May 29 Sermon – “Every Time I Think of You: Your Seal of the Holy Spirit”
Ephesians 1:3-14
- This letter begins with a prayer that celebrates the larger story of God transforming the world. Until we celebrate this larger story are we able to celebrate the small stories which include us.
- Verses 4-6 tell us that people of the Messiah have been chosen by grace. What does this mean about free will/predestination? It’s God’s grace that enables us to choose! Our salvation is an important story but the bigger story is God’s desire to rescue all of creation. We are chosen so that God can work through us.
- Underneath this opening prayer of Ephesians is the Exodus story. Just as God chose Moses to rescue Israel/the world, God chooses us to participate in God’s rescue plan of the world.
- Verses 7-10 – The story of Passover is in Paul’s mind here. The key words here are “rescue” and “deliverance.” This has been accomplished through Jesus. When we worship, we retell this wonderful story and celebrate God’s rescue and victory over sin and death.
- Verses 11-14 – In the ancient/Jewish world, an inheritance included land which you could not sell. In the biblical story, the inheritance from God was the Promised Land of Canaan.
- Like the Israelites wandering in the wilderness on their way to their inheritance, the church wanders on its way to our inheritance.
- What is our inheritance? Heaven? It’s the whole world and not just Canaan! The church is a symbol of this inheritance. The Holy Spirit is our guarantee that the inheritance is a gift from God. Like the cloud/fire that led the Israelites in the wilderness, the Spirit leads us. The Spirit doesn’t just guide us but also is part of the inheritance! The Spirit is the presence of God in our day to day living until that day when God will be fully revealed throughout all of creation. The Spirit is the down payment of our inheritance. It’s a commercial metaphor to make a point.
- If you knew you were to receive a vast inheritance, what would you do? Our response is worship, praise and thanksgiving.
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