EPHESIANS 1:1-141 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the

will of God, To God’s holy people in

Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus: 2

Grace and peace to you from God our

Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Praise

for Spiritual Blessings in Christ.

EPHESIANS 1:1-143 Praise be to the God and Father of our

Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in

the heavenly realms with every spiritual

blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in

him before the creation of the world to be

holy and blameless in his sight. In love

EPHESIANS 1:1-145 he predestined us for adoption to

sonship through Jesus Christ, in

accordance with his pleasure and will— 6

to the praise of his glorious grace, which

he has freely given us in the One he

loves.

EPHESIANS 1:1-147 In him we have redemption through his

blood, the forgiveness of sins, in

accordance with the riches of God’s

grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all

wisdom and understanding

EPHESIANS 1:1-149 he made known to us the mystery of his

will according to his good pleasure, which

he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into

effect when the times reach their

fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in

heaven and on earth under Christ.

EPHESIANS 1:1-1411 In him we were also chosen, havingbeen predestined according to the plan ofhim who works out everything inconformity with the purpose of his will, 12

in order that we, who were the first to putour hope in Christ, might be for the praiseof his glory.

EPHESIANS 1:1-1413 And you also were included in Christ whenyou heard the message of truth, the gospelof your salvation. When you believed, youwere marked in him with a seal, thepromised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a depositguaranteeing our inheritance until theredemption of those who are God’spossession—to the praise of his glory.

1 CORINTHIANS 1:1-1445 So it is written: “The first man Adam

became a living being”; the last Adam, a

life-giving spirit.

JESUS

• Last Adam• Life-giving

ADAM

• First Adam• Living being

ARE YOU IN ADAM OR IN CHRIST?

You’re born in Adam as a sinnerand you’re born again in Christ,

who is a Savior.

1 CORINTHIANS 15:21-2221 For since death came through a man,

the resurrection of the dead comes also

through a man. 22 For as in Adam all die,

so in Christ all will be made alive.

If you are in Christ, you are in Christ’s position and Christ is in

your position.

IN CHRIST

• There is victory.• There is salvation.• We receive a new

nature.• We are blessed.• There is love and

life.

IN ADAM

• There is defeat.• There is

condemnation.• We receive a sinful

nature.• We are cursed.• There is wrath and

death.

ARE YOU IN ADAM OR IN CHRIST?

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE IN CHRIST?

JOHN 15:55 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If

you remain in me and I in you, you will

bear much fruit; apart from me you can

do nothing.

The only way life is rightly to be lived and eternally to be credited is if we are in

Christ, and Christ is in us, and our life is the overflow. It’s the outpouring of the

life of Jesus in and through us.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE IN CHRIST ACCORDING TO THE BOOK OF EPHESIANS?

IN CHRIST YOU CAN BE FAITHFUL

EPHESIANS 1:11 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the

will of God, To God’s holy people in

Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus

You can only be faithful in Christ.

When you remember who you are, then you’ll know what to do.

When you know who Christ is for you, in you, through you, that affects the

decisions you make and the life that you live.

In Christ, you will live a faithful life. In Christ you can live a consistent life.

In Christ you can live a persevering life. Because if you abide in him and he

abides in you, you can bear much fruit.

In Christ you can be faithful, because Christ was faithful.

IN CHRIST YOU ARE BLESSED

EPHESIANS 1:33 Praise be to the God and Father of our

Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us

in the heavenly realms with every

spiritual blessing in Christ.

EPHESIANS 1:66 to the praise of his glorious grace, which

he has freely given us in the One he

loves.

In Christ, you are blessed.

YOUR BLESSINGS IN CHRIST

• the righteousness of Christ.

• the love of Christ.

• the forgiveness of Christ.

• a guaranteed resurrection from the deadand an eternal life in Christ. We deserve hell.

Everything else is a blessing. You are blessed, but sometimes

we’re blind to the blessing.

IN CHRIST YOU WERE CHOSEN AND MADE BLAMELESS

EPHESIANS 1:44 For he chose us in him before the

creation of the world to be holy and

blameless in his sight.

CORAM DEOwhich means

“in the face of God”

God sees and knows all, and that He has chosen you, if you’re a Christian

in Christ, so that you can live holy and blameless in his sight.

In Christ you’re holy. His perfection is your perfection.

In Christ you are blameless. God does not have a list with your transgressions, failures, and

offenses. He’s not looking for a way to condemn or to punish you.

IN CHRIST YOU ARE FORGIVEN

EPHESIANS 1:77 In him we have redemption through his

blood, the forgiveness of sins, in

accordance with the riches of God’s

grace

Because Jesus was punished in your place for your sins, God never punishes

those who are in Christ because he’s already punished Christ.

The wrath of God was poured out on the Son of God, not the children of God.

You’re not a little bit forgiven, you’re totally forgiven. God doesn’t keep a

record against you, it’s erased in Christ.

You can be bold enough to confess your sins and be forgiven, not only by God, but others; and stop pretending, and blame-shifting, and hiding, and excusing, and managing your sin; and start putting your sin to death, because

in Christ it’s already died.

IN CHRIST YOU CAN KNOW THE

WILL OF GOD

EPHESIANS 1:99 he made known to us the mystery of his

will according to his good pleasure, which

he purposed in Christ,

We all have the same purpose. He says it. The purpose is set forth in Christ.

Those other things may explain us, but they do not define us.

The question should never be, “God, what exactly is your perfect, narrow-road, detailed-

step will for my life?” It should always be, “Right now, what does it mean

to live my life in Christ?”

IN CHRIST YOU ARE RECONCILED

EPHESIANS 1:1010 to be put into effect when the times

reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all

things in heaven and on earth under

Christ.

In Christ you’re reconciled. What this means is you’re reconciled to God in Christ.

In Christ you’re reconciled to God. And what this means is when you sin, you’ll

feel like you’re distant, but positionally, you’re still in Christ. Practically, you may have

wandered, but positionally, you’re still in Christ, so come back to Christ.

We’re reconciled to God as Christians and we’re reconciled to one another as the church.

That means that if there is conflict between two Christians, they have positional

reconciliation in Christ, because Christ died for their sins so they don’t need

to kill one another.

The only hope is that the two of you, in Christ, come together in Christ. He becomes the one

who forgives, he becomes the one who suffers, he becomes the one who

reconciles, he becomes the one who allows you to live in your identity together in him.

IN CHRIST YOU HAVE AN

INHERITANCE

EPHESIANS 1:1111 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,

God has an inheritance. We get some of it in this life, the rest is awaiting us in the life to

come. When the Bible talks about this life, it calls it, quote, “A little while.”

IN CHRIST YOU HAVE HOPE

EPHESIANS 1:1212 in order that we, who were the first to

put our hope in Christ, might be for the

praise of his glory.

YOUR HOPE MUST BE IN CHRIST

•Your hope is not in your government

•Your hope is not in your beauty

•Your hope is not in your IQ

•Your hope is not in your degree

•Your hope is not in your marriage

•Your hope is not in your children

•Your hope is not in your success

•Your hope is not in your family

•Your hope is not in your friends

Your hope is in Christ. Your hope alone, forever,

has to be, must be, in Christ. Apart from Christ, there is no hope.

Hope is only in Christ. And we want you to have that hope in Christ and then go to work, and then love your friends, and then deal with your enemies, and then endure your suffering.

Whatever God should have for you, it cannot be that your hope is in someone or

something. It has to be that your hope is in Christ so you can endure anything.

IN CHRIST YOU HAVE THE

HOLY SPIRIT

EPHESIANS 1:1-1413 And you also were included in Christ whenyou heard the message of truth, the gospelof your salvation. When you believed, youwere marked in him with a seal, thepromised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a depositguaranteeing our inheritance until theredemption of those who are God’spossession—to the praise of his glory.

The Holy Spirit is the means by which the power and the presence of Christ come into

those who are in Christ. You do not live a life by your own power; you live a life by the

power of the Holy Spirit.

You do not need to muster up your own energy. You do not need to motivate or

discipline yourself. You need to allow the Holy Spirit to motivate you and to be filled with the Holy Spirit to live a life of blessing

and obedience to God.