed to the souls
that He chose, nothing. It was all done according to
His will and His purpose before the foundation of the world. And this is what he elected them
to before the foundation of the world. This is what all of God's
people are elected unto. The end of verse four says that
we should be holy and without blame before him in love. That sounds so good to me. That
sounds so good to me. Can you imagine? God the Father
looking at you and saying, holy without blame. How can vile,
wretched sinners like we are be holy and without blame before
Him? How is that possible? He told
us right there, only in Christ. Only in the love of God. the love of God to us. All the
love of God is found in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Verse
5 says, having predestinated us unto the adoption of children
by Jesus Christ to Himself according to the good pleasure of His will. He predetermined us. to be brought straight to Christ. Predestination means to limit
in advance, to just limit and limit and limit until you reach
the final point. And that's what God the father
did for us. He predestinated us. He predetermined everything
about us to be brought straight to the Lord Jesus Christ on to
Adoption into His family. That's what we received by coming
and being brought to the Lord Jesus Christ. Adoption into His
family, made to be a joint heir with the Son of God Himself.
He paid for us. He signed for us. And He secured
our standing in the family of God. In Christ, we're in the
family of God. That's amazing. And verse 5 says, He did it according
to the good pleasure of His will. All of it. All of it. Having predestinated us unto
the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself according to
the good pleasure of His will. Verse 6 says, To the praise of
the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the
Beloved. Oh, to the praise of the glory
of His grace, all to the praise of the glory of His grace, all
of it. He made us accepted in the Beloved, Christ the Beloved.
Now, I love this. That word accepted means, when
you look it up, it means made acceptable, made graceful. It means made agreeable. endued with special honor. In Christ, we are made to be
something that the holiness of God finds to be acceptable. In Christ, we're made to be that.
When God the Father looks at us in Christ, He says, acceptable. Come on in, come to me. Acceptable. In Christ, as He is to God, we
are to God. All according to the riches of
His grace. Verse 7, In whom we have redemption
through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches
of His grace. This is that grace from God that
brings peace from God. Grace is a free gift that God
gives. And this is the grace that brings
the peace. Payment through the blood of
the Lord Jesus Christ. Forgiveness of all of our sins.
You have a lot of sins on you, and so do I. We have accumulated
them. We are accumulating. We will
accumulate. And thank God Christ took them
all, cradled to the grave, and forgave them all, redeemed them
all according to the riches of His grace. The riches, just indescribable
riches. Where sin abounded, grace much
more abounded. Just so much more rich in grace. Verse 8 says, wherein he hath
abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known
unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure
which he hath purposed in himself. Don't turn, but over in 1 Corinthians
2, the apostle Paul said, How can you know what's in the mind
of another man if he doesn't tell you? That's what he said. How can you know what is in the
mind, the heart, the spirit of another man if he doesn't reveal
it to you? Well, he said, we have the mind of Christ because
Christ has revealed it to us. He has lovingly revealed it to
us. Verse 8, wherein He hath abounded
toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known unto us the
mystery of His will. Great is the mystery of godliness.
God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen
of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the
world, received back up into glory. Verse nine says, he's
made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his
good pleasure, which he hath purposed in himself, that in
the dispensation of the fullness of times, he might gather together
in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and
which are on earth, even in him. I mean this, I'm in a straight
betwixt the two, because I know it's important to be here. I
do. I know it's important. We need
the gospel to be preached, and I have a family who needs me,
and you do too, and we're brethren, and there's a purpose, and there's
a work. Souls need to hear this and be
converted. God's sheep need to be called.
There's a reason to be here, and I want to be here, as long
as He'd have me to be here. I want to be on this earth. But
I have to be honest with you, I'm looking so forward to that.
I'm looking so forward to the moment that Christ comes back
and gathers all of us up together, takes us back to glory, reveals
to us the eternal inheritance that he went to prepare for us.
The things that our eyes haven't seen, our ears haven't heard,
our hearts have never imagined. All the souls that the father
placed in Christ, when the fullness of time comes, he's going to
gather every single one of them in him. I can't wait to know
the physical experience of being in here. I know I'm in him now,
but I'm, I'm talking about in that moment. He's going to gather all together
in Him, and He's going to present to them everything that He has
promised to them in the Lord Jesus Christ. Everything Christ
secured for them. Verse 11 says, In whom also we
have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according
to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel
of his own will. It blesses my heart to hear how
dogmatic God's word is. I love all things, not most things,
not some things. I love the word purpose, not
effort, not trying. Thank God for it. Hold your place
right here and turn with me over to 1 Peter 1. First Peter 1 verse 1 says, Peter,
an apostle of Jesus Christ to the strangers scattered throughout
Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, elect according
to the foreknowledge of God the Father through sanctification
of the Spirit unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of
Jesus Christ, grace unto you and peace be multiplied. That's
the message. Verse 3 says, blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to His
abundant mercy hath begotten us again. We fell, we lost it,
we died in sin. but he hath begotten us again
unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that fadeth
not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the
power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed
in the last time, wherein you greatly rejoice, though now for
a season, If need be, you are in heaviness through manifold
temptations, manifold trials, that the trial of your faith,
being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though
it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor
and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ, whom, having not
seen, you love. in whom though now you see him
not, yet believing, you rejoice with joy unspeakable and full
of glory, receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation
of your souls." He said this inheritance comes with a lively
hope, a living hope, a sure hope, secured by the fact that the
Father raised Christ from the dead. That's how you know it's
secure. He said, this inheritance is
incorruptible, it's undefiled, it'll never fade away because
it's reserved in heaven for you. All who are kept by the power
of God. And this is what he said, even though you're enduring trials,
even though you're enduring so many temptations right now, so
many troubles right now, Here on this earth, he said, you can
rejoice in the Christ who has secured it all for you, whom
having not seen, you love. You love him, don't you? You
love him. Verse 18 right here says, for
as much as you know that you are not redeemed with corruptible
things as silver and gold from your vain conversation received
by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of
Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, who
verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world,
but was manifested in these last times for you who by him do believe
in God, that raised him up from the dead and gave him glory,
that your faith and hope might be in God." That's it, isn't
it? Back in Ephesians 1, verse 11
says, "...in whom also we've obtained an inheritance, being
predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all
things after the counsel of His own will, that we should be to
the praise of His glory who first trusted in Christ, in whom you
also trusted after that you heard the word of truth the gospel
of your salvation in whom also that in whom also after that
you believed you were sealed with that holy spirit of promise
which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased
possession unto the praise of his glory for every soul that
the father chose to do this for and the son did this for God the Spirit will call that
soul to a notification of it. Every one of them. There is a
work of the Father, there is a work of the Son, there is a
work of the Spirit. If any part of the work was not
fulfilled, then it would be incomplete. It would not be a complete work. And as the Father chose God's
people to salvation, and as the Son accomplished God's people
to salvation. The spirit will call God's people
to salvation. The spirit will notify all who
were chosen of their accomplished salvation. Verse 13, he said,
the word of the gospel will come and God's people will hear it
and they'll believe it and they'll trust in it. And God will give
each one of them faith to believe and trust in Christ. And he said
that faith, that work of the Spirit in God's people, that
is the evidence of their salvation. That's the seal of the Holy Spirit
of promise. Verse 14, which is the earnest
of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession
unto the praise of His glory. That faith in Christ that God
gives to his people. That's God's earnest to his people. Just like when you put earnest
money down to buy a house. If you're going to purchase some
real estate, you got to put earnest money down. And what you're doing
is you're saying, I promise, I make a promise right here.
I'll do this. I'm committing to this. I take
responsibility for this. Well, that faith in Christ that
God puts inside of His people is His earnest to them. Faith in Christ is not our earnest
to Him. That's His earnest to us. That's Him saying, I promise
I'll do this. This faith is your evidence.
I'll do this. Verse 15. Wherefore, I also,
after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and love unto
all the saints, those who love Christ, love his people. They do. Wherefore, I also, after
I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and love unto all
the saints, cease not to give thanks for you, making mention
of you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom
and revelation in the knowledge of him. Paul said, I pray he
might reveal Christ to you. Oh, I pray God might reveal Christ
to us. I pray God might reveal Christ
to us more and more. Have we seen enough of Him? Can
we say, well, that's it, I've seen enough? No way. Never throughout
all eternity will God's people say that. They will continually
cry more, more about the Lord Jesus. Tell me more, more about
Him, more of His saving fullness. See, that's what I want. I want
to see more of it. I want to hear more of His love
who died for me. I sincerely pray we might grow
in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior. Verse 17 says that
the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give
unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge
of Him. If you have a center reference
there in your Bible, mine says right there, in the knowledge
of Him, it says, for the acknowledgement of Him. For the acknowledgement. That in all things we might acknowledge
Him. That's what God's people want
to learn to do, and that's what they do. And that's what God
reveals to them. Acknowledge Him in it. Acknowledge
Him in it. Verse 18, The eyes of your understanding
being enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of His
calling, and what is the riches of the glory of His inheritance
in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power
to usward who believe, according to the working of His mighty
power, which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the dead
and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places,
far above all principality and power and might and dominion
and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also
in that which is to come. and hath put all things under
his feet and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all."
He said, this is my prayer. Paul said, this is my prayer.
I pray that God would open our eyes to the hope of his calling
and the riches of his glory which is the exceeding greatness of
His power, which He wrought in Christ Jesus when He raised Him
from the dead." He said, I pray God will reveal
to us what that means. I pray God will cause us to see
the finished work of Christ. If a sinner will ever get a hold
of the finished work of Christ, that sinner will get a hold of
God's salvation. The battle's over. The work is
done. It's over. Christ is high and
lifted up, he said. Verse 21, far above everything,
everything that is, far above everything. And he said, his
people, they are high and lifted up with him. He hath put all
things under his feet. That's what verse 22 said. And he's given himself to be
the head over all things to his church, his bride. Verse 23 says, which is his body. They are one with him. They are one in him, the fullness
of him that filleth all in all. That's what God's people have
in Christ. That's what God's people have
in Christ. And that's why Paul said back
in verse two, that's the whole reason he said, grace be to you. And peace from God, our father,
and from the Lord Jesus Christ, blessed be the God and father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who have blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ. We truly are a blessed
people. You know that. I get a hold of
that a little bit more every now and then. The Lord allows
me to really enter into it in spite of all of our woes, in
spite of all of our troubles, in spite of all of our sicknesses,
weaknesses, doubts and fears and frailties of every kind. We truly are a blessed people. God's people truly are blessed
in Christ, in the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank God for the Lord
Jesus Christ. All right, I'm going to dismiss
us in prayer.