Grace and Hope in Ephesians 1

-

Ephesians is decorated with sparkling jewels of Christ. The first chapter alone mentions Christ directly or indirectly at least 18 times in the first 14 verses. Everything is summed in Christ and He is the object of our inheritance.

My grandparents did not have much money, so they did what they could in preparing for birthdays and Christmas by visiting garage sales. I did not catch on to their pattern of shopping until I was much older, and felt rather embarrassed—yet each birthday and Christmas, they lavished gifts on us grandchildren. They did what they could within their means as an expression of love—and they prepared all year long for 15 minutes of childish delight.

God’s loving gift of grace in Christ Jesus is not second-hand, and it includes a present as well as a future reality. “In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will” (Ephesians 1:11). He gave Himself as payment in order for us to have an inheritance—Himself. But when do we gain our inheritance? When do we finally meet face to face? We will gain Him when He is ready.

Yesterday I heard Pastor Adrian Rogers give an illustration that fits perfect here: each November they take their daughters shopping, allowing them to choose what they would like to have for Christmas. Then, right there, they buy what they have chosen; but, they don’t give it to them when they get home. Instead, they wrap and put away their gifts until Christmas.

When I heard this, I heard Adrian point to the principle that we know what we have in Christ and the hope that we have in His coming. I also heard in my own heart the excitement that grows. As Christmas day draws near for the girls, their excitement grows as they look forward to finally acquiring what lay under the Christmas tree—then the rapturous joy when they finally claim it!

For us our excitement and our energy grows as we await the day we finally claim our inheritance that was purchased for us on The Tree of Calvary—Christ Himself at His coming!

Popular posts from this blog

The Island-Fish

-
Image
  “O ye passengers, whom may God preserve! come up quickly in to the ship, hasten to embark, and leave your merchandise, and flee with your lives, and save yourselves from destruction; for this apparent island, upon which ye are, is not really an island, but it is a great fish that hath become stationary in the midst of the sea, and the sand hath accumulated upon it, so that it hath become like an island, and trees have grown upon it since times of old; and when ye lighted the fire upon it, the fish felt the heat, and put itself in motion, and now it will descend with you into the sea, and ye will all be drowned: then seek for yourselves escape before destruction, and leave the merchandise.—The passengers, therefore, hearing the words of the master of the ship, hastened to go up into the vessel, leaving the merchandise, and their other goods, and their copper cooking-pots, and their fire-pots; and some reached the ship, and others reached it not. The island had moved, and descended...
Read more

“And so, about this tomb of mine . . . “

-
Image
  “VANITY, saith the preacher, vanity!  Draw round my bed: is Anselm keeping back?  Nephews—sons mine … ah God, I know not! Well—  She, men would have to be your mother once,  Old Gandolf envied me, so fair she was!  What’s done is done, and she is dead beside,  Dead long ago, and I am Bishop since,  And as she died so must we die ourselves,  And thence ye may perceive the world’s a dream.  Life, how and what is it?  As here I lie In this state-chamber, dying by degrees,  Hours and long hours in the dead night,  I ask “Do I live, am I dead?”  Peace, peace seems all.  Saint Praxed’s ever was the church for peace;  And so, about this tomb of mine.  I fought With tooth and nail to save my niche, ye know:  —Old Gandolf cozened me, despite my care;  Shrewd was that snatch from out the corner  South He graced his carrion with,  God curse the same!  Yet still my niche is not so cramped...
Read more