“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.” Ephesians 1:3
So begins an incredible passage of the Bible. Paul opens the Letter to the Ephesians with a wonderful outpouring of praise as he recites all that God has done for us through Jesus. Here is what we have to our benefit because of Christ.
We are blessed. We are chosen. We are predestined. We are adopted. We are given grace. We are redeemed. We are told the mystery. We are chosen. We have hope. We are for His praise. We are included. We are marked.
There is much here to contemplate; much to ponder. However, through all of this is the awesome truth that God, through Christ, has brought us into a relationship with Himself. This relationship is not based on who we are. Rather, God determined ahead of time that He would give us the privileged position of a son. He chose to not only save us, but to bring us close to Him.
It would be like concern for the homeless. It would be one thing to have a heart of compassion and another to get involved. And getting involved could include everything from giving money to working in shelter. But imagine not only caring and even doing something; imagine bringing a homeless person into your home. Now take that even one step further; adopt that person as one of your children.
God didn’t just pick us up and dust us off. He gave us a new identity in Christ.
So now our goal, our challenge, is to live in a way that matches our identity. Paul says it this way in Ephesians 4:1, “I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.”
I pray that today you would see yourself from God’s perspective; one that is complete and perfect in Christ. Let this truth move deep into your heart as you realize all that God has accomplished in your life in Christ. And then I pray that you would live in such a way as to bring your day-to-day life in line with your identity in Christ.