Theme: Our Relationship with God

Sermon Title: Our Identity in Christ

Text: Ephesians 1:4-8, 11-13

Introduction
God created human beings in His image and likeness (Genesis 1:27). He
created/designed us to have unique characteristics and purposes. Even our biometrics
are not the same. We have an omniscient God who designed not only our physical
bodies to have such an intricate system (respiratory, digestive, etc.) but also an inherent
beauty that reflects on art, language, culture, and religion. However, He designed us
also to have commonality or harmony, unity, with other people, especially those who
belong to the family of God. It is our identity as children of God.

Today, too many young people gain their identity from the latest fashions, trends, or
widespread expectations of their peers. Many Christians gain their status more from
their family background, work, or human relationships than from who they are in
Christ. They liked to be identified with prominent people, those who are powerful and
wealthy. They rarely want to identify themselves with people who are of low status and
have no influence in the community.

This perception is accurate because we all want to belong to something that means
something. We want our life to count and to be connected to truly what matters.

The same problem is facing many Christians today. In other words, we don’t know who
we are…!

We've lost our identity.

To apply this in a spiritual sense, we ask the question, what does it truly mean to be
identified with Christ?

Understanding our Identity (Ephesians 1:4-8,11-13)

 “4 For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and
blameless in His sight. In love 5, He predestined us for adoption to Sonship
through Jesus Christ, by His pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of His glorious
grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves. 7 In Him, we have
redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the
riches of God's grace.

11 In Him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan
of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will, 12 in
order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise
13
of His glory.” And you also were included in Christ when you heard the
message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were
marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,

This passage reminds us of our identity in God and who we are in Christ. The Apostle
Paul, in this passage, talks about this as Spiritual Blessings. In order words, our
identity in God, our status before Him, was a result of all His blessings upon us. It
is not based on what we have done (on our own) but of what God has done for us.

What are these Spiritual Blessings?

1. Election (verses 4)
God has sovereignly chosen a people for Himself. Meaning, salvation is
ultimately God’s doing, not ours. It is only God who can quicken the hearts of
people.

Do you rejoice in the doctrine of God’s sovereign election? Do you consider it a

precious blessing from Him? You should because Paul, writing under the inspiration of
the Holy Spirit, did! When he exclaimed (1:3), “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,” the first blessing he goes on to mention is (1:4), “just as He chose us
in Him before the foundation of the world….” We cannot praise God properly for His
great salvation if we deny or dodge the truth of His choosing us.

There are many professing Christians who openly deny the doctrine of election. They
always claim to be “moderate” or “balanced” in their views! Many others give a brief nod
to the doctrine, but sila po ay umiilag o umiiwas because it is divisive (nakakadulot ng
away o pagkalito sa kanilang pananampalataya at mahirap intindihin. But I would agree
with Martyn Lloyd-Jones (God’s Ultimate Purpose [Baker], 1979, p. 84) and long before
him, John Calvin (John Calvin’s Sermons on Ephesians [Banner of Truth], 1973, p. 25),
who both pointed out that dodging what the Holy Spirit has put in Scripture for our
understanding is sin. It is our business to come to grips (panghawakan) with the
inspired Word and allow it to speak to our hearts in the manner that God intended.

In order to do that, we must approach this truth with the right spirit before the Lord. If we
come proudly to debate and prove that we are right (no matter which side we are on),
we approach it wrongly. Rather, we must come with submissive hearts to God and His
Word, asking Him to open our eyes to truth that the natural man cannot understand. If
we come contending against God’s sovereignty because we think that it denies our free
will, the words of Paul rebuke us (Rom. 9:20), “On the contrary, who are you, O man,
who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, ‘Why did you
make me like this,’ will it?” God put this truth front and center for our encouragement
and up building in the faith. But we must come with submissive, teachable hearts.
When you take Ephesians 1:3-4 together, Paul is saying:

One of the greatest spiritual blessings that God has given to us is that He chose
us in Christ before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless before
Him.

The purpose for which God chose us was twofold:

a. It was that we should be holy (“saints” v. 1), which means that we should be
different, set apart.
 To be holy is to be set apart to God from all sin and from the evil
influences of this world. We are to be distinct from the way that the
 world thinks and distinct from the values of those who are enslaved to
greed and various lusts.

b. It was that we should be blameless, without blemish, (Phil. 2:15)

Philippians 2:15 (NIV)
15
so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of
God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you [a]

will shine among them like stars in the sky

 Blameless means to be without spot or blemish. Paul says that

Christ’s aim for His church is (5:27) “that He might present to Himself
the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing;
but that she would be holy and blameless.” To be blameless is to have
integrity. It means that you are the same in private as you are in
public. You think and act the same when no one is watching as you do
when the eyes of others are upon you.

To be holy and blameless before Him. That is the key, to live all of our life
openly before God, knowing that (Heb. 4:13) “all things are open and laid bare to the
eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” You live in the presence of God. You have
fellowship with the living God, knowing that He knows your every thought, word, and
deed. Therefore, you quickly confess any sin and appropriate His cleansing blood. (1
John 1:1-10).

We are to be “holy” and “blameless” in His sight.

Take note that Paul says in verse 4, "In love," He predestined us to be holy and
blameless and in His sight.

Here, “in love” modifies “to be holy and blameless in his sight” because the
holiness of life is only made perfect in and through love.

God’s choosing us will result in our growth in love; and, His choosing us stems
from His special love for His people.
God chose us “that we would be holy and blameless before Him.”

And, in Romans 8:29-30 he writes, “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined
to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among
many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He
called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”

By the way, the word “foreknow” in the New Testament does not mean simply to know
in advance. In that sense, God foreknows everyone who has ever lived. Romans
8:29 (also, Rom. 11:2; 1 Pet. 1:2, 20; Acts 2:23) refers to God’s advance choice to
know certain individuals in a relationship of love. Ibig sabihin, alam at kilala na niya
yung mga taong tunay na magmamahal at tunay mananampalatay sa kanya. Nakita na
nya ang iyong mga puso at isipan kung tunay ng aba ang inyong Pag-ibig at
Pananampalatay sa kanya. Kilala ka nya at wala kang maitatago sa kanya. He is
sovereign.

Maraming nagsasabi na, napa-unfair naman ni Lord. No! hindi totoo yan. He is
sovereign. All powerful. All knowing God. Alam nya lahat ang nakaraan. Alam nya lahat
ang hinaharap.

Question: Papaano ko po malalaman if kasama ako sa mga pinili?

I leave that question for you to meditate.

2. Adoption (verse 4-6)

Jesus Christ was the agent who made our adoption possible by His death. Adoption
was part of God's plan. It was his idea and purpose. It was no afterthought. Adoption is
a beautiful, selfless act of God Himself, allowing us to be part of His family despite our
imperfect and fallen nature. It is not based on our fitness, qualities, and distinctive. It is
rooted in God's eternal purpose and grace. He knows we are unworthy, yet he has
chosen and adopted us. Our adoption, therefore, is firm and unshakable.

Adoption may carry a bad connotation and stigma in the Filipino culture but not in the
Roman context. For the Romans, when adoption was legally approved, the adoptee will
have all his debts canceled. He would receive a new name. He would be the legal son
of his adoptive father and entitled to all the rights and benefits of a son. A father
could disown his natural-born son, but adoption was irreversible/permanent/hindi
mababago. Accordingly, in their culture, adopting is normal. They adopt when needed,
especially when they feel that their sons are incapable and unworthy of their wealth.
They adopted for a purpose. Once they do, they give their all. This is the analogy, and
picture Paul wants us to have in mind. There are so many benefits and privileges as
God's adopted sons and daughters. It goes on from the process of becoming a child
of God (Jn 1: 12; 1 Jn 3:1-2, Rom 8:22-23) to receiving an inheritance from God (Col.3:
24) and becoming a legit part of His kingdom and family.

The ultimate goal of our election and adoption as children of God is for the praise
of the magnificence of God’s grace and love towards us.

This grace was freely given to us. Which means, we did not do anything to merit it. It
comes to us through;

3. Redeemed: The Sacrifice of His Son (7-8)

"In Him, we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in
accordance with the riches of God's grace that He lavished on us. With all
wisdom and understanding…"

The “Him” in this verse (v. 7) refers to Jesus Christ because God can only pour
out His grace on us because of what Jesus has done for us.

What Christ has done for us includes:

a. Redemption – which means release from slavery (Col. 1:14). It involves
buying us back and setting free by paying a ransom price. Jesus Christ
has redeemed us from sin (Heb. 9:15). The blood, representative of the
 life, of the perfect sacrifice, had to flow out from Him for this to happen
(Rom. 3:24-25)
b. Forgiveness of sins – this is the immediate result of Christ’s sacrifice.
His death accomplished our redemption. This was the extent to which God
was willing to go for us.
c. Abundant Grace- God has given us abundant grace, not just the bare
essential amount needed. In the language of the Apostle Paul, God
lavished His grace on us in His infinite wisdom.

Ultimately, in verses 11-13 Paul says,

4. You are Chosen by God (v11-13)

“In Him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of
Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will, 12 in
order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise
13
of His glory.” And you also were included in Christ when you heard the
message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were
marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,

These verses contain one of the strongest statements in the Bible, which tells us
that God is sovereign over all things. God is supreme. God initiated the
work of redemption. It is His idea.
Today, God is still in the business of calling people unto Himself, to accomplish
His purpose and will.

Remember,
a. God chose us, both Jews and Gentiles, to be believers for the
praise of His glory.
b. The work of Christ in our salvation was to set us free from our sin
and reveal God's plan for us.
To summarize this let me say that we experience all these blessings in three stages:
1. We have been redeemed in Christ (1:7),
2. We are being redeemed as the Spirit makes us more like Christ (Rom. 8:1-
4) and
3. We shall be redeemed when Christ returns, and we become sinless, as He
is.

God's possession is the believer whom He has chosen (vv. 3-6), redeemed (vv. 7-12),
and sealed (vv. 13-14) "to the praise of His glory."