Sabbath: God’s Grand, Christ-centered Plan
Image © Pacific Press
Sabbath Afternoon
Read for This Week’s Study: Ephesians 1:3-14; Ephesians 2:6; Ephesians 3:10; Colossians 1:13-14; Deuteronomy 9:29.
Memory Text: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 1:3, ESV).
Twenty-five years after becoming the first person to walk on the moon, Neil Armstrong wrote a thank you note to the creative team who designed the spacesuit, the Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU), in which he took those historic steps. Calling it “the most photographed spacecraft in history” and teasing that it was successful at hiding “its ugly occupant” from view, Armstrong thanked “the EMU Gang” at the Johnson Space Center for the “tough, reliable, and almost cuddly” suit that preserved his life, sending them “a quarter century’s worth of thanks and congratulations.”
Paul begins his letter to the Ephesians with a majestic thank you note, praising God for the blessings He has poured out, blessings as essential to the lives of believers as a spacesuit is for someone who walks on the moon. Paul argues that God has been at work on these essential blessings since “before the foundation of the world” (Ephesians 1:4) and praises God for working through the ages on behalf of believers.
Paul’s opening here makes Ephesians especially valuable in modeling how to worship God and to praise God for the many blessings He has provided.
Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, July 8.
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Paul speaks a lot about being blessed, and blessing others. It's a good Christian term but was does it mean? How would you write the first few verses without using "bless"? And, just to make is a little more thoughtful, go easy on the synonyms. How's that for a bit of homework?
And if you would like a few minutes of relaxing Sabbath viewing watch my June collection of bird photographs:
June Birds 2023
Thank you so much Maurice for sharing your talent with us. I share your photos
with 48 other people who also appreciate the beauty you bring to our lives.
Leilani
I saw the birds. What a joy!
Fun assignment. Here’s an idea…
When a little one is very excited, they sometimes share what they’re happy about by stringing a lot of words together in a breathless voice. Paul was in prison when he wrote this letter, but through faith he must’ve still been excited like a child because the first 12 verses of Ephesians (vv. 3-14) is one very long sentence in the original Greek language.
So to rewrite this opening salutation without using the word “bless” maybe we could do it kid-style….and Paul-style… and say, “and then God ____for me, and then He ____ for us, …..” , giving examples of God’s many kindnesses, all without stopping to catch a breath.
Yes, I can relate. I'm 74 years old, and I never lost my child-like excitement. It springs up everyday as I notice Jesus guiding me in the little things. I see it as the joy of the Lord.
Amen, Celeste! My Mom calls them her M&Ms, God's "mini miracles". There are so many throughout the day!
Thanks for sharing the birds. It made me marvel that with all the sin, and marred creation God’s beauty shines through daily
Blessed be the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,He is not the Father by adoption,but Jesus Christ is the begotten one and also equal to the Father.To bless in this instance is not to bless as we know because God does not need blessings or anything,He is the author and giver of blessings,and He only can bless.This is about giving Him glory and honour.The blessings which believers receive are not limited to material things in this world but also blessings which are spiritual and far more important than the material ones.
There are a number of blessings mentioned in Ephesians:
1.Ephesians 1:4-He chose us before the foundation of the world.
2.Ephesians 1:5-He predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself.
3.Ephesians 1:6-He hath made us accepted in the beloved.
4.Ephesians 1:7-We have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.
5.Ephesians 1:11-We have obtained an inheritance in Christ.
6.Ephesians 1:18-Hope.
I am studying to improve my understanding of the 'Good News and a few Scripture passages caught my eye. They speak of God’s grand, Christ-centered plan when He first conceived the creation of man. They show that the 'rightness' of the original design and plan of man to reflect God's Honor and Glory has been vindicated by the Son, our Savior Jesus Christ.
Eph.1:4-6 - ‘… just as He chose us in Him … that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, … for the adoption as sons and daughters by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.’ [paraphrased]
Eph.3:9-10 – “And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ to the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the Ekklesia the manifold wisdom of God.” The believer is to be the prove that God's original design of man still exists.
I want to speculate for a moment - maybe at the beginning of time there was a conversation between the creating powers how best to populate the planets that had been formed. Possibly, different plans were put forth how best to design and care for man when it was decided to make man in their Image.
It appears that Lucifer in particular was not in full support of the decision to form man with the capacity to have eternal life as a member of God's family in the realms of heaven. Against his opposition, God's Son, Jesus Christ, in whom we were created, got the ‘green light’ creating man on earth - - - just thinking.
In my opinion, Paul brings out the most important aspect of the salvation of mankind. We are being informed that God had a grand plan for mankind to become members of his heavenly family; its ultimate destiny. This clearly shows that man's earthly life is not the end-all be-all of his existence on earth as Lucifer's plan would have mankind believe.
Jesus Christ has made it possible that, after great suffering due to the disobedience of Lucifer and his cunning interference with God’s grand, Christ-centered plan, God’s grand plan can still go forward. If found to be in Christ, in whom we were created, we are still destined to be part of God's “gathering together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth.” Eph.1:10
(Responding to Maurice’s challenge)
Ephesians 1:1,2: Dear faithful brothers and sisters in Christ at Ephesus church, I want you to experience the grace and peace that comes from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 1:3: The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ deserves praise because he is the fountain source of all good things, and has bestowed upon us good things from heaven itself through Christ Jesus.
Ephesians 1:4 Because of this, God has chosen us in Jesus even before there ever was a world so that we should be set apart for his purposes. We must also live lives that reflect His truth so that we can be without blame in front of Jesus Christ in his love.
In Ephesians 1, when Paul uses the term "blessed" or "blessing," he is referring to God's favor and gifts that He bestows upon His people. The Greek word for "blessing" used in Ephesians 1 is "eulogia," which has a connotation of speaking well of someone or praising them. In a religious context, it's often used to denote a divine favor or gift.
In verse 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." Here, "blessed" means that God has granted His favor to believers, bestowing upon them every spiritual gift or benefit that comes through being in Christ. These gifts include but aren't limited to, being chosen, predestined, adopted, redeemed, forgiven, lavished with grace, and sealed with the Holy Spirit, as Paul describes later in the chapter.
It's important to note that the blessings Paul is talking about are not primarily material or temporal, but spiritual and eternal. They're connected with our relationship with Christ and our identity as God's children. They're part of the "riches of His grace" that God "has lavished on us" (v. 7-8), demonstrating His immense love and generosity towards us.
So paraphrasing verses 1-6 of Ephesians 1 (without using bless or blessing)
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God's will, to those in Ephesus who are faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 May you experience peace and favor from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! He has lavished upon us all spiritual riches in the heavenly realms in Christ.
4 For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love
5 He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to His purpose and will,
6 to the praise of His glorious grace, which He freely gave us in the Beloved One.
sure enjoyed the pictures up close.just wanted to ask was there any sounds? thanks again was able to share with others
Thank you. No there were no sounds. Viewers have suggested I add a music track but that raises copyright issues and I don’t want to go there.
I also was blessed by your beautiful photos. It's amazing how many different birds He created. All different sizes and colors. They all sing different songs too. While I was looking at your pictures I found myself wishing I could hear their song of praise to the Lord. I'm sure we'll get to enjoy their beauty for an eternity.
I am particularly excited about verse Ephesians 1:4.
For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in His sight.
This answers the question, Why were we born? What is our purpose in life?
By our living as God had created us for, we shine His light to the world and are witnesses of His love.
Thanks Maurice for sharing the birds! I enjoyed each of the beautiful creatures, indeed nature talks to us in a language only God can understand. Paul had a reason for starting his epistle by stressing the word,blessings. Despite not having the sound, it was a lovely watch.