Ephesians 1:3-14 (NRSV)
Read Ephesians 1:3-14 on biblegateway.com
Verse 3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, Verse 4just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. Verse 5He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, Verse 6to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. Verse 7In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace Verse 8that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight Verse 9he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, Verse 10as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. Verse 11In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, Verse 12so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. Verse 13In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; Verse 14this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God's own people, to the praise of his glory.
Devotion
A friend of mine recently lost his father and just received the inheritance money that was given to him. He was very somber when talking about the things this money would enable him to take care of: pay off many debts, give more to the church, and perhaps begin to save for his kids’ future. He was clear that the sadness of losing his father was too overwhelming to be overjoyed with the beauty and bounty of his inheritance. The inheritance Paul talks about in the first chapter of Ephesians is far different from my friend’s inheritance…while also being quite similar. It is similar in the fact that we get something as a gift that will bless our lives in amazing ways; different in the fact that that our inheritance from God through Christ comes to us not in the absence of the one who grants it to us, but in the promise of a Risen Lord and Savior. Jesus the Christ continues to walk with us in this life while already having gone before us to the place he will take us. Can it get any better than this?
Prayer
God, you are so good, so loving, so powerful. Thank you for calling me as your child and promising me the gift of eternal life. Help me, dear God, celebrate this promise and live it out now in this place and at this time. Amen.