Title Ephesians 01:3-4 Blessed be
Contents
Text: Ephesians 1:3-14
Title: Praise
After giving blessings to the church in Ephesus with grace and peace, Paul immediately sang great praises, saying, 'Praise be to you.' It begins with praise at the beginning of the epistle. It is rare outside of the Bible that praise appears at the beginning of a letter like this. It is common for us to sing loudly at the very end or in the middle of climax, but I have never seen such a loud initial display of joy at any meeting or banquet. Even in movies or concerts, you always have to give a gentle joy or emotion at the end. Comedy doesn't even start with a big laugh at first. If it starts like that, the comedy will be no fun for anyone who sees it already steamed.
But the joy of family relationships is different. It just overflows with joy from the moment you see it for the first time. It is like a grandpa with a smile on his face from the moment he first sees his grandson. We do not rejoice only after something in return or after something pleasing has happened, but simply because of our family relationship.
This form of praise is actually taken from the Old Testament. One example is 1 Chronicles 16:36. “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.” And all the people said, Amen, and praised the LORD.” The object of praise in the New Testament and the object of praise in the Old Testament are different. The Old Testament praises the God of Israel, but the New Testament praises God, the Father of Jesus Christ. Although it is the same form, it is a completely different praise in its content. Israel's praise of Jehovah God is sung in the relationship 'the Lord God becomes the God of Israel and Israel becomes his people'. In other words, it is not praise as a relationship between father and son as in the New Testament, but praise as a relationship between master and slave. Therefore, the Old Testament people cannot sing the praises shown in today's text. We cannot praise God who is our Father in Jesus Christ.
And there are some praises like this in the New Testament letters, and although the form is the same, the content of the praise is different depending on the subject and purpose. 2 Corinthians 1:3 and 1 Peter 1:3. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercy, and the God of all comfort.” “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to his abundant mercy, has regenerated us through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Grant us a living hope.” The praise in 2 Corinthians speaks of 'mercy and comfort' because they are in tribulation, and the praise in 1 Peter speaks of 'mercy' because the saints are in their suffering. Even the same father is praised differently as a father of mercy and comfort and a father of compassion.
This Ephesians 1:3-14 is one sentence. For convenience, later generations have divided it into three sentences, but it is actually one long sentence. In that way, these three verses are the main verses of the whole. So, the remaining verses 4-14 can be said to solve these three verses. These three verses are crafted with very clever and precise intentions. This is because the words 'blessed are you', 'blessed', and 'blessed' are actually used with the same etymology. In a sentence, the same meaning is repeated three times, so it is easy to know what is being emphasized. They are praising the blessings of the Father of Jesus Christ with the spiritual blessings of heaven.
He is speaking in a way that contrasts with the blessings of the earth that were given to Israel, the people of the Old Testament, in the divine corridor of heaven. We are not talking directly about the spiritual and the physical, nor are we talking about the things that belong to God and those that belong to humans. It contrasts the events that have appeared in history, not the philosophical contrast between God and man. If you compare it with the riches of the land of Canaan, you can know what the spiritual blessings of heaven are. This is verse 1:18. “Open your hearts and eyes, and what is the hope of his calling, and what is the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints?” Israel received the land of Canaan as an inheritance and gained the glory of unifying it and establishing it as the kingdom of God. But the church has received the inheritance of unifying heaven and earth in Christ. Therefore, the inheritance and blessing that the church has obtained is a glory and joy that cannot be compared with that obtained by the people of Israel in the Old Testament.
What did you plan? He predestined to become his sons through Jesus Christ. What, then, is being one's own sons, the sons of God the Father? He made known the secret of its meaning. In other words, sons are those who know the will of the Father. They are those who show the glory of the Father by knowing the will of the Father and living according to his will.
We focus only on salvation by believing in Jesus and going to heaven, and we do not think much about our becoming sons of God. How can I get into a better country and live in the future, but I don't think about life as a son. The gospel that the Bible, especially the New Testament, testifies to is the gospel of the Son and the gospel that He made us sons. So, to live as the Son of God is our righteousness, salvation, and life. No matter how good and good you are, if you do not live as a son, it is a curse, an injustice, and not life. He is always asking what he has done wrong or not in the light of God's absolute holy good, not interested in whether he is living his son's life.
Previously, God made his will known to Abraham. He made known that all peoples under the world will become your descendants. Even so, that nation was limited to the land of Canaan, and its descendants were blessed. This event was made more concrete to the people of Israel through Moses, and God made his will known through Moses. In this way, unlike the Gentiles, he called the Jews closer to God and made them know the will of God so that they would become wise before the nations. Even so, because God was covering himself with a veil, Israel could not fully understand God's will. And, like Moses, he was called to be a servant of God, so he could not understand what God meant to his son. That is why, in the end, even though Israel served God, they could not fully serve God and could not reveal all of God's glory. However, God revealed all of His heart in His Son. He showed us all the meaning of his joy.
It is just like unbelieving fathers, when their sons grow up, they have a drink with their sons and tell them all about their lives. Because the son's time is fulfilled, it is the same as telling his son everything he wants. By doing this, you are raising your son to the same level as his father, to whom he can talk about the true meaning of life.
Now God has made known to us the secret economy of God in Christ Jesus. It is life that we know what our Heavenly Father's will is. That is why the Apostle prayed for the church in Ephesus to know the will of God the Father by giving them the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the first place. The will of God who unified all things was revealed in Christ Jesus. It is God's will to unify heaven and earth. In the past, there was division and separation between God and his people, but now the church has gained the life of facing God's glory face by tearing the veil through the forgiveness of all sins in Christ Jesus. The relationship between the Father and the Son is a new blessing given to the Church. God has revealed all His will in Christ Jesus so that we can fully understand the Father's will and know the Father's deep heart.