IN CHRIST:MORE, MUCH MORE

IN CHRIST: MORE, MUCH MORE!

Ephesians 1:1-6

            During our Interfaith Clergy meeting my Rabbi Friend Joseph invited all the clergy to attend “Rosh Hashanah” services. I enthusiastically responded Yes! But from the next moment I tried to find some reason why I shouldn’t go. Not because I didn’t want to, but because of these nagging thoughts and fears of my own heart. It was Tuesday, September 11, those thoughts didn’t go away. What would they think of me a Goyim coming into their Synagogue? Would they perceive me a person of color as a terrorist? Would they accept me or reject me?

            I thought these were all valid reasons why I should stay home, and text my Rabbi Friend, “Sorry, something came up, I can not make it to the service, have a wonderful Rosh Hashanah” A lame excuse! But the Lord wouldn’t let me get away, he wanted me to over come my fear of rejection. So, in the end I decided to go, and to my surprise I was well received and warmly introduced to the congregation by my Rabbi Friend.  The congregation was very friendly.

            It was a two-hour long service of singing, recital from the Torah, personal and corporate prayers, blessings of touching the Torah scroll as it went around the synagogue. Not to mention no one fell of to sleep with the occasional blowing of the Shofar. All in all, I enjoyed, perhaps the only Goyim and a person of color. In the end I overcame my own personal fear of rejection.

            In the text we read today from Ephesians 1:1-6, I would like us to consider these words: “More, Much More and as we do so, I invite us, for the next several weeks, on a spiritual journey to learn some, price-less blessings, life changing principles for victorious Christian living, practical tips to how to cultivate healthy relationships, but wait! That’s not all. There is more, In Christ there is more and Much more.  Let’s start our Journey into the book of Ephesians.  

AUTHOR, DATE AND SETTING:

            Ephesians is one of Paul’s five, “Prison Epistles” probably written while in prison in Rome from (About AD 60-64). Though, some debate about the authorship of this epistle for our study we assume it was the Apostle Paul who wrote it according to chapter 1:1, “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus.” Chapter 3:1, “For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles.” His opening in this letter is consistent with most of his letters in the N.T.

            Because the name Ephesus was not mentioned in every earlier manuscript, some scholars believe that it was a circular letter, intended to be circulated and read among all the churches in Asia Minor and was simply sent first to believers in Ephesus.

            Ephesus was an important city in Paul’s third missionary journey. He remained there for three years (Acts 20:31). The city of Ephesus was best known for its magnificent temple of Artemis, or Diana, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.  It was also an important political, educational, and commercial center. Let’s consider the central themes of this letter.

THE CENTRAL THEMES:

            The first three chapters are theological emphasizing the NT doctrine, whereas the last three chapters are practical and focus on Christian behavior. This is a letter of encouragement and admonition, written to remind believers of their price-less blessings in Jesus Christ; and not only to be thankful for those blessings, but also live in a manner worthy of such blessings.

            In this letter Paul unfolds one of the mysteries of the church, which is “that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus. The major theme of Ephesians is that the Church (ecclesia) is the mystical body of Christ.

            God’s great master plan is to bring everything together (Eph 1:10) under Christ as head. We as the body of Christ on earth, have a part in this plan and the Holy Spirit is the guarantee of God’s promise. The first part of the letter reveals our life in Christ to be one of union with Him in the highest heavens. The second half shows us in very practical terms how such a heavenly life is to be lived by us down here on the earth. Some key words used in this letter: “riches” 5 times, “grace” 12 times, “glory” 6 times, “fullness or filled” 6 times and the key phrase, “in Christ” or “In Him” used some 22 times.

            Our scriptural text can be divided into two sections: Vs 1-2 and Vs 3-6. Vs1-2 “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” This is a letter written by Paul. Notice, how graciously he opens up this letter.

            In his initial greeting Paul asserts his position as an apostle of Christ and his writing was directed by the will of God. He addresses them as saints (holy, set apart, sanctified, consecrated) and faithful (believing, trustworthy). Then invokes a blessing of Grace and Peace from God the father and the Lord Jesus Christ. In this e-mails, twitter and texts age we seldom write or receive personalized, hand written letters. How refreshing would it be when we receive letters, that opens with words of Grace and Peace like this letter of Paul? If one thing we can learn from Paul is how to write or at least open letters with gracious and encouraging words.

            Let’s look at some key words from these two verses: Apostles: The word means messenger or a sent one here it is serving as an official title for Paul and the 12 disciples. They were the eye witnesses of the resurrected Jesus and were chosen by God to lay the foundation for the church by preaching, teaching and writing Scripture accompanied by miracles.

            Saints…Faithful designates those whom God has set apart from sin and the world unto himself and they were made holy through their faith in Jesus Christ. Though the Ephesian believers had their own share of flaws and short comings. By calling them Saints and Faithful Paul over looks their flaws and sees in them the finished, and the sanctifying work of Christ.

            How do you see yourself and others? Do you focus on their faults and failures or see them through the eyes of God? When God looks at his children He sees the blood stained, redemptive work of his Son Jesus Christ on the cross. Therefore, he counts us righteous in Him. Thank God, we are his Saints and the Faithful remnant to do is will in this world.

             The words “Grace to you and peace...”  are used in a common greeting in the early Church that Paul used in all his letters. Where did Paul get his authority from to write this letter? It was from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.  

            Was Paul only given such authority? No! Jesus gives his authority to all those who follow Him, t all of God’s children. Before Jesus was taken up to heaven he commissioned his disciples with these words. Matthew 28:18-20, “And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

            So, let’s remember whenever we stand up to speak, write or do anything in the name of the Lord we can be assured Jesus will cover our backs because we are doing it for Him. Coming back to our scripture:  Vs 3-6, “3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him, in love. 5. He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.” In these verses Paul encourages the initial recipients to Bless God.

             Someone asked me the other day, can we bless God? In a sense of as if God needs our blessings. How can we even bless God, when we are the ones who are desperately in need of His blessings? We cannot bless God any more than as he is already blessed. Then what does it mean to bless God? In the Greek the word means, “worthy to be praised,” and is in all instances ascribed to God. No one is inherently worthy of praise except God alone. So, when we say we are to bless God means we are to express the most positive, uplifting and praiseworthy words regarding the God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul gives three reasons why we are to bless God.

THREE REASONS TO BLESS GOD

            First reason: Vs, 3 “who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,” The saints are encouraged to bless God because he has blessed us with every spiritual blessing. It doesn’t mean that we have not been blessed materially, physically here on earth. The scripture tells us that every good and perfect gift comes from our father in heaven. The earthly material blessings however great they may be, they are incomplete and temporary, here today and gone tomorrow. Moths will eat them up, and thieves will break in and steal them.

            Therefore, where should our focus be? Not so much on the earthly and material things but on the spiritual blessings that are complete and permanent. They are beyond the realm of sight and sound, yet they are fully ours in Christ. No spiritual blessings are apart from Christ.

            Second reason: Vs “4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him, in love.” We are to bless God because he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world. This is a mind-boggling concept.

            Who knows when the foundations of the world were laid? Psalm 102: 25, “Of old You founded the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands.” God challenged Job with these words, Job 38:4 “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding,” Though, you may not understand everything about the world, one thing you need to understand: For those of us in Christ, we know that our lives are not a mistake, we know that our lives are not an accident. We were created for a purpose, and that purpose was that we might be holy, (i.e. set apart for God), that we might be blameless, (i.e. without defect or blemish) so that we might live in the very presence of God in love forever and ever.

            Third reason:  Vs 5, “He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,” We are to bless God because we are blessed spiritually, we are chosen to be holy and, we are to bless God because He predestined us—which is a proposition of our being chosen, for us to be chosen prior to creation is to be predestined.  But now we are to bless God because He predestined us to be His adopted children.     In our unregenerate state once we were orphans without home, without a family therefore without family rights, privileges, heritage and inheritance. By His Grace He adopted us, and gave us full rights into His family through His Son Jesus Christ. But wait! That’s not all, In Christ: there is More and Much More. In closing, I can not over emphasize the tremendous blessings awaiting all those who are willing to explore the Book of Ephesians. For that reason, this fall season all of us will be studying this letter to the Ephesians during the Mid-Week Bible study times on Wednesday nights and through a sermon series.

            I encourage all of you when you get home, find some time, sit with a cup of coffee and read through the entire six chapters of this letter as if you would read a love letter from your friend, or your spouse. May the Holy Spirit help you as you study the book of Ephesians. Amen!