Ephesians 1:1-14

And turn if you will to Ephesians chapter 1.

Ephesians 1 · chapter mention

And we're going to look at verses 11 to 14.

You might think it's a bit strange to just jump into a chapter and look at those three verses in the middle of Ephesians 1.

And it is.

The reason is I'm speaking at a conference in June.

I wanted a dry run before it.

And so, Ephesians 1, 11, 14.

It turns out that the little church in Ephesus were a little bit discouraged.

They had heard they had been told they believed that Jesus was the Lord of the universe.

And what Jesus was going to do was absolutely huge.

He was going to make the whole world new.

And now they'd heard that the Apostle Paul was in prison.

Just flick over the page to chapter 3 and verse 13.

And Paul says to them,

And so this little church in Ephesus is thinking,

how come Paul, Jesus' apostle, the great preacher of Jesus, is in prison?

It doesn't look good, does it?

The world around them was starting to feel very, very big.

It was not just the Roman authorities that seemed so big.

They put Paul in prison.

But there were these pagan gods that seemed enormous.

And so if you were a member of the little IPC church in Ephesus,

every morning on your way to work,

you would pass this huge temple to the goddess Artemis.

You'd actually be jostled by the crowds of people who every day made their way to this temple to worship.

And day by day you would see this enormous building, crowds of people,

and then you think of your little tiny church gathering,

15 of you squashed into someone's front room,

drinking instant coffee, eating custard creams.

It just feels that the gods around you, that you used to worship,

were somehow much, much bigger than the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who you worship now.

And those gods seem to have more of a hold on people's imagination.

The world felt big to the church in Ephesus, and they felt very small.

And it's interesting, isn't it, when Paul prays in his letters for them,

verse 19, he prays a load of things,

but the prayer kind of comes to a climax,

and he prays, I think really interestingly,

which unlocks the book of Ephesians,

is that they would know his incomparably great power,

for us who believe.

Because that power is like the working of his mighty strength.

And so he goes, I want you to know that

the God who's at work in you, there is great power.

And I take it he says that, and he prays that,

because they were feeling powerless, kind of weak.

And he ends the letter, doesn't he, famously,

by saying, stay strong, keep fighting.

And I take it that he says that,

because they didn't feel strong, and they didn't feel like fighting.

And I'm guessing it's not just the church in Ephesus, isn't it?

For us, the world feels big.

It's not just hostile media.

It's not just friends and colleagues

who can't believe that we take the Bible seriously,

they think it's a joke.

It can be work where it's unhappy.

It can be a marriage that's difficult.

It can be a long-term illness,

or the long-term illness of a family member.

And those things loom large.

Or maybe it's just that life is hard.

Or for you, it may be that life is lovely.

And the world around you is so attractive,

and you can feel it pulling you in,

and your career is going well,

your family is happy and healthy,

you are making money,

and you would quite like to make more money,

and get more power.

It's great.

You've got a good social life in London,

and it makes you want more and more,

and you feel those things are just very, very big.

And they've got something of a hold on your heart,

and they seem more powerful in your life than God.

And more grip on your imagination than God.

And the world feels big,

and we're quite small.

And when we think of our prayer lives,

they're weak.

And maybe you sit here,

and you're not as excited about Jesus as you used to be,

and you're painfully aware of your failings.

The plan climaxes, doesn't it, in verse 10,

where Paul talks about Jesus bringing all things

in heaven on earth together

under the lordship of Jesus Christ.

Big, big plan.

And we don't doubt the plan,

but we doubt ourselves.

We wonder,

I'm just not sure I've got the strength

to stick with the plan.

And do you feel that?

I feel that sometimes.

These are great verses in verses 11 to 14.

Because what Paul is rejoicing in,

in these verses,

is that the plan of salvation

does not depend on us

with all our frailties.

It depends on him.

It all depends on God.

And so, yes, we are very small.

And yes, the world is big.

But God is bigger still.

So, four reasons tonight

for you to be confident.

The first is that God has chosen us

to be his.

God has chosen us

to be his.

Paul is saying that God,

in Christ,

has unfolded,

has revealed

his great plan of salvation.

And one day,

Jesus will make all things new.

And on that day,

we will be there,

he says,

because, verse 11,

in him,

in Christ,

we were also chosen.

In him,

we are going to be part

of this big thing.

And the word he uses there

is a little bit different

from the word he uses

in verse 4.

It has the idea

of being chosen

to be an inheritance.

So, if I was writing up my will,

I might say,

I've chosen to give this watch

to Noah.

Which means that one day,

when I die,

it will be Noah's.

And the language

that you find here

is also the language

of the Old Testament,

which is used

when the promised land

was divided up.

When the people of Israel

went into the promised land,

do you remember,

the land was divided up

amongst the tribes of Israel.

And you read there

that the territory of Edom

is chosen for Judah

to inherit.

See,

what that means is

one day,

that plot of land

will be theirs.

And more incredibly,

it's language that God

uses of his people Israel.

They are described

as people chosen

to be his inheritance.

He looks at his people

and he says,

one day you'll be mine.

See what he's saying?

God has chosen us

as his inheritance.

One day we will be his.

Do you see the wonder of that?

We want to be wanted.

We want to be included.

We want to be part of the gang.

We want to be invited.

There are times, aren't there,

where there are things

going on socially

and we tag along.

But we don't know

whether the other people

actually really wanted us there

or whether they intended us

to be there.

But here is the God

of the universe.

I want you for myself

forever, he says.

My precious possession.

Mine.

And do you see how Paul

reassures his readers

that they're part of that?

They may be thinking,

okay, Paul,

you're an apostle,

of course.

You're from a Jewish background.

You were one of the elite

of the elite.

But what about us?

We're not part of

the Jewish elite.

We have got a pagan background.

We're from the wrong side

of the sticks.

We have a shaky faith.

Has he chosen us

like he chose you?

And just look at verse 13.

There's a slight change

in the wording.

He adds in a you also.

In him, you also.

The sort of overview is

we've been chosen.

And they're thinking,

Paul, that's fine.

That's fine for you.

But verse 13,

he makes it explicitly clear.

He says,

in him, you also.

When you hear the word of truth,

the gospel of your salvation,

when you're included in this,

he says,

when you hear the word of truth,

when you hear what God

had done for you

in the Lord Jesus,

that God is calling you

to be part of his plan,

and when you believed

and when you came

to put your trust in him,

you were given an inheritance.

Left to your own devices,

you would never have done that.

And so Paul says to you tonight,

if you are trusting him tonight,

it is not because

you're kind of tagging along

that you've kind of

invited yourself

and you're hoping

he won't mind,

if you're trusting him tonight,

it's because of his work in you.

He has chosen you

like he has chosen us.

And we are all in this

as his people.

That is what we share.

He wants us for himself.

You might feel tonight

that no one wants you.

But Ephesians 1 tells you

that God wants you.

Of course,

in some of our minds,

there will be a little bit

of a worry, won't there,

about this language

of God choosing people.

It raises so,

so many questions.

Why does God choose

some people

and not others?

And we can be tempted,

can't we,

to say,

well, let's say,

it's not God that chooses us.

Let's say we choose God.

That's much easier

to stomach, isn't it?

There's a kind of

democracy about that.

But it raises a whole

set of different problems

and questions.

Because if we are saying

it is not God

choosing,

it is us

who chose God,

well,

think of the sort of God

you end up with.

we end up with a God

who doesn't want us

very much.

You end up with a God

who puts a notice

in the church email,

says,

I'm organising a trip

to the West End

to see a play

and if you want to come,

sign up,

sign up on the link.

Sign up by the end

of the month.

How bothered is he

if I come on the trip

or not?

He's leaving it

down to me.

If you fancy,

sign up to the end

of the offer.

If you don't fancy,

don't sign up.

It's your choice.

And if no one signs up,

well,

the new creation

is empty.

That's how it goes.

Nobody fancied it.

But God,

who is the Father

of the Lord Jesus Christ,

is very bothered.

And he is not just

leaving it up to you

whether you fancy it

or not.

in his love,

God comes to you

in the person

of the Lord Jesus Christ

and he gives you

a personal invitation.

He gives you an offer

you can't refuse.

And through the gospel,

he is calling us

to come and be part

of what he's doing.

And he does love us

and he wants us

to be in on the trip.

He wants us

to be his forever.

And if it is all

about our choosing God,

you end up with a God

who doesn't want us

very much.

And I get a salvation

which is not very safe.

Look at verse 11.

In him,

we have obtained

an inheritance

having been predestined

according to the purpose

of him

who works all things

according to the

counsel of his will.

And so my place

in God's plan

turns on his will.

And the point is,

he is working everything,

everything,

everything out

in conformity

with his will.

In other words,

God wills

what happens

and nothing

can stop it

from happening.

If my salvation

depended on my will,

well, my will

is pretty flaky

and so is yours.

I resolve

to give up chocolate.

How long does that

resolve last for?

Well, about two and a half days

is the average.

If my place

in God's will

hinges

on my resolve

and my power

to see it through,

that is terrifying.

And I think

this is why the Ephesians

are feeling so daunted.

I think

it's why they're so daunted

because the world

feels so big

and we feel so small

and we are not sure

whether we can hold on.

But what Paul wants you

to see

and wants you to know

and wants you actually

to feel

is it's not about

how we hold on

to him,

but it's about how

he holds on to us.

when I walk

with Phoebe

down

Greenford Avenue,

it's quite a main road,

and she will say,

hold my hand.

And I do this little

maneuver like you do

if you're a parent

or you're walking

with a small child.

She puts her hand

in mine

and then I twist my hand

and I hold her arm

because Phoebe's hand

is not very big,

is it?

Phoebe's fingers

are not very strong.

And if she tripped,

she would go flying

if she was just

holding on to me,

but because I am

holding on to her,

she doesn't go flying.

And that is the first reason

why we can be confident

because God has chosen us

to be his

and he has got hold of us.

And when we think

of our weaknesses,

we often think naturally

that the answer is

get a grip.

Get a grip.

But the answer is to remember

that he has got his grip on us.

And when I trip,

he will not let me fall.

He will hold me fast.

And so how do I know

he won't let me go?

And there's a second reason

for us to be confident

because he's got hold of us

and here it is

to the praise of his glory.

That's the reason.

To the praise of his glory.

Do you see the goal of it all?

Why is he working out

his plan of salvation?

Why has he got hold of us?

Can you see it at the end

of verse 12?

To the praise of his glory.

The end of verse 14,

to the praise of his glory.

If I can put it like this,

God is committed

to showing the world

how brilliant he is.

And the world is meant

to look at his salvation.

It is meant to look

at his church

and his people

and say,

wow, God is brilliant.

And that is not because

God is some kind of show-off.

If you're praying

for someone that you love,

somebody who's not

a Christian believer,

what is the best thing

that could ever happen

to them?

The best thing

that could ever happen

to them is that

they would come to see

how brilliant God is.

Because for as long

as they think

that God is

not much good,

they won't give him

the time of day.

And they are missing out.

No, God is committed

to his glory.

And the world

seeing how brilliant

he is.

And that is what gives us

such confidence

in his plan.

Once you see

what is at stake,

his glory is at stake.

And so he will keep you.

You see,

he will never let

his plan

depend on people

like me.

And the reason

God will not

leave his salvation

down to people

like us

is because

the stakes

are too high.

His glory

is at stake.

God is not

going to let

his glory

depend on

weak,

feeble

people

like us.

And that is why

he will not

let us go.

The third

reason to be

confident

is that the

Holy Spirit

is a seal.

Look at verse 13.

The plan

is for the

praise of his glory.

So why

doesn't he leave

it down to us?

That is why

he gives us

his Holy Spirit.

Verse 13.

Look at verse 13.

In him also,

you also,

when you heard

the word of truth,

the gospel of your

salvation,

and believed in him,

were sealed

with the promised

Holy Spirit.

When you heard

the gospel,

and believed,

you were marked

as being in Christ

by a seal.

There was

a mark of ownership.

And you're

driving along

the road,

and you see

cattle,

and branded

into the sign

of the cattle

is a seal

to show you

who the cattle

belonged to.

In school,

having a school

uniform,

do you remember

that?

And your mum

or your dad,

before you went

to the first day

of school,

would sew those

little labels

onto your school

uniform.

Do you remember

those labels?

And they were

kind of sealed,

weren't they?

Those labels

were a seal

to show

it was yours.

And so if you

find a pair

of shorts

that says

Paul Levy

on it,

you would know

it is Paul

Levy's shorts.

It belongs

to him.

But the language

has biblical

connotations as well.

In the Old Testament,

the high priest

was marked

with a seal.

So we read

of how the high priest

wore a seal

on his forehead.

a plate

with it

made of gold.

A plate

made with gold

and on it

the plate

said

holy to the

Lord.

It was a mark

of ownership.

The priest

belongs to God.

But the wonderful

promise

in the Old Testament

is that one day

all of God's

people would

be sealed.

all of God's

people would

know that

they belong

to God.

Let's do one

cross reference.

Come with me

to Isaiah

Isaiah 44 · chapter mention

chapter 44.

It's worth it.

Isaiah chapter 44.

Isaiah 44 · chapter mention

Keep a finger

in Ephesians

Ephesians 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1.

Isaiah 44.

And Isaiah

44 and

verse 3.

The end

of verse 2.

Isaiah 44.

In verse 2

it says

fear not.

The Lord

says

fear not.

And then in

verse 3

into that fear

he says

for I will

pour water

on the thirsty

land

and streams

on the dry

ground

and I will

pour my

spirit upon

your offspring

and my

blessing on

your descendants.

They shall

spring up

among the

grass

like willows

by flowing

streams

and this

one will

say

I'm the

Lord's.

and another

will call

on the

name of

Jacob

and another

will write

on his

hand

the Lord's

and name

himself

by the

name of

Israel.

It's

prophesying

there that

everyone

will one

day be

able to

say I

belong to

the Lord

not because

of some

gold plate

on their

head

but because

of the

spirit.

The spirit

in their

hearts

that God

will pour

out on

his people.

Do you

see what

the apostle

Paul is

saying in

Ephesians 1?

let's go

back there.

He's

saying this

the Lord

does not

want you

to say

tonight

I hope

that I

am his.

He does

not want

you to

say I

hope

that I

am his.

The Lord

wants us

to be

people who

say I

know I

am his.

I belong

to him.

You

might be

thinking how

do I

know that

I belong

to him?

That I

am his

and I

am in

Christ.

Paul says

God has

marked you

by his

spirit.

Do you

remember

Toy Story?

Have you

watched the

film Toy

Story?

Have you

watched that

one?

It's good

isn't it?

Alright.

Do you

remember the

story Toy

Story?

And so

do you

remember

Woody?

Woody was

the cowboy

wasn't he?

And Woody

had a pair

of boots

on and

what was

written on

the bottom

of Woody's

boots?

Okay.

Pardon?

Andy.

Who was

Andy?

Do you

remember?

Yeah.

The boy

who owned

Woody

wasn't it?

And when

Woody was

unsure or

when Woody

was frightened

he would

look at

his boot

and remember

I belong

to Andy.

In fact

I think

wasn't it

if I remember

rightly

in Toy

Story 2

Andy is

about to

be sent

to Japan

is that

right?

By some

evil toy

dealer

and there's

a moment

in the film

where Woody

looks at his

boot

and he

remembers

I belong

to Andy.

He's

marked

sealed

and what

Paul is

saying is

that God

has marked

us by

his Holy

Spirit

and every

time we

see the

mark of

the Spirit

in our

lives we

ought to

say I

belong to

God.

So the

question in

our mind

is this

what are

the marks

of the

Spirit of

God?

What is

the sign

of the

Holy Spirit

working in

our lives?

Well do

you trust

and rest

and rely

and depend

on the

Lord Jesus

tonight?

Do you

say before

God what

is my

only comfort

in life

and death?

That I

am not

my own

but belong

body and

soul to

the Lord

Jesus

Christ.

Jesus is

my only

hope

and if

that is

what you

believe

that is

a sign

that the

Holy Spirit

is at

work in

you.

You

would

never

say

that.

What do

you pray?

What do

you call

God?

Do you

pray my

Father,

our

Father,

that God

is not

just a

God to

you but

you marvel

that he

is your

Father who

is in

heaven?

That is a

sign of

the Spirit

being at

work in

you and

the Spirit

gives us a

love for

the Lord

Jesus that

we didn't

have before.

There was a

time when

we weren't

interested in

reading the

Bible but

now we've

got an

appetite,

we're

hungry to

know more

of Jesus.

That is a

sign that

you belong

to him,

a sign that

the Spirit

is at

work.

The Spirit

gives us a

love for

God's

people that

we never

had before.

He longed

to be with

God's

people and

to belong

to the

church.

That's a

sign of

God's Spirit

being at

work.

God's

we fight with sin,

we didn't have that before,

we didn't used to fight,

we just used to go with the flow,

we still struggle,

we still fail,

but now we fight,

and every time we fight,

if you are fighting tonight,

you might feel you're losing,

but you're fighting,

that is a sign that you belong to him,

and when you mess up,

like you often do,

you don't shrug your shoulders,

and think well that's the way it is,

it hurts,

and there's times when it breaks your heart,

and it never used to,

and there's a sorrow over your sin,

which shows that you have the spirit,

and that you belong to him,

Spurgeon,

the great kind of Baptist preacher,

he described the Christian life,

as feeling like a young bird,

fighting to get out of an eggshell,

he says,

I wasn't yet flying,

but I'm fighting,

and the fact that he felt constrained,

and he longed for something better,

showed that he was alive,

and he had the spirit,

the mark of having the spirit,

is not perfection is it,

it's certainly not perfection,

but it is progress,

I'm not what I will be,

but I'm not what I used to be,

the Ephesians are afraid,

and discouraged,

and losing heart,

and they look at the culture around them,

and the spiritual forces around them,

that it's a negative world,

and it seems to have so much of a grip on them,

and Paul says,

look at the Holy Spirit in your lives,

the spirit,

he is God's seal,

and God is saying,

fear not,

and I think it's the kind of temperature in our culture,

kind of rises a little bit,

we're getting slightly tempted to fear,

and God says to us,

fear not,

you are mine,

and you do not belong to any other God,

or force,

or power,

or authority,

you are my precious possession,

and if you know you are his,

then you are safe,

of course you're weak,

of course you're frail,

but the Lord says you are mine,

and I've got hold of you,

and I'm never going to lose you,

the fourth and the final reason we can be confident,

is that the Holy Spirit is a deposit,

it's a deposit,

the promised Holy Spirit,

so verse 14,

who is the guarantee,

the Holy Spirit,

who is the guarantee of our inheritance,

until we acquire possession,

to the praise of his glory,

and last year,

I bought a car,

with the help of John Silver's car services,

and we went around different,

kind of random,

Japanese and American importers,

looking at cars,

and then we found one that,

John said he thought was good,

and I just agreed and bought it,

and to buy it,

I had to put down a deposit,

I can't remember what it was,

I think it was 20%,

and so,

I put a deposit on the car,

at that point,

John stopped sending me adverts,

on auto trader,

by WhatsApp,

incessantly,

I wasn't searching anymore,

I wasn't thinking about it anymore,

because I'd paid the deposit,

and it guarantees it,

and so that when I ring up,

and say is it ready,

they'd say well it's ready for you,

I wouldn't say well,

actually I've changed my mind,

and they would say well tough,

you're committed now,

I'd paid the deposit,

it belongs to us,

and one day,

I would complete the deal,

I can't remember,

was it four weeks later,

I went back with the rest of the cash,

and I completed the deal,

and I took it home,

and so God has put down a deposit,

look at verse 14,

and I think the footnote helps as well,

look at the footnote,

if it's I haven't got the same Bible as you,

he is the guarantee of our inheritance,

or he is the down payment,

he is the deposit,

guarantee our inheritance,

so I want to say this,

I think one of the big problems,

we worry about whether we are gods or not,

is because we forget,

that the Holy Spirit is described as a deposit,

he's a down payment,

we forget don't we,

that the down payment,

the deposit is not everything,

so the people in that garage,

when I put down the deposit,

would they look at the deposit,

and say well is this all we're going to get,

after all the work we've done,

shipping this thing in from Japan,

and doing all the work,

is this all we're going to get done,

we worked hard to fix up this car,

and do we just get this,

no because it's the deposit,

the deposit isn't everything,

but the deposit does guarantee,

that there's more to come,

and sometimes maybe you tonight,

are going through a period in your Christian life,

where you feel it's hard,

and dry,

and you feel thin,

and stretched,

and you worry,

I don't feel like I once felt,

and the truth tonight is,

the deposit is not everything,

there's much much more,

but the deposit is a guarantee,

everything,

all that is to come,

he guarantees our inheritance,

and we have seen,

that God is going to inherit us,

and now Paul is talking about,

what we are going to inherit,

well remember we are in Christ,

he's the son of the father,

we are his brothers and sisters,

and we will inherit,

all that he will inherit,

what will he inherit,

do you remember what he'll inherit,

everything,

everything,

everything,

life with his father,

in a world made new forever,

you see the Christian life,

it's not a kind of fingers crossed,

we're hoping,

we'll inherit if we're lucky,

the deposit has been paid,

and the deposit guarantees,

our inheritance,

until the redemption,

of those who are God's possession,

we are God's possession,

and we belong to him,

and he wants us for himself,

and there will be,

a final redemption,

when he finally comes,

to set us free,

and claim us,

as his own forever,

my car,

and when I bought it,

it was actually delayed,

for a couple of weeks,

so to fix something,

it was delayed,

for a couple of weeks,

I don't think,

that my car,

was worrying,

and fretting,

but if I could have,

I would have reassured,

my car,

and I would have said,

you car,

are ours,

and one day,

I will come,

to complete the deal,

and take you home,

and that is what the Lord,

says to each one of us,

but for some of us tonight,

our inheritance,

can feel a very long time coming,

and the Lord is saying,

to you tonight,

I'm,

I'm not still,

making up my mind,

I've put down,

my deposit on you,

and that is the guarantee,

in the face of whatever,

this world throws at you,

God says,

I will come,

I will complete the deal,

I will take you home,

I will,

let's pray,

and that is the ending of the ending of the ending of the ending of the ending of the ending of the ending of ending of ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending ending