"...and He rested on the seventh day..." Gen 2:2
so shall we.
Taking a break from reading today, instead taking time to think about what we read and put in into context with the question we've been given for this week - 'What does it mean to be heirs of the kingdom?'
A few points by chapter:
1 : We have a predestined purpose.
Our Father in heaven has a plan and purpose for our lives, and through Jesus we also have an inheritance, as well as the Holy Spirit of promise.
2 : We are saved by grace; Christ is our peace.
Saved by grace but through faith, which is evident in works, we have Christ as our peace and mediator, the one who broke down the walls of seperation and became the cornerstone of the church.
3 : We must be attentive to unravel the mystery.
Revelation is everywhere; it is up to us to be sensitive and responsive to the call of His Spirit.
4 : Each of us has a role, and fulfilling that role implies putting off our old sinful nature.
Don't try to fit into other peoples' shoes, turn to God to determine who He wants us to be; and above all, put off our old man and be baptised into the new.
5 : Imitate God in Love, Light, and Wisdom.
As heirs to the throne, we must take on the image and likeness of our Father - we must walk in love, scorn darkness and its partakers, and live wisely, in the full realization and understanding of the will of God.
6 : Obey the Father, and learn to put on the full armour of God
It's the greatest gift God could ever give us to help us with our journey, be sure to make full use of it as rightful heirs to the throne!
Prayer : Father God, thank you for Word and your truth; we are Your children and You are our Father. Do continue to guide us even as we work through and work out Your purpose for our lives, and as we resume our reading of Ephesians once again. Amen
Additional Note: Some Christians are disturbed by the concept of predestination. This verse, listing predestination as one of the 'spiritual blessings' that we have in Christ, assures us that predestination is an expression and evidence of God's love; that it operates 'through Jesus Christ', whom we know beyond doubt to be the ultimate expression and evidence of God's love. It is also the expression and outworking of God's 'pleasure and will'. We are reminded here of Isaiah 53:10: 'Yet it was the LORD'S will to crush him and cause him to suffer [KJV: 'It pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief'], and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.' The Bible assures us that God achieves what he sets out to do; that he uses even what is opposed to him to bring his purposes to pass. Here in Ephesians 1:4 we are assured that our relationship with God is secure because it results from God's purpose and plan that was fixed in his mind before the world began, and which he has put into effect through the sin-bearing death of his Son. Predestination can never rightly be understood as either threatening, unloving, unfair or arbitrary. It is inseparably connected with the love of God and sacrifice of Christ; Paul mentions it to deepen both our appreciation
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