THE REASON

EPHESIANS 1:1-14Adapted from a Jim Black sermon

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During one of Theodore Roosevelt's political campaigns, a delegation called on him at his home in Oyster Bay, Long Island.

The President met them with his coat off and his sleeves rolled up.

"Ah, gentlemen," he said, "come down to the barn and we will talk while I do some

work."

At the barn, Roosevelt picked up a pitchfork and looked around for the hay.

Then he called out, "John, where's all the hay?"

"Sorry, sir," John called down from the hayloft. "I ain't had time to toss it back down again after you pitched it up while

the Iowa folks were here.“

I don’t really think Teddy Roosevelt was two-faced like that, but who knows? How about Christians? Are there any who say they belong to Christ but act like they’re

a child of Satan?Though difficult, the call for Christians

to live lives different than the world around us is based firmly in what God

has done for us. He has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ!

In Ephesians 1:1-14 Paul encourages Christians to see how God has blessed them in Christ & to be motivated to live

differently because of it.

In 1991 a young missionary who had grown up in a Chattanooga, TN area church came to the elders with the proposal of beginning

an inner city ministry in downtown Chattanooga.

The goal was to involve Christians from all over the area in spreading the gospel

through the urban communities and to plant a new congregation in the inner city.

The ministry immediately began working in the city’s south side and God blessed their

efforts tremendously. Many individuals, mostly young men, came to faith and were

baptized!

As Christians continued to work, God continued to bless and eventually a new

facility was needed to meet in and operate out of. It must have been the working of

God, because an older congregation across town, but still in the downtown region, voted

to close its doors. It had been a long-standing congregation that had simply died.

Its members had grown too old and too few to maintain the facility and so they donated

it to the work of the inner city. It was a wonderful boost and blessing to the new

Inner City Church of Christ!But the building was on the city’s east side! Now, Chattanooga doesn’t have ‘gangs’ like

New York or L.A., but there does exist a ‘gang’ mentality among many of the young

people in the inner city.

For the church to move from the city’s south side – where the gangs dressed in blue– to

the city’s east side -where the gangs preferred red to separate themselves from

the blue- was to be a monumental challenge! It wasn’t unlike the initial

undertakings of Paul in taking the gospel to the Gentiles!

After their first church service in the new territory, a fight broke out in the parking lot between the ‘reds’ and the ‘blues’. Even

though all these folks were either Christians or had encountered the gospel through the

ministry, they hadn’t changed overnight! One young Christian had to be pulled off of

another young Christian, going at each other simply because of the color of their bandana and what side of town they lived

on.

We who have been Christians for many years might have expected them to simply

drop their previous way of life in a snap! But it just wasn’t that simple!

To them, their gangs and the rivalry were so much a part of their lives BEFORE

becoming Christians, it wasn’t something that could change overnight. Sometimes it’s

tough to change! Sometimes it’s tough to live for Jesus!

It took the better part of the next year in concentrated teaching for things to settle

down in their new neighborhood and for the young church to realize that living for Jesus meant that some of the old ways of life had

to be done away with!

We might hear this story and think that it is far removed from us. WE certainly wouldn’t have gotten into a fight after church, would

we, over something so silly? Maybe not, but that doesn’t mean that you or I changed

overnight when we came to Christ, did we? Did the alcoholic who became a Christian no longer desire another drink? Did the

person who had lived a sexually immoral lifestyle all of a sudden no longer desire the

opposite sex?

Did the person who had become so accustomed to deceit and lying that it had

become a way of life all of a sudden become a pillar of truth?

For some, yes. Their experiences of conversion were so powerful that their lives did an immediate 180! But for most of us,

the process is a slower one and sometimes a painful one.

Because of erosion, the historic Cape Hatteras Lighthouse was in peril of washing

into the Atlantic Ocean. So Congress appropriated $12 million for the National

Park service to move it 2900 feet to safety. With a combination of care, expertise,

patience and raw power, The Expert House Movers of Sharptown, Maryland, moved the 208 foot tall, 9.7 million-pound structure to

its current home.

The option of moving the lighthouse was first proposed in April of 1982, but the light wasn’t lit at its new location until November 13, 1999. 17 years of study and 23 days of

moving later. Why did it take so long? Small things can be moved quickly, but big

things take time. Most people tend to overestimate what they can do in a week and underestimate what they can do in a

lifetime.

We don’t change overnight. We don’t change easily, some of us. If this describes you, relax, you’re in good company. That’s just the folks that Paul is writing to in this

letter to the Ephesians!

Ephesians 2:1 NET And although you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you formerly lived according to this

world's present path, according to the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of

disobedience,

3 among whom all of us also formerly lived out our lives in the cravings of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and the

mind, and were by nature children of wrath even as the rest…

We introduced Ephesians last week & you’ll remember that one of Paul’s key emphases

is on the CHANGED life.

A man came home one day and he saw a plaque on the kitchen wall. It had been

placed there, obviously, by his sweet wife, and it simply read, "Prayer changes things!"

Twenty-four hours later, the wife noticed that the plaque had been removed from the

wall of their home. She confronted her husband, asking, "Don't you like prayer?"

He answered, "Of course I like prayer, but I don't like change!"

Life “in Christ” looks different than life “in the world.”

Being a Christian makes a difference in the way you live your life!

Paul also knows that sometimes that transformation is a difficult and demanding

process and so he begins his letter by giving us the motivation behind the change

that God wants to see in us!

In other words, Paul doesn’t demand a change in our lifestyle by guilting us into it;

or by threatening us into it; rather he spends the first 3 chapters describing what God has done for us so that we might live for him! In so doing, he mentions seven

blessings that are ours in Christ and should motivate us to live for Him.

Ephesians 1:1 NET From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints [in Ephesus], the faithful in Christ

Jesus. 2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! 3

Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly

realms in Christ.

God has blessed us SO completely!

Paul is playing off of the word ‘blessing’ saying, “Blessed is the God...who has

blessed us with every spiritual blessing!”We typically think of ‘blessings’ in terms of material ‘blessings’, don’t we? Or physical?

Good health, a house, a car, children, grandchildren, a job. Paul often uses this section of his letters to describe blessings that are ‘other worldly’, blessings that we

don’t usually think of as blessings.

These are ‘spiritual blessings’ that are found ‘in the heavenly realms’. That’s not to say

that we have to wait till we get to heaven to receive them– they are ours NOW! But it is to say that they are blessings found in the Kingdom of God & in the church; among

God’s people.

So, if we have been blessed so thoroughly, why is it still hard to live for Jesus?

Paul goes on to describe these blessings.4 For he chose us in Christ before the

foundation of the world that we may be holy and unblemished in his sight in love.

A lot of people get hung up on this language of ‘election’ or God’s ‘choosing’ us. Does

God pick & choose among humanity whom he will save and whom he won’t? If so,

where is our free will?

We live for Him because He has Chosen us

Do we have a choice in the matter? Some believe & teach that God chooses us to be saved and that we have no choice in the matter. That necessarily means, that God

chooses for others to be lost. I have a problem with that. God wants ALL to come

to repentance & be saved!

2 Peter 3:9 NET The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some regard

slowness, but is being patient toward you, because he does not wish for any to perish

but for all to come to repentance.No, remember who Paul is talking to: the

church, NOT individuals! Notice, too, where the choosing takes place! “IN HIM”; that is,

CHRIST!

God knew that if he created man, that man would sin and separate himself from God.

So, He chose (from the very beginning before the foundation of the world) that

those who would choose to be ‘in Christ’ would be made holy and unblemished. In

other words, if you have committed to make Jesus the Lord of your life, then you have

chosen to be chosen!

Properly understood, the emphasis is STILL on God! We’ve still not done anything worthy of being chosen! But God has

chosen us anyhow! We, the church, are the CHOSEN!

How wonderful!

5 He did this by predestining us to adoption as his sons through Jesus Christ, according

to the pleasure of his will — Again, lots of folks get hung up on the word

‘predestining.’ That just means that God had the end in mind when He began.

We Live for Him because He has pre-planned for our adoption as

sons

When he created man it was with the idea that we would spend eternity with Him in

Heaven. His idea for our destiny was heaven! What more beautiful imagery than ‘adoption’ to speak of what God has done?

When a husband takes his wife to the hospital to give birth they take home the

child that is born! No choice in the matter!

Whatever came was what they will love- warts & all! With ‘adoption’ there’s a choice!

You see what you’re getting BEFORE signing the papers! You see the warts & you choose to bring them home anyway! That’s what God has done out of love! Even when we were dead in our sin (full of warts?) God chose to make us his children! Because he loved us anyway! And notice, “according to

the pleasure of his will ,” it brought him great joy!

6 to the praise of the glory of his grace that he has freely bestowed on us in his dearly

loved Son. Grace, ‘Undeserving loving kindness’ We didn’t deserve it, but he loves us anyhow.

Freely bestowed, it is a ‘gift’; we don’t earn it, work for it, deserve it at all! But though

offered to everybody, it is only given “through Jesus Christ!”

We Live for Him because He has freely bestowed upon us

His glorious grace.

7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace 8 that

he lavished on us in all wisdom and insight.

We Live for Him because He has redeemed us & forgiven us

The concept of redemption is an interesting one-with its roots in the Old Testament idea of covenant and the language of the ancient

marketplace. In both instances it involved the purchasing or buying back some item,

or person that would otherwise be lost, taken prisoner or destroyed. In the OT, God

redeemed Israel from the Egyptians.

2 Samuel 7:23 NIV And who is like your people Israel—the one nation on earth that

God went out to redeem as a people for himself, and to make a name for himself,

and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations and their gods from before your people, whom you

redeemed from Egypt?

The Greeks would have used the word in connection with the purchase of a slave’s freedom. God redeemed us from certain

destruction & the price was the blood of His Son! We have been released from bondage

because Christ died on the Cross!

We also have received forgiveness of our trespasses, through his blood; that act of

redemption! That’s GRACE, lavished upon us, not grudgingly or without full knowledge

of our sins & our undeservingness, but purposefully! “With all wisdom & insight.”

We Live for Him because He has revealed His will to us9 He did this when he revealed to us the secret of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, 10

toward the administration of the fullness of the times, to head up all things in Christ —

the things in heaven and the things on earth.

We typically think of a ‘secret’ as something very private, hush-hush. It could be

something shameful that would cause embarrassment. You don’t want anybody

else to know about it. Here ‘secret’ refers to the divine plan of God that had at one time been hidden but is now revealed by God!

God’s plan for mankind is revealed! It is known! There is no reason for us to be

ignorant of the fact that, For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in

him will not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 NET

If it has been revealed, then why hasn’t everyone heard the good news of this plan?

God has revealed Himself thru Jesus Christ! God has revealed Himself thru His

Word! It has been said that fully 1/3 of the people in the world don’t have access to a Bible,

His Word. What does that say to Christians?

We Live for Him because He has planned for us a purpose.11 In Christ we too have been claimed as

God's own possession, since we were predestined according to the one purpose

of him who accomplishes all things according to the counsel of his will 12 so

that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, would be to the praise of his

glory.

Again, Paul says we are ‘chosen in Christ’ by God himself according to his master plan. What is that master plan? That we

spend eternity with Him! We weren’t created to simply exist, go to work, come home, go to work, maybe raise a family,

make some money, leave a few good works, have a few laughs and die, that

being the end! NO! We were created to live with God forever praising Him! If you don’t

spend eternity with God then you’re not doing what you were created for!

13 And when you heard the word of truth (the gospel of your salvation) — when you believed in Christ — you were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit,14 who

is the down payment of our inheritance, until the redemption of God's own

possession, to the praise of his glory.

We Live for Him because He has marked us with the Holy

Spirit

Seals in Paul’s day worked much like they do today. They were a symbol of

authenticity, of genuineness, of proof of purchase!

When you were a kid can you remember sending off for special offers in the mail? I remember sending for things I saw on a

cereal box.

To get that de-coder ring, or whatever it was, you had to include the proof of

purchase. That was the proof, evidence, that the special offer belonged to you. You were its legal and rightful owner! So your

had a right to the thing you were sending off for.

The Holy Spirit for the Christian is the proof of purchase; the seal that guarantees that

God is the rightful owner! Therefore we have a right to our inheritance because we are God’s possession! We’ve been marked!

As you can see, God has blessed us thoroughly in Christ! So completely!

Why would we NOT want to live lives that reflect Jesus to those around us?

If God has done so much for us, and wants us to change our habits, actions or lifestyle,

how could we say no? Of course, this is Paul’s point.

Are you living for Christ? Do you have these blessings we’ve mentioned? They’re yours

if you’re “in Christ.” Are you?Have you named him as the Lord of your

life? Have you turned away from sin? Have you been baptized into Christ for the washing away of your sins? Let me

encourage you this morning to do so!

Maybe you are a Christian. I should ask this morning, “Are you enjoying the benefits of

these blessings that you already have?” Did you know you had them?

There is a story of an old pauper lady. She spent her days collecting aluminum cans

and newspapers for recycling. She lived in an old worn out shack on the verge of

collapse.

Her clothes were old, tattered and torn. She had no family and no one to take care of her. So, when she died the agents of the

state went into her house expecting to find very little. Instead they found stacks &

stacks of old newspapers, each with a crisp new $20 dollar bill in its pages. She was wealthy, extremely wealthy for the small

town in which she lived! But she had never enjoyed its benefits!

Are Christians sometimes like that? We’ve been blessed beyond our own

comprehension, yet we still live as if we were paupers!

How many of us have tried to live our Christian life like that?