According to Ephesians 1:3, we have been blessed with all spiritual blessings through Christ. What are these spiritual blessings and what benefit do they provide us with? Contrary to popular opinion, they are not some enigmatic force or cosmic connection reserved for the privileged few. These are the primary advantages of a relationship with God established through Jesus Christ.
In Ephesians 1:3, the term blessing is a translation of the Greek word eulogy, which means "to speak well of." Given that God is the actor in this verse, we might say that God has uttered positive things about us or declared positive things for our benefit. While the amount of excellent things God has determined for us is probably beyond our ability to count, we can highlight a few by examining the verses that follow (Ephesians 1:4–13).
The first of these blessings is election as saints. According to Ephesians 1:4, He "predestined us in him before the creation of the world" to be "pure and blameless before him in love." God has chosen to make us holy and blameless (verses 5–6) out of His love, good pleasure, and grace. What a blessing that God chose to extend His grace to us and offer us salvation "even while we were dead in our sins" (Ephesians 2:5). This is even more remarkable when we consider that He made that choice prior to the onset of sin in the world.
Verse 5 lists the second blessing—our adoption as His offspring. Not only has God selected us to be holy, but He also bestows upon us full status as His children, complete with all of the associated advantages. According to John 1:12, "as many as received him, he granted the authority to become sons of God, especially to those who believe on his name." When we believe the gospel, we get complete access to the Father and the ability to communicate with Him as His children.
In verse 6, we are made "accepted in the beloved." This is the third spiritual gift. The word is associated with grace and conveys the idea of transforming us into graceful or favourable individuals via Christ, God's favoured. When we put on Christ, the Father sees His beauty in us. The blood of Christ has cleansed us of our sins, and we now stand totally acceptable before the Father.
This brings us directly to the fourth benefit (Ephesians 1:7), His blood-based redemption. The term "redemption" refers to the act of purchasing one's freedom through the payment of a ransom. The cost of our sins, the price paid to redeem us from eternal punishment, was entirely met by the blood of Christ. We are no longer captives to sin when we come to Christ, but we become slaves to God. Given that we have been purchased and paid for by His blood, we owe it to God to praise Him in our body and spirit (1 Corinthians 6:20).
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