Today we’ll be reading from Ephesians 1:11-14:
In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
The first thing we see in this section is everything coming up here is based “In him.” If you look at the previous verses you’ll see “Him” is referring back to Christ, who has now given us an inheritance that is coming. This inheritance is being present with God for eternity.
We then come to one of the most misunderstood doctrines in the church today: predestination! This is meant to be a glorious description of God that gives us immense comfort no matter what we’re currently experiencing. It’s always struck me as odd that people want to debate whether or not God predestines people, because the word is literally in the Bible! There’s no other way to translate that word from the Greek to English. So because it’s there we have to admit that God predestines people, the question is then: who? Yet even as this verse goes on to say, all of this is to bring Him glory!
However, even though God is sovereign and predestines, that doesn’t get humans off the hook for their reactions. Even in this section, it says those who were predestined had to believe in him. The philosophical term used to describe this is divine compatibalism. That is: God sovereign orchestrates everything independent of us, yet at the same time we are completely responsible for our actions and cannot deter God’s will. These two things are compatible, and in God’s economy it makes sense, in ours it doesn’t! SO it would be a great question for when you get to heaven!
Lastly, the reason we know the inheritance is ours is because of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, who not only leads us in righteousness and reminds us of what Jesus taught us, He also serve as the guarantee of our future inheritance. Because we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit we can trust God that our future is secure! And because the Holy Spirit and the Father are God we can trust that they are working everything together for our good and His glory! This reminds us that even a virus can’t catch God by surprise, and the events taking place right now are still within God’s sovereign rule and reign, so we can trust Him completely!
I’m praying you all are stay safe and continue looking for ways to serve God and love your neighbors during this week!
SONG:
Today’s song is by one of my favorite spoken word groups Beautiful Eulogy, and the song is called ‘Sovereign’ You can listen on YOUTUBE or SPOTIFY. If you need help with the lyrics, click HERE.
FREE STUFF:
There’s a new Netflix like service that’s free and contains a number of really good looking biography dramas, some kids shows, and some shows based on the Bible. I haven’t tried it out yet, but the price is right! It’s called RedeemTV and you can see it HERE.
Pastor Mike's Musings 