Praise Devotionals to remind myself...

Who am I? 

http://youtu.be/mBcqria2wmg - Who am I?  - Casting Crowns

Spiritual Blessings in Christ

Ephesians 1 - ESV

Greeting

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,

To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus:
² Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Spiritual Blessings in Christ

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 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. ⁷ In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, ⁸ which He lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight ⁹ making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His purpose, which He set forth in Christ ¹⁰ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth.
¹¹ In Him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, ¹² so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of His glory. ¹³ 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, ¹⁴ who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

¹⁵ For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, ¹⁶ I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, ¹⁷ that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him, ¹⁸ having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, ¹⁹ and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might ²⁰ that He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹ far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. ²² And He put all things under His feet and gave Him as head over all things to the church, ²³ which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

I don't begin to think that I have all the answers about predestination or election.  I do know that the idea of God choosing us before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before Him in vs 4 makes me feel loved and especially cared for.  He chose me to be His precious child!

Verse 5 says He predestined us for adoption through Jesus Christ "according to the purpose of His will".  Again in verse 9 we see that same phrase - "according to the purpose of His will".   This first chapter of Ephesians makes it clear that according to the will of the Father, we are chosen, predestined to be His children (through adoption in Christ Jesus).

We have obtained an inhertiance having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will so that we who hope in Christ might praise His glorious Name.    "To the praise of His glory" is another phrase we see several times in this passage (1:6, 12, 14).  He chose us for all the spiritual blessings we read about in Chapter 1 and our response to so great a blessing should always be thanksgiving and praise.  When we praise Him we lift up His glorious Name.  How can we who have been adopted by the Father because of what Jesus did not praise Him continually?

Ephesians 1 shows us how the Father chooses/predestines us, the Son redeems us and then the Holy Spirit indwells in us, sealing us for the inheritance we will receive (vs 13).  How can we not praise God?

Predestination shouldn't scare us; it should bring us comfort to know that before the foundation of the world, God the Father had a plan.  He chose us to be His children through the work of Christ, our Redeemer.  The Trinity - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - One Holy God co-existing in 3 persons - has a plan.  HE has lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight, making it 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 Christ, things in heaven and on earth.

We are chosen to be His ambassadors of praise so that others can come to know our loving God.  Our lives should be living testimonies to His great purpose and love for His children.  When we get the love thing right, people around us will be drawn to our LORD.  We will be One, united in Him, just as HE purposed before the foundation of the world.

Verses 15 begins with "For this reason" .  What reason?  Because God presdestined us to be His children through Christ and we are sealed by the Holy Spirit so that we can rest assured in the Hope we have that comes from belonging to Christ. 

Romans 8:28:30
²⁸ And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose. ²⁹ For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in order that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. ³⁰ And those whom He predestined He also called, and those whom He called He also justified, and those whom He justified He also glorified.

Doesn't that bring comfort to you as a believer?  All things work together for good just as He purposed before the foundation of the world.  He really does have the whole world in His hands.  God is Sovereign and His plan will not be thrwarted.  Our job is praise Him for His great love so that others will come to know His amazing plan for them, too.

 Holy God!  I praise Your glorious Name!  You are my gracious Father, my wonderful Savior, my constant Comforter and Strength!  How can I fail to praise You with all I am?  Be lifted up in my life today so that others can see Your love in me and come to know You more intimately.  Help us believers to become One, just as you are One.
Gorious God I am thankful for all those whom You have chosen to be Your witnesses and I  do not cease to give thanks for them, remembering them in my prayers.  I pray that You,  the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give them the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of our Savior, so that they will have the eyes of their hearts enlightened, that they may know what is the hope to which You have called us, and they will know the riches of Your glorious inheritance in the saints.  God please help them to understand the immeasurable greatness of Your power toward us who believe, according to the working of Your great might  that was worked in Christ when You raised Him from the dead and seated Him at Your right hand in the heavenly places,  far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. Holy God, You have put all things under His feet and gave Him as head over all things to the church,    which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.  Praise Your Holy Name!