The church is not an organization. It is a living organism.
The church is the people. In Ephesians 4 Paul talks about the church.
In Ephesians 4:1 Paul identifies himself as a prisoner for the Lord. Paul was in prison because of his faith in Jesus. He saw this not in a negative sense but in a very positive way.
In Ephesians 4:1-3, four characteristics of followers of Jesus are given.
Ephesians 4:1b
I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
We are to live in such a way that our lives reflect the truth of who Jesus really is.
In Acts 1:8 Jesus says that His followers will be witnesses for Him. When we claim the name of Jesus, every area of life will either reflect the true picture of who Jesus is or a false picture of who Jesus is.
Paul is encouraging us for our lives to reflect the truth of who Jesus is and thus honor Him. Our lives as followers of Jesus are to show how worthy He is.
Ephesians 4:2a
Be completely humble and gentle
We who are followers of Jesus are to be humble and treat other others with gentleness.
Humbleness is our attitude and actions before God.
Gentleness is our attitude and actions before people.
Humbleness is when we acknowledge our struggles and come before God and seek His mercy.
Gentleness is seeing each other as fellow strugglers, then loving, not condemning each other.
Notice it says be completely humble and gentle. We are not to try and fake these characteristics.
Ephesians 4:2b
Bearing with one another in love
Being humble and gentle then leads us to the practical aspect of bearing with each other in love.
Judging each other is easy. It takes no effort or discernment. Judging is looking solely on the outward appearance and making no effort to understand or help.
We as followers of Jesus are called to encourage, support, and love - not judge.
Ephesians 4:2b
Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
There is to be a unity among the followers of Jesus.
Unity in this passage means to be one.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the Holy Spirit manifesting the character of Jesus in us as His followers.
What areas are we to be one in?
Ephesians 4:4-6
There is one body and one Spirit - just as you were called to one hope when you were called - one Lord, one faith, one baptism , one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all, and in all.
We are to be one in:
The Body of Christ
The Holy Spirit
Hope
The Lord Jesus
Faith
Baptism
God and Father.
What allows us to be in that kind of oneness? The fact that God the Father is:
Over All
Through All
In All
The unifying factor is not our:
Style of Worship
Church Structure
Church Ministries
Name of Church
The unifying factor is God the Father.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is God the Father uniting us as one with Him and each other.
The church also experiences the gift of grace from God.
Ephesians 4:7
But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned.
Grace is God loving us, not based on us but based on Him.
Grace is God loving us all the time regardless of our behavior.
Grace is God never abandoning us.
Grace is God sending His Son, Jesus, to die for us.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is experiencing the grace of God every day.
Ephesians 4:8-10
This is why it says, “When he ascended on high, He led captives in His train and gave gifts to men.” (What does “He ascended” mean except that He also descended to the lower, earthly regions? He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.)
God is higher than us. His ways and His thoughts are higher and better than ours.
But the awesome thing about God is that His being higher and better than us does not stop Him from loving us and being present with us. God the Son, Jesus, became one of us. He took on our limitations, our struggles, our temptations, and eventually our sins.
We are shown a picture of that in the Old Testament.
Isaiah 57:15 tells us who God is, where He dwells, and what He does.
For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.”
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is knowing and experiencing God’s presence in our life every day.
God the Father envisioned the church.
God the Son established the church.
God the Holy Spirit energizes the church.
The living organism called the church is all about God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit working in and through His people.
Displaying Jesus’ Character While Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
Joe
Sunday, March 20, 2016
Sunday, March 13, 2016
My Prayer for the Church
We live in a time of great individualism in our culture. Many people see life as being about them.
Many people see their relationship with Jesus as being also very individualistic. I believe that Scripture teaches that our personal relationship with Jesus is tied in with the church.
Many people are in the church.
Many people attend church.
Many people tolerate the church.
I love the church. I love the local church. I have given the last forty years of my life serving Jesus by serving the local church.
I love the faith family, Church at the Butte, that I currently have the privilege of serving as pastor.
Each day I pray for my faith family. One of the prayers I pray is found in Ephesians 3:14-21.
Ephesians 3:14-15
For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom His whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name.
I pray that the church will see ourselves as God’s family.
The church is not an organization. The church is a family.
The church as a family:
Lives Together
Grows Together
Encourages Together
Works Together
Proclaims Together
The church does all of this in the name of God.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church being the family of Jesus.
Ephesians 3:16
I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strength you with power through His Spirit in your inner being.
The church is powered by the Holy Spirit.
It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that the church exists.
It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that the church lives, grows, encourages, works, and proclaims.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church experiencing the power of God as we do life together.
Ephesians 3:17a
So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.
The church is built on faith, faith in Jesus.
In Matthew 16:18 Jesus says that He will build His church on the fact that He is the Son of God.
The church is not about faith in:
The Pastor
The Ministries
The People
The Structure.
The church is about faith in Jesus.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church living based on faith in Jesus.
Ephesians 3:17b-18
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.
The church is about the love of Jesus.
The love of Jesus is to be expressed through the church, His Body.
The love of Jesus as demonstrated by the church is to be shown in all its:
Width
Length
Height
Depth
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church experiencing and expressing the love of Jesus.
Ephesians 3:19
And to know that love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
In Colossians 1:19, Paul says that in Jesus all the fullness of God dwelled.
The church is to be filled with the fullness of Jesus.
The church is to manifest the fullness of Jesus to the world.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church as the Body of Christ being filled with the fullness of God.
Ephesians 3:20
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.
The church is not to be confined to human resources, power, or even imagination.
The church has unlimited resources because it has the resources, power, vision of Jesus.
Remember that in Matthew 28:18 Jesus says that all authority in heaven and earth had been given to Him.
And all of the resources, power, and vision of Jesus are at work in and through the church.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church living and working based on the authority of Jesus.
Ephesians 3:21
To Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
The church exists to bring glory to the Father.
In John 17:4 Jesus says that He brought glory to the Father by finishing all the work that the Father gave Him to do.
The church as the Body of Christ is to continue to do the work of the Father and that is when the church brings glory to the Father.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church bringing glory to God the Father.
Following Jesus is about being part of a community that loves and follows Jesus. Jesus as our Good Shepherd knows that one sheep separated for the rest of the flock will perish.
We need Jesus.
We need each other.
Together as the Church Raising the Roof and Removing the Wall
Joe
Many people see their relationship with Jesus as being also very individualistic. I believe that Scripture teaches that our personal relationship with Jesus is tied in with the church.
Many people are in the church.
Many people attend church.
Many people tolerate the church.
I love the church. I love the local church. I have given the last forty years of my life serving Jesus by serving the local church.
I love the faith family, Church at the Butte, that I currently have the privilege of serving as pastor.
Each day I pray for my faith family. One of the prayers I pray is found in Ephesians 3:14-21.
Ephesians 3:14-15
For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom His whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name.
I pray that the church will see ourselves as God’s family.
The church is not an organization. The church is a family.
The church as a family:
Lives Together
Grows Together
Encourages Together
Works Together
Proclaims Together
The church does all of this in the name of God.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church being the family of Jesus.
Ephesians 3:16
I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strength you with power through His Spirit in your inner being.
The church is powered by the Holy Spirit.
It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that the church exists.
It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that the church lives, grows, encourages, works, and proclaims.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church experiencing the power of God as we do life together.
Ephesians 3:17a
So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.
The church is built on faith, faith in Jesus.
In Matthew 16:18 Jesus says that He will build His church on the fact that He is the Son of God.
The church is not about faith in:
The Pastor
The Ministries
The People
The Structure.
The church is about faith in Jesus.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church living based on faith in Jesus.
Ephesians 3:17b-18
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.
The church is about the love of Jesus.
The love of Jesus is to be expressed through the church, His Body.
The love of Jesus as demonstrated by the church is to be shown in all its:
Width
Length
Height
Depth
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church experiencing and expressing the love of Jesus.
Ephesians 3:19
And to know that love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
In Colossians 1:19, Paul says that in Jesus all the fullness of God dwelled.
The church is to be filled with the fullness of Jesus.
The church is to manifest the fullness of Jesus to the world.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church as the Body of Christ being filled with the fullness of God.
Ephesians 3:20
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.
The church is not to be confined to human resources, power, or even imagination.
The church has unlimited resources because it has the resources, power, vision of Jesus.
Remember that in Matthew 28:18 Jesus says that all authority in heaven and earth had been given to Him.
And all of the resources, power, and vision of Jesus are at work in and through the church.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church living and working based on the authority of Jesus.
Ephesians 3:21
To Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
The church exists to bring glory to the Father.
In John 17:4 Jesus says that He brought glory to the Father by finishing all the work that the Father gave Him to do.
The church as the Body of Christ is to continue to do the work of the Father and that is when the church brings glory to the Father.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is the church bringing glory to God the Father.
Following Jesus is about being part of a community that loves and follows Jesus. Jesus as our Good Shepherd knows that one sheep separated for the rest of the flock will perish.
We need Jesus.
We need each other.
Together as the Church Raising the Roof and Removing the Wall
Joe
Sunday, March 6, 2016
The Mystery of the Church
When people use the word mystery, they usually mean something eerie or inscrutable. When the Bible uses the word mystery, it means a truth hidden by God in times past and is now revealed to those who are in His family. It is a “sacred secret” that is unknown to unbelievers, but understood and treasured by the people of God.
In Ephesians 3 Paul talks about a mystery, a truth that God is now revealing to His people.
The mystery: Gentiles are now united to the Jewish believers in one Body, the Church.
In Romans 15:5-6 Paul prays that the God who gives endurance and encouragement would give the church a spirit of unity as they follow Christ Jesus so that with one heart and mouth the church would glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
In Colossians 3:15 Paul says that by God’s peace we have been called to be in one body.
We as God’s people need to see ourselves as one with Him and with each other.
This truth is important to four groups of people.
Ephesians 3:1-5
For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles --- Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you, that is the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets.
Group #1: Those who by God’s grace have made themselves prisoners of Jesus.
A prisoner is a person who is under the control of someone else.
If we are like Paul, a prisoner of Jesus, then knowing that is essential. Then we will know that we have a whole family of people who, like us, are under the control of Jesus and we can find support and strength from each other.
We know that our connection is not about gender, race, social position, or economic standing. The connection is about Jesus being the absolute ruler of our lives.
We join together as Gentiles and Jews to form One Body.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is come together as people very different than one another to form one unified body of followers of Jesus.
Ephesians 3:6-8
This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus. I became servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of His power. Although I am less than the least of all God’s people, this grace was given me; to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ.
Group #2: Those who want to experience the fulfillment of God’s promises in Jesus.
We can experience the reality of God promises in Jesus by becoming servants of Jesus.
In Matthew 23:11 Jesus says, “The greatest among you shall be your servant.”
The world’s values tell us that we are to seek to be first, to be the boss. Jesus tells us to seek to be a servant.
It is important that those of us who are seeking to experience God’s promises in Jesus by being His servants have a community of servants to serve with.
The church made up of all kinds of people can join together as one body to serve the world in the name of Jesus.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is being a servant of Jesus in a community of servants.
Ephesians 3:9-10
And to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms.
Group #3: Those who are the church of Christ Jesus.
In Matthew 16:18 Jesus says that He will build His church on the truth that He is God and that, by living based on that truth, the church will not be defeated, even by the forces of hell itself.
Hope is found in the plan Jesus has to change the world. That plan is the church.
We need to see ourselves as the church, Christ’s Community, that together by the work of the Holy Spirit God will use to change the world.
The world will not be changed by me or you working by ourselves as individuals. The world will be changed by God working through His united people, the church.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is living together in community, the church.
Ephesians 3:11-13
According to His eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. I ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory.
Group #4: Those who are suffering with and for Jesus.
God is accomplishing His purpose through Jesus. It is an eternal purpose and it is being fulfilled through us right now today.
What those early believers did in fulfilling God’s purpose was awesome. God’s will is that all successive generations allow God to continue to fulfill His purpose through us.
Since we live in a fallen world, fulfilling God’s purpose will involve suffering.
In Philippians 3:10 Paul talks about knowing the fellowship of sharing in Jesus’ sufferings.
The thing that caused Jesus to suffer was sin. When we suffer with Jesus, we will be broken over sin. We will be broken over our own sin and the sin that dominates the world.
When we suffer with Jesus over sin, we need a community to encourage us, support us, and at times to comfort us.
Raise the Roof and Remove Walls is suffering with Jesus over sin as a Faith Family.
The thing that allows us to be prisoners of Jesus, servants of Jesus, the church of Jesus, and suffer with Jesus is GRACE.
Together with God’s Grace Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
Joe
In Ephesians 3 Paul talks about a mystery, a truth that God is now revealing to His people.
The mystery: Gentiles are now united to the Jewish believers in one Body, the Church.
In Romans 15:5-6 Paul prays that the God who gives endurance and encouragement would give the church a spirit of unity as they follow Christ Jesus so that with one heart and mouth the church would glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
In Colossians 3:15 Paul says that by God’s peace we have been called to be in one body.
We as God’s people need to see ourselves as one with Him and with each other.
This truth is important to four groups of people.
Ephesians 3:1-5
For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles --- Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you, that is the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets.
Group #1: Those who by God’s grace have made themselves prisoners of Jesus.
A prisoner is a person who is under the control of someone else.
If we are like Paul, a prisoner of Jesus, then knowing that is essential. Then we will know that we have a whole family of people who, like us, are under the control of Jesus and we can find support and strength from each other.
We know that our connection is not about gender, race, social position, or economic standing. The connection is about Jesus being the absolute ruler of our lives.
We join together as Gentiles and Jews to form One Body.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is come together as people very different than one another to form one unified body of followers of Jesus.
Ephesians 3:6-8
This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus. I became servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of His power. Although I am less than the least of all God’s people, this grace was given me; to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ.
Group #2: Those who want to experience the fulfillment of God’s promises in Jesus.
We can experience the reality of God promises in Jesus by becoming servants of Jesus.
In Matthew 23:11 Jesus says, “The greatest among you shall be your servant.”
The world’s values tell us that we are to seek to be first, to be the boss. Jesus tells us to seek to be a servant.
It is important that those of us who are seeking to experience God’s promises in Jesus by being His servants have a community of servants to serve with.
The church made up of all kinds of people can join together as one body to serve the world in the name of Jesus.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is being a servant of Jesus in a community of servants.
Ephesians 3:9-10
And to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms.
Group #3: Those who are the church of Christ Jesus.
In Matthew 16:18 Jesus says that He will build His church on the truth that He is God and that, by living based on that truth, the church will not be defeated, even by the forces of hell itself.
Hope is found in the plan Jesus has to change the world. That plan is the church.
We need to see ourselves as the church, Christ’s Community, that together by the work of the Holy Spirit God will use to change the world.
The world will not be changed by me or you working by ourselves as individuals. The world will be changed by God working through His united people, the church.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is living together in community, the church.
Ephesians 3:11-13
According to His eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. I ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory.
Group #4: Those who are suffering with and for Jesus.
God is accomplishing His purpose through Jesus. It is an eternal purpose and it is being fulfilled through us right now today.
What those early believers did in fulfilling God’s purpose was awesome. God’s will is that all successive generations allow God to continue to fulfill His purpose through us.
Since we live in a fallen world, fulfilling God’s purpose will involve suffering.
In Philippians 3:10 Paul talks about knowing the fellowship of sharing in Jesus’ sufferings.
The thing that caused Jesus to suffer was sin. When we suffer with Jesus, we will be broken over sin. We will be broken over our own sin and the sin that dominates the world.
When we suffer with Jesus over sin, we need a community to encourage us, support us, and at times to comfort us.
Raise the Roof and Remove Walls is suffering with Jesus over sin as a Faith Family.
The thing that allows us to be prisoners of Jesus, servants of Jesus, the church of Jesus, and suffer with Jesus is GRACE.
Together with God’s Grace Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
Joe
Sunday, February 28, 2016
Who Are and Who We Aren't
There is a question that all people have to answer at some time in their lives.
The Question: Who am I?
If we are going to really answer that question, we have to know first where we have come from.
In Ephesians 2:11-11 Paul tells us who we all once were, what changed that, who we are now, and what is no longer true of us.
Ephesians 2:11
Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcised” (that done in the body by the hands of men).
We at one time were not connected to God. We had not been brought into the Kingdom of God.
We are told in 2 Peter 3:9 that God does not desire for anyone to perish. God’s desire is that all people come into His Kingdom.
Ephesians 2:12a
Remember that at that time you were separated from Christ,
We were separated from Jesus.
We had no life and no access to God the Father.
Ephesians 2:12b
Excluded from citizenship in Israel.
We were not citizens of Israel.
In Romans 9:8 Paul makes it clear that being part of Israel is not about physical descent, but of being children of the promise. It is about being spiritual descendants of Abraham.
Ephesians 2:12c
And foreigners to the covenants of the promise
We were not experiencing the covenant promises of God.
The promises of God are based in the covenants of God and the covenants of God are based in the person of God. In reality, by being foreigners to God’s covenant, we were not experiencing the presence of God.
Ephesians 2:12d
Without hope
We had no hope.
In Romans 15:13 God is described as the God of hope. If we don’t have God, we don’t have hope.
Ephesians 2:12e
And without God in the world.
We didn’t have God in our lives.
We live in a violent, evil, harsh world because the world is fallen because of sin.
If we try to live in this kind of world without backup, we will get eaten alive. That is the exact description that Satan is given in 1 Peter 5:8, a lion seeking to devour us.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is remembering who we were before Jesus.
What can possibly change those truths about us?
Ephesians 2:13
But now in Christ Jesus you who were once far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.
The blood of Jesus has made all those things that were true of us not true of us any more and we have been brought near to God.
The word near means access. We have direct access to God the Father through the blood of Jesus.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is being changed by Jesus.
We have also been given some awesome gifts through the person of Jesus.
Ephesians 2:14a
For He Himself is our peace
We have in Jesus security and rest.
Ephesians 2:14b-15
Who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in His flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace
We have unity.
We have oneness with God.
We have oneness with the Body of Christ.
Ephesians 2:16-18
And in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
We have been reconciled to God.
We have been brought into harmony with God.
We are singing the same song as God does.
We are in agreement with God.
Ephesians 2:19-20
Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone.
We are part of God’s family.
We have a Father, God the Father, and big Brother, Jesus, who loves us and is always with us.
Ephesians 2:21-22
In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit.
We have direct, intimate access to God.
We don’t have to go through any:
People
Rituals
Traditions
We only have to call to God because we are the dwelling that His Spirit lives in.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is knowing who we are in Jesus and living out that truth.
There are three great advantages we have as people who have submitted our lives to the rule of Jesus.
We are not strangers to God; we are His children.
We have a foundation in God’s Word and Jesus that will never change.
We have the Holy Spirit living in us.
Not Who I Used to Be Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
Joe
The Question: Who am I?
If we are going to really answer that question, we have to know first where we have come from.
In Ephesians 2:11-11 Paul tells us who we all once were, what changed that, who we are now, and what is no longer true of us.
Ephesians 2:11
Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcised” (that done in the body by the hands of men).
We at one time were not connected to God. We had not been brought into the Kingdom of God.
We are told in 2 Peter 3:9 that God does not desire for anyone to perish. God’s desire is that all people come into His Kingdom.
Ephesians 2:12a
Remember that at that time you were separated from Christ,
We were separated from Jesus.
We had no life and no access to God the Father.
Ephesians 2:12b
Excluded from citizenship in Israel.
We were not citizens of Israel.
In Romans 9:8 Paul makes it clear that being part of Israel is not about physical descent, but of being children of the promise. It is about being spiritual descendants of Abraham.
Ephesians 2:12c
And foreigners to the covenants of the promise
We were not experiencing the covenant promises of God.
The promises of God are based in the covenants of God and the covenants of God are based in the person of God. In reality, by being foreigners to God’s covenant, we were not experiencing the presence of God.
Ephesians 2:12d
Without hope
We had no hope.
In Romans 15:13 God is described as the God of hope. If we don’t have God, we don’t have hope.
Ephesians 2:12e
And without God in the world.
We didn’t have God in our lives.
We live in a violent, evil, harsh world because the world is fallen because of sin.
If we try to live in this kind of world without backup, we will get eaten alive. That is the exact description that Satan is given in 1 Peter 5:8, a lion seeking to devour us.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is remembering who we were before Jesus.
What can possibly change those truths about us?
Ephesians 2:13
But now in Christ Jesus you who were once far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.
The blood of Jesus has made all those things that were true of us not true of us any more and we have been brought near to God.
The word near means access. We have direct access to God the Father through the blood of Jesus.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is being changed by Jesus.
We have also been given some awesome gifts through the person of Jesus.
Ephesians 2:14a
For He Himself is our peace
We have in Jesus security and rest.
Ephesians 2:14b-15
Who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in His flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace
We have unity.
We have oneness with God.
We have oneness with the Body of Christ.
Ephesians 2:16-18
And in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
We have been reconciled to God.
We have been brought into harmony with God.
We are singing the same song as God does.
We are in agreement with God.
Ephesians 2:19-20
Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone.
We are part of God’s family.
We have a Father, God the Father, and big Brother, Jesus, who loves us and is always with us.
Ephesians 2:21-22
In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit.
We have direct, intimate access to God.
We don’t have to go through any:
People
Rituals
Traditions
We only have to call to God because we are the dwelling that His Spirit lives in.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is knowing who we are in Jesus and living out that truth.
There are three great advantages we have as people who have submitted our lives to the rule of Jesus.
We are not strangers to God; we are His children.
We have a foundation in God’s Word and Jesus that will never change.
We have the Holy Spirit living in us.
Not Who I Used to Be Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
Joe
Sunday, February 21, 2016
But God
This past week I had a birthday and I had a blast hearing from a ton of people on FaceBook. Many of the people I heard from were people who were part of my and my wife’s student ministry when they were in mid school and high school. I have not seen most of them for twenty years or more. I had a vision of what they looked like and who they were. But when I looked at their FaceBook page I was made aware that was not what they looked like and not who they were any longer. They had changed.
The same is true of each of us who have surrender our lives to Jesus as Lord. We have changed, or more correctly ,we have been changed.
In Ephesians 2:1-10 Paul tells us who we were before Jesus, what Jesus did that changed us, and who were are now.
Ephesians 2:1-3
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.
We were DEAD!
Before Jesus, we were not:
Sick
Hurt
Incomplete
No! We were DEAD!
Why were we dead?
We were dead because of who we were.
We were transgressors and sinners.
Transgress means to step over a line or step over a boundary.
Sin means to miss the mark.
We were dead because we had missed God’s standard and because we had stepped over a God-established boundary.
We may not have intended to do either one of these things. The fact is that according to Romans 3:23, all of have sinned and according to Romans 6:23, it has led to death.
We were followers of this world and the ruler of the kingdom of the air, and the spirit of disobedience
Jesus’ invitation to Peter and Andrew, to James and John, to Philip, and to Matthew was FOLLOW ME.
In Matthew 4:10 Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy and says, “Worship the Lord and serve Him only.”
In Matthew 6:24 Jesus says that you cannot serve God and money. You cannot serve God and anything else because God demands our exclusive allegiance.
We cannot follow Jesus and follow anything else.
We lived to gratify the cravings of our sinful nature and we followed the desires and thoughts of our sinful nature.
1 John 2:15-17
Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world , the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world, the cravings of sinful man, the lust of the eyes and the boasting of what he has done - comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and it desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.
If we follow the cravings of our sinful nature, it means God is not in our lives and it will lead to death.
We cannot follow the desires and thoughts of our sinful nature because these desires and thoughts don’t come from God.
In Isaiah 55:8-9 we are told that God ways and thoughts are not like ours. His thoughts and ways are higher than ours.
When we follow the desires and thoughts of our sinful nature, it leads to death.
We were objects of wrath.
We were in rebellion against God. God has to deal with our rebellion because He is a righteous and just God. God deals with rebellion by pouring out His wrath on that rebellion.
God loves us and His overwhelming desire to pour out His love on us, but He will pour out His wrath on our rebellion and that leads to death.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is recognizing who we were before Jesus.
Ephesians 2:4-9
But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions - it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast.
Then we have BUT GOD. Those are awesome words - BUT GOD.
It means that all that has been true of us no longer has to be true.
We are now:
Alive with Jesus, not Dead in Sin
Raised to be with Jesus, not Stuck in the World
Seated with Jesus, not Outcast from God’s Presence
God has done this so He can show all creation His incomparable grace and kindness.
God has done all this by His mercy and grace made real in our lives by our faith.
God’s mercy is God not giving us what we deserve - death and hell.
God’s grace is God giving us more than we could ever deserve - forgiveness and heaven.
God’s grace and mercy are always present just like electricity in my house. Faith is the light switch that, when it is turned on, allows the electricity to cause the lights to come on. When I surrender my life to Jesus as Lord and trust Him for my salvation, I pass from death to life.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is recognizing who we are in Jesus.
Ephesians 2:10
For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
God moves us from who we were before Jesus to be all He created us to be.
We are God’s workmanship or God’s masterpiece.
We are created to do good works or things that honor God.
God created us for Himself.
God does not want us to live only to die. He wants us to live so we can really live.
God accomplishes all this through His love, mercy, and grace.
According to Romans 2:4 it is this very kindness of God that leads us to repentance.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is allowing God’s mercy, grace, and love to change us to be who He created us to be.
By God’s Grace and Mercy Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
Joe
The same is true of each of us who have surrender our lives to Jesus as Lord. We have changed, or more correctly ,we have been changed.
In Ephesians 2:1-10 Paul tells us who we were before Jesus, what Jesus did that changed us, and who were are now.
Ephesians 2:1-3
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.
We were DEAD!
Before Jesus, we were not:
Sick
Hurt
Incomplete
No! We were DEAD!
Why were we dead?
We were dead because of who we were.
We were transgressors and sinners.
Transgress means to step over a line or step over a boundary.
Sin means to miss the mark.
We were dead because we had missed God’s standard and because we had stepped over a God-established boundary.
We may not have intended to do either one of these things. The fact is that according to Romans 3:23, all of have sinned and according to Romans 6:23, it has led to death.
We were followers of this world and the ruler of the kingdom of the air, and the spirit of disobedience
Jesus’ invitation to Peter and Andrew, to James and John, to Philip, and to Matthew was FOLLOW ME.
In Matthew 4:10 Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy and says, “Worship the Lord and serve Him only.”
In Matthew 6:24 Jesus says that you cannot serve God and money. You cannot serve God and anything else because God demands our exclusive allegiance.
We cannot follow Jesus and follow anything else.
We lived to gratify the cravings of our sinful nature and we followed the desires and thoughts of our sinful nature.
1 John 2:15-17
Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world , the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world, the cravings of sinful man, the lust of the eyes and the boasting of what he has done - comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and it desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.
If we follow the cravings of our sinful nature, it means God is not in our lives and it will lead to death.
We cannot follow the desires and thoughts of our sinful nature because these desires and thoughts don’t come from God.
In Isaiah 55:8-9 we are told that God ways and thoughts are not like ours. His thoughts and ways are higher than ours.
When we follow the desires and thoughts of our sinful nature, it leads to death.
We were objects of wrath.
We were in rebellion against God. God has to deal with our rebellion because He is a righteous and just God. God deals with rebellion by pouring out His wrath on that rebellion.
God loves us and His overwhelming desire to pour out His love on us, but He will pour out His wrath on our rebellion and that leads to death.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is recognizing who we were before Jesus.
Ephesians 2:4-9
But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions - it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast.
Then we have BUT GOD. Those are awesome words - BUT GOD.
It means that all that has been true of us no longer has to be true.
We are now:
Alive with Jesus, not Dead in Sin
Raised to be with Jesus, not Stuck in the World
Seated with Jesus, not Outcast from God’s Presence
God has done this so He can show all creation His incomparable grace and kindness.
God has done all this by His mercy and grace made real in our lives by our faith.
God’s mercy is God not giving us what we deserve - death and hell.
God’s grace is God giving us more than we could ever deserve - forgiveness and heaven.
God’s grace and mercy are always present just like electricity in my house. Faith is the light switch that, when it is turned on, allows the electricity to cause the lights to come on. When I surrender my life to Jesus as Lord and trust Him for my salvation, I pass from death to life.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is recognizing who we are in Jesus.
Ephesians 2:10
For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
God moves us from who we were before Jesus to be all He created us to be.
We are God’s workmanship or God’s masterpiece.
We are created to do good works or things that honor God.
God created us for Himself.
God does not want us to live only to die. He wants us to live so we can really live.
God accomplishes all this through His love, mercy, and grace.
According to Romans 2:4 it is this very kindness of God that leads us to repentance.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is allowing God’s mercy, grace, and love to change us to be who He created us to be.
By God’s Grace and Mercy Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
Joe
Sunday, February 14, 2016
Jesus Is Over All and Gives to His Church
I used to never write anything down. I could remember dates, appointments, and almost everything people asked me to do. Things have changed dramatically. I now write down everything to remind myself of my commitments and appointments.
In Ephesians 1:15-23 Paul reminds the Ephesian believers of some things that God had given them.
We as believers today have been given these same things.
Ephesians 1:15-16
Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere. I have not stop thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly.
Paul says that the Ephesian believers are strong in their faith and strong in their love for God’s people. Paul prays constantly for them.
Paul prays five things for these believers.
Ephesians 1:17a
Asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom.
Paul prays that they will have spiritual wisdom.
There is a difference between spiritual wisdom and earthly wisdom.
According to James 3:15-16 earthly wisdom is characterized by jealousy and selfish ambition. This wisdom is earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. It leads to disorder and evil of every kind.
Spiritual wisdom, wisdom from above, is characterized by purity, loving peace, gentle humility, mercy, good deeds, not showing favoritism, and sincerity.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about receiving spiritual wisdom from God.
Ephesians 1:17b
And insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.
Paul prays for them to have insight to grow in their relationship with Jesus.
God wants us to be laid bare before Him so we can come to really know Jesus, not just about Jesus.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is being laid bare before God so He can fill us with His Spirit and we can experience the fullness of Jesus.
Ephesians 1:18a
I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope He has given to those He called.
Paul prays for their hearts to be flooded with light that leads them to have a confident hope.
2 Timothy 1:7 says that God has not given us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, love, and self-discipline.
When Jesus, the Light of the world, comes into our lives, He floods us with His light and gives us hope by His Spirit which will allow us to live not in fear but in power, love, and self-discipline.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is knowing Jesus as the Light of the world and living in hope.
Ephesians 1:18b
His holy people who are His rich and glorious inheritance.
Paul prays that they will know that they are God’s holy people and His inheritance.
God wants us to know that we are His holy, set apart, people. We are set apart for Him and to do His will.
God also wants us to know we are His inheritance, that we belong to Him. We are His and He is the absolute, sovereign ruler of our lives.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is living as God’s holy people with Jesus as the King of our lives.
Ephesians 1:19-20
I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe Him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.
Paul prays that they will experience the incredible power of God.
The power that God wants these Ephesian believers to experience and for us to experience is the same power that raised Jesus from the dead and that set Jesus at God’s right hand.
The word translated power is the word that we get dynamite from. It is an explosive that totally changes everything.
It is power that changes us and elevates us.
Ephesians 1:21-22
Now He is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else - not only in this world but also in the world to come. God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made Him head over all things for the benefit of the church.
We can receive all of the things in verses 17-20 because Jesus is above any:
Ruler (Satan or President)
Authority (Spiritual or Earthly)
Power (Demonic or Government)
Leader (Antichrist or Human)
Jesus is over all things and that benefits the church .
Ephesians 1:23
And the church is His body, it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with Himself.
The church is the Body of Christ and because of who Jesus is and what He gives us, we as the church are full and complete, and filled with Him.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about;
Receiving all that Jesus wants to give us
Acknowledging Jesus as the Head of the church
Looking to Jesus to fill us and complete us in Him
By and With Jesus Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
Joe
In Ephesians 1:15-23 Paul reminds the Ephesian believers of some things that God had given them.
We as believers today have been given these same things.
Ephesians 1:15-16
Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere. I have not stop thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly.
Paul says that the Ephesian believers are strong in their faith and strong in their love for God’s people. Paul prays constantly for them.
Paul prays five things for these believers.
Ephesians 1:17a
Asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom.
Paul prays that they will have spiritual wisdom.
There is a difference between spiritual wisdom and earthly wisdom.
According to James 3:15-16 earthly wisdom is characterized by jealousy and selfish ambition. This wisdom is earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. It leads to disorder and evil of every kind.
Spiritual wisdom, wisdom from above, is characterized by purity, loving peace, gentle humility, mercy, good deeds, not showing favoritism, and sincerity.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about receiving spiritual wisdom from God.
Ephesians 1:17b
And insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.
Paul prays for them to have insight to grow in their relationship with Jesus.
God wants us to be laid bare before Him so we can come to really know Jesus, not just about Jesus.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is being laid bare before God so He can fill us with His Spirit and we can experience the fullness of Jesus.
Ephesians 1:18a
I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope He has given to those He called.
Paul prays for their hearts to be flooded with light that leads them to have a confident hope.
2 Timothy 1:7 says that God has not given us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, love, and self-discipline.
When Jesus, the Light of the world, comes into our lives, He floods us with His light and gives us hope by His Spirit which will allow us to live not in fear but in power, love, and self-discipline.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is knowing Jesus as the Light of the world and living in hope.
Ephesians 1:18b
His holy people who are His rich and glorious inheritance.
Paul prays that they will know that they are God’s holy people and His inheritance.
God wants us to know that we are His holy, set apart, people. We are set apart for Him and to do His will.
God also wants us to know we are His inheritance, that we belong to Him. We are His and He is the absolute, sovereign ruler of our lives.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is living as God’s holy people with Jesus as the King of our lives.
Ephesians 1:19-20
I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe Him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.
Paul prays that they will experience the incredible power of God.
The power that God wants these Ephesian believers to experience and for us to experience is the same power that raised Jesus from the dead and that set Jesus at God’s right hand.
The word translated power is the word that we get dynamite from. It is an explosive that totally changes everything.
It is power that changes us and elevates us.
Ephesians 1:21-22
Now He is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else - not only in this world but also in the world to come. God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made Him head over all things for the benefit of the church.
We can receive all of the things in verses 17-20 because Jesus is above any:
Ruler (Satan or President)
Authority (Spiritual or Earthly)
Power (Demonic or Government)
Leader (Antichrist or Human)
Jesus is over all things and that benefits the church .
Ephesians 1:23
And the church is His body, it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with Himself.
The church is the Body of Christ and because of who Jesus is and what He gives us, we as the church are full and complete, and filled with Him.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about;
Receiving all that Jesus wants to give us
Acknowledging Jesus as the Head of the church
Looking to Jesus to fill us and complete us in Him
By and With Jesus Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
Joe
Sunday, February 7, 2016
The Blessings of God Through Jesus
I hear the statement “I am blessed” a lot. I hear it from athletes, actors, and ordinary people.
I am not sure what all the people mean when they say “I am blessed”, but I know that it is a true statement.
In Ephesians 1:3 Paul says, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”
We are blessed and the blessings are in Jesus.
Paul then shares eight blessings we have in Jesus.
Ephesians 1:4a
For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.
Blessing #1: God chose us to be holy and blameless.
God’s desire is for you to be living a life that is focused on Jesus, using your life to honor Him with no glaring moral weaknesses.
We cannot be holy and blameless based on our own ability. We are only holy and blameless by the work of the Holy Spirit. We are holy and blameless in God’s sight only by the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 1:4b-5
In love, He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will.
Blessing #2: God has chosen us to be His children and to experience His love as our Father.
God loves you. He loves you with a love that is unconditional, with no boundaries, and eternal. He loves you no matter what.
God’s love for us has made you and me His children.
We as God’s children are loved, protected, and provided for by our Father.
Ephesians 1:6
To the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves.
Blessing #3: God has given us grace.
This grace is His grace.
We don’t deserve it and He doesn’t have to give it to us. We have no right to grace; it is all based on God’s desire to have us experience His love.
This grace is glorious.
God’s grace is a demonstration of His glory. Grace shows who God is and how He works. And He is glorious!
Ephesians 1:7
In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.
Blessing #4: God has provide us with redemption.
God has bought us back from the power of sin by the blood of Jesus.
Redemption means that God has forgiven us.
Redemption means that we are freed from the penalty of sin.
Redemption means that we are freed from the power of sin.
Ephesians 1:8
That He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding
Blessing #5: God has given us wisdom and understanding.
God has given us the ability to use our God given skills in building His kingdom - wisdom.
God has given us discernment and insight into His will.
God wants you to use what He has given you to honor Him; that is why He gave it to you.
God wants us understanding His will so we can do it.
Ephesians 1:9-11
And He made know 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 have reached their fulfillment - to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ. In Him we were chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will.
Blessing #6: God has shown us His will.
God wants us to know His will so He reveals it to us.
God doesn’t play games with us. He reveals to us His person, His purposes, and His ways.
It is God’s pleasure to reveal to us His will.
It is revealed to us in God’s timing.
It is revealed to us so that we understand that Jesus is Lord over all creation.
Ephesians 1:12
In order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of His glory.
Blessing #7: God gives us hope so that He will be praised.
Hope is the confident assurance that God will do what He says He will do.
Hope means we have complete faith in Jesus, and faith in Jesus glorifies God. Praise is simply recognizing that God fulfills every promise He makes us. God’s faithfulness leads us to publicly and loudly praise Him.
Ephesians 1:13-14
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.
Blessing #8: God has sealed us by His Holy Spirit.
When we surrender our lives to Jesus as Lord we are given the Holy Spirit and He seals us, He glues us, to Jesus.
He makes sure that we are connected with Jesus and that connection is never broken. The Holy Spirit is our security in God.
We as followers of Jesus are blessed.
There is one thing that all these blessings have in common. They are all centered Jesus.
These blessing are not based on
Our Behavior
Our Goodness
Our Hard Work
They are all about what Jesus has chosen and is choosing to do in and through our lives. Just as the ending of verse 14 says, “To The Praise Of His Glory!”
Blessed By Jesus Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
Joe
I am not sure what all the people mean when they say “I am blessed”, but I know that it is a true statement.
In Ephesians 1:3 Paul says, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”
We are blessed and the blessings are in Jesus.
Paul then shares eight blessings we have in Jesus.
Ephesians 1:4a
For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.
Blessing #1: God chose us to be holy and blameless.
God’s desire is for you to be living a life that is focused on Jesus, using your life to honor Him with no glaring moral weaknesses.
We cannot be holy and blameless based on our own ability. We are only holy and blameless by the work of the Holy Spirit. We are holy and blameless in God’s sight only by the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 1:4b-5
In love, He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will.
Blessing #2: God has chosen us to be His children and to experience His love as our Father.
God loves you. He loves you with a love that is unconditional, with no boundaries, and eternal. He loves you no matter what.
God’s love for us has made you and me His children.
We as God’s children are loved, protected, and provided for by our Father.
Ephesians 1:6
To the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves.
Blessing #3: God has given us grace.
This grace is His grace.
We don’t deserve it and He doesn’t have to give it to us. We have no right to grace; it is all based on God’s desire to have us experience His love.
This grace is glorious.
God’s grace is a demonstration of His glory. Grace shows who God is and how He works. And He is glorious!
Ephesians 1:7
In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.
Blessing #4: God has provide us with redemption.
God has bought us back from the power of sin by the blood of Jesus.
Redemption means that God has forgiven us.
Redemption means that we are freed from the penalty of sin.
Redemption means that we are freed from the power of sin.
Ephesians 1:8
That He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding
Blessing #5: God has given us wisdom and understanding.
God has given us the ability to use our God given skills in building His kingdom - wisdom.
God has given us discernment and insight into His will.
God wants you to use what He has given you to honor Him; that is why He gave it to you.
God wants us understanding His will so we can do it.
Ephesians 1:9-11
And He made know 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 have reached their fulfillment - to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ. In Him we were chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will.
Blessing #6: God has shown us His will.
God wants us to know His will so He reveals it to us.
God doesn’t play games with us. He reveals to us His person, His purposes, and His ways.
It is God’s pleasure to reveal to us His will.
It is revealed to us in God’s timing.
It is revealed to us so that we understand that Jesus is Lord over all creation.
Ephesians 1:12
In order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of His glory.
Blessing #7: God gives us hope so that He will be praised.
Hope is the confident assurance that God will do what He says He will do.
Hope means we have complete faith in Jesus, and faith in Jesus glorifies God. Praise is simply recognizing that God fulfills every promise He makes us. God’s faithfulness leads us to publicly and loudly praise Him.
Ephesians 1:13-14
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.
Blessing #8: God has sealed us by His Holy Spirit.
When we surrender our lives to Jesus as Lord we are given the Holy Spirit and He seals us, He glues us, to Jesus.
He makes sure that we are connected with Jesus and that connection is never broken. The Holy Spirit is our security in God.
We as followers of Jesus are blessed.
There is one thing that all these blessings have in common. They are all centered Jesus.
These blessing are not based on
Our Behavior
Our Goodness
Our Hard Work
They are all about what Jesus has chosen and is choosing to do in and through our lives. Just as the ending of verse 14 says, “To The Praise Of His Glory!”
Blessed By Jesus Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
Joe
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