The Redeemed (Eph. 1:6c)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/8/2018 11:52 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                                     Focus:  “The Redeemed”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:   Eph. 1:6c

 

            Message of the verse:  We are only going to look at the words from Ephesians 1:6c, which are “on us” as this tells us who the redeemed are.  I have mentioned that these SD’s in Ephesians are going to be mostly shorter than the ones that I have been doing on other books of the Bible, and that is because of the deepness of what we are looking at, and in this case we have been looking at how the body of Christ was formed, and as we can see it was not just an afterthought of God, but it was very much planned down to every detail.  As we continue to look at these details we can get a better idea of how much God loves us and I think we will see more of that in today’s SD.

 

            John MacArthur writes on these words “on us:” “On us, ‘the saints…who are faithful in Christ Jesus’ (v.1), the Redeemer has ‘freely bestowed’ His grace.  We are the ones who have ‘redemption through His blood.’”

 

            This quote gives us the idea of what we are looking at from these two words, showing it is the believers who are the ones who have been redeemed, and that we have been redeemed through His blood.  Now I have read that when we talk about the blood of Jesus that we are talking about His death, for God says in the OT that the life is in the blood.

 

            “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1).  This is a reminder of what we were before God redeemed us, and Paul goes on to say that we “formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air,” in verse 2 of chapter two.  He continues to say that we “lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath,” in verse three of chapter two.  In verse twelve of chapter two Paul tells us that we were without “hope and without God in the world.”  He goes on in chapter four to remind us that we formerly walked in futility of the mind, “darkened in [our] understanding, excluded from the life of God,’ because of ignorance and hardness of heart (vv. 17-18).  I have mentioned from time to time in these Spiritual Diaries that these are the only kind of people that God has to work with because they are the are the only kind of people that exist, and so that means all people are under the curse of sin and as seen are without hope on their own, but God in His mercy and grace has saved us through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Praise the Lord.

 

            I will conclude this portion of this SD with what Paul wrote to Titus in Titus 2:14, something we can all dwell on:  “who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I am thankful for this study in Ephesians, even though it is the most difficult book that I have ever studied thus far in my quest to understand the Word of God better so that I can put my thoughts onto these SD’s so others can read them and bring glory to God.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Trust the Lord to work out the problem that I have just begin to have with some nosey neighbors.

 

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Seven years of famine” (Genesis 41:27).

 

Today’s Bible question: (A difficult one), “Name six ways that Timothy was to be an example to believers.”

 

Answer in our next SD.

 

11/8/2018 12:44 PM

PT-2 "The Redeemer" (Eph. 1:6b)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/7/2018 9:37 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                            Focus:  PT-2 “The Redeemer”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Ephesians 1:6b

 

            Message of the verse:  “which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.”

 

            We have mentioned that the Father wants us to have everything that the Son has because of His love for us.  I realize that this is difficult for us to totally understand, but that is where faith comes in.  Once a person is born-again he still has the old nature or the flesh in him and even though the Spirit of God now lives within them they still have a propensity to sin and when they sin then they feel bad, and so have a hard time understanding the great love that the Father has for them, and yet the Father sees all believers through the eyes of His Son since He died for them.  Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:3 that He “has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.  MacArthur adds “Every Christian is God’s beloved child because the Lord Jesus Christ has become our Redeemer.”

 

            The concept of the kinsman-redeemer is found in the Old Testament and it sets forth three qualifications: He had to be related to the one needing redemption, which makes him able to pay the price and also willing to pay the price.  As we look at the Lord Jesus Christ we see that He perfectly met these requirements.  In his commentary on this subject John MacArthur quotes a poet who expressed the magnificent reality of redemption in the following words:

 

“Near, so very near to God,

Nearer I could not be;

For in the person of His Son,

I’m just as near as He.

 

Dear, so very dear to God,

Dearer I could not be;

For in the person of His Son,

I’m just as dear as He.”

 

            One of the many reasons that I read John MacArthur’s commentaries is that many times he explains the Greek words that help me to understand the different passages much better.  He writes the following concerning the word “freely bestowed:” “Charitoo (freely bestowed) is from charis (grace, v. 6a), and therefore Paul is saying that God has graced us with His grace.  Christians are those who have been graced by God.”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I desire to live my life in a way where I realize that Christ has redeemed me from the slave market of sin.  I desire also to understand better that I have been graced by God.  I also want to mention the beautiful story found in the book of Ruth where the picture of the kinsman-redeemer is perfectly illustrated through the story of Boas redeeming Ruth, then marrying her having the grandparent of David who intern through his sons the Messiah, Jesus Christ was born.  Both Solomon and Nathan were a part of the a part of the birth line of Jesus Christ, Nathan brought forth in his line Mary and Solomon Joseph.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  I want to trust the Lord that the herbs that I am not taking will take care of the problem that I have been experiencing with my “guts” will help me.

 

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “second John.”

 

Today’s Bible question:  “In Pharaoh’s dream what did the seven thin cattle represent?”

 

Answer in our next SD.

 

11/7/2018 10:02 AM

 

 

"The Redeemer" (Eph. 1:6b-10a)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/6/2018 10:08 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                                          Focus: The Redeemer

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                             Reference:  Ephesians 1:6b-10a

 

            Message of the verses:  “which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight 9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him 10 with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth.”

 

            In our last three SD’s we have actually been looking at the introduction to the verses that are seen above, and not in today’s SD we will begin to look at these verses.  John MacArthur entitles the main section we will be looking at in the next few days “The Elements of Redemption.” MacArthur writes the following in his short introduction to this section “In this passage Paul mentions five elements of the redemption God offers fallen men through His Son, Jesus Christ:  the Redeemer, the redeemed, and the redemption price, results and reason.”  In today’s SD we will begin to look at “The Redeemer.”

 

            When we look at the first part of verse six we see “to the praise of the glory of His grace,” and the word “grace” is the antecedent of “which.”  The synonyms of the word “antecedent” are “precursor,” “forerunner,” “ancestor,” “predecessor, and “forebear.”  It is in God’s grace, which can be described as “undeserved love and goodness” that God “freely bestowed on us in the Beloved,” and it is because that we are in Christ that we have redemption, something we have looked at a number of times.  It is Jesus Christ who is our Redeemer from sin.  John MacArthur writes that “the Beloved (the word indicates the One who is in the state of being loved by God, who Himself paid the price for our release from sin and death.) Because we now belong to Christ, by faith made one with Him and placed in His Body, we are now acceptable to God.”  One of the things that I think about as I study this book so far is that all of this happened to me at the point of salvation and the only thing that I knew right away was that I was changed, and one of the reasons that I knew I was different was because I no longer had a desire to swear, something I use to do a lot.

 

            Matthew 3:17 states “and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased."  The part of this verse that we want to focus in on is “This is My beloved Son.”  Those who have believed in Jesus Christ, that is believed in Him “He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son” as found in Col. 1:13.  It is because that we are now in the Beloved that we too are beloved of God as seen in Romans 1:7 “to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”  Paul was talking about all of the believers who were in Rome, and all of them are beloved of God, and are called saints, so that means that all true believers are beloved of God and are called saints.  Believers are saints! It is true that only the Son has the inherent right to all the goodness of God, however because we are identified with Him by faith, that goodness is now also our goodness.  I think that this statement is very difficult for me to comprehend, because of the fact that I am a sinner, but God does not now see me as a sinner but sees me in His Son, who is perfect, who is beloved by the Father.  I believe this by faith, but as stated it is hard for me to comprehend, which is something that I want to do and that is one of the reasons that I am tackling this book of Ephesians because in this book, which is written about the Body of Christ, the church, Paul takes the time to show us all of these truths, truths that are so wonderful that they are hard to believe, and harder to put into practice.

 

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Rachel” (Genesis 35:16-18).

 

Today’s Bible question:  “Which epistle is addressed ‘Unto the Elect Lady’?”

 

Answer in our next SD.

 

11/6/2018 10:51 AM

PT-3 "The Meaning of Redemption" (Eph. 16b-10a)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/5/2018 9:11 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus: PT-3 “The Meaning of Redemption”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Eph. 1:6b-10a

 

            Message of the verses:  “which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight 9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him 10 with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth.”

 

            In our last SD I promised to talk about another term for redemption, a term that once you see it may make you think of having someone pay a ransom to get a person out of being a slave.  MacArthur writes:  “The other term for redemption, lustroo (along with its related forms), meant to release from captivity.  It carries an even stronger meaning than agorazo and is behind the noun rendered here as redemption.  The word was used to refer to paying a ransom in order to release a person from bondage, especially that of slavery.”  When we go back to the original sin that took place in the Garden of Eden we know from Scripture that every person who was born through the loins of Adam is born a sinner.  When Jesus died on the cross to pay for our dept that we all owed because we are all sinners He purchased sinners from the slave market of sin that is all that have or will accept Him as their Savior and Lord.  In John 8:34 we read what Jesus said

about this “"Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.”  Paul writes in Romans 3:10 “The scriptures endorse this fact plainly enough. There is none righteous, no, not one (Phillips).”  Paul writes later in Romans 7:14 “For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin.”   In Romans 8:20 we see “The world of creation cannot as yet see reality, not because it chooses to be blind, but because in God’s purpose it has been so limited—yet it has been given hope (Phillips).”

 

            John MacArthur writes “Sin is man’s captor and slave owner, and it demands a price for his release.  Death is the price that had to be paid for man’s redemption from sin.  Biblical redemption therefore refers to the act of God by which He Himself paid as a ransom the price for sin.”

 

            Here is what Paul says in Romans 6:18 about redemption as “our having been freed from sin: and become “slaves of righteousness.”  We, who are believers in Jesus Christ, go from being slaves to sin to being slaves of righteousness.  That is truly a wonderful transition. 

 

            “3  Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4  who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen.”  (Galatians 1:3-5).  “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us-for it is written, "CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE (Gal. 3:13).”  “It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery (Gal. 5:1).”

 

“13 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation (Col. 1:13-14).”  As we look at all these verse on redemption it seems that many of them come from the beginning of Paul’s letters, and it could be to first of all remind those believers that they surely have redemption through our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

            We have one more section from Scripture to look at and that comes from the book of Hebrews 2:14-15 “14 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.”

 

            In our next SD, Lord willing, we will begin the next section “The Elements of Redemption,” and will begin by looking at the first sub-section under that main section “The Redeemer.”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I am so happy to be once again reminded of how it is that the Lord Jesus Christ saved me, as I suppose there are times when I take it for granted, and so it is good to be reminded what Christ did to save my soul so that I can praise Him for this great salvation.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Continue to study this very wonderful, but difficult book of Ephesians as God is stretching me as I go through it.

 

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Salt Sea” (Joshua 15:2).

 

Today’s Bible question:  “Who was the mother of Benjamin?”

 

Answer in our next SD.

 

11/5/2018 10:00 AM

 

PT-2 "The Meaning of Redemption" (Eph. 1:6b-10a)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/4/2018 8:16 PM

 

My Worship Time                                                         Focus:  PT-2 The Meaning of Redemption

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Eph. 1:6b-10a

 

            Message of the verses:  “which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight 9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him 10 with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth.”

 

            I mentioned that in the original Greek language verses three through fourteen is one sentence.  That is a whole paragraph in my Bible.  Now we continue to look at different words that help us better to understand what it was that God did for us through Jesus Christ to provide salvation for those whom He chose in eternity past.

 

We begin this SD with the word “Huiothesia” which referred to the legal process of adopting a child, and this word was used by Paul to represent the believer’s adoption into God’s family.  We will look at some verses that go along with this process.

Romans 8:15 “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!"”

Galatians 4:5 “so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”

Ephesians 1:5 “5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,”

The next Greek word is “Katallasso” “meant to legally reconcile two disputing parties in court and in the New Testament is used of a believer’s reconciliation with God through Jesus Christ.” (John MacArthur”

Romans 5:10 “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.”

2 Corinthians 5:18-20 “18 Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”  I can’t help but add verse 21 to this section:  “21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

 

            John MacArthur writes the following: “Two Greek legal terms are related to redemption.  Agorazo, and the related exagorazo, refer to buying or purchasing.  The source of the terms is agorazo and is behind the noun rendered here as ‘redemption.’ This word was used to refer to paying a ransom in order to release a person from bondage, especially that of slavery.” 

 

We have one more related word to look at which, Lord willing we will do in our next SD.

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Demetrius” (Acts 19:25).

 

Today’s Bible question:  “What is the Dead Sea called in the Bible?

 

Answer in our next SD.

 

11/4/2018 8:48 PM

 

PT-1 "The Meaning of Redemption" (Eph. 1:6b-10)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/3/2018 2:17 PM

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus: PT-1 “The Meaning of Redemption”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Eph. 1:6b-10

 

            Message of the verses:  “which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight 9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him 10 with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth.”

 

            In this SD we will be looking at the verses mentioned which begins a new chapter in John MacArthur’s commentary on Ephesians which he entitleds “Redemption Through His Blood.”  In his very short introductory comments he concludes by writing “Redemption is one of the central themes of Scripture and of the book of Ephesians, but it carries much more than the idea simply of exchanging one thing for another of equal value.”

 

“The Meaning of Redemption”

 

“First of all, what is redemption? Here’s a theological definition: “Redemption is an act of God by which He Himself pays as a ransom the price for sin, which has outraged His holiness.” Okay? Now, that’s a theological definition. Hang on; I’ll give it to you again. “Redemption is an act of God by which He Himself pays as a ransom the price of human sin, which has outraged His holiness.” (From MacArthur’s Sermon on this section).

 

            In this introduction we will be looking at some words which are used in the New Testament in relation to salvation, and then we will look at some verses which will help us understand the meaning of these words.

 

            The first word is Dikaioo and “this word and related terms referred to legal acquittal of a charge and are used theologically to speak of a sinner’s being vindicated, justified and declared righteous before God (MacArthur).”  Now we will look at some examples from different verses:

Romans 3:4 “May it never be! Rather, let God be found true, though every man be found a liar, as it is written, "THAT YOU MAY BE JUSTIFIED IN YOUR WORDS, AND PREVAIL WHEN YOU ARE JUDGED."”

Romans 4:25 “He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification.”

Romans 5:18 “So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men.

1 Timothy 3:16 “By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.”

 

            The next word is Aphiemi and this word “basically means to send away, and this word was used to indicate the legal repayment or cancellation of a debt or the granting of a pardon.  This word is used in Scripture to refer to God’s forgiveness of sin” (MacArthur).

Matthew 9:2 “And they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, "Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven."

Romans 4:7 “Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered.”

Ephesians 1:7 “7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace.”

Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.”

 

            I think that if we think about these words, and there are more to come, that it will help us understand better all that was involved for a sinner to be redeemed.  We will continue to look at more of these words in our next SD.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I want to understand all of the words that speak of how the Lord redeemed me from sin and saved me to His glory.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Continue to learn more of what was involved in my salvation.

 

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Deuteronomy” (Matthew 4:1-11).

 

Today’s Bible question:  “Who said ‘Sirs, you know that by this craft we have our wealth’?”

 

Answer in our next SD.

 

11/3/2018 2:51 PM

The Goal "Glory" (Eph. 1:6a)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/2/2018 11:29 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  The Goal—Glory

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Ephesians 1:6a

 

            Message of the verses:  “to the praise of the glory of His grace.”

 

            Today’s SD marks the end of the second main section from John MacArthur’s outline “The Elements of the Eternal Forming of the Body.”  This rather long section comes from what Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:4-6a, and was made up of seven sub-sections, the last we will look at today.  The name of this chapter in MacArthur’s commentary “The Body Formed in Eternity Past” shows us that God indeed did from the Body of Christ before the world began something that is impossible for the human mind to understand, yet that is what He did.  Today as we look at the last sub-section “The Goal—Glory” we see that this was all done to bring honor and glory to God the Son as this was actually a gift from God the Father as His Son’s bride, a bride which He paid for with His life. 

 

            I think that I have answered the question as to why did God do all of this for us.  He did this for His Son and since we are in Christ it was also done for us.  He did this for His glory as this is what He says in this first part of verse six.  Jesus said the following in Luke 12:32 “"Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”  Jesus was affirming the delight of God in putting His glory on display.  Paul writes the following in Philippians 3:13 “God is at work in [us]…for His good pleasure.” 

 

            John MacArthur writes “The apostle Paul interceded for the Thessalonians, praying ‘that our God may count you worthy of your calling…in order that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in Him’ (2 Thess. 1:11-12).

 

            I have mentioned in earlier SD’s that when Jesus was on earth and in a boat asleep while a great storm was brewing on the Sea of Galilee that His disciples woke Him because they were about to die and Jesus spoke to the storm and it stopped to the great surprise of His disciples.  The storm had no problem bringing glory to the Lord nor did the beast of the field or the heavens.  The problem is that the only created thing that does not bring glory to the Lord is the fallen angels and fallen men.  Paul writes about this in Romans chapter eight where he states “19 For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. 20  For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope 21  that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now.”  The creation got caught up in the sinfulness of man when man sinned in the garden and now longs to be released.

 

            John MacArthur writes “God chose and preordained the Body before the foundation of the world in order that no human being could boast or take glory for himself, but that all the glory might be His.  Salvation is not partly of God and partly of man, but entirely of God.  To guarantee that , every provision and every detail of salvation was accomplish before any human being was ever born or before a planet was formed on which he could be born.

            “The ultimate reason for everything that exists is the glory of His grace.  That is why, as God’s children, Christians should do everything they do—even such mundane things as eating and drinking—to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31).”  “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  When I think of the sins that cause me a lot of problems so that I do not always bring glory to the Lord I think of pride and selfishness (thinking of myself).  God hates pride and also selfishness for these sins certainly cause me not to bring glory to the Lord, therefore I am to continually have the Spirit of God search my heart to make sure that I understand where it is that I miss the mark, and confess it to the Lord so that my fellowship with Him will again be sweet.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Bring glory to God in all that I do.

 

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “A hired servant” (Luke 15:19).

 

Today’s Bible question:  “From which book of the Pentateuch did Jesus quote during His contest with Satan?”

 

Answer in our next SD.

 

11/2/2018 12:05 PM