Imagine, if you will, a family going through life in poverty when, in fact, they actually had great wealth that they didn’t know of, or claim as their own. There are stories of some people who were extremely poor, living on their property in Texas, and not realizing that just a couple of feet below their ground were vast amounts of oil. Or perhaps a couple who live in poverty, not realizing that in their possession is the deed to a bountiful emerald mine left to them by an uncle. If only either of these people had known it, and tapped into the wealth that was actually theirs. Could I add your name or my name here? Do we know of the wealth that we have, but have never claimed? Let’s look into our Scripture passage today from Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians.
As the Apostle Paul begins his letter to the church in the city of Ephesus, he reminds them that God has blessed all believers with every spiritual blessing available (vs. 3). Paul states that these blessings are ours now. God has given them to us. Paul didn’t say that He will give them to us at some point in the future, or that they are ours only when we die and get to heaven. They are ours now. God’s Word does not say that these spiritual blessings belong only to a few chosen lucky ones. They are for all believers.
God has already given believers every spiritual blessing that we will ever need. We have total blessings. God’s super-abundant blessings belong only to believers, those who are “in Christ”, those who have put their faith and trust in Him. What Jesus has is ours, as well. Jesus offers an abundant life now (John 10:10), but many Christians aren’t living it. Eternity begins the moment we are saved, and there is no reason to wait until heaven to enjoy the Lord’s riches. We have received righteousness and an everlasting union with God. He makes it possible to live joyful lives that are running over with blessings.
As Paul lets us know in verses 3-6, in Christ we have all of the benefits of knowing God, such as being chosen for salvation and being adopted as His children. We have His forgiveness and spiritual insight. We have the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the power to do God’s will, and the hope of living forever with Christ. We can enjoy these blessings now, and these blessings are eternal, not temporary.
The plan of salvation, that of Jesus coming to earth to die on the cross in our place, originated in the timeless mind of God long before we existed (vs. 4). Because of Christ, we are holy and blameless in God’s sight. When we belong to Jesus, God looks at us as if we had never sinned. As a result of our responding to God’s call, the unrighteous become righteous, the unworthy become worthy. We are placed in a holy and blameless position before God. God makes believers His children, in the image of His divine Son, Jesus Christ (vs. 5). In His infinite love, God has adopted us as His own children. Through Jesus, He has brought us into His family and made us heirs with Jesus. We are accepted by God through Jesus’s death on our behalf and the righteousness He has given us (vs. 6). Because believers are accepted in Jesus, then they, like Him, are beloved by God.
As believers, we can have godly knowledge and insight (vs. 17-19). We can grasp the greatness of the hope we have, and the inheritance that is ours in Christ. A spiritually enlightened mind is the only means of truly understanding and appreciating what Christ has given us. The hope we have is not a vague feeling that the future will be positive. Our hope is a complete assurance of certain victory through Jesus Christ.
There is a big difference between having the blessings of God and actually enjoying them. We must learn what blessings we have, and then lay hold of them by faith. It would be a shame if we continued to live as spiritual paupers because we don’t develop or strengthen a strong relationship with Jesus. Let’s tap into the inheritance we have, and not miss the blessings that are available in this life.
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