Richer than You Think - EPHESIANS START


We would have spent our vacation in a cramped hotel room. Three days and four nights in Vermont, just the two of us. And we would have enjoyed our accommodations fairly well as they were a gift from someone else. Never look a gift horse in the mouth!

But thanks to a broken air-conditioner I had to talk to the front desk. While mentioning that the first attempt at fixing it didn't work, I brought up the fact that we were expecting a bit more than a simple hotel room when the reservation said, "Suite". The attendant informed me that our key opened the room next door to ours as well! So we got another two-room Suite with a working air conditioner and spent our vacation according to a reality we almost missed.

Too many Christians live like we were about to that weekend in September. Cramped in a confining space of limits. This is the reason Paul writes Ephesians. For the first three chapters he proclaims the wonderful realities of a new life in Christ to this wonderful church. They needed a wake up call. They needed an education not on what to do just yet. They needed to first know what they had!

Notice the words from the first 14 verses:
"Blessed" - Verses 3 and 6.
"Chosen to be holy and blameless before we were even alive" Verse 4
"Adopted as sons of God!" Verse 5
"Redemption, forgiveness and grace" Verse 7
"Wisdom and insight" Verse 8
"Sealed with the Holy Spirit" Verse 13
"A God-given Inheritance" Verse 14

Then this prayer:
Ephesians 1:16–19 (ESV)  I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might

Christian, stop living like you are a second class citizen who simply tries to avoid wrong things and do right things. You are a child of the LIVING God. And you are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ. You are chosen, dearly loved, and empowered by the Third Person of the Trinity. This was accomplished for you and God chose to shed His love upon you in His grace and for His glory. 

Maybe this is a prayer we need to start praying for ourselves. We need to set about our days with an empowerment from the Spirit to know WHO we are by the manifest grace of Jesus Christ who gave Himself on our behalf. 

Please note, this happened before the "foundation of the world" so we can let go of thinking we need to make something happen. God did it. He did it to show His power and glory. And we are the beneficiaries who must grow in understanding the fullness of salvation's reality.

You are more loved than you think.
You are more blessed than you think.
You are richer than you think.

I believe THIS is the "Suite" life!

PRAYER:
Father, I pray that the eyes of my heart might be enlightened, that I may know WHAT is the hope to which you have called me. I pray that I might know the riches of Your glorious inheritance in the saints. I pray that I might know and trust in the power you have given me through faith in Christ Jesus. Amen!

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