Dear Brethren,

MEDITATION

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us
with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
Ephesians 1:3

OBSERVATION AND INTERPRETATION

1. Blessed be

a) To bless God’s name was standard feature among the OT saints (Psalm 103)
b) Paul was a Jew who was brought up to bless the Lord’s name naturally

2. The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ

a) The Lord Jesus’ favourite term for God was “Father”
b) This is noted in the Gospel of John in particular
c) Paul linked the idea of God with “Father” too
d) He followed the Lord Jesus closely
e) But he did so with great respect

3. Consciousness of God’s blessings

a) Paul distinguished between physical and spiritual blessings here
b) Physical blessings

i) God has given many physical blessings
ii) But He has not given all physical blessings

c) Spiritual blessings

i) Paul declared that God has indeed given us freely all spiritual blessings
ii) We need to understand what he meant

iii) Where are all these spiritual blessings?

d) In the heavenly places

i) These blessings are in God’s hands
ii) He is ready and willing to give these blessings
iii) But they are not dispensed like “air and water”

e) How we may obtain these blessings?

i) This is something we will be discovering as we read Ephesians
ii) It is wise to prayerfully and humbly discover them

APPLICATION TO LIFE AND MINISTRY

1. We must seek after spiritual blessings rather than material ones

a) We are often more concerned about physical blessings
b) We do not seek spiritual blessings as much we should

2. We must cultivate a good heart

a) One that is grateful
b) One that is naturally inclined to bless and thank God
c) One that is wise and discerning

3. Spiritual blessings are truly precious

a) But these are not appreciated by those with a shallow faith
b) We must cultivate a heart that appreciates and treasures spiritual blessings much more than physical/ material ones
c) Let us learn to treasure what we already have been given

If we are not faithful in little things, we will not be given greater blessings

Prayerfully,
Pastor Charles Tan