January 4
________________________________________
PREDESTINED FOR ADOPTION
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints who are at Ephesus and are faithful in Christ Jesus: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 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, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, with which He favored us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight – Ephesians 1:1-8
________________________________________
According to David Guzik’s commentary, Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is different compared to many of the other New Testament letters he wrote. Like Romans, Ephesians was not written so much to address problems in a particular church; more so, it was written to explain some of the great themes and doctrines of Christianity. If the Letter to the Romans focuses more on God’s work in the individual Christian, Ephesians includes the great themes of God’s work in the church, the community of believers. Ephesians has many similarities with Paul’s letter to the Colossians. Since Paul wrote both of them from his Roman imprisonment, his mind may have worked on the same themes when he wrote each letter.
Paul’s letters always begin with bringing peace that comes from God and Jesus Christ. In verse 3, Paul worships and gives praise to the only source of every spiritual blessing we will ever have, God and given through Christ. In verse 4, we hear Paul repeating the words of Jeremiah 1:4 “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, and before you were born, I consecrated you.” In verse 5, Paul explains the doctrine of spiritual adoption which we were predestined for according to God’s will through His Son, Jesus Christ. In verse 6, we are given the purpose of our lives, to bring God all the glory through His beloved Son. In other words, we can never give God worship if we don’t believe in Christ. Verse 7 explains the doctrine of salvation through the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus. All sins are forgiven through Him. Verse 8 gives us a vignette of God’s great lavishing of His love for us all though the wisdom and insight He gave us through the Holy Spirit’s inspiration.
________________________________________
REFLECTION
• Why are Christian doctrines important in the life of a believer?