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“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened” (Eph. 1:18). Spiritual enlightenment doesn’t come through self-effort or introspective meditation but through God’s Holy Spirit. Our society has been enamored with the pursuit of spiritual enlightenment, especially since the influx of Eastern thought into the West during the 1960s. Now we are drowning in a sea of false religions and New Age philosophies. True enlightenment continues to elude many because they have denied its source and have turned to gurus and teachers who have no light to give. They propagate self-effort and introspective meditation, but spiritual enlightenment doesn’t...

"[I pray] that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him" (Eph. 1:17). Your inheritance in Christ is so vast and profound that you cannot comprehend it apart from God’s enabling. The late newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst invested a fortune in collecting great works of art. One day he read of an extremely valuable work that he determined to add to his collection. His agent searched the galleries of the world but to no avail. Finally, after many months of effort...

"For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you, and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers" (Eph. 1:15-16). Your love for other Christians is as much a mark of true faith as your love for God. The Ephesian Christians demonstrated two important characteristics of genuine Christian faith: faith in the Lord Jesus and love for fellow believers. "Faith in the Lord Jesus" implies both an affirmation of Christ's deity and submission to His sovereignty. Because He is...

You were sealed with the Holy Spirit "with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory" (Eph. 1:14). Someday God will take full possession of all that is rightfully His. Yesterday we saw that God seals us with the Holy Spirit as a pledge of our eternal inheritance. Here Paul says He does so "with a view to the redemption of [His] own possession." That refers to when God takes full possession of all that is rightfully His. Everything is God's by creation, but Satan has usurped God's rulership to become the "god...

"You were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance" (Eph. 1:13-14). The Holy Spirit is God’s first installment on your eternal inheritance. The Holy Spirit's ministry in your life is multifaceted and profound. Among other things He brings salvation, conviction, guidance, and strength. He indwells and equips you for spiritual service and gives assurance of your salvation. He is your Helper and Advocate. He is the Spirit of promise, who seals you until the day when your redemption is fully realized (Eph. 4:30). Sealing speaks of security, authenticity, ownership,...

"In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed" (Eph. 1:13). The gospel is true because Jesus is true, not simply because Christians believe in Him. After stating salvation from God's perspective in verse 12, Paul here states it from man's perspective. Faith in Christ is your response to God's elective purpose in your life. Those two truths—God's initiative and man's response—co-exist throughout Scripture. Paul rightly called the gospel "the message of truth" because truth is its predominant characteristic. Salvation was conceived by the God of truth (Ps. 31:5); purchased by...

We were predestined "to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ should be to the praise of His glory" (Eph. 1:12). In salvation, as in everything else, God is preeminent. He deserves all the credit. Preeminence implies supreme standing, picturing one who excels over all others in a particular quality or achievement. There is no one more preeminent than God. Ephesians 1:12 underscores that truth. You were redeemed and granted an eternal inheritance that God might be glorified. Certainly you benefit greatly from salvation, but God's glory is the primary issue. Our man-centered culture doesn't...

"In [Christ] also we have obtained an inheritance" (Eph. 1:10-11). As a member of God’s family, you have obtained a future inheritance that has many present benefits. An inheritance is something received by an heir as a result of a will or legal process. It's a legacy one receives from family connections. As a member of God's family, you are an heir of God and fellow heir with Christ (Rom. 8:17). As such you have obtained an inheritance that Peter called "imperishable and undefiled . . . reserved in heaven for you" (1 Pet. 1:4). It cannot perish, fade away,...

"[God] made known the mystery of His will according to His kind intention which He purposed in [Christ] with a view to an administration suitable to the fulness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things upon the earth" (Eph. 1:9-10). God is intimately involved in the flow of human history and is directing its course toward a specific, predetermined climax. For centuries men of various philosophical schools have debated the cause, course, and climax of human history. Some deny God and therefore deny any divine involvement in history....

"In all wisdom and insight [God] made known to us the mystery of His will" (Eph. 1:8-9). Even if you haven’t obtained academic degrees, you have wisdom that far surpasses the most educated unbeliever. When God redeemed you, He not only forgave your trespasses and removed the guilt and penalty of sin, but He also gave you spiritual wisdom and insight—two essential elements for godly living. Together they speak of the ability to understand God's will and apply it to your life in practical ways. As a believer you understand the most sublime truths of all. For example, you know...

In Christ we have "the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of [God's] grace, which He lavished upon us" (Eph. 1:7-8). In Christ we have infinite forgiveness for every sin—past, present, and future. On Israel's Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) the high priest selected two goats. One was sacrificed; the other set free. Before releasing the second goat, the high priest symbolically placed the sins of the people on it by laying his hands on its head. This "scapegoat" was then taken a great distance from camp and released—never to return again (Lev. 16:7-10). The Greek word translated...

"In [Christ] we have redemption through His blood" (Eph. 1:7, emphasis added). Redeeming grace is free to us, but its cost to God is inestimable. Sin is not a serious issue to most people. Our culture flaunts and peddles it in countless forms. Even Christians who would never think of committing certain sins will often allow themselves to be entertained by them through television, movies, music, and other media. We sometimes flirt with sin but God hates it. The price He paid to redeem us from it speaks of the seriousness with which He views it. After all, we "were...

“In [Christ] we have redemption” (Eph. 1:7). Slavery to sin is bondage; slavery to God is freedom. Freedom is a precious thing. People throughout history have prayed, fought, and even died for it. Our Declaration of Independence upholds it as one of our inalienable rights. But the truth is, no matter what one’s political situation might be, everyone is a slave—either to sin or to God. Jesus said that “everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin” (John 8:34). Paul added that all of creation is in slavery to corruption (Rom. 8:21). However, believers have “been freed from sin...

God chose us “to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in [His beloved Son]” (Eph. 1:6). You were created to glorify God. Englishman Henry Martyn served as a missionary in India and Persia in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Upon his arrival in Calcutta, he cried out “Let me burn out for God.” As he watched the people prostrating themselves before their pagan idols and heard blasphemy uttered against Christ, he wrote, “This excited more horror in me than I can well express. . . . I could not endure...

“In love [God] predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will” (Eph. 1:4-5). Because God loves you, He adopted you as His child and grants you all the rights and privileges of family membership. Moses told Israel that God didn't choose them because of their great numbers or any inherent goodness on their part, but as an expression of God's sovereign will and sacrificial love (Deut. 7:7-8). That's true of you as well if you're a Christian. The Greek word translated “love” in Ephesians 1:4 speaks not of emotional...

God chose us “that we should be holy and blameless before Him” (Eph. 1:4). The challenge of Christian living is to increasingly match your practice to your position. God chose you in Christ to make you holy and blameless in His sight. To be “holy” is to be separated from sin and devoted to righteousness. To be “blameless” is to be pure without spot or blemish—like Jesus, the Lamb of God (1 Pet. 1:19). Ephesians 1:4 is a positional statement. That is, Paul describes how God views us “in Christ.” He sees us as holy and blameless because Christ our...

God “chose us in [Christ] before the foundation of the world” (Eph. 1:4). A true sense of identity comes from knowing that God Himself personally selected you to be His child. Many people in our society are on a seemingly endless and often frantic quest for personal identity and self-worth. Identity crises are common at almost every age level. Superficial love and fractured relationships are but symptoms of our failure to resolve the fundamental issues of who we are, why we exist, and where we're going. Sadly, most people will live and die without ever understanding God's purpose for their...

“God...has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ” (Eph. 1:3, emphasis added). Christianity isn’t simply a belief system—it’s a whole new identity. Many people mistakenly believe that one's religious preference is irrelevant because all religions eventually lead to the same spiritual destination. Such thinking is sheer folly, however, because Scripture declares that no one comes to God apart from Jesus (John 14:6). He is the only source of salvation (Acts 4:12) and the only One powerful enough to redeem us and hold us secure forever (John 10:28). Every Christian shares a common supernatural union with...

“God...has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places” (Eph. 1:3, emphasis added). Christians hold a dual citizenship. We are citizens of earth, but, more importantly, we are also citizens of Heaven. It's been said that some Christians are so heavenly minded, they're no earthly good. But usually the opposite is true. Many Christians are so enamored with this present world that they no longer look forward to heaven. They have everything they want right here. The health, wealth, and prosperity doctrine has convinced them that Christians can have it all, and they pursue “the good life” with...

“God...has blessed us with every spiritual blessing” (Eph. 1:3, emphasis added). As a Christian, you possess every spiritual resource you need to fulfill God’s will for your life. The story is told of a wealthy London businessman who searched many years for his runaway son. One afternoon he was preparing to board a train to London when he spotted a man in ragged, dirty clothing begging money from passengers along the station platform. His first impulse was to avoid the beggar but there was something strangely familiar about him. When the beggar approached and asked if he could spare a...