July 25 - Ephesians 1:3

July 25
Ephesians 1:3

Dear Christian friends,

Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ Who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in the heavenly places in Christ.

The first three chapters of the Book of Ephesians is filled with many (I count 19) spiritual blessings that believers in Christ have in heavenly places that we can use for our spiritual growth and spiritual prosperity even here on earth - all because of Christ. While other parts of Scripture give additional blessings, I will be concentrating on the first three chapters of the Book of Ephesians over the next several days. I will go over each of those blessings that we have in heavenly places, giving my commentary to each one of them. 

This letter was written to the Church at Ephesus by the Apostle Paul to a group of Gentile believers who had recently come to Christ. The apostle was emphasizing how blessed they, and us believers today are as believers in Christ Jesus. There are three words I want to concentrate on today from this verse: "Blessed," "blessed," and "blessings."

"Blessed" be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ: This first "blessed" is a form of acknowledgement as the apostle is claiming Jesus as Lord and Christ, the anointed One - Who the Son of God. In this acknowledge of His diety, the apostle is giving worship to God as our heavenly Father, giving Him praise and honor for Who He is, and what He has done for us.

• The Apostle Paul was in the habit of always acknowledging God for Who He is, giving praise for goodness and grace before starting any letter to the believers throughout the New Testament. Check it out for yourself. In doing so, the apostle was not only deepening His own relationship with the Lord, he was purposefully teaching those whom he wrote to to do the same.
• I learned this many years ago when I discovered what the Apostle Paul was doing and chose to do the same for myself. Before I begin any prayer, publicly and in private, I always take time to acknowledge God for Who He is, giving Him glory, honor, worship and praise before I enter into my prayer. Through this, the Lord has brought me into a deeper relationship with Him, spending even longer times in my personal prayer time worshipping and acknowledging the Lord in all areas of my life. That has expanded my worship time in such a beautiful way to get to know the Lord on a much deeper level.

Who has "blessed" us with all spiritual "blessings" in heavenly places in Christ:  The apostle is revealing to us that God has blessed us by giving us spiritual blessings that come from Him, but they all come to us because and through His Son Jesus the Christ. Without Christ, none of us would receive any of these blessings.

• lmagine yourself having a special reserve account in heaven from God, and He sends you this love letter down here on earth. This letter reads: "My child, because of My Son, these gifts belong to you. It is filled with blessings upon of blessings that keep multiplying and is designed just for you. Then God finishes by saying that all of these blessings belong to you even now while you walk this earth. Use them and be blessed! Love God.

My encouragement for you today is to do the same as what I learned from the Apostle Paul - before you begin any prayer time, whether it is publicly or privately, acknowledge God for Who He is in your life, giving Him the honor, praise and worship that He deserves. I promise you that if you get in the habit of doing this, it will strengthen your prayer life, draw you closer to the Lord, and your love for Him will keep expanding as you spend more and more time in His presence.

Then, as we walk our way each day through each of these many blessings, we will see how awesome God is and it will bring us to grow deeper in our faith as we learn about the blessings that Christ has prepared and done for us.