Page | 1
July 16, 2023
Why Should We Praise Him?
Ephesians 1:1-14
Reverend Yongchoel Woo
From 2005 to 2008, I attended Drew Theological Seminary in Madison, New Jersey, and completed the Master of Divinity degree program. There was a cross-cultural study course among the required classes, and I chose to go to Turkey. The goals of that class were to have a cultural understanding of the ancient history of Christianity in Turkey, the Islamic religion, and women’s social status in Islamic society and culture. During that time I was able to visit Ephesus. In the historical site of ancient Ephesus, (slide 1) I saw many stone houses, buildings, and public constructions like the Great Theater, a library of Celsus, a pagan temple, and a Christian church in Ephesus, among many other sites. As I walked around the historical sites in Ephesus, I pictured what the lives of the ancient Ephesians would have been like. Having travelled there, every time I read the book of Ephesians, I am able to relate to it in a much more personal way than I do with other books in the Bible.
I want to show you one of the pictures I took while in Ephesus. (slide 2) It seems strange to see that a female figure in the picture has so many breasts. It is the statue of the Greek goddess Artemis (Diana to the Romans), the goddess of prosperity and fertility. The fact that the Ephesians worshipped that goddess shows us that the ancient Ephesians focused their primary life goals and values on living prosperous lives by gaining material possessions and wealth. Indeed, they were a very prosperous people because of the international merchandising trade that bridged Europe and Asia. In contemporary terms, Ephesus was like our contemporary society which is based on capitalism and materialism.
The apostle Paul began his ministries in Ephesus around A.D. 55, and during his two-year ministerial period, the church, which consisted of many Gentiles and Jews, quickly grew. Leaving his colleagues to continue his ministries, Paul traveled around the Mediterranean Sea and spent the rest of his life proclaiming the Good News to the Gentiles. About ten years later, (slide 3) while he was under house arrest in Rome awaiting trial for his Christian evangelism in the Roman Empire, he heard about what was happening with the church in Ephesus. With heartfelt love and passion, he wrote them a ministerial letter to encourage them to get through the many issues and problems they were facing.
This morning, I would like to share what Paul was saying to the early Christians in Ephesus and, in doing so, relate today’s scripture to our lives.
Interestingly, Paul, who knew the Gentiles in Ephesus were deeply interested in gaining material possessions and accumulating wealth, tried to refocus their attention to the different kinds of richness and spiritual blessings they could achieve in Christ. In today’s scripture, (slide 4) Paul uses specific terms like ‘blessing’(v.3), ‘richness’(v.7), ‘deposit’(v.14), and ‘inheritance’(v.14) to draw the Ephesians to the truth of Christianity.
Let’s get into the scripture today. Paul shows the early Christians in Ephesus what blessings they could receive from the Triune God.
First, (slide 5) Paul reminded the early Christians of the blessings they could receive from God, the Father of Jesus.(v.3-6 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ) ) Paul wanted them to know what God has already done for them. Before He even created the world, willingly and joyfully, God has predestined His children to obtain every spiritual blessing in Christ. (slide 6) For the sake of His people, He initiated, prepared, and executed His plan of salvation, that is, adopting His people to the sonship by sacrificing His son on the cross(v.5) By witnessing His marvelous plan of salvation, Paul wanted to make the Ephesians realize that in God’s sight, they, as His adopted children, are precious and special beings who have been remembered, respected, cared for, and honored.
It is four years and 18 days since I began my ministry at the Kalkaska United Methodist Church. As far as I know, there are very few Asians residing in Kalkaska County. One is an Asian lady who owns the Chinese Restaurant at the south end of Kalkaska, and the other is a female dentist who works for Birch Street Dental Care.
When I first arrived in Kalkaska I was concerned and nervous about how many people in Kalkaska would know who Sun and I are, or why we are choosing to live in. Thinking that everyone is noticing us because we are Asians, I first thought we should be cautious about what we say or do in public. However, because we have been living here for four years, I have become very comfortable with how others think about me and my actions (slide 7) because I am convinced that they are ready to welcome and care for me as a pastor. Thus, whenever I encounter a new person I feel comfortable and safe because I think they surely know I am a pastor and treat me as a pastor.
What Paul wanted to say is that even though the early Christians did not know much about who God was and what He had done for them up until now, God willingly and joyfully had been doing the best things for His people, that is their salvation and new life in Christ. Listening to Paul’s witness to God, the early Christians in Ephesus surely noticed how He was different from Artemis , the goddess they had worshipped; While they had to appease her to obtain her material blessings,(slide 8) God initiates to show His compelling and caring love to His people without their asking, adopts them as His children, and accomplishes their salvation and new life in Christ. They must have realized that they were very blessed to receive His marvelous favor and become adopted children and that they were precious beings in God’s sight.
Second, (slide 9) Paul told the Ephesian church what blessings they could have from God’s son Jesus. (v.11-12) He tells them that Jesus lavished His compelling and unconditional love on His people, who had been destined to die for their sins, so that they could now be forgiven, redeemed from their certain death, and made heirs of heaven, receiving the inheritance that God has prepared for them. He wanted the Ephesian church to remember they were made rich as they received His extravagant love in Christ.
In the Michigan United Methodist Church conference, there are more than ten Korean pastors who are engaged in cross-cultural ministries. As we gather together as a group, we often share that we are blessed that we do ministries with congregations who are very accepting, kind, respectful, and welcoming to pastors of a different race, ethnicity, culture, and language background. We often share that our parishioners lavish their heartfelt love on us, for which we thankful. It is true for all of you. Sun and I always thank God for allowing us to do His ministries with you, who have shown us goodness and kindness, hospitality, respect, and heartfelt love.
Paul encourages the Ephesians to remember that because they have become recipients of God’s inheritance through Christ, who manifested His extravagant love by sacrificing Himself on the cross, they should praise Him.
Third, (slide 10) Paul reminded them of the countless blessings they could have from the Holy Spirit. (v. 13-14) He compares the Holy Spirit to (slide 11) ‘a deposit guaranteeing their inheritance until His people grow in faith and accomplish their salvation to be the praise of His glory.’(v.14) In the time of early church, converted Christians had to experience life threatening crises from their families and communities and struggle with whether they should continue with the Christian faith or return to their former religions. For those Christians, Paul’s encouragement meant a lot. Paul says that they were blessed to have the companion of the Holy Spirit, who is always with them to help them overcome their issues in faith and complete their salvation.
After graduating from theological seminary, through God’s grace, I came to Troy, Michigan, to serve the Korean United Methodist Church as an associate pastor. Our very old car soon developed some major mechanical problems, so I was decided to buy a brand-new car. But at that time, I neither had enough money to buy a new car, nor a high credit score. To buy a new car, I needed someone who would cosign in order to get a car loan at a reasonable interest rate. At that time, the senior pastor willingly co-signed with no conditions or strings attached. If something unexpected would happen to me he knew he would be obligated to pay off the loan. Knowing well about his accountability as a co-signer, he willingly cosigned the loan contract, showing his trust in me. I am still thankful to him for the trust and consideration he showed me.
It is a big blessing for us to have the Holy Spirit in our lives. Though we believe in Jesus as our Lord and are convinced that we are saved from our sins and death by the blood of Christ, we still face many trials and issues that block us from growing in faith and becoming the praise of His glory. Because God knows our every weakness, He promised to send us the Holy Spirit, a deposit guaranteeing our redemption, (slide 12) who will accompany us as we go forward in our faith journey and glorify His grace in our lives. With trust and accountability, the Holy Spirit helps us achieve our salvation.
Let me wrap up this morning’s message.
(slide 13) Paul reminded the early Christians in Ephesus that they were spiritually rich because they have been given His precious inheritance, that includes our divine adoption to sonship from Father God, the extravagant gift of forgiveness and redemption from His son, and the coming of the Holy Spirit, a deposit guaranteeing their salvation, to accompany us on our faith journey. Paul encouraged them to achieve this spiritual wealth and richness so that they can rejoice in His lavish love for His children in Christ and their new life in Christ accompanied by the Holy Spirit, and, in doing so, praise His glory.
Paul’s encouragement is as equally relevant to us today as it was to the Ephesians 2000 years ago. Let’s be reminded that we are spiritually rich people who have many blessings from Him. The triune God is the One who gives His inheritances and blessings to us, His children, with no reservations. (slide 14) What matters is that we receive them in faith and live out our faith to be the praise of His glory.
Regardless of who we are regarding our ethnicity, social and economic status, education, or material possession, the triune God is extravagant, giving His inheritance and spiritual blessings. From the beginning to the end of our lives, His gracious, forgiving, and caring love in Christ works for us, and we can experience how powerful our lives will be as we seek to understand and receive His spiritual inheritance and blessings in Christ. We will be able to look at our lives differently and rejoice in our real lives as we fully embrace His many spiritual blessings in Christ. Eventually we can respond to His spiritual blessings by being the praise of His glory.
How can we absorb His spiritual blessings and truths, that is, adoption to sonship, forgiveness, redemption, holy companion, into our thoughts, behavior, way of life, goals, and values?
(slide 15) This coming week let’s spend more time, energy, and passion on understanding the spiritual blessings and truths (which are revealed to us through Jesus, His ministries, and His sacrifice on the cross), and practicing them in our lives. Then, we can make our lives spiritually prosperous and fertile. To make that difference in our spiritual life, let’s come close to Him, and communicate with Him through Bible study and prayer. By doing so, with the help of the Holy Spirit, we will discover how we can glorify God in our daily lives.
Second, (slide 16) let’s think about what kind of deposits guarantee lives of safety and prosperity. We are likely to think that material possessions and wealth are the best deposits that will guarantee success and satisfaction in our current and future lives so we may strive to gain those things. Though we can’t ignore and look down on the power and importance of material possessions and wealth, we should go beyond that way of thinking (and life attitude). Because we should have strong faith in Him, who blesses us spiritually and physically and allows us to be successful and thrive in work, we should have God as our deposit, who guarantees our salvation, and sustains our lives, so we can praise His glory.
He exactly knows what we need, and provides us with His spiritual and material blessings. (slide 17) We should know that His gracious love and blessings are all we need. In His gracious love and blessings, we came into this world with empty hands and will leave this world with empty hands as we enter His heavenly Kingdom. Thus, we should praise His gracious love and precious blessings for our lives, rather than spending our earthly lives striving to vainly fill our hands with endless greed and physical and worldly desires.
Let’s strive to accompany the Holy Spirit, who is our deposit that directs our lives and guarantees our salvation. And let’s discover the many blessings we have from our God as we reflect on our salvation, family, gifts, relationships, possessions, passion, compassion, and mission. As we discover and celebrate our many blessings, (slide 18) what does God want us to do for those around us?
God gives us many blessings so that we can share them with those who need them.
Let’s determine how our blessings can be shared with those around us this coming week. I pray that the Holy Spirit will work through us to encourage us to share our blessings and, in doing so, be the praise of His glory.
