Ephesians 1:3-14.                             In Christ – a great inheritance!!                                 3/1/16

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 

4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will-- 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 

10 to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfilment--to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ. 

11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession--to the praise of his glory.

Again the blessings of Christmas go on! The greatness of Christmas in reality impacts so much of life for us. Here we are reminded that we have been chosen to receive an inheritance that is truly remarkable. God has a plan for us, that enables us to have and enjoy the very best that God has. Christmas brings that plan right into our lives. Now we can know for sure that heaven is there for us all. And that then impacts on our whole life here and now.

But is it really that big a deal? Certainly as I look all around me, and all too often, even in my own life, it would seem as though that this is not all that important. We have got better things to think of and do and be a part of; so it would seem that we think. Yet surely, this is by far the biggest and most significant thing that could ever happen in our lives.

WE had better believe that this is a big deal. Here we are talking heaven or hell: being with God forever, or ending up with nothing good all. And because we have turned our backs on God and decided that we are going to do life by our own thinking and reasoning we have set ourselves on a path of destruction; in this life and the next. We may like to think that this is not all that big a deal, but it is.

Here we need to take seriously what God himself says in this regard, and not just what we would like to think. God is very clear in his instruction that if we disobey God then we will surely die. If we go against his commands we will bring troubles, disasters and death on ourselves. Now we don’t need to look very hard at all to see the truth of this. Yet we keep trying to kid ourselves that it is not that bad.

God’s holiness and Justice has to be served. He has to be true to his Word. So disobedience and sin must be punished. Sin cannot be tolerated or overlooked. Unbelief and rejection in the end will receive its just desserts. Just because we like to think in the end we all will be ‘going up there somewhere’, this is clearly not what God himself says. So we had better not fool ourselves into thinking that this is no big deal.

Now here can I use an illustration that may help us in this regard. Now a thief and murderer is in court before the judge and he is found guilty. Now then the judge acknowledges the guilt and then declares that he will take the punishment for it on himself, and in place give him an inheritance in his own extensive wealth and family. Ridiculous we would say.

Now what does the person do? Does he walk out of court, kick up his heels and goes back to his old way of living, or does it change his life? Does this gracious act turn him to now respond positively to this kindness? The benefits and greatness of the judge and the inheritance turns his life around completely. However if the judge finds out that he wilfully rejects the judge and simply wants the inheritance and that is all, he loses out completely.

Now we too have been forgiven and given a new and better inheritance through the coming of Jesus into our world and through his life, death and resurrection. The question for us and for our world today is; Do we still want to live life our way and by our own rules and then expect that we can be in heaven at the end? Do we want this inheritance but not the God who has made it possible? Is he Lord of our life or are we still the centre of our own existence?

Serious questions indeed! For many are called but few are chosen. God wants all to be saved, but many have turned their backs and have let go of that which is of utmost importance. We cannot have it both ways. The inheritance is there for us, the choice to reject it is ours.

So let us reflect again on the greatness of the inheritance that has been won for us. In so doing surely we cannot help but be moved to respond positively to this wonderful gift.

Paul by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit begins by saying: Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Surely we cannot but praise our great God because he has spiritually given us everything necessary for us to be able to be with him in heaven.

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. Think about that: he has chosen you and me to be people who will seek to do that which is good and right in God’s sight. He wants us to be people who will do what is helpful, positive and uplifting: people who love others as God loves us: People who are a pleasure to be with: People who are guided by him and what he has to say to us.

Now we have messed up big time in this regard, but to rectify the situation: In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will. His Son, Jesus Christ’s coming into our world  and his death and resurrection made it possible for us to be forgiven and then through baptism adopted back into God very own family.

 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.  And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 

Absolutely amazing! That he should do that for us is beyond human comprehension.  There can only be one response to this wonderful goodness that he has extended to us. It is completely absurd that so many should choose to turn their backs on; reject; or take for granted, this most amazing gift that has been extended to us.

 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will,  in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.  And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession--to the praise of his glory.

What God has chosen to do for us is just so amazing that we can but stand in awe and amazement at who he is and what he has done for us. We too will surely give him praise and glory for the grace that he has extended to us. The rest of our lives will be focussed on him for what he has done for us. Jesus Christ will be our head; our guide, director, source of what is good and right, and how we should live and act. He alone will be our Lord and Master.

This coming year will then surely be filled with gratitude for what he has done for us. We will want to know and speak of him who is so great and awesome. We will want to do what he would have us do, and not what we want to do. We will heed what his Word says instead of trying to twist and change it to suit our me-centred culture.

When we fail, it will grieve us to the point that we quickly repent; that is turn back to God with sorrow and contrition and seek his forgiveness and help to do better in the future. We will regularly gather together in his house week by week because he wants us to, so that he can give us what we need in order to stay strong and focussed on him, and the good that he has in mind for us. Instead of trusting ourselves and the thinking of our world around us we will seek to rely on him and what he has clearly given to us.

In everything we will seek to live our lives in praise and thanks to him who has done such a wonderful thing for us. We will ever be mindful of the hell that he has saved us from and the greatness of the inheritance that he has bestowed on us. The blessings of Christmas, truly do with into each and every day of the rest of our lives. Yes, Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Let us go forward to give him all glory and honour now and always. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish