Did you know that there are many people who don’t know how rich they are? Our society is fixated with money of course and getting rich. Greed is generally seen as good business sense, Or looking after shareholders interests, or simply providing for your retirement.
But did you know that there are many people who have money but don’t know it. I did a little bit of research into unclaimed money in Australia. Every year on 31 March, the banks must deliver to the Commonwealth treasurer a list of unclaimed money. These are accounts that no-body has claimed.
Did you know that ASIC (the securities and Insurance watchdog) in 2011 had a list of unclaimed money amounting to $636 million dollars (http://www.smh.com.au/money/saving/unclaimed-funds-top-636-million-20111025-1mgwf.html). But that is peanuts compared to the lost superannuation money. Recently it was estimated that there is about $18.8 billion with a B dollars worth of lost superannuation moneys in Australia (http://www.westpac.com.au/about-westpac/media/media-releases/2011/28-june-2011).
And I haven’t talked about the millions of dollars in unclaimed lottery and gambling winnings, unclaimed wages, unclaimed money in solicitors and real estate agents trust accounts.
There are people out there who are rich but don’t know it. They are legally entitled to money. But the tragedy is they don’t know it. So they don’t claim it.
Our passage today is from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. And Paul has hardly finished greeting the saints before he launches in two excited prayers.
And Paul is praying because the people he is writing to are really rich. There are two prayers. The first prayer is Paul praising God for how rich he has made the Christians. But Paul doesn’t want these riches to be like all that unclaimed money. So the second prayer is Paul asking God that the Ephesian Christians would know how rich they are.
The first prayer starts in verse 3 and ends in verse 14. He blesses God for what God has done. The best way to think about this section is that almost the whole of it is one big long sentence. Our English versions start new sentences and simplify it for us to help us. But the original just keeps going. Paul hardly takes a breath.
The second prayer is from verses 15 to 23. And Paul asks the God he has blessed for things on behalf of the Ephesian Christians. God has given them all this spiritual stuff already. Now he asks for more on behalf of other Christians. He asks that they would know it.
That’s the pattern. Paul blesses God, verses 3-14 Paul asks God, verses 15-23.
Let’s look at the giver of the blessings first.
Notice that in verse 3 Paul praises the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ (v3) The prayer is addressed to the Father. For the pattern of biblical prayer is ‘To the Father, through the Son, by the Holy Spirit’.
Now, let’s trace through the passage to work out what the Father of our Lord Jesus has done.
What has the Father done? He has blessed us with every spiritual blessing (verse 3). He chose us before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless (verse 4). He has predestined us to be adopted as sons (verse 5). He has freely given us grace (verse 6). And he has gavished grace with wisdom and understanding on us (verse 8).
And what will he do in the future? He will gather all things under one head, Christ (verse 10).
What has been the Son, Jesus, role in these blessings?
We are blessed and chosen ‘in Christ’ (verse 3, 4, 11). We are adopted through Jesus Christ into him (verse 5). God’s grace is given us ‘in Jesus’ (verse 6). And our redemption is ‘in him’ and ‘through his blood’ (verse 7).
In Jesus
The phrase ‘in Christ’ or ‘in him’ or ‘in whom’ appears 11 times in the passage. This speaks of a connection with Jesus, a union with him, being joined to him, and incorporated into him Jesus is the place or location where God’s blessings are to be found.
Through Jesus
The passage also speaks of blessings ‘through Jesus’ or ‘through his blood’. This suggests that he Jesus is the means or way we receive adoption and redemption.
What is the Holy Spirit’s role in these blessings?
Well, first of all they are ‘spiritual blessings’ in Christ (verse 3). We were included in Christ when we believed, and then we were marked in him with the Holy Spirit, the deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the time of our redemption (verses 13-14).
From verse 3 we see the Holy Spirit stamps his character on every blessing. And then he stamps his character on the recipients of the blessings. For they are marked in verse 13 with the Holy Spirit. He is the down payment, the deposit guaranteeing their final redemption. So the Holy Spirit book ends the passage.
Well, the giver of these blessings is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity. But who is it that receives these blessings? There are a lot of ‘us’ and ‘we’ references in verses 3-9. We should probably take them to refer to Paul, and his Christian readers, and by implication us (verses 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,11,12).
But we can also note some ‘us’ and ‘we’ references in verses 11-12 Do you see them in verse 11: we were also chosen Also verse 12: we who were the first to hope in Christ Verse 12 says ‘we who were the first to hope in Christ’ But then we can notice that it shifts from us and we to ‘you’ Verse 13: And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth… Having believed, you were marked with a seal. And then back to ‘we’ and ‘our’ in verse 14.
So in verses 3-9, he talks about we and us. But in verse 11-14, he takes about you and us.
What does this mean? I think it is because in verses 3-9, Paul talks about the blessings common to all Christians, Jew and Gentiles. And so the ‘we’ includes Jews and Gentiles. But in verses 11-14, Paul introduces a distinction between ‘us’ and you. The ‘us’ in verse 11-12 are the ones who ‘were the first to hope in Christ’. These are the Jewish Christians. And then the ‘you’ of verse 13 are the Gentile Christians, the Ephesians, the ones who have been included in Christ when they believed the gospel and received the Spirit.
Why then might Paul speak that way, bringing an ‘us’ and ‘them’ into his letter? Isn’t the point of Ephesians that there is no longer an ‘us and them’? Yes, that is the point, that both Jews and Gentiles have access to God the Father through Jesus by the Spirit. But Paul brings in the language of ‘we’ and ‘you’ to highlight that this change that came about with Jesus. He spells this out in Chapter 2 verses 12 to 13:
Remember that at that time you [Gentiles] were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. (Ephesians 2:12-13 NIV)
By the way, this explains something I always wondered about. That is, why does Paul talk about predestination in verse 11 again when he had already talked about it in verses 4-5? And the reason is this. Because in verses 4 and 5, he speaks of the election of all Christians to be his holy, blameless Sons. But in verses 11-12, he speaks of God’s election of Jewish Christians to be for the praise of his glory.
So we’ve seen the giver of the blessings, God the Father, in and through Jesus, and by the Spirit. And we’ve seen the recipients, Christians, both Jews and Gentiles, both the ones who got in early, and the johnny come latelies.
Now lets have a look at the blessings God has blessed us with. Notice the Father’s extravagance. Verse 3: He has bestowed every spiritual blessing in Christ.
We have these already. It is not a matter of naming and claiming. They are already ours.
Notice it is every blessing… God has given us all the blessings. All of them are already ours. We have it all. Here is a good reminder that we lack nothing in Christ. In Christ all the fullness of the Godhead dwells, and we have been given fullness in Christ (Colossians 2:9). God hasn’t withheld any blessing that his people need.
And notice they are spiritual blessings. They are not what we often speak of as blessings: good health, shelter, material prosperity, abundance of food and clothing. The blessings God has already given us are spiritual, pertaining to the Holy Spirit. And they are enjoyed in the heavenly realms, the realm of the Spirit.
And he lists these blessings. God gives a blessing inventory, the things owned by every Christian.
Election shows us that it was God’s intention to give these blessings to us before he created the world. There is a recent song that says "You loved me, before you set the stars into motion". That is what election and predestination tells us. Saving us was not God’s afterthought. Oh well, Adam and Eve sinned, so here comes plan B. No, God chose us for himself. Notice it is an act in love. It reflects the love of God for his chosen people.
Notice also the basis of God’s choice in verse 5: In accordance with his pleasure and will. I say this because some people say God chooses us because of something he sees in us. God looks ahead, sees who will repent, and so chooses them. But God does not choose for these reasons. He chooses because he wants to. He decides to. He is pleased to. As Paul says in Romans 11:6:
So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. And if by grace, then it is no longer by works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace. (NIV)
Now it is one thing to be chosen. But what really matters is ‘what have we been chosen for’?
Verse 4 tells us. The purpose is to our holiness, our blamelessness. Without holiness, no one will see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14). Here is implied a call to live up to what we are in Christ. In Christ we are holy and righteous, because he is our righteousness, holiness and redemption (1 Corinthians 1:30). So we should live out the holiness and blamelessness that we enjoy in Christ in the heavenly realms.
The other thing we are predestined to is ‘Sonship’ or ‘Adoption’. We see this in verse 5: he predestined us to be adopted as his sons… The word describes taking as a son someone who is not so by birth[1]. We were not by nature God’s Sons and Daughters. We were by nature objects of God’s anger, not his love. We see that in Chapter 2 verses 1 to 3.
But we are brought into the family of God. So the Devil is no longer our Father. But God is our Father. Jesus is our brother, the first born of many. And we are co-heirs with Christ. We inherit with him.
And that we are sons is only a matter of grace. We haven’t earnt it. It comes because God wishes it and did something to make it happen. So in verse 6 we see it is a matter of grace: To the praise of his glorious grace which he has freely given us in the One he loves. Literally, it is to the praise of the glory of his grace with which he graced us. We see grace upon grace. It is not by works, it is a matter of grace.
The reason we can be adopted is found in verse 7: In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace. We have redemption. It is emphasised as a present possession. In verse 14 the word ‘redemption’ is there as what we hope for, and thus to be possessed in the future. But here in verse 7 it is a present possession.
This reflects the reality of the ‘now and not yet’. Now we have redemption, because Jesus died and rose again once and for all. But we don’t have it consummated, for we live in a sinful and broken world.
Redemption is the ransom price for a slave. It is a commercial word. You buy back something you have pawned by redeeming it.
And the redemption has occurred through Jesus’ blood. For it was through Jesus’ violent death on the cross that our redemption was won.
In verse 7, redemption is equated with, or at least related to, the forgiveness of sins. Our redemption is required because of our sins. A price needs to be paid because of our sins. That is redemption. As a result, we no longer have to pay the price of our debt of sin. That is forgiveness. Again, it is given in accordance with the riches of God’s grace
In other words, the redemption and the forgiveness is free. Sure, a costly price must be paid. That price is the blood of Christ, the sinless life of Jesus, the Son of God. But from our point of view, it is according to grace, not according to our works or merit. We don’t earn it. We don’t deserve it. God is simply gracious.
But that is not all. We are chosen, adopted, redeemed, forgiven. And all this graciously. But God has done it in such a way in that we know what God has done.
See, it is not just that God has saved us. He could have saved us, and left the process a mystery. But God has not only saved us. But he has also kindly let us know his mind. God also lets us know his will and purpose and intention. And it is this. Everything on heaven and one earth will submit to Jesus Christ, King of the Universe.
We’ve been talking about election and predestination. We’ve been thinking about God’s love before the foundation of the world. But we could ask the question, ‘Why did God choose to do it this way? Why did God allow the fall and sin? Why did God allow us to rebel against him and become his enemies? And why did God choose us before we were made, adopt us when we were his enemies, forgive our sins, and that freely (freely for us, but at the cost of his Son), why did he do it this way?
It is because this is the way that best brings all things under Christ. This is way that Christ is revealed as the one saving name, and that every knee will bow to Christ. God does it this way because when we come to the heaven we in no way deserve to possess it as co-heirs with Christ, we will know and have it ever imprinted on our brains that the only reason we are there and not in the hell we deserve is because of Jesus Christ, the one who is head over everything.
We are redeemed. Jesus has died and risen. So we have redemption now. But we also await redemption. Verse 14 : We await the redemption of those who are God’s possession. So we have everything. But we have everything in the same way that the successful bidder at an auction has the house he was bidding for. He has the successful bid. But he doesn’t have the house. That only occurs when the contracts are signed, the moneys are paid, and the keys are given over. So Jesus has won redemption for us. But we have not yet received that which he has won for us in total. We still do battle this side of heaven.
And that is where the Holy Spirit comes in. Verse 13: Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance (NIV). The Gentiles are by nature strangers to God’s family and God’s promises. But Paul points to their reception of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the deposit. The receipt of the Holy Spirit assures the Gentiles that they too will receive the inheritance. The Gentiles believe the gospel, they receive the Spirit. We Gentiles believe the gospel, we receive the Spirit. As Paul says elsewhere.: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law or by believing what you heard? (Galatians 3:2 NIV). We receive the gospel, we receive the Spirit as well.
Paul has just blessed God. So now he is about to ask God. But we must notice that Paul’s asking prayer has a direct relationship with Paul’s blessing prayer.
Through faith, the Ephesians are included in Christ and caught up in the purposes of God. Through faith, they have every blessing in Christ already, even if only in downpayment form.
So we should not be surprised that a big part of Paul’s prayers involves asking God to enable them to know what they already have. Verses 17-19:
I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. (NIV)
Our temptation is always to look at what we don’t have, not what we have. Not many of us are smart, not many influential, not many very rich. But God wants us to know what we have. He wants us to understand what a great inheritance we have, and how rich we really are. Look at it: chosen to be holy, adopted as his Sons; redeemed by Jesus blood; forgiven of sin; knowing God’s plan, and where the universe is heading; and already the Holy Spirit is our deposit guaranteeing our inheritance.
Now why does Paul want us to know that we are already rich? How will knowing that we are really rich make a difference?
It will innoculate us against the spiritual get rich quick gurus. They are the prosperity gospel Pentecostals, who promise not every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm, but every temporal blessing in the earthly realm. You watch these people on early morning TV. And they always find some Old Testament passage where God made a Patriarch rich, and they say, ‘And God wants you to be rich too’. But they fail to see that these things are a shadow that point us to the real riches in Christ. They fail to see that every believer already have every spiritual blessing in Christ. Friend, if you trust Jesus, you already have every spiritual blessing. In Christ Jesus, all the fullness of the godhead lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ (Colossians 2:9). They cannot offer you any spiritual blessing you don’t already have. And what they want to offer you on top, well, it is not spiritual, of the Spirit.
And remembering this will help us in our battle with the love of money. For once we know how rich we really are, we won’t seek after that pretend money. Our money is monopoly money, toy money while we wait for the life that is really life. We need money to live in our society, but it tends to deceive us. We forget that it fades away, and we can’t take it with us. So let’s not go after the riches that do not satisfy and drink their salt water. For we already have every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms.
Let’s pray.
[1] P T O'Brien, Ephesians: Pillar, 102