Ephesians 1:3
HOW TO RECOGNIZE GOD'S BEST BLESSING
Intro: Webster defines "Blessed" as, "Of or enjoying
happiness. Specifically enjoying the bliss of
Heaven." It carries the idea of that which "brings
pleasure, contentment, or good fortune." Simply
stated, it is that state of being that we all want to enjoy.
We all like blessings don't we? There isn't a person
in this room that does not enjoy a blessing! And,
certainly, we are a blessed people!
But, when it comes to this matter of blessings, we
often view them in the wrong light. Most often, we think
of blessings as being those things that are physical and
material in nature. For instance, if everyone in our
household is well, we consider ourselves blessed. If
there is money in the bank and the bills are paid, we
say we are blessed. If we are living in a nice home and
driving a good car, we equate that with blessing. And,
I would have to agree that those things are blessings
from the Lord.
However, what happens when a loved one is
stricken with a dread disease? Did we cease to be
blessed? What happens when we drive junk cars and
our house is falling apart? Did we lose the blessing of
God? What happens when there is no money and we
can't pay the bills? Does that mean that somehow the
Lord has stopped blessing us? The answer is no! Or
problem is that we tend to look at blessings in regard to
how they benefit us materially, and certainly God does
bless that way.
What we fail to remember is that these kinds of
blessings are temporary at best! That car will die one
day. That money will find a place to be spent. That
home will rot and decay. Your health will eventually
decline. What we need to know is that the real
blessings of the Lord are not material or physical. The
real blessings of God are spiritual in nature, and these
spiritual blessings will never be taken away from us!
Even when everything else is gone, has broken
down or has been spent, we will still possess the best
of God blessings! There are three little thoughts in the
last part of this verse that teach us the valuable lesson
of How To Recognize God's Best Blessing. I would
like to point those out to you this evening.
Now, by way of introduction, notice how this verse
begins. It begins with a note of praise for the Lord!
Paul exalts the Lord for his greatness. He tells us that
our Heavenly Father "hath blessed us". I want you to
notice that these words are in the aorist tense, which
is equivalent to the English past tense. At some point
in the past, God blessed us! Not only are they past
tense, but they are also in the active voice. This
means that those blessings that we received at
some point in the past continue this evening and
will continue on into the future. In other words, I
have been blessed, I am being blessed and I will be
blessed! It may not feel like it, and all the facts may be
stacked against it being true, but it is true nonetheless!
Well, if I have these great blessings, I want to know
more about them, don't you? Thankfully, this verse,
and those that follow it in this chapter, give us the
information we seek. Let's notice these truths as we
discover How To Recognize God's Best Blessing.
I.
THE QUANTITY
OF THESE SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS
A. The quantity of these spiritual blessings can be
summed up in one little word found in verse 3.
It is the word "ALL". That word tells us that in
the Lord ,we find every single thing we need to
live the Christian life.
B. You see, God has held nothing back from His
children. When He saved us, He gave us
everything we needed to serve Him. We have
everything we need right now to be content, to
be successful, to be obedient, to be useful to
the Kingdom and to be happy in Jesus!
C. When you and I got saved, we got everything
Jesus had to offer us! We got it at that very
moment, there is nothing else!
II. THE QUALITY
OF THESE SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS
(Ill. Paul describes these things as "blessings in
heavenly places." This means literally means that
these blessings are things that originated in heaven.
They are not earthly blessings, but they are
heavenly blessings! In the most literal sense, they
are "Heavenly Things!" With that in mind, it will
help us all to learn just what these heavenly things
are. We are told in verses 4-14.)
A. V. 4 He Speaks Of Foreknowledge - This verse
deals with the matter of election. For some
reason, God, in His wisdom, chose me before
the world was formed. He knew me before He
formed me in my mother's womb and He had
already determined that I would be in His family.
I cannot explain election and all the ramifications
of it, but I am still going to rejoice in it! One of
the greatest spiritual blessings we enjoy as
saved people is the fact that we were chosen in
Christ by the grace of God, Rom. 8:28-31. (Ill.
He loved me even though He knew all about
me. What a blessing!)
B. V. 5 He Speaks Of Family - This verse tells us
that we were adopted into the family of God.
That is, at the moment of salvation, you and I
became the children of God, 1 John 3:2. We
are His sons and daughters with all the rights
and privileges that come to any child born in to
the family, Rom. 8:17. (Ill. The Father brought
me into His family and made me His child.
What a blessing!)
C. V. 6 He Speaks Of Favor - This verse reminds
us that we are "accepted" by the Father! When
we received Jesus, we were reconciled to the
Lord! There was a time when we were outcasts
and aliens, Eph. 2:12, but now, in Jesus, we are
approved by the Father! We have been brought
near to Him by the blood of Jesus, Eph. 2:13.
We used to be on God's hit list, so to speak, but
now, we are on His list of favorites! This means
that God is literally pleased with us! A lot of
Christians waste a lot of time trying to do what
Jesus did when He died on the cross - please
the Father! (Ill. The Father is pleased with me,
because I wear the righteousness of Christ.
What a blessing!)
D. V. 7a Freedom - This verse tells us that we have
been "redeemed". There are three Greek words
in the New Testament that are translated
"redeemed." This particular one means to
"release a captive after the payment of a
ransom price." It carries the idea of purchasing
a slave and then immediately turning that slave
loose. This is what Jesus did for us! He paid
the price, 1 Pet. 1:18-19; John 19:30, and then
He set us free, Luke 4:18! (Ill. Jesus died for
me, saved me by His grace and delivered me
from the captivity of sin. What a blessing!)
E. V. 7b Forgiveness - This verse goes on to tell
us that we have received forgiveness of our sins.
I don't know about you, but that means
something to me! I was a wretched man when
Jesus saved me, but at the instant of salvation,
every single sin in my past, my present and in
my future was forever forgiven! (Ill. Psa. 103:12;
Isa. 38:17; Isa. 43:25; Jer. 50:20; Micah 7:19;
Col. 2:13-14; 1 John 1:7) (Ill. We have been
forgiven of all our sins! What a blessing!)
F. V. 11-14 Future - Verse 11-14 speak of three
more spiritual blessings that manifest
themselves as we go through life into the future.
1. V. 11 Our Destination - This verse speaks of
our heavenly home! Every child of God has
a home awaiting them in Heaven, John 14:1-3. This home is glorious beyond
compare, Rev. 21:4; 1 Pet. 1:4. (Ill. We
have a home in gloryland! What a
blessing!)
2. V. 12 Our Consecration - This verse refers
to the new manner in which we are to live our
lives after we come to know the Lord Jesus
as our Savior. The fact is, we are changed
by salvation, 2 Cor. 5:17. An experience that
does not produce change, both inwardly and
outwardly, is not a valid salvation experience.
When He saves us, He begins the process of
making us more like Him! (Ill. He give us
life and enables us to live a new life!
What a blessing!)
3. V. 13-14 Our Preservation - These verses
remind us that when we were saved, we were
sealed with the Holy Spirit, Eph. 4:30. He is
the "earnest money". This means that He is
the down payment that secures us for
eternity. The Holy Spirit is the Lord's promise
that what He began at the moment of
salvation, He will continue until we are home
in Heaven, Phil. 1:6; 2Tim. 1:12. (Ill. If you
are save, you are sealed! If you are
sealed, you are secure, John 10:28; 1 Pet.
1:5. If you are secure, then you can rest
and rejoice in that truth. Thank God, in
Jesus we are saved to the "uttermost" -
Heb. 7:25! What a blessing!)
III. THE QUALIFICATION
FOR THESE SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS
A. The last two words of verse 3 tell us what a
person must do to enjoy all of these spiritual
blessings. That one thing is to be "in Christ"!
B. The only way for anyone to enjoy the spiritual
blessings of the Lord is for that person to be
saved by the grace of God. At the moment of
conversion, you are placed into the body of
Christ, 1 Cor. 12:13. You get "in Christ"! When
this happens, you are made a partaker of all the
spiritual blessings of the Lord.
C. Are you in Jesus this evening? You ask, "How
can I know preacher?" The answer is found in 1
John 5:1-2; 13. Does this describe you? If so,
then rejoice, for you are blessed with "all spiritual
blessings in Christ." If not, you can be saved by
coming to Jesus by faith and by receiving Him
into your heart and life. Then, you can begin to
enjoy all the Lord has to offer.
Conc: When you and I look at our blessings from the
Lord's perspective, I think we would all have to say this
evening that we are indeed blessed! God has provided
us with blessings that are beyond description and
beyond measure as to their value. I think we just need
to learn to praise the Lord for His blessings. We need
to learn that what we often think of as blessings really
aren't. Too often the real blessings of life are those
spiritual things that we always have, no matter what
else is happening around us. The real blessings of life
are the things that never change and that never fade
away. We are blessed! No matter what else is
happening, if you are saved, you are blessed
abundantly! I think we ought to thank Him for those
blessings!
