In Jesus You Are: Understanding Your Identity in ChristSample

Tuesday: In Jesus I am Blessed

Read: Numbers 6:24–26; 2 Corinthians 9:8–10; Ephesians 1:3

SOAP: Ephesians 1:3

“Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ.”

For many of us, to say we are “blessed” is often used to describe feeling lucky or to be glad we have obtained something we’ve been working toward. We’ll say we’re blessed to be given an opportunity, or we feel blessed a certain situation worked out in our favor. But in Paul’s letter to the early church in Ephesus, the blessing he wrote about had nothing to do with luck and everything to do with the gifts we receive as believers. 

God is blessed because He is holy, and it is only through the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit that we are able to be sealed, adopted, redeemed, and chosen. Those are the spiritual blessings we receive. We are also blessed with spiritual gifts and abilities to serve God’s kingdom that flow out of the blessing we receive when we accept Christ as our Savior.

As citizens of heaven, created intentionally and fully known by God, our identity is rooted in Whose we are, not who we are. The gifts we receive from God are not by luck or fate or accident, but beautifully and purposefully planned out for our good and His glory. This opening portion of Paul’s letter is considered a doxology, as Paul begins his message by first praising God for what He has done in a format that conveys worship and honor. 

In Jesus we are blessed, not because of who we are or what we have done, but because our holy, amazing, wonderful God has chosen to bless us with gifts beyond anything we could ever ask or imagine.

Prayer: God, You lavish gifts on Your children that are beyond anything I could ever imagine. May the words I speak, the thoughts I have, and the ways I use my gifts, all bring honor and glory to You as I remember and tell about the amazing things You have done. Amen.