SPIRITUAL BLESSING - SEALED

“And you also were included in Christ
when you heard the word of truth,
the gospel of your salvation.
Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal,
the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance
until the redemption of those who are God's possession
- to the praise of his glory.”
Ephesians 1:13-14

When we become God’s children, we are sealed with the Holy Spirit the moment we believe!  This is the last spiritual blessing of Ephesians 1 and an ancient way of signifying at least four results: transaction, ownership, security and identity. 

Believers are sealed to indicate that the transaction is complete – “paid in full” – our full redemption is guaranteed even though the process of being conformed to the image of Christ takes time.

God stamps us with a seal as a mark of ownership.  In a sense believers have a mark on their foreheads showing they are separated and set apart for God, and distinguished and marked as belonging to Jesus.  They are His personal, treasured possession.

Setting a seal prevents opening, thus indicating protection or security.  Believers are off limits and cannot be tampered with – nothing can separate us from God.  Even when believers grieve the Spirit, they cannot unseal the seal set by the Spirit.

Sealing is an imprint of a believer’s identity and authenticity – that they are placed in Christ forever.  They may look no different on the outside, but they have been made different from others inside.  It is for their encouragement as well as to enable them to be an evidence to others and a witness to the world.

The joy believers experience now through the Holy Spirit is just a token or a first installment of the rich blessings that His children will receive in eternity.  The Spirit’s illumination is an earnest of everlasting light; sanctification is an earnest of perfect holiness; and his comforts are earnests of everlasting joys.

                                                                                          Joyce

SPIRITUAL BLESSING - INHERITANCE

"In Him also we have obtained an inheritance,
being predestined according to the purpose of Him
who works all things according to the counsel of His will,

that we who first trusted in Christ
should be to the praise of His glory."
Ephesians 1:11-12

The seventh spiritual blessing from Ephesians 1 is the inheritance that is given to us as children of God.  For the believer in Christ, heirship is twofold – we receive inheritance by faith like Abraham and share in the inheritance with Christ as sons. 

God owns everything and as believers, we are guaranteed heirs to God’s estate.  No high position or great wealth compares to becoming an heir of God.  Although we already have obtained this inheritance, all the blessings we have in hand are small in comparison to the future inheritance awaiting every believer.  The believer’s inheritance is an eternal and joyful existence with God – the riches of glory, the presence of God, an eternal home and much more.  It is a grace gift of the Father to his children.

Remember, as a believer in Jesus Christ, you are a child of the Father, chosen to be a member of His family, and heir to all the richness of life - His peace, His joy and His love no matter what your circumstances may be.

                                                                                          Joyce

SPIRITUAL BLESSING - WISDOM & UNDERSTANDING

“that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.

And he made known to us the mystery of his will

according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ,

to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment

-to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.”

Ephesians 1:8-10

 

The sixth spiritual blessing in Ephesians 1 is wisdom and understanding supplied by God in abundance so that we may know the mystery and will of His eternal purpose.  God has given us wisdom and understanding through His Word and has shown us His desire to bring all things together to glorify Christ. They are gifts of grace and limited only by our capacity to receive them. 

Wisdom is theoretical and intellectual, understanding is practical and moral.  Wisdom emphasizes the knowledge of the ultimate things of God by the inspiration of the Spirit.  It is a special skill that gives man the advantage of counsel and direction plus full knowledge of things both human and divine.  Understanding is spiritual discernment of the needs, problems and principles of everyday life and describes the practical use of wisdom.  It is a special skill in dealing with and executing His will.

God has blessed us with His wisdom and understanding to obey his instructions to live a purposeful and a successful life.  You cannot live and minister according to God’s will for your life unless you have His wisdom and understanding.

                                                                                          Joyce

SPIRITUAL BLESSING - FORGIVEN

"In Him we have redemption
through His blood,
the forgiveness of sins,
according to the riches of His grace "
Ephesians 1:7

Here is a visual reminder of some of the spiritual blessings in Ephesians 1 including forgiven.  It is closely related to redemption – forgiveness rests on redemption and the heart of redemption is forgiveness.  They are so intertwined that a person cannot have one without the other, yet they are each distinct spiritual blessings.

Forgiveness means “to send away” or “to be loosened from bondage,” expressing the idea of our sins being removed from God’s sight resulting in release from the bondage of sin according to God’s grace.  It is the release from punishment for violation of God’s laws and deviation from the right path.  Forgiveness is freeing and liberating.  The offense is as though it had never been committed.  It is a grand spiritual blessing obtained only through His blood.  There is nothing we can do to be forgiven, except humble ourselves and receive it as a gift through faith in Christ.

Forgiveness restores divine favor, removes distress and sorrow from our heart and replaces it with great joy.  It binds us to Jesus Christ.

                                                                                         Joyce

SPIRITUAL BLESSING - REDEEMED

"In Him we have redemption
through His blood,
the forgiveness of sins,
according to the riches of His grace "
Ephesians 1:7

The Greek word for redemption, “apolutrosis,” is used ten times in the New Testament and literally means a release effected by payment of ransom.  Redemption is simply the state of being delivered from sin – the ransom was fully paid by the blood of Christ.  We were once in captivity and slavery to sin, but with this spiritual blessing, we are redeemed and freed from bondage, guilt, eternal condemnation and the enemy.

Jesus Christ gave His life for us to be able to be righteous, to be made acceptable to God.  Since we are bought and paid for by His blood, we have an obligation to glorify and serve the living God.

                                                                                          Joyce

SPIRITUAL BLESSING - ACCEPTED

"to the praise of the glory of His grace,
by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. "
Ephesians 1:6

The third spiritual blessing in the first chapter of Ephesians is accepted – accepted in the Beloved.  A kindred Greek word to “grace,” accepted signifies that we are the objects of divine delight - we are made “favorites” through Christ, the beloved of God.  Because Christ is accepted, those who are in Him are accepted.  This standing before God means the Father now loves us like His own Son and has taken us under His care and into His family.

When we put our personal trust in Jesus Christ and accept His forgiveness, we can be sure that we have been accepted, plus with this acceptance come some additional blessings.  In Christ, we have full access to the Father.  In Christ, our prayers are accepted.  In Christ, our gifts are accepted.  We are thoroughly secure.

                                                                                          Joyce

SPIRITUAL BLESSING - ADOPTED

“he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ,
in accordance with his pleasure and will”

Ephesians 1:5

In the Bible, adoption is used figuratively to describe the process of salvation and to show the close relationship that believers have to God.  The full scope of God's work of salvation past, present and future is seen in adoption.

The Greek word for adoption, huiothesia, literally means to “place as a son” and is a reference to the present and prospective privileges and responsibilities of becoming part of God’s family through faith in Jesus Christ.  Spiritually, we are not God’s natural children, but because of the forgiveness and redemption He gives us through Christ, we are given the name and place and privileges of a son.  He grants us full status as His children as an act of His love and grace – it is not the result of any merit on the part of the believer.

Adoption gives believers full access to the Father and the intimacy of a personal relationship with Him plus the ultimate privilege of being conformed to the image of Christ.  We are able to call out to Him as His children!

                                                                                          Joyce

SPIRITUAL BLESSING - CHOSEN

"just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, "
Ephesians 1:4

The first spiritual blessing listed in Ephesians 1 is the “election as saints” or “chosen.”  The Greek eklego literally means to select out, single out or choose out of, implying separated or distinguished, but it does not imply rejection of those not chosen.  God the Father chose to extend His grace according to His eternal purpose and sovereign will with not a hint of personal merit.  God does not choose us because we deserve it and God does not choose us because we believe, but that we may believe.

God, as a result of His divine love, has chosen to make us holy and blameless as a means to our happiness and a source of joy and comfort.  We are set apart to a new walk that is worthy of our calling as saints, so that our practice corresponds to our position in Christ.  That’s quite a blessing!

                                                                                          Joyce

SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS

"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"
Ephesians 1:3

 

Spiritual blessings are not physical or material, but a blessing of hope, peace, well-being and an abundant life.  They are the key benefits of a relationship with God through Jesus Christ and readily accessible to everyone who is in Christ Jesus as a free gift to receive and use.  They are part of His greater plan and for His glory.

The blessings in Ephesians 1:3-14 in the original Greek are all one sentence and each truth builds upon another to give us spiritual nourishment, instructions for daily life and preparation for our future.  God is the giver and to those in Christ, God delivers perfectly and fully everything we need!
                                                                                                                 Joyce