1 Blessings in Christ Ephesians 1:3 If you are “in Christ” you are on the way.

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Blessings in Christ

Ephesians 1:3

If you are “in Christ” you are on the way.

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Ephesians 1:3-6

3 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, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved.

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Blessed

Blessed – (Greek eulogeo) – to bestow a favor, provide with benefits, the act of benefit or blessing

Blessings – come full circle They begin with God They bless us We bless God in returnGod blesses – just because He wants toAnd we bless back – because we are thankful

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NOTICE:

They are spiritual blessingsWe are prone to think in physical terms –

house, car, money, health, childrenThese blessings are not physical or materialSpiritual blessings = salvation, adoption,

redemption, forgiveness, grace, mercy, love (and many more)

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NOTICE:

They are available in the spiritual realm“In heavenly places” - not in earthly placesGreek word can refer to: 1 – Sky, clouds, where birds fly 2 – Heavenly bodies, stars and planets, sun,

moon 3 – The location of transcendent things, the

dwelling place of God

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In Christ

Ephesians is full of this concept11 times in the first 14 verses

Every spiritual blessing IN CHRIST – 3Chose us IN HIM – 4Made us accepted IN THE BELOVED – 6IN HIM we have redemption – 7 Which He purposed IN HIMSELF – 9

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In Christ

Ephesians is full of this concept11 times in the first 14 verses

Gather together in one all things IN CHRIST – 10

IN HIM we have obtained an inheritance – 11We who first trusted IN CHRIST – 12IN HIM you also trusted – 13aIN WHOM also, having believed, you were

sealed – 13b

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In Christ

Ephesians is full of this concept

Similar phrases are found in the rest of Ephesians.

1:202:6-7, 10, 133:6, 11, 214:32

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The uses of “IN”

“IN” has two uses in the NTLocative - “IN” describes the location“I put the ball in the box.”Notice “in” tells the location

Instrumental - “IN” introducting the means, by means of

“Dr. Salk was important in finding a cure for polio.”

Notice here “in” is not a location but a means

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These verses tell us the location

“IN” is describing the location of these blessings

Other phrases support this view:

TOGETHER WITH CHRIST – 2:5RAISE UP TOGETHER – 2:6 SIT TOGETHER – 2:6BROUGHT NEAR BY THE BLOOD OF CHRIST –

2:13

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The Primary Idea in Ephesians

The primary idea in Ephesians is not that Christ is the means by whom these blessings come.

Of course, He is the means (but that is not the emphasis here).

The primary idea is where these spiritual blessings are located.

Our whole life must be located “in Christ”

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Romans 6:3-5

3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?

4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection,

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Galatians 3:26-28

26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

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Questions

Are you “in Christ”?Have you been baptized “into Christ”?

All the spiritual blessings available are “in Christ.”

Are you in the location where all these blessings are available to you?