Ten Reasons to Give God Praise, Part 2

Today from Chuck Swindoll on the sleep block bound to Satan and his demons. They had their dominating presence in our lives and we obeyed what we knew we were doing it or not. When Christ died, his blood washed away the sins and took away the dominating power of Satan. Through the empowering work of the Holy Spirit freed us to obey gave us the strength to walk in the light which we were never able to do this letter to the preamble about the goodness of God rather than race through his generous introduction Chuck Swindoll will help us absorb the magnitude of the spiritual blessings on this Tuesday edition of Insight for living will pick up our study in Ephesians chapter 1 in the event you missed Monday's program begins with a brief summary about the lavish gifts God has given to his children and how these blessings impact us today, Chuck titled today's message 10 reasons to give God praise verses three through six moved to eternity past, before there was ever matter, light, darkness, time, earth living things.

The planets, the world that we call familiar.

All that was was not there. Then, and in the eternal ages where there was only one Godhead, father, son and Spirit. Stay with me. Father, son and Spirit. There was the arrangement of things as they would run their course on this earth. When time began, and in fact the arrangement of events in eternity past work plan. They were initiated by the father. They were implemented by the sun and they were empowered by the spirit and the father's mind is the initiating of the events of life as they will unfold, especially regarding spiritual things. The sun was dispatched from heaven to earth to become the sacrifice for sin, the Lamb of God, Mary's little lamb who would take away the sins of the world by his blood, he implemented the plan. The father initiated and the spirit of God empowers this work as it moves right on through time unto the ultimate fulfillment in glory when we will stand before him face-to-face.

Ephesians 1 is about all of that, the father initiating the sun implementing in the spirit empowering what I find in this grand doxology and what I call this is 10 reasons to give God praise. The first is in verse three we looked at it earlier. Look at the first in God's eulogy because he has blessed us with every spiritual blessing.

That's why I praise him.

He blesses me. I don't bless him.

He blesses us and noticed the blessings are in Christ in the heavenly war and wears rewrites the Christian really operates in two spheres, the human and the divine.

The visible and the invisible physically and he is on the earth in a human body but spiritually he is seated with Christ in the heavenly places, and it is this heavenly sphere that provides the power and direction for the earthly walk. The President of the United States is not always seated at his desk in the White House, but that executive chair represents the sphere of his life and power, no matter where he is.

He is the president because only he has the privilege of sitting at that desk.

Likewise with the Christian no matter where he may be on this earth, he is seated in the heaven's with Jesus Christ and this is the basis of his life and power rate positionally. Our heavenly father sees his children as in the sun and therefore all the blessings he set aside for the sun because we are seated in Christ or hours to claim and live in the power of praise. Reason number two was in verse four, just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world that we would be holy and blameless before him. Because he has chosen us.

I would venture to say it's been a long time since you were said in your prayer to the Lord, I praise you for choosing me sometime. We think as partners of of our mates. How grateful we are that that they chose us.

I frequently will say that regarding my wife. Unlike many of you man I married way above my head and I sometimes think as I see her in unguarded moments.

I think I thank you father for her saying yes to me.

She got her so young that she just didn't know better, so glad she didn't know then what she knows now. Thank you for her saying yes for choosing me in and and yet this is not about an earthly mate. This is about a heavenly partnership.

He chose us marketable. He slipped his hand into the ranks of humanity and he chose you. I could even add for you. You of all people, me of all people he chose you and me and he chose us in him before the foundation of world is say I don't get it.

Well, welcome to the club. Nobody gets it. You just believe it. It's in eternity past, there wasn't even time in existence. There was no earth.

There was no there wasn't even matter and in that eternal state.

The father who initiates the plan looked at the sun in today's terms in our words. He looked at the Sunday so that we will choose her to be in you.

I choose him to be in you, and the goal of it is that we would be holy and blameless before him when she was young. Victoria was shielded from the fact that she would be the next ruling monarch of England less. This knowledge spoil her when her teacher finally did let her discover for herself that she would one day be Queen of England.

Victoria's response was interesting. She said that I will be good. Then I will be good. Life would be controlled by her position. No matter where she was. Victoria was governed by the fact that she set on the throne of England realizing that you and I have been chosen. What a great response and I will live for him.

Then I will I will live in this world in a way that is holy and blameless before him. Now we come to the third reason to praise him, and that is because we have been predestined.

If you think being chosen was deep hang on pre-destined. Don't miss the first two words that come at the end of verse four. They go with verse five in love. He pre-destined us to adoption the motivation of the actors love the result of the act's adoption. You see, Jesus is God's son by nature, being sinless, we are God's sons and daughters by adoption. He walked through the slave market of sin, and he stopped and looked into our sad eyes and saw our pathetic tragic situation before we were ever in existence and he said you're mine your mind, you will be mine. Your mind in Roman law, which is part of Paul's background writing here adopted children, just like an American law adopted children have all the rights and privileges of biological children and so it is here we are predestined and as adopted children, we have the same rights and privileges as the son who is a part of the father that great thought when were we adopted when we believed what could we have not believed not. If we were chosen God's irresistible working in our lives spiritually guaranteed the full but fulfillment of God's sovereign plan. You say III can't get this straight. I mean we got human responsibility. We got God selected powers we have.

We have our will and we have the father's choice mean explain that further what I like the way one seminary prophet put it, try to explain election and you may lose your mind to try to explain it away, and you may lose your soul to which one wagon responded. Not if I'm among the elect to rails for the same track to stay with me to rails form the same track. Without it, there's a collision is a terrible wreck. It won't work.

They must be parallel and they never come together two great truths are presented in the Scriptures, the responsibility of humanity. To believe in God's sovereign choice someone is put it this way when you walk into the portals of heaven. You will see written will might come when you walk through when you look back you will see elect from the foundation of the world. From my perspective I see it is a need to respond to the gospel and to present the gospel to his many as I can from God's perspective, it is all planned and he sees it before the event. It is as if a finish fact accepted say well, Chuck. Sounds to me like one of Paul's axes. He falls into this every once in a while. Romans nine Ephesians 1 it.

This is sort of Pauline well would it help if I quoted Jesus.

Some of you would say no that wouldn't help even if I quoted Jesus do I care. I am going to turn with you to John chapter 15 verse 16. If you carry a red letter Bible you will see it in red.

These are the words of Jesus and they'll be familiar, you may not have known where they were found, but you may have quoted them. John 1516 should be in the margin of Ephesians 15 John 1516 you did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain. Let's understand who's initiating this it's the father. Let's put the father back where he belongs in our minds and that's enthroned in charge and sovereign does that mean I I I don't have to respond. Did I say that I am responsible as an individual. Upon hearing the good news of Christ to respond. The point is, I cannot resist it.

If God has chosen me. I like the way Charles Spurgeon put it, he said if God had revealed to me that he put a wide yellow stripe down the back of all human beings who are elect.

I would spend my days walking the streets of London lifting up shirttails, but because he did not. I preach whosoever will may come. That's good enough for me. God's eulogy continues, he has chosen us. He has predestined us to adoption as his sons through Jesus Christ to himself, according to the kind intention of his will. Don't miss that it it it will help you understand the full nature of God.

Some of you.

I can feel it. Even if you haven't, you know, said anything back to me. I can feel the resistance. I resisted this for years.

I saw it as a cold and uncaring doctrine. I saw it as a is a God who almost in a cavalier fashion.

You take not know him, not not hurt that you others go to hell was the kind of thing that I wrestle with and to my amazement I never found in the Scriptures were he predestined some to hell. I found the kind intention of his will is pretesting.

It is to predestined us to adoption as sons and I leave it at that lake of fire was not first created for men and women. It was created for the devil and his angels. The consequence of not believing is an eternity in the lake of fire which burns and is never quenched horrible thought will keep you awake at night. I know, but the focus is not on the consequence it is on the opportunity to believe and what a wonderful, wonderful doctrine. This is to know that it rests with God I'll tell you as a preacher. It's a great thing for me to remember I still feel the necessity to make people believe to press them to a decision, even at times to make a fool of myself and to embarrass them if they didn't was a great moment when I realize my responsibility is to declare the truth. It's God's responsibility to bring you to himself, and you will come you will come here. He will defend his truth. Some of you say I'm not coming.

I love to meet people like and then to talk to them. A few years later, and to hear the humbling story of how God broke them and brought them to himself. Don't tell me you're going to stand up against Almighty God made you were giving him praise for this wonderful eulogy we give him praise verse seven that he has redeemed us look at the word put in the margin of your Bible. If you like taking notes to purchase and set free by paying a price that's what redeem means to purchase and set free by paying a price.

The price is sometimes called a ransom ransom. You and I were born not right with God, but wrong before God.

You and I were enslaved facing we were slaves to sin. We we walked our own way. We found ourselves hopelessly and helplessly unable to change our lifestyle. I know we made those great resolutions on 1 January, year after year, and by about the third or maybe the evening of the second. We were already breaking our will are are weakening in our resolution. We don't have the power to do that were unable in ourselves to give us the member if the spirit who empowers this kind of life God the father initiates God the son implements and the spirit empowers this kind of thing. It's the spirit at work in your life which you cannot resist is the Spirit's leading in this that the father is initiated and it's all happened because the sun has redeemed us look at how it's worded in him we have redemption through his blood, we have redemption through his blood, hold your place and look at first Peter chapter 1 verse 18 first Peter back toward the end of your Bible. Chapter 1 verse 18 and I'm going to show you the value of the blood, knowing that you were not redeemed. Peter uses the same word to purchase and set free by the paying of a price, knowing that you were not purchased and set free with perishable things like silver and gold, from your feudal way of life inherited from your forefathers but you were redeemed with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless of Christ. The blood of Christ. Years ago there were those who slipped into the message of evangelical Christianity. Or, as it was then called fundamental Christianity and they said if you talk about the blood. It's a slaughterhouse religion and they played down the role of the blood.

They said you shouldn't use the word blood ended liberal churches today. You won't find the word blood in any of the him you will find the word blood in any of the versions of the Bible that they you because the blood is as offensive.

It's it's slaughterhouse talk but I will tell you, according to the Scriptures.

Blood appears almost from the beginning of the book and takes all the way through it because without the shedding of blood there is no forgiving sin blood is the greatest detergent eternally known to God.

It alone will wash away your sins. We are redeemed through his blood, and for this we give him praise number five because he has forgiven us, our transgressions, look at the end of verse seven we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, love it, the forgiveness of our trespasses, not most of them. Not all but the very worst, all of them passed present, future forgiven, forgiven during the word better forgiven. Redemption covers three areas, the paying of a ransom. The removing of a curse and the release from the bondage you and I on this on the slave block were bound to Satan and his demons.

They had their dominating presence in our lives and we obeyed him, whether we knew we were doing it or not.

When Christ died, his blood washed away the sins and took away the dominating power of Satan and through the empowering work of the Holy Spirit freed us to obey gave us the willingness and the strength to walk in the light which we were never able to do before Psalm 103 begins to list all the blessings of God and he says he forgives you all your trespasses and little later says, as far as the east is from the West so far has he removed your transgressions from you. You know what that says. It says you don't have to live in shame. You don't have to live in guilt there removed their forgiven my sister Lucy asked me.

On one occasion. What's the best feeling you know love in all of life. And I said accomplishment sounds like a driven, neurotic, doesn't it accomplishment like finishing. I like getting it done.

She said that's a good feeling it's it's not my favorite is that what your favorite.

She said relief.

I think she's right relief when I'm sick being relieved of the fever when I'm lost being relieved of the sense of lostness.

I found my way when I am lonely. The relief of loneliness by a companion when I'm without hope. The relief of the Savior.

Forgiveness relieves me of my sin, my sin all the bliss of this glorious thought my sin not in part but the whole is nailed to the cross I bear it no more praise the Lord all my soul writes the songwriter John Bunyan wrote as he pictured Christian on that journey to the celestial city. The narrow path finding his way through the wicked gate.

He came to the precipice and looked across the precipice and he was carrying this burden on his back and he looked across and he saw the cross and he saw the empty tomb, and he noticed suddenly as he believed that the cross that the burden broke and the chains that were held to him smacked and Bunyan wrote thus far did I come burden with my sin and Argonaut ease the grief that I was in till I came hither places this must be the beginning of my bliss must hear the burden fall from off my back must hear the chains that bound it to me blessed. Cross blessed sepulcher blessed rather be the man petitioning for me that's through the wicked gate to the place of truth. We stand on the precipice and there's no one on the cross and there's no one in the because the price is been paying in the sun has been we are free from sin once held this kind voice of Chuck Swindoll is titled today's message 10 reasons to give God praise to learn more about Chuck for this ministry. Be sure to visit us online@insightworld.org when originally presented. This message was nearly an hour in length.

In order to share the entire presentation with you we needed three programs to do so. So please keep listening to hear all 10 reasons to give God praise to deepen your engagement with Paul's letter to the Ephesians inside for living has posted free study notes online, filled with helpful details from Chuck and designed to be interactive. You can write your own personal notes directly into the study notes online or print out the PDF and keep a permanent copy you find this searching the Scriptures study notes for becoming a people of grace@insight.org/studies checks Bible teaching on your station and the Bible study tools we provide are made possible through your voluntary donations. Please don't underestimate the power of your gift of any size. Your contribution truly makes a difference as we help others around the world become a people of grace.

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