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Are You In Christ Jesus?(Ephesians 1:1-14)By Don McClain Pauls epistle to the church in Ephesus is of extreme importance to anyone desiring to understand the true nature and revealed intricacies of the redemption ofman as preplanned by God and executed through the sacrificial offering of His Son Jesus Christ. The epistle focuses upon the unmerited favor exhibited by God inthe sending of His Son Jesus, and the establishment of His church in which bothJew and Gentile are reconciled in one body unto Himself.This grand epistle stresses the importance of the church of Christ, and descri

bes its nature and singularity. (1:3,10,22,23; 4:4). It exalts this holy blood bought institution, which the religious world in general today disdains and has vigorously strived to destroy and divide into parties and sects of differing bodies of faith and practice, (2:16; 4:4-6; Acts 20:28). The expression In Christ Jesus,or its equivalent is used some twelve times in the first fourteen verses of the first chapter. The apostle Paul undoubtedly establishes and emphasizes a fundamental and essential principal, which must be recognized in order to understand and to achieve the desired goal and effect of theepistle. The letter to the Ephesians was written to explain and define the relationship that exists between the Savior and the saved. If one is to be saved, hemust be IN CHRIST! To be in Christ is to be in His body, or church, (1:22,23; 2:16; 5:23-32).When one is In Christhe is-A saint and faithful(1,2) In Christ we are separated from the world to the ser

ice of God, and that service is carried out in the spirit of loyalty to the instructions given by the one whom we serve, and dependability in fulfilling our obligations unto Him. If we are truly separated from the world, and faithful unto Him to whom we belong, truly grace and peace will be ours. Partaker of Every spiritual blessing(3) Many of these spiritual blessings are discussed in the following passages, but the principle is clearly set forth thatUNLESS one is IN CHRIST, he cannot partake of ANY of them. One may lead a good moral, honest, and charitable life, and thus receive the physical blessings associated with such a lifestyle but those things are not the cause or source of ourspiritual blessings. (Acts 10:1-6,22, 11:14) Chosen by God, He chose us(4,5) Those in Christ are Gods elect God has chosen o save those that enter into this relationship of adoption found only In Christ.The term election does not preclude conditions that must be met. To illustrate if

I were a businessman looking to hire a salesman, I would pre-select the kind ofperson that I was looking for, his character, personality, knowledge, experience, etc. When a person having the qualifications that I was looking for immerged,then I would hire him. He was pre-selected in a general way. If I pre-chose himpersonally despite his qualifications and rejected others despite their qualifications, I would be a respecter of persons something that God is not. (Acts 10:34,35; Romans 2:11). God has chosen to save those who are reconciled to Him IN CHRIST! Made to be accepted(6) Bestowed grace upon us (ASV) when God adopted us as chidren IN CHRISTwe became recipients of his grace. The unmerited favor bestowed upon mankind can ONLY be realized IN CHRIST.The grace of God has been extended to all men, (Titus 2:11), but most will reject it, (Matthew 7:13,14) Redeemed(7-9) - In Jesus Christ we have the remission of sins (Acts 2:38) we h

ve been bought back, purchased by the blood of Christ, saved from the destruction that will be experienced by all that die in their sins. Sin brings forth death, and because of Gods mercy and grace, He has provided a place of reconciliationand forgiveness IN CHRIST,and He has provided the information we need to enter into this relationship. All outside this relationship will be lost!Gathered Together(10) When the time was right God set His plan in motion to rec

ncile man to Himself IN His Son Jesus Christ. Those on earth IN CHRISTare unitedin ONE body, or the church belonging to Christ whether Jew or Gentile, (2:16), thus being brought under the authority of Jesus Christ, (5:23). ALL things are brought together that they may submit to one King whether in heaven or on earth. O

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