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The Ephesian Connection
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world.
We are so very privileged that God personally chose us before He even created the world. And that is not the whole story. Paul goes on to inform us that we have also been blessed with every spiritual blessing just as we have been chosen.
How were we chosen? Was it because we were worthy, living holy lives? No. His choice was based solely on His mercy and grace. And He initiated His relationship with us by reaching out to us before we even knew He existed. We love, because He first loved us (1John 4:19). If we did not strive to be selected, if our participation in being chosen was not because of our own efforts, and we inherit the blessings just as we have been chosen, then clearly we will not enjoy the blessings of God unless we learn to lay down any striving to possess them.
Notice that His spiritual blessings for us are in the heavenly places. My first thought on reading this verse was, “Well who needs spiritual blessings in heavenly places? I need them in earthly places. This is where I am living. This is where I experience conflicts with people both in the Church and in the world. So what do I need blessings up there for?” But Paul wants us to see the heavenly realms as the place of our present residence. When our Lord was raised from the dead, He raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:6).
We are now seated in the heavenly places. We have gained access to a place of habitation higher than where the world lives. God has empowered us to be a people of the Spirit – of the heavens while yet standing on the earth, a people who have “made the connection,” tapping the power of the ages to come. To put it another way, He has called us to fix our eyes upon Him, to take our focus off of the temporal, what can be seen and touched, in order to see the unseen and live there. One who is of the Spirit does not live simply according to what he/she can see, but according to Christ and the eternal reality of His emerging kingdom. And while we are not to strive for Heaven’s blessings, we can easily fail to appropriate them if our spiritual vision is faulty.
Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained.
A runner in a track meet has the goal line set before him, and he races toward it with all of his might. You will not see him wandering off the track to make conversation with spectators. He will not be distracted by some colorful flowers and stop to smell them along the way. His goal restrains him. And he presses forward with all of his might, not at liberty to respond to whatever urges suddenly come to mind. The vision holds him in check.
The question we face is simple. What goal has Heaven set in front of us? What mark? What prize? What has so captured our attention that our lives express proper restraint? Is it true that we cannot get away with certain activities and attitudes this year that we got away with last year? What has so captured our vision that we are hemmed in to a new lifestyle? Hopefully, it is because we have seen Him. God is Himself the greatest gift He could give us. What could be added to Him? In what way is He deficient? Is it not true that in Him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge? Is it not true that the wealth of heaven resides in the Lord Jesus Christ? If anyone or anything else fills our vision, it is an idol – whether it is a desire for ministry, for riches, or for success in the eyes of others.
In the world, we see people’s lives constrained by purpose. If some decide to be millionaires by the age of 40, they will make extraordinary sacrifices to increase their wealth. Or if they have political ambitions, they will count the cost and consider what it will take to attain their desired office. They restrain themselves, they “hem their lives in” sometimes even with a sense of total abandon, because of their vision for the future. Again, the question is clear. Has Jesus captured your attention and filled your vision?
Consider His words.
He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.
The comprehensive God-given objective of human life is to know Christ. Here is eternal life (John 17:3). Jesus is the preeminent revelation of God ever given to man. In fact, He was God put into human terms. But what was His motive? Why did He present Himself as the focus and goal of mankind? Was He trying to keep us from desirable pursuits and practices in order to deny us a rich and fulfilling life? On the contrary, any pursuit other than Him will fail to bring to the human heart true fulfillment, authentic inner peace, or Heaven’s insight into the meaning of life. On the other hand, those who have found Him have life itself. Jesus Christ is God’s greatest gift to mankind, eternity’s best offer.
So, what is your present lack? Do you need internal peace? Behold the Prince of Peace. Do you need insight? Consider Christ, the wisdom of God. How about healing? He is the power of God. Righteousness? The Scriptures say He is made unto us righteousness (1Corinthians 1:30). Everything that Heaven has to offer humanity is found in this One, the Lord Jesus Christ; He is our inheritance.
But whatever things were gain to me; those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ.
Paul’s great passion in life was the person of the Lord Jesus. While many sought financial gain, Paul sought to gain Him. And it cost him everything. It will cost us no less. The question we must ask ourselves is whether or not He is worth it. Heaven says that He is. What do our lifestyles say?
Let us arise and live in our inheritance. Let us abide in Him. As we do, we will find that God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ (Ephesians 1:3).
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