Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text is the Epistle Lesson just read, from Eph. 1. We begin with prayer.
Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:
- In these verses of our text, the apostle highlights the immense blessedness that is ours in Christ Jesus. This is the blessedness that comes to human beings by virtue of God’s gracious and merciful love and forgiveness. It is the blessedness that was offered to ancient Israel through the prophets like Amos. It was a blessedness that all were invited to during the ministry of John the Baptist and Jesus. And now this blessedness has gone out into all the world through the apostolic ministry of the Holy Christian Church.
- There are two aspects of this blessedness in regard to time. We are promised eternal life and salvation in the world to come, when new heavens and earth are created. We are also offered the blessedness of a new life in this current world – peace with God, His love and mercy, and a noble and purposeful life in accord with God’s eternal plans and purposes.
- There are also two aspects of this blessedness in regard to our relationship with God. First, that He has washed and cleansed away our sins so that we are even now accounted righteous, holy, and blameless before Him, that is, in His sight. Second, that we have received the Holy Spirit of God and are being renewed in our nature, being conformed to the image God. And all of this is “to the praise of His glorious grace.”
- With such goodness and love from God one might think that all people would immediately rejoice and snap up the opportunity to participate in these blessings. It is the great mystery of the Old Testament that the vast majority of the people of Israel rejected God and His ways. The same mystery is observed in the antipathy, opposition, and rejection that Jesus endured when He came to establish our redemption and blessedness. It remains a great mystery to this day – how so many people can choose the wickedness and ignorance of sin and refuse the gracious mercy and love of God. But it is so.
- And often our blessedness in Christ is best seen in contrast to those who have rejected it, and so let us first:
I. Consider The Condition Of Enemies Of God
A. Consider Jeroboam – An Idolatrous And Vicious King
Old Testament Lesson: “Behold, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of My people Israel; I will never again pass by them; the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste, and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.”
B. Consider The False Religionist Amaziah – Pretending To Be A Priest And Prophet, But Opposing A True Prophet Of God
Old Testament Lesson: “Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, ‘Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The land is not able to bear all his words.’ . . . And Amaziah said to Amos, ‘O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, and eat bread there, and prophesy there, but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king’s sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom.’”
C. Consider The Moral Wretch Herod Whose Lust Moved Him To Destroy God’s Prophet
Gospel: “When Herodias’s daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. And the king said to the girl, ‘Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you.’ . . . She said, ‘I want you to give me the head of John the Baptist on a platter.’ And immediately the king sent an executioner with order to bring John’s head.”
Statement: This gives us explanation into the mystery of unbelief, rejection of God and His ways, and full commitment to evil and wretchedness. People think that there is no God, or that they will not have to worry about being accountable to Him. They then consider religion to be nothing more than coercing and manipulating people so that the “prophets” and other leaders can eat bread and make a living, and increase their power, privilege, and prestige. So it becomes impossible for them to recognize a real and true prophet of God. So also they have no fear in how they treat or deal with God’s servants – the very life of a prophet is worth less than their sinful pleasures.
Application: People today are perhaps still a bit more polite than Jeroboam, Amaziah, and Herod. Or perhaps we should say that they are more subtle in their opposition to God’s prophets. Perhaps there is less at stake politically. Perhaps the prophets have muted the message of God’s Word somewhat, to avoid antagonizing the wicked. But the days may be coming when the Word of God evokes the same kind of violent oppression. There are people out in the world who engage in worse sins than that of Herod and Jeroboam, and we should not consider them harmless and benign, incapable of seeking to destroy God’s church, people, and servants.
Transition: Against this backdrop we consider the blessedness that is ours in Christ Jesus. And it is important that we internalize and embrace this blessedness, for:
II. God Has Blessed Us Abundantly Through Faith In Jesus
A. We Have Been Predestined To Redemption And Forgiveness
Text: “In love He predestined us for adoption through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed us in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us.”
B. He Has Given Us Knowledge Of His Eternal And Glorious Will And Plan
Text: “according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight, making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His purpose, which He set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and thins on earth.”
C. We Have Been Predestined To An Eternal Inheritance – To The Praise Of His Glorious Grace
Text: “In Him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined accoreding to the purpose of Him Who works all things according to the counsel of His will, so that we who were the irst to hope in Christ might be to the praise of His glory.”
D. We Are Sealed In This Destiny By The Holy Spirit – By The Word Of Truth, The Gospel Of Your Salvation
Text: “In Him you also, when you heard the Word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, Who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of His glory.”
Statement: The contrast could not be more stark – between those who reject the blessings of God in Christ Jesus, refuse His blessings of forgiveness and redemption, who are committed to lies, deceit, selfishness, greed, and power , in contrast to those who rejoice in God’s clemency, mercy, and love and who have been incorporated into the eternal blessings of His will, purpose, and plan in Christ Jesus! The natural way of our sinful nature propels us along in many paths of selfishness and evils, and ultimately to death and destruction in hell. Participation in the predestined purpose of God propels us to a renewal of our whole life and character and to an eternal destiny of glorious salvation and heavenly inheritance!
Application: It is true that when we look superficially at people we often find it difficult to see that much difference between believers and unbelievers. We still have our sinful nature and fall into all kinds of habitual sins of weakness; and many unbelievers still feel compelled to present as good a front as possible, hiding their true natural impulses and “charading” a feigned goodness. Often the distinctions can only be seen in repentance and confession of our sins, and in gathering together each week at the altar of God’s gracious mercy and forgiveness to receive His absolution and His cleansing sacrament. And the distinction should also be seen in what we embrace and what we repudiate – in contrast to what people like Jeroboam, Amaziah, and Herod embrace.
Conclusion: And if we have been called to this blessedness in Christ, this will make imminent sense to us, and we will have an inner compulsion that is always growing, to more fully join ourselves to God’s eternal plan, will, and purpose. This too is part of our blessedness in Christ, and to the praise of God’s glorious grace.
So let us be understanding and discerning – and grow in our joy and appreciation for “OUR BLESSEDNESS IN CHRIST.” And let us fully embrace the new life that God has called us to, and that He is creating in us. Let us remember that God has set a “plumb line” on the world, and that He will not pass by the impenitent and wicked. The Day of Judgment will come to all. Thankfully, in Christ Jesus our redemption is sure and certain – through faith in the Word of Truth. Thanks and praise be to God! Amen.
Votum: And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in the true faith, which is in Christ Jesus, even unto life everlasting, Amen.