Today, we will dive into the start of the body of his message. As we do, I think it would be helpful to point out a detail hidden in the shadows of these verses, something we will miss in our English translations.
In the original Greek, verses 3-14 are one run-on sentence. There's no punctuation here, leaving no room for the reader to take a breath. Overwhelmed with excitement over the words he's writing, Paul cannot pause for even a simple breath.
In my theological brilliance, I would call these verses a poetic ramble. When I say "ramble," I don't mean erratic jargon. These words are carefully precise and theologically flawless. They are precise words written with intentionally poor structure to convey the majestic beauty of the gospel. Like a snowball rolling down a mountain, each word is carefully constructed to build on the other, composing a hefty argument surrounding the beauty of the gospel and the worthiness of God's praise.
As we begin unpacking these verses, we will come across words like "chosen," "predestined," and "purpose of his will." Therefore, we will see firsthand God's sovereign hand in our redemption, his loving pursuit of sinners, and his flawless plan of salvation executed.
Now, these verses can be controversial and difficult to comprehend. Our finite minds have a difficult time fathoming God's divine choosing. But, the difficulty of these verses does not reside in their unclearness. These verses are abundantly clear. Paul could not write any clearer. The difficulty of these words stems from the complexity of the truths found in these words. Sometimes, I've found, it's the truths that are the most clear that are the most confusing.
Today we will come across the profoundly beautiful and complex truth that our salvation is a work of God, not a work of our own. We did not first choose God; God first chose us. The cross did not happen by chance; it was a part of his predetermined plan. Before the foundation of the world, God knew sin would happen. He knew he would send His Son to the cross. And he knew you would be a part of his family.
The main point we will learn today is this: before the earth was made, God had a plan to save sinners by sending his Son to die on the cross.
Let's dive in.
"[3] Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, [4] even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love [5] he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, [6] to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved."
Right from the jump, we see Paul worshipping God because of His role in our salvation.
As he begins to unpack the central doctrines of the Christian faith, he does so with a heart full of praise— "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ..."
One thing we often talk about as a church is being a gospel-centered church. We want to be a church that embraces the gospel in everything we do. We want to be a church that understands the gospel, believes the gospel, preaches the gospel, and lives out the gospel. And what we see here is the truth that gospel doctrine leads to gospel praise. If you have experienced God's love, you will worship God with a happy heart. Worship is the only proper response to grace. A gospel-centered church is a singing church.
Church, listen. Our willingness to sing hinges on our understanding of what God has done for us in Christ. If you have your arms crossed every Sunday morning, unwilling to sing, then the question has to be asked, "Have you experienced the blessedness described here in these verses?" Those whom God has blessed will bless God with praise. Singing is a practical expression of gratitude for the believer.
What does it mean to be "blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places?"
Well, heavenly places imply a location not here on this earth. So, that tells us that it's possible to be immensely blessed by God without physical prosperity.
While fishing with my family the other day, we drove past a large boat. As she admired the boat, my daughter asked, "Dad, what if we were rich?"
I chuckled and responded, "Baby girl, we are rich. We just don't have a lot of money."
I'm unsure if she could wrap her six-year-old mind around what I was trying to teach her at that moment. But I want us to understand that supreme blessedness doesn't reside in material wealth. God has blessed those in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. If you are in Christ, you are blessed. If you are in Christ, God has blessed you with the gift of redemption and adoption. If you are in Christ, God has blessed you with the gift of salvation. If you are in Christ, God has blessed you with the gift of a relationship with Himself. You have God with you and God in you. And God will comfort you in moments of despair, empower you in moments of weakness, and remind you of the inheritance being kept for you in heaven. If you are in Christ, you are immensely blessed.
In verse 4, Paul says, "Even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him." Here we find the truth that we are blessed because God has chosen us in Christ before the foundation of the world.
The word "chosen" is where some of us begin to squirm in our seats. But, in reality, it's a very biblical term, a word all over the Bible. It means to pick or select someone or something for your own possession.
Tony Merida, in his commentary on Ephesians, highlights several of the uses of this term throughout the Bible. He says, “God chose Abraham for the purpose of bringing blessing to the nations (Gen. 12:1-3). God chose to make Israel into a nation that they might be a light to the nations (Deut. 7:6-8; 14:2; Is. 42:6-8). Jesus chose his twelve disciples to follow him, bear fruit, and multiply (Jn. 15:6).” And, now, in writing to the Gentile believers in Ephesus, he's saying that God chose them, before the foundation of the world, that they should be holy and blameless before him.
Wrap your mind around that for a moment. Before there were stars to gaze at and an earth to walk on, God knew you. Before there were birds to admire, trees to climb, and water to swim in, God had a purpose for you. Before the foundation of the world, God chose you to belong to Himself.
This teaches us that God knew that we were going to sin and fall short of the glory of God. Sin did not catch God off guard. Jesus' death on the cross was not a scrambled attempt of God to make things right. It was God's predetermined plan A, not his backup plan B. Before the foundation of the world, God chose us in Christ "that we should be holy and blameless before him."
Now, who is Paul writing to? The churches in Ephesus. The saints in Ephesus. The faithful in Christ Jesus.
So, who does this apply to? The church, the saints, the faithful in Christ.
But, what is true corporately is also true personally. He is saying to the corporate church in Ephesus (a primary Gentile group of people) that God's predetermined plan was to create a redeemed people from every tribe, tongue, and nation. He chose to create for himself a diverse and united people in Christ. However, for there to be an "us," there has to be a "you" and "me." The corporate church is full of individual people. So, these verses must also be true personally for them to ring true corporately. For God to have chosen us, he has to have chosen you. God has called you to himself so that your sins can be forgiven, allowing you to stand before Him "holy and blameless."
2 Corinthians 5:21 says, "For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."
This is what many call the great exchange. Our sin was placed on Jesus so that his righteousness could be placed on us. Therefore, if we have (in Christ) become the righteousness of God, then we will one day stand holy and blameless before the Father.
Feel the weight of that for a moment. If you are "in Christ," you will one day stand before God blameless. You, a natural sinner at heart tainted by sin and guilt, can stand before God without blame, guilt, or shame.
Those who are in Christ will one day stand before God, in his sight, holy and without fault because of God's predestined plan of election. Your cleanliness is not a result of your strength; it is a result of God's gracious work on your behalf.
Verse 5 goes on to add color to this truth by saying, "In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will..."
Not only do we stand before God holy and blameless, but through Christ, we also stand before the Father as beloved sons. We are not distant strangers who will stand holy and blameless before the Father; we are dearly loved children!
If you are "in Christ," you are a part of God's family. You have a good father who loves and cares for you dearly. You have siblings that you didn't have before. You have a home and an inheritance that wasn't yours before but is wholly yours now. You are secure and safe in God's family.
In our culture today, adoption can be viewed as a backup plan. But that's not the case with God. Adoption was never God's plan B; it was always his predetermined plan from the beginning. Our adoption into God's family was birthed from a loving desire calculated and thought out beforehand. He knew what would happen, and he looked upon sinners like us and said, "I love them, and I want them to be in my family. I want them to inherit what is rightfully mine. I want them to become holy and blameless, and I want them to inherit every spiritual blessing found in the heavenly places."
Adoption was God's loving plan from the beginning. It was according to his will, and it was for his glory. Adoption is a work of grace and should always result in praising the Father.
Look at verse 6, "In love [5] he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, [6] to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved."
God has adopted us into his family so that we might praise his glorious grace. The purpose of our salvation is God's glory. God's sovereign plan is, was, and always will be designed for the praise of His glorious grace.
Imagine an adopted child's newfound joys, walking into his/her home for the first time. "This is my home? This is my room? These are my clothes? I can eat whatever I want from our kitchen? You are my dad? You are my mom? You are my brothers and sisters? You're going to take me to school? You're going to take care of me when I'm sick? You're going to teach me to ride a bike?"
The doctrine of election shouldn't make us squirm; it should lead up to should to throw our hands up in worship. It shouldn't lead to pride; it should lead to humility and joy!
The only right response to grace is praise! A gospel encounter leads to gospel praise! We are a people who sing of grace because we are a people who have experienced grace!