1. 1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love Eph 1:1-4 Paul wrote to a group of people who already have a history of genuine desire for the Lord and to follow Him more deeply into the Christ life. He calls them “faithful in Christ” which is “πιστοις εν χριστω ιησου”. What does that tell us of them?

2. 2 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love Eph 1:1-4 “πιστοις εν χριστω ιησου” means that they were living their lives in faith in Jesus. It means that they saw Jesus related to everything that was going on in their lives, and that they did not see their lives apart from Jesus.

3. 3 “I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false; and you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place—unless you repent. ” Re 2:2-5

4. 4 This is Ephesus today. What does this tell you?

5. 5 As a church, Ephesus did not return to their first love. There is a very natural process that we must avoid like the plague. When you are exerting a lot of energy running, there is always the tendency to stop running because of the energy demand and expenditure. We always want to stop and rest. There is only one way to maintain the interest in continuing to expend that kind of energy. Put some kind of threat like a bear or a lion in pursuit of you, or see a prize that is worth more than resting, and suddenly you have the will and the ability to run all day.

6. 6 As a church, Ephesus did not return to their first love. As a church they saw no threat and allowed intimacy with Jesus to become “common” and valueless. They allowed their circumstances and the distractions of life overstate their importance in the routines of life – until the Lord did remove them as a dynamic force. Today, Ephesus is a pile of rubble, a tourist attraction, and unbeknown to most tourists who see it, a resounding warning from God against viewing the Christ-life lightly or seeing your enemy as only a light threat. Living in faith must remain a dynamic force in life or it will atrophy and vanish and leave rubble like this.

7. 7 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love Eph 1:1-4 Do you realize that grace to live and enjoy, and to share with others, and peace as the ruling force in your heart is to be the constant experience of every believer? There is no reason to lug a bunch of guilt or shame with you, no matter what you have done or how foolish you have been. God’s grace dwarfs your foolishness always.

8. 8 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love Eph 1:1-4 What spiritual blessings are these, and what are we supposed to do with them?

9. 9 “These benefits are spiritual (pneumatikos) in nature because they are communicated to us through the Holy Spirit, whose function it is to make over to the believer all that God has achieved in Christ. They have already been secured “in the heavenly realms” (en tois epouraniois, cf. Eph 1:20; 2:6; 3:10; 6:12) where Christ now reigns, having triumphed over “the spiritual forces of evil” (Eph 6:12) that threatened to usurp control. Their value is measured by the price that was paid to obtain them when on the cross the Son of God fought satanic opponents and disarmed them (Col 2:15).” EBC What, exactly, does that mean? It means that God loves you too much to leave the fulfillment of His gifts to you and His plans for you, up to your performance in order to bring it all to pass. It means that God the Holy Spirit is going to do this work with or without your cooperation, and fulfill all that has been determined over you. It means that “getting there” is a done deal. How easy or hard the journey will be in getting there, is all that God leaves to your choice, but the determination that you WILL get there, God has left only to Himself.