"Blessed and worthy of praise be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ," [Ephesians 1:3]
Blessed with EVERY spiritual blessing... too often we stop at the 'punch line' only to discover that the verses that come before and/or after give us even greater understanding and appreciation. This is one of those cases. Read on:
... just as [in His love] He chose us in Christ [actually selected us for Himself as His own] before the foundation of the world, so that we would be holy [that is, consecrated, set apart for Him, purpose-driven] and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined and lovingly planned for us to be adopted to Himself as [His own] children through Jesus Christ, in accordance with the kind intention and good pleasure of His will— to the praise of His glorious grace and favor, which He so freely bestowed on us in the Beloved [His Son, Jesus Christ]. In Him we have redemption [that is, our deliverance and salvation] through His blood, [which paid the penalty for our sin and resulted in] the forgiveness and complete pardon of our sin, in accordance with the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and understanding [with practical insight] He made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ, with regard to the fulfillment of the times [that is, the end of history, the climax of the ages]—to bring all things together in Christ, [both] things in the heavens and things on the earth." [v. 4-10]
I probably could have highlighted this entire text but I chose the ones that still astonish me that in accepting Jesus as my Lord, are part and parcel of accepting the FREE gift of salvation in Jesus. This realization enhances all that I read that become my new identity, my new me in Him.
And still... it is my choice to accept and act on all of that as well. Astounding as that sentence is - it is true. The Creator God, who created the Universe and everything in it also granted His creation free will. We can choose to accept what He gives us, what He plans for us - all our choice. Even after we accept His gift of salvation - we can still choose to stay as babies. Remarkable.
Why would we not accept all that He provides? Good question. There are as many reasons as there are those who don't act on who they've become, what they can do. Fear, accepting satan's lies, unsure, etc. are some of the reasons (excuses). We always can choose the higher ground or stay where we are - but goodness - our loss.
Yes we are blessed. Yes, with every spiritual blessing. However, it is our choice to act on the blessing. You can't ignore it, you can't hide, it may be 'silent' but you know what's available. The word tells us:
"When He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion and pity for them, because they were dispirited and distressed, like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is [indeed] plentiful, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.” [Matthew 9: 36-38]
Jesus had compassion and pity - do we? Will we answer His call about the harvest being plentiful but the workers few? We have been blessed... will we extend the hand of truth and freedom to others - a family member, a friend, a neighbor, a co-worker, and yes, even unto the ends of the world? It is our choice.
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