Blessed Beyond My Understanding
Posted by Sandy in Blessed Life, Gospel Message, Reading through the Bible in a Year, tags: Ephesians, Resting at the River's EdgeI am so enjoying our Resting at the River’s Edge reading the past few weeks. The story told in 1 Samuel is capturing my attention and in many ways my heart. Then we began the book of Ephesians. We read the first chapter on Tuesday and I’ve been chomping at the bit to write a blog about it…but felt so inadequate to expound on the words of prayer and blessing written by the Apostle Paul. I’ve decided to take the challenge, though, so please join me as we look at Paul’s glorious prayer, praise and encouragement to the saints in Ephesus.
Before we begin, however, here are a few tidbits that make the story we’ll explore all the more sweet:
- Paul is writing this letter from prison. I am amazed at his ability to soar above his circumstances as he writes to the Ephesians.
- Paul had been arrested on the charge of bringing a Gentile into the Jewish Temple. Racial and cultural division between Jews and Gentiles was a major issue in the church of Ephesus. The Ephesians would have known about the charges against Paul, so this makes him uniquely qualified to write this letter to them.
Now, on to Paul’s glorious praise!
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.
Ephesians 1:3 (NIV)
Paul starts out with a bang! Saints – believers in Jesus Christ – those who are faithful – can know that God has blessed them in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Wow! The New Living Translation phrases it like this:
How we praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we belong to Christ.
Ephesians 1:3 (NLT)
I see a difference in the translation:
- we’re blessed in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing (available or that exists) in Christ (NIV), or
- we’re blessed (presumably here on earth) with every blessing that exists in the heavenly realms (NLT)
Which translation is more accurate I don’t know, but I do know that the degree to which I’ve been blessed is beyond my understanding. Hallelujah! Thank You, God, for the blessings you have already given me – whether in heaven or here on earth, they are real, more real than the trials I faced yesterday and will face today and tomorrow.
I also know that I don’t focus on those blessings enough, nor do I praise God enough for them. Remember, Paul is writing this while being falsely accused and imprisoned! Yet he was able to recognize and appreciate the blessings God had given him. So much so that he was able to remind others about them. Yes, Paul was a pretty special guy, but God loves me as much as He loves the Apostle Paul and God can give me the same insights and faith. Lord, open my eyes the blessings you have given me!
I’ve only briefly looked at one of twenty verses here and already my blog is more than 500 words, so I believe I’ll turn this into a series on Ephesians 1. Come back tomorrow for the blessings found in verses 4 and 5, chosen friends.
In the meantime, I have an assignment for you and for me – let today be a day in which you meditate on – consider deeply – wonder at and mull over – keep your focus on – these thoughts:
If you are one of the “faithful in Christ” (verse 1):
- you have been blessed in the heavenly realms
- you have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ
- you have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms
If you are not yet one of the “faithful in Christ,” you can choose to become that today. The word translated “faithful” means trusting or full of trust. You can choose to trust Christ to forgive you of your sins and ask Him to become the One that you follow. You can choose to make Him Lord in your life. If you have questions, check out this blog and e-mail me at Sandy@ApprehendingGrace.com. I’d love to hear your questions and your story.
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