My wife and I were missionaries for nine years. As missionaries, we spent a considerable amount of time on the road travelling from church to church raising support. One of the many roads we travelled was Interstate 95 that runs up and down the East Coast. Of course, when driving south on I-95, we would inevitably end up behind folks driving big RVs heading for Florida. We would see many different kinds of signs or vanity license plates attached to the back of these RVs. However, one the best was one that said “I’m spending my kid’s inheritance.” I couldn’t help but imagine the scene a few years down the road when the children of that particular couple is sitting in the lawyer’s office about to hear their will read to them. As they eagerly awaited to know what they are going to receive as part of their inheritance,the lawyer pulls out the will and… begins to read, “I, Joe Poorboy, being of sound mind and body spent every last penny!” What adisappointment that would be!

The Bible talks about our inheritance as Christians quite often. Matter of fact, in the book of Ephesians, the apostle Paul uses the word “inheritance” four different times. There is no doubt that those who accept Christ as Savior are entitled to an inheritance from God. Yet, unlike the illustration above, God has not spent it all. Instead, Christ most definitely PAID for it all!

In my last post, I noted that we are the richest people in the universe. God highly favors us and He has blessed us with all kinds of spiritual blessings or benefits. Ephesians 1:4-14 lists a number of wonderful benefits we have as God’s children. You can break them into three categories according to the Trinity – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. All three have contributed to the inheritance that we receive from God.

This week’s post is simply a reminder of the benefits we receive from God the Father. He is the one who in time past made it possible for us to be heirs of His inheritance.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

(Ephesians 1:3-6)

There are three words in this verse that point to the wonderful benefits to given to us by God the Father. They are “chosen”, “adoption”, and “accepted.”

One of the wonderful things about God is His supreme ability to foresee and know the future. Adam’s sin in the Garden did not take God by surprise. He knew what was going to happen. Consequently, He had a plan. That plan was Jesus Christ. He also knew that many would understand the need for Christ and redemption. He knew that you and I along with many others would put our faith in His Son. For that reason, God “hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world.” Simply, you and I are God’s chosen people. He literally has set us apart from the world. Of course, His purpose in setting us apart is so that we might live lives that are “holy and without blame.”

Another wonderful benefit from God the Father is our adoption. Paul writes “Having predestinated us unto adoption of children.” Without going into a whole lot of explanation concerning predestination, let it suffice for now to say that predestination simply means “to predetermine.” Predestination is always about purpose. In other words, God predestinated us or predetermine our purpose. In this passage, the purpose stated is adoption. God has already predetermined that those who accept His Son are to be His adopted children. My friends, we who have experienced rebirth are rich because we are the sons and daughters of God.

The last blessing or benefit noted by the Apostle Paul is we are accepted by God. This is a very important point. There is nothing that we can do to make ourselves acceptable unto God. Jeremiah 17:9 reminds us that “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Later, Paul wrote the Romans telling them “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.” (Romans 3:10-11) It is only by God’s great grace that He made us acceptable. Paul reminded the Ephesians that God “hath made us accepted” meaning God set us in a place of high honor.

Christian, God the Father played very important role in making us spiritually rich. If there is one thing you can take to the bank, it is we are chosen, we are adopted, and we are accepted by God. Are you living rich today? Are you living as God’s chosen, adopted, and accepted heir?