Ephesians 1:7-14 says, “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. In 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, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. In 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; this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory. ”
There is a lot of really good stuff in here…
We have redemption through the blood of Jesus to bring us the forgiveness of the sins we have committed. We are set right with the Father because of the relationship we have in Jesus. And that is great news, but it’s not the best thing this passage tells us…
With wisdom and insight He has revealed to us Hos plan that is a mystery. We can know the plan and mission of God the Father through our relationship with Jesus, and that is a wonderful thing, but not the best thing this passage tells us…
In Christ we have an inheritance and we have been destined through Him to accomplish all things according to His counsel. We have an inheritance given to us that is greater than anything you could ever possibly imagine. And we will be able to do all things through Him. But this is not the best thing here…
The best thing in this passage is “who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory.” We who have set our hopes on Christ get the pleasure of living our lives for the praise of His glory, so that all who see us will not see us, but will see Him and be drawn to Him. You see it is not about us and what we get from Christ, it is always about Christ! He gives us wonderful things and redeems us to stand with Him before the throne of the Father, but it is all about the redemption of all creation, and the things we get are meant to help us live out our lives in a way that points to Christ, so that we show forth Him and not our selves.
So live your life so that others see Jesus and are drawn to Him.
aSacredRebel 