God's Plan for
Blessing His Children
Book of Ephesians
Chapter 1:1-12
The Apostle Paul
always reminds us that he was living and acting under the control of
a power from on high. The Divine will of God!
In fact, to share
Paul's beliefs is the means of a strong and effective Christian life!
We will notice also
that by the power of the Holy Spirit, Paul knew, these letters, these
epistles, were not just intended for these Churches of his day but,
to all Christians everywhere and in all the ages until the return of
Jesus Christ.
In fact, the Apostle
Paul was part of God's plan for blessing His children!
Paul was writing to
the faithful in Christ Jesus, all the Saints of God in all ages!
This will not change
in this epistle to the Ephesians.
The Book of
Ephesians reveals to us a deeper knowledge into the "grace"
of God!
The Book of
Ephesians will also give us another look at God's plan for this
world.
Let's begin:
*****Eph 1:1 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:
Eph 1:2 Grace be to
you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
We are not only to
be "saints", which is clearly misunderstood in our world,
but also the "faithful". We are to be faithful saints!
To be faithful is to
obey the truth of Jehovah God. This means all the Word of God and not
bits and pieces that we choose to obey!
Isa 25:1 O LORD,
thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou
hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and
truth.
Who then are the
faithful?
First there is
Jehovah God.
Deu 7:9 Know
therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which
keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his
commandments to a thousand generations;
Deu 7:10 And
repayeth them that hate him to their face, to destroy them: he will
not be slack to him that hateth him, he will repay him to his face.
God is faithful in
His love and He will be just as faithful in His wrath.
Next there is the
Lord.
Rev 1:5 And from
Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of
the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that
loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,
Rev 1:6 And hath
made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory
and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
So, then we as the
saints of God are also to be faithful.
1Co 1:9 God is
faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus
Christ our Lord.
We cannot be in
fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ, without being faithful to the
things of our Father in Heaven!
No one can live in
God without being a channel for God, by Jesus Christ!
The Lord Jesus
Christ is God's "Grace" poured out onto this world we live
in!
2Co 2:14 Now thanks
be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh
manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
2Co 2:15 For we are
unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in
them that perish:
2Co 2:16 To the one
we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of
life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?
2Co 2:17 For we are
not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but
as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.
If you need a
blessing from God, then you better know His Son in a personal way!
Amen and Amen!
*****Eph 1:3
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 is God's
greatest blessing? It is when God can bestow His blessings upon His
children!
God will allow some
earthly blessings to those who know His Son, but God's greatest
blessings are spiritual and heavenly and not of this world!
Before we go any
further we need to know the word "Grace".
What is "Grace"
in the Word of God?
1) The "Gospel"
is the "Grace of God.
Act_20:24 But none
of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so
that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I
have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace
of God.
2) The application
of the "Gospel" and it's saving power to our lives is also
the "Grace" of God.
Eph 2:8 For by
grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is
the gift of God:
3) Everything that
comes by Jesus Christ is the "Grace" of God!
1Pe 1:13 Wherefore
gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the
grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus
Christ;
Rom 11:5 Even so
then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the
election of grace.
Rom 11:6 And if by
grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace.
But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no
more work.
4) Grace then is
certainly the unmerited favor of God!
Eph 3:8 Unto me,
who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I
should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
"God's Riches
at Christ Expense".
Before Jesus Christ
came into this world, God did bless His people with material things.
Abraham received land, wealth, and fame.
These are still the
same things all the world seeks after today!
We know that as
Israel first grew it misused and hoarded up these things refusing to
share even amongst themselves and certainly not with any other
nations.
These things always
go against the will of God and Israel was warned many times and then
punished many times.
The great change
when the Lord Jesus Christ came, is that God deals with mankind in
spiritual things with spiritual blessings.
Heb 1:1 God, who at
sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the
fathers by the prophets,
Heb 1:2 Hath in
these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed
heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
It should be obvious
that spiritual blessings can only come by the Holy Spirit!
It is the Holy
Spirit who is the major force in our world against evil!
It is also the Holy
Spirit who brings forth the act of salvation to the believer! (We
call this Holy Ghost conviction)
Rom 8:9 But ye are
not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God
dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is
none of his.
Rom 8:10 And if
Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is
life because of righteousness.
Rom 8:11 But if the
Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he
that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal
bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
So, let’s look at
this word "chosen".
*****Eph 1:4
According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the
world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
We can only come to
one conclusion as we read this Scripture. God chooses only those who
are in Jesus Christ!
Without Jesus Christ
you cannot be the "chosen" of God! (let this sink in)
Joh 14:17 Even the
Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him
not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you,
and shall be in you.
Joh 14:18 I will
not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.
Joh 14:19 Yet a
little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because
I live, ye shall live also.
Joh 14:20 "At
that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in
you".
Joh 14:21 He that
hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and
he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him,
and will manifest myself to him.
God wants us to be
with Him. God has wanted us to be with Him since before He laid the
foundations of this universe!
Why did God create
mankind, the answer is right here in His words?
We can only be holy
and without blame, by embracing the righteousness of Christ, because
we have no righteousness of our ourselves and then we must be endowed
with the Holy Spirit.
This is our only
means of being blameless! Amen
Col 1:21 And you,
that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked
works, yet now hath he reconciled
Col 1:22 In the
body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable
and unreproveable in his sight:
When God first
created all things, we should notice though things were good and some
even very good, not one of them was perfect.
In the end, when the
Lord returns to claim His church, when we meet Him in the clouds, we
will have finally reached perfection!
Our perfection can
come only by the Lord Jesus Christ! Amen
Because we are
chosen to be made perfect through Jesus Christ we are hated by this
imperfect world!
Joh 15:19 If ye
were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are
not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore
the world hateth you.
So, let’s look at
that word "predestinate".
*****Eph 1:5 Having
predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to
himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
Eph 1:6 To the
praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in
the beloved.
According to
Calvinism, God calls only those He has predestined to eternal life (
our own choice is not involved). He renews their spirit (Not the Holy
Spirit moves into, not sealed with the Holy Spirit) and then draws
only those to Jesus Christ, so in this way salvation is entirely by
"grace".
A free gift to only
those God has selected Himself as He created them. This is a false
belief and therefore a false doctrine!
They believe, God
then justifies just these believers, declares them righteous (not the
righteousness of the Lord Jesus) and adopts them into His family and
sanctifies them. (this is a false belief)
They believe, saving
faith, is a gift of Christ Jesus. Repentance is a doctrine to
preached along with faith. Good works are the fruit of true faith.
(this is a false belief)
What then is the
truth?
The truth is, God
has not determined that just certain ones will be saved and the
remaining will abandoned to the Lake of Fire!
God has determined
that only those who have(chosen) and (accepted), "by faith",
in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation will be saved and
all those who reject the work of the Lord Jesus Christ will be
destroyed!
God would not be God
if He specifically chose certain ones for salvation and certain ones
for damnation!
God has given this
choice to us to make freely only after knowing the truth!
The truth is, God
calls, and we are the ones who must make the choice!
Therefore, the
church is the "Elect", those who have elected to place
their faith in the work and the promises of Jesus Christ.
The Scriptures say,
we are predestined but only by Jesus Christ to Himself!
The Scriptures say,
we have no righteousness of our own,(our righteousness is as filthy
rags) we must be seen as having the righteousness of Jesus Christ by
accepting Him as our Savior!
It is Jesus Christ
who will present His "bride" to His Father in Heaven.
It was not God who
prearranged this marriage contract with those that He chose!
Jesus Christ did not
just die for the few believers, Jesus Christ died for all the sin in
all the world, past, present and future!
Joh 3:16 For God so
loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Joh 3:17 For God
sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the
world through him might be saved.
Joh 3:18 He that
believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is
condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the
only begotten Son of God.
None of these
Scriptures in this passage of John point toward Calvinism, in fact
these Scriptures destroy Calvinism!
God has only chosen
those who have accepted "His" Son and are filled with "His"
Spirit!
It is only these who
are adopted in the family of God, having been removed from the family
of Satan, that are the "Bride of Christ".
Being adopted, we
then have direct access to the throne room of God.
It is only the
believer who will become an adopted brother or sister to Jesus Christ
with freedom to enter in the Heavenly Mansion of God!
God is so full of
"Grace" that it is over flowing, but it is only by Jesus
Christ that this "Grace" can be applied to the believer!
Eph 2:7 That in the
ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his
kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
God's "Grace"
is in fact His glorious free love for His Son and those of His Son.
God has accepted
each believer who is washed in the blood of His Dear Son, He loves so
much!
Rom 3:24 Being
justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in
Christ Jesus:
Rom 3:25 Whom God
hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to
declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past,
through the forbearance of God;
Rom 3:26 To
declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be
just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
*****Eph 1:7 In
whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins,
according to the riches of his grace;
Those that cringe
when they hear the word blood, should not forget that it is through
the death of Jesus Christ, who shed all His blood, just so we who
believe could be saved. It is the beloved who are saved!
We were slaves in
bondage to Satan who directed us according to his will.
We were unable to
redeem ourselves to buy our freedom from him because it would lead to
eternal separation from God, our Creator.
In the time of the
Scriptures, a kinsman could redeem a member of his family if he was
able to pay the debt that was owed.
We know the wages of
sin is death. The Lord Jesus Christ claimed the right of the kinsman
redeemer and paid the debt, which was His own death that we all can
be free from the bondage of Satan.
Heb 2:15 And
deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime
subject to bondage.
Heb 2:16 For verily
he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed
of Abraham.
Heb 2:17 Wherefore
in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that
he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining
to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.
Heb 2:18 For in
that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour
them that are tempted.
We are redeemed from
the guilt and the power of sin through the blood of our Savior, the
Lord Jesus Christ!
We have been
forgiven all the sin we have ever had in our lives and forgiven from
all future sin until the day God calls us home!
Psa 103:11 For as
the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them
that fear him.
Psa 103:12 As far
as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our
transgressions from us.
Psa 103:13 Like as
a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear
him.
Psa 103:14 For he
knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.
We can see that the
only thing that may exceed or at least match the "Grace" of
God is the "Mercy" of God!
*****Eph 1:8
Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;
We must understand
that we cannot be saved unless we are called. (Holy Ghost conviction)
This the work of the
Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit then freely gives us enough wisdom and
prudence to understand God's process of salvation.
It is only at this
time when we have enough knowledge to make a right choice!
Prudence is the
ability of judging what is the best choice.
Prudence is
conforming to the rules of reason, truth and morality.
Prudence says, being
blessed of God can come only by faith in the "Gospel" of
Jesus Christ.
Those who have
Spiritual wisdom are in the habit of being prudent!
Those who have
worldly wisdom will usually make the wrong choice.
Therefore, it is so
important to openly show or teach the word of the "Gospel"
to those under Holy Ghost conviction!
God will give us
enough understanding to know what to do.
Rom_12:3 For I say,
through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not
to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think
soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of
faith.
If not for this
measure of faith we would never understand the mystery of God's will!
What is God's will?
(It is certainly not what the Calvinist teach)
1Ti_2:4 Who will
have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the
truth.
God will make this
little mystery known before we make our choice.
*****Eph 1:9 Having
made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good
pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
We should understand
when we see the word mystery in the Scriptures, it will not be
something mysterious and difficult to understand.
A mystery in the
Scriptures is just something God did not show to the Old Testament
Saints.
1Co 2:7 But we
speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which
God ordained before the world unto our glory:
1Co 2:8 Which none
of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would
not have crucified the Lord of glory.
We already know that
God is always on time, when the time came to unlock the truth that He
was ready to reveal to humanity.
We know that Israel
had rejected the idea that Jehovah would also be the God of Gentiles,
so God put Israel aside until the fulness of the Gentiles would come
to Him in what we call the "Church Age".
Rom 11:25 For I
would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest
ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is
happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
After the rapture of
the Church God will return to deal with the salvation of Israel.
Israel had missed
the first opportunity to know the redemption of Christ and we should
be aware, that the cause of this was the false ministry of the
leaders of Judaism of that day.
It is God's will
that everyone will be saved! This has not been the case of the past
and will not be the case in the future.
There will always be
those who reject the truth of God!
Jehovah God has an
eternal purpose and plan for this world and it is His good pleasure
to bring it about.
Why do we have so
many that teach the Scriptures by dispensation? Verse 10
*****Eph 1:10 That
in the dispensation of the fulness 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:
Some say the method
according to which God carries out His purpose towards man is called
a dispensation.
Others say God's
method of carrying His purpose is by His covenants.
The key to
dispensation is maintaining a consistency in literal interpretation
and maintaining a distinction between Israel and the Church.
The truth is, God
has set seasons in which He will accomplish His will and His purpose!
Ecc 3:1 To every
thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the
heaven:
Ecc 3:17 I said in
mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there
is a time there for every purpose and for every work.
God has certainly
appointed seasons of His will and purpose, just as He has appointed
the Summer, the Winter, the Fall, and the Spring of each year.
God has an eternal
purpose and plan for this world and He moves at His own pleasure and
His own time.
God designs time as
He sees fit to fulfill His purpose!
We are foolish to
believe that God waits too long for certain things to take place!
We may totally
understand the Word of God, but we will never know the seasons which
He chooses to keep to Himself!
We must learn to be
patient!
The truth is, there
is coming a day when God will gather in one, all things in Christ
Jesus!
Though "the
rapture of the church" is a small part of this gathering, this
is not speaking of the "Rapture" which will have already
taken place.
Through the
''Gospel" we are first gathered individually and united with God
through His Son.
God next gathers
those individuals at His own pleasure, whether it be by age, or
illness, or other means.
At the Rapture, God
will gather all the "Body of Christ" that remain at His
coming.
In the Millennial
Kingdom, Christ will gather those who remain after the 7 years of
Tribulation upon this earth.
At the end of this
1000 years, the fulness of time upon this earth, God will gather all
things in Heaven and on this earth and place them in the New Heaven
and the New Earth.
There will certainly
be a climax to this world we live upon now!
Rev_21:5 And he
that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he
said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
All these things
will be gathered in Jesus Christ!
This world simply
refuses to believe that world history lies in the hands of our
Righteous God!
In this Scripture
that word "dispensation" means stewardship, or better
understood "house-management".
We must realize that
God has placed into the hands of Jesus Christ, the management of
God's Spiritual Household!
1Pe_2:5 Ye also, as
lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to
offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
Our entire Cosmos,
God's creation, is as a house under the management of God and God has
placed all these things into the hands of Jesus Christ!
When death and Hell
have been removed and evil will be no more, a new and perfect world
will be established for the Lord Jesus Christ and all His followers!
It is the Lords
"spiritual house", the Holy Ghost filled children of God
who will join with the angels who elected to stay with Christ who
will move on into an entirely new creation!
Until this time we
are to go about the work God has given us to do through Christ!
Eph 4:11 And he
gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and
some, pastors and teachers;
Eph 4:12 For the
perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the
edifying of the body of Christ:
We are all
missionaries, if not one of these, for the work of the ministry!
*****Eph 1:11 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:
Eph 1:12 That we
should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
God lives in the
eternal world, which we call Heaven and even Heaven will be made new.
God took only 6 days
to create the heavens and the earth that now exist but what did Jesus
say?
Joh 14:1 Let not
your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
Joh 14:2 In my
Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have
told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
Joh 14:3 And if I
go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you
unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
Joh 14:4 And
whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.
How wonderful will
this new place be?
1Co_2:9 But as it
is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered
into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them
that love him.
We know that only
God knows what we need for a life in eternity, so God foreordained
what He would do, for those who had the faith to believe in His Son.
God has made each
believer to be His own son or His own daughter and His own most
cherished possession, (His jewels).
So, we must also
realize that our everlasting joy is a free gift of God.
Certainly, God will
always be God, but the New Heaven and the New Earth will be created
for the pleasure of each believer.
Just as a father
should for their own children, God has implied that He will protect,
care for, improve and enjoy His inheritance as much as we will enjoy
being with Him throughout eternity! Amen
The New Heaven and
the New Earth will be perfect because a perfect God will have made
all things perfect even the believer!
God does things as
He pleases, and it has pleased God to do these things!
Who can we obtain
such an inheritance?
Mar_12:30 And thou
shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy
soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the
first commandment.
Those who can love
the Lord in this manner!
It's called "faith"!
It is only by
"faith" that we can believe!
Heb 11:1 Now faith
is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not
seen.
Amen!
