Flight EPH01

Paul wants the Ephesians to know is you have so much in your bank account more than you'll ever need. Certainly more than you know or ever will use but you of all of God's power, God the father's power and you and I wish it's because of the father. The salvation in Jesus Christ is a gift that God offers. Today we continue our countdown of Skip's top 40 messages on the connect with Skip Heitzigs of YouTube channel. The number 27 spot is Skip's message flight BPH 01, Skip flies over the book of Ephesians to explain this new standing in Christ and how you can about your faith right now to tell you about six double take incredible journey as you explore God's fast year was 1962 trained in the space race only. Pres. Kennedy turned a strong claim. I believe that this nation should commit itself to all my haters out landing a man on the moon safely to their three� Kennedy makes the rate full moon and that were to do it in the next 10 years, and it can add safety with a man come safely back home. What an incredible thing to say when all of our faith.

At that moment amounted to 15 minutes in faith on the moon you hardcover book resource for this month, receive your copy of $35 more to support this program to connectwithskip.com, 192 connect with.com one 800 9288 joint Skip Heitzigs all about this book the new society. God wants her to call Jesus you remember set of acceptors I will build my Lacey my church, my call about a symbol so the theme of this book is the new society built on Jesus Christ.

That was always the plan of God from the Old Testament until now part of it was a mystery. He uncovers that in chapter 3, but this is a new society about shoe and non-Jew brought together on equal footing in this new society called the church so it is a new family with new life with new standards with new relationships all about. As outlined in this book. The book of Ephesians can be conveniently sliced into two parts. No, I haven't done that.

I sliced into three parts. If you read my book the Bible from 30,000 feet, but it can be sliced and probably fits easier in due to slices chapters 1 through three sliced number one, chapters 4 through six sliced number two. Now this is a typical Pauline or Pauline pattern as well. Paul often writes he did it. Also in the book of Romans. The first part of the book is doctrinal. The second part is practical, so chapters 1, two and three.

He kind of lays the foundation of this new society, what God's plan was how it works, what it is. Kind of defines those things then beginning in chapter 4 he uses one of his favorite words after a doctrinal section that is the word therefore based on all that you know from what I have previously written. Therefore then he gets very practical. Chapter 4, five and six, he moved from doctrinal to practical matters.

Paul style in his writings he talks about doctrine than he talks about duty.

He talks about what you should know. Then he moves to how you should live based on what you know he did that in the book of Romans. The first 11 chapters are doctrinal beginning in chapter 12 of Romans verse one. Therefore, I beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable God which is your reasonable service. Same pattern so you could if you would like divide the book of Ephesians up and those two sections. I've given it 1/3 section, not just the doctrinal and the practical, but I've gotten a little more specific based on one of my favorite commentaries on the book of Ephesians. I divided up into the wealth. The walk and the warfare of the believer, the wealth who you are in Christ and what you have in Christ, then the walk of the believer and then finally the warfare of the belief. So when the learn how to grow, learn how to walk and work in the learn how to fight all of that is in the book of Ephesians now a little bit about emphasis before we jump in and endorse service. The city of Ephesus was the capital of the eastern part of the Roman empire. It was a very wealthy city.

It was the seat of government was the seed of religion. Roman religion several different temples were there but it was wealthy because of where it was situated. If you have a map in the back of your Bible you find Asia minor. You kinda notice right in the middle on the western coast of Asia minor lay of the city of Ephesus, one of the great temples that was in that city was a temple to the goddess Diana also known as Artemis same person.

One is the Greek name. What is the Roman name as she was depicted in this really grotesque weird fashion of a woman with multiple breasts because she was seen as the goddess of fertility, the goddess of all blessing if you're wondering what it exactly look like there is a copy of the statue of Diana from that temple in Ephesus. Oddly enough in the Vatican in Rome. All of that aside that temple was located in the city of Ephesus.

It connected the trade routes going from west to east and east to west. They would often stop there. That's where it would get its wealth. The population at the time of Paul the apostle was right, roughly about about 1/2 a million people that lived in that city. They would come there to us bent time worship in the temple to make new contacts sell their goods by other goods, etc. now, today, you can visit Ephesus and I've done it on a few different occasions when we've done our cruises of the journeys of Paul or a long bus trips of the journeys of Paul and we stopped in through Turkey. We stop a Ephesus not bring it up because if you go, it is like the highlight of the trip of the journeys of Paul. It is one of the greatest archaeological digs in existence you, you can walk today down the streets of Ephesus on the same tiles that Paul the apostle walked on 2000 years ago.

You will pass the remains of the OD on theater the past. The remains of the great library of Celsus that huge double story edifice right down on Main Street. You'll walk through the Al Gore of the ancient marketplace. Turn right going toward the harbor and you'll see uncovered the 25,000 seat theater 25,000 seats at the time of Paul it was in that theater where Paul was almost torn to pieces as the people of Ephesus stood and cried great is Diana of the Ephesians for like about an hour or two. All of that is there today you can see it. What's amazing is what you see today in terms of the archaeological digs of Ephesus, only 25% of that city's uncovered 75% of it still remains on Doug underground, so it was absolutely humongous so it has a very very prominent place in the ancient world us in the New Testament so I mentioned Paul second and third missionary journey.

After spending time in Ephesus in his third journey three years. He leaves but he goes back on his final trip to Jerusalem before he gets arrested and when he goes back he feels compelled to meet with the elders of Ephesus, but he didn't want to go to Ephesus because he didn't want to stay long. So he goes to the shores of Miletus a little bit nearby so the elders go to the shores of elitist to meet Paul and Paul sort of unloads this incredible message in acts chapter 20 he says you watch my manner of life. I've been with you for three years. He saw how I labored you hurt my teaching. But he said now after my departure. I know that savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock, even among your own leadership. False apostles will arise and draw people to themselves. Paul could see that in the future. That's interesting because although Paul knew that was coming.

He said I'm not hanging around goddess call me to go to Jerusalem.

That's where he gets arrested and taken to Rome. What we do know after this point is Paul puts another pastor in charge of Ephesus. He was there three years pastor. He put in charge was none other than his prot�g� by the name of Timothy Timothy pastor in Ephesus. Paul pastored in Ephesus and according to the church historian Eusebius of Caesarea. The apostle John spent his latter years in that city and what he spent his latter years doing defending the truth against false teachers that arose and were destroying the flock, the Gnostics that that that brand of teaching that was already infiltrating the church so that that sort of a synopsis they had the best leadership they had. Paul had Timothy and that the apostle John yet. By the third century A.D. there really was no church of Ephesus. It became insignificant. It lost its witness, it lost believers today. There is no Christian assembly in that area and you may want to remember that somebody else wrote a letter to the church of Ephesus somebody even more famous than Paul. His name is Jesus. In Revelation chapter 2, he wrote a little letter a postcard. You might say, and he said to the church of Ephesus. I'm warning you, you have left your first love. Be careful are I will remove your lampstand from out of its place. That is exactly what happened to this incredible work of God.

All of that should sober us up as as church people. It does not take many generations before. Of vital vibrant church in an area can lose its witness that happened here with his church. Okay, Paul is arrested. He's taken to Rome. In Rome he writes for letters from his two-year prison stay in in that city. He writes Ephesians, he writes Philippians he writes, Colossians, and he writes Philemon was a call the prison letters and Ephesians is the first one we begin in chapter 1 with our overview looking at what we have in Christ, who we are in Christ. Let's call the first couple of chapters the wealth of the believer. That's chapters. Actually, one, two and three.

Now there's a phrase that is an important phrase in this book, and especially in this first part sort of is the tipoff that he's dealing with the wealth of the believer, and that is the phrase in Christ or in Christ Jesus uses a 27 time he wants you and I did know we are linked to Jesus. We are in him and because were in him we have so much more wealthy were rich Ephesus was considered the bank of Asia minor and so Paul knowing that uses language like inheritance fullness filled all of these kind of terms that speak to the wealth of the believer, because the city of Ephesus. As I mentioned, was a very wealthy city so let's begin in verse three with our wealth. Why are we so wealthy, why are we so rich we are rich because of our father in heaven, blessed be verse three the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is blessed us with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ.

Have you ever been to your ATM try to draw money out and it says cannot process request insufficient funds. Your man don't have enough in the bank account. What Paul wants the Ephesians to know is you have so much in your bank account more than you'll ever need.

Certainly more than you know or ever will use what you have all of God's power, God the father's power at your disposal. You and I are rich you are rich because of the father that you have so what is a need exactly will first of all, he chose you in Christ. Verse four just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and without blame before him in love. I was like what Charles Spurgeon said.

He said it's a good thing God chose me before I was born. He never would've picked me after I was born well. The truth is he did choose you before you were born, but that's even when he knew what you would become.

He knew you all through and through, and yet he choose Josie now. I've read enough books over my lifetime to know that there are some people that this bothers that God chooses Priya lacks predetermines predestines people it's not fair that God would choose somebody not to somebody else. Why is that unfair. You have the power of choice. What if I said when he future something that's not fair. You shouldn't choose that you shouldn't choose who to marry, what are you nuts if you have the power of choice white God have the power of choice and there are certain factors about the choice we do need to get into recovery that before but one of the great truths is we are chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world and that Civics excite you, Jesus chose Judas knowing Judas would betray him.

Jesus chose Peter knowing that Peter would deny Jesus chose Thomas knowing the Thomas would disbelieve him chose them anyway before they were born, and worked through them so they could become vital witness so were rich because of our father. He chose us not only deputy adopted us. Verse five. Having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace by which he made us accepted in the beloved. So he chose us. He adopted us that as he placed us as adult sons giving us all the inheritances of supernatural born children and then finally he redeemed us in verse seven in him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grapes. This is the language of the slave market to redeem us to buy a slave back or to give a slave its freedom by paying the price. So he redeemed us he he paid the price to set us free. What he used to pay that price blood. The blood of his son, a we collect theologically a vicarious atonement a substitutionary atonement. Second Corinthians chapter 5 verse 21 God made him Jesus, who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in him. So by this doctrine of substitution or this idea of replacement. He took you off the punishment course put Jesus in your place treated Jesus like you deserve to be treated. Letting them die so that now because of that sinless substitution he can treat you like. Jesus deserves to be treated. That's redemption that makes us rich were chosen were adopted were redeemed, he expands on that in this chapter he offers a prayer for them on that behalf go to chapter 2.

He continues with this theme of wealth and chosen.

Chapter 2 are not just rich because of our father, we are rich because of our forgiveness from the father.

In chapter 2 Paul shows that we were in the graveyard, but we went to glory, we were dead. We've been made alive. Chapter 2 verse one and you he made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the year, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature the children of wrath, just as others.

Paul tells us in this chapter that when you were born you were born dead.

You were D0 a dead on arrival.

You were born.

He said I was born.

That's life. You were only physically alive your spiritually cut off you were separated from God. All people are born separated from God because of the sin of Adam. Romans chapter 5 by one man sin entered the world, and death through sin and death spread to all men, and death reigned so that that's that's the flow of sin in the world. Sin entered death entered death spread, death reigned so everyone born after Adam was born dead on arrival.

You were dead set that you were just sick your dad. You had no capacity at all to act on your own behalf know most people don't believe this and and I'm convinced most Christians don't even know how bad off they were the black theologians call this depravity. Total depravity and a total depravity doesn't mean you're as bad as you can be, but it does mean you're as bad off as you can possibly before you before God you are you are hopeless apart from him doing something so you over dead. He made alive, you were dead in trespasses and sins, so he talks about your past life.

Look at verse four, but God never that series we did call but God. It's it's a phrase that shows up 45 times in the Scripture. It shows that that because God enters the situation. Everything after that changes, but God who is rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ by grace you have been saved and raised us up together and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus Linda God love you when you are lovable. Did God love you when you are lovely when you work when you when you decided Laura to give my life to Jesus.

Okay now I love you God love you when he knew the truth about you when you are at your very worst. When you were dead when you were alienated so because of that, and here's Paul's contention.

No matter your background Gentile Jewish sewer non-Jew are all in the same boat before God with the same needs so that when you are brought into this new society, this new family. No second-class citizen.

That's good hi to 27 message about building messages, it's from his series the Bible from 30,000 feet. Full message and more Skip's teachers, including his latest sermons and current teaching series@youtube.com/Calvary ABQ here. Skip to share. You can keep these messages coming your way to connect you and many others around the world with the gospel.

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