Redemption

Ephesians 1:7,14 - In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace...who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. 

In between these two verses about redemption we are given a list of other things we are promised.

• He has made known to us the mystery of His will
• When the last days are here all that He has made will be gathered in Him...if we are in Him, we will be among that gathering
• We have obtained an inheritance by His will
• We have heard the truth which is His gospel of salvation
• We have gained trust in Him
• We are sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise

Do you realize how amazing this is? Guaranteed redemption! These are not just some words. They are words promised to any who call on the Lord Jesus Christ for forgiveness of our sins. This can be done any time, anywhere. I've heard of people being convicted in a car, at church, in the middle of the night. It happens between you and Jesus. You know in your heart of hearts that He has heard your plea and He has supernaturally entered into you...making you in Him.

I have a note in the margin of my Bible that it says in Him and in Christ appear 36 times in Ephesians. I see them underlined. In Him. I wonder how many times in the New Testament these phrases are found? A quick search online came up with about 201. Depends on the Bible version. At any rate, we are nothing if we are not in Christ. before then we walk according to the course of this world, the prince of the power of the air and the sons of disobedience (Ephesians 2:1). We live for self and are wrathful against God (2:2-3). That should give one something to think about. 

Do you know that you know you are in Him? You would definitely know of a time if it happened. You would know you'd been changed. It's unlike any other experience you've had. 

God loves us so much He is willing and definitely able to forgive and give us new life in Him through His mercy and grace, not by anything we can do. We are saved to serve; we do not serve to save, I see written in another margin of my Bible! We are made new IN Christ Jesus FOR good works. 

In chapter 2 there are more promises: 

• We've been made alive with Christ after having been dead in our sins
• We sit in the heavenly places in Him and with Him
• We receive the exceeding riches of His grace
• We are reconciled to God after having been separated by our own desires and wills
• Death is no longer in our spiritual vocabulary

And it's all because of Jesus. Being in Christ, in Jesus, in Him. He invites us in. When you hear Him, respond. It will only be good. It's not so hard to do. Only good comes of it because He is only good. 

My prayer always is: 

Ephesians 1:17-19 - ...that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power...