Blessed with every spiritual blessing

Ephesians 1 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,

To the saints who are at Ephesus and are faithful in Christ Jesus: ² Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

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 and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, ⁶ to the praise of the glory of His grace, with which He favored us in the Beloved. ⁷ In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace ⁸ which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight ⁹ He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He set forth in Him, ¹⁰ regarding His plan of the fullness of the times, to bring all things together in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. ¹¹ In Him we also have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things in accordance with the plan of His will, ¹² to the end that we who were the first to hope in the Christ would be to the praise of His glory. ¹³ In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of the promise, ¹⁴ who is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.

¹⁵ For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints, ¹⁶ do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers; ¹⁷ that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. ¹⁸ I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, ¹⁹ and what is the boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might ²⁰ which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹ far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. ²² And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and made Him head over all things to the church, ²³ which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

Jesus taught us to pray saying: Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.  In today’s text it says: 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. If we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, then in answer to Jesus prayer, we are also blessed with every spiritual blessing here on earth. The text says: In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He set forth in Him, regarding His plan of the fullness of the times, to bring all things together in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him we also have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things in accordance with the plan of His will.  It says, we have obtained an inheritance, not we will obtain. Our inheritance in Christ is not just that we will be with Him forever, it is that we are with Him forever. In Matthew 28:20 Jesus says: “I am with you always, to the end of the age.” We have indeed been given eternal life in Christ, through the cross. In John 10:10 Jesus says: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came so that they would have life, and have it abundantly.”  Through the resurrection, we have also been given abundant life here and now. The abundant life though, is not centered on an excess of material things. The abundant life that we have is that we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places.  In Christ, we can live above the circumstances and situations of the world. We can enjoy the peace of heaven, even in the midst of the chaos of the world. In John 16:33 Jesus says: “These things I have spoken to you so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”

The words and prayer of Paul in today’s text, are my prayer for you today: That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and made Him head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. Amen.