David Bahn – Reflections

Ephesians 1:1-10

 ¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,

   To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus:

 ² Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

 ³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, ⁴ even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love ⁵ he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, ⁶to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed 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, ⁸which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight ⁹ making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ ¹⁰as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

I recall a conversation several years ago with my dental hygienist. We were talking about Christmas presents and she said something like, “I told our kids that it wasn’t going to be so lavish this year; maybe one $300 or $500 gift each and a few others…” I got the idea that the few others would be more in the $100 range. I immediately thought of how different was my definition of “not so lavish”! That $300 to $500 was our whole Christmas budget! We are not Scrooges when it comes to Christmas time, but we still feel extravagant if we spend $100 on any one person at Christmas time.

Not so with God! God pours out “every spiritual blessing”. He forgives us and pours out his favor on us “according to the riches of his grace.” He lavishes us with these gifts through Jesus Christ. While you cannot wrap these gifts and put them under a tree – or even tie a big bow on them and put them in the drive way – these are rich and generous gifts.

The reason we did not spend so much on Christmas had to do with the reality of our financial limitations. With four grade-school-age sons and the income of a young pastor in a small church, the financial resources were not lavish! God’s resources, however, are limitless. He has riches of grace, an abundant supply of love and life, and unfathomable spiritual wealth to pour out on those he loves. His gifts overflow into our lives and from us into the lives of others. It’s clear that Paul, here in the opening words of Ephesians, is so overwhelmed by God’s goodness, love and grace, that he can hardly express this bounty of God’s treasures.

What if our lives were an expression of praise and thanks to God for his rich and more-than-enough gifts? How would that make a difference today in our attitudes, actions, choices, and priorities?