“Already”
“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)
1. The Father already blessed us
John Flavel gives a great illustration he heard on justification. I think it is a great illustration on what it means to be already blessed in Christ Jesus.
“My friend Dr. Roy Gustafson has the finest illustration of justification I have ever heard. It seems that there was a man in England who put his Rolls-Royce on a boat and went across to the continent to go on a holiday. While he was driving around Europe, something happened to the motor of his car. He cabled the Rolls-Royce people back in England and asked, “I’m having trouble with my car; what do you suggest I do?” Well, the Rolls-Royce people flew a mechanic over! The mechanic repaired the car and flew back to England and left the man to continue his holiday. As you can imagine, the fellow was wondering, “How much is this going to cost me?” So when he got back to England, he wrote the people a letter and asked how much he owed them. He received a letter from the office that read: “Dear Sir: There is no record anywhere in our files that anything ever went wrong with a Rolls-Royce.” That is justification.”
As believers, we aren’t trying to get something from God but have already received from God. We need to agree with Him through our words of faith that every spiritual blessing is already ours in Christ Jesus.
In regards to blessing the Father for what He has done Charles Spurgeon makes this statement:
“We are not sitting here, and groaning, and crying, and fretting, and worrying, and questioning our own salvation. He has blessed us; and therefore we will bless him. If you think little of what God has done for you, you will do very little for him; but if you have a great notion of his great mercy to you, you will be greatly grateful to your gracious God.” Praise God!
2. The Father already blessed us with every spiritual blessing
I don’t know how many spiritual blessings there are but I know justification is one mighty blessing! All you Bible scholars try to think of every spiritual blessing you can think of at this moment. If you did God still has more left! Thank the Lord for temporal blessings but we thank Him even more for endless spiritual blessings
3. The Father already blessed us in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus
The location of our blessings is in Christ who is in heaven. The Holy Spirit came down and dwells in us so these spiritual blessings will bear witness in our hearts. The Holy Spirit has awakened us to the “already.” We should live daily in the “already.” If we never live in the “already” we will never live successfully in the present. We will never have confidence for the future if we don’t understand the “already.” We aren’t trying to get to heaven, we have “already” received heaven as a down-payment of our inheritance He “already” gave us. Many hardships and many difficulties from the flesh and the enemy but we always live in the “already.” Praise the Lord!
Introduction:
Abraham is tested by God. As believers, we experience testing times in our lives. The purpose of these trials is to confirm our faith. In James 1:2-3, James writes, “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.” The trying or testing of our faith gives us patience. What does patience mean? Patience is the quality of forbearance and self-control which shows itself particularly in a willingness to wait upon God and his will. Abraham is passing the test because he is prepared by the promises of God and the promises of God has prepared Him for this particular test. What was the main promise God gave Abraham? We can read the promise given to Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3. It reads, “Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” Abraham knew that God cannot lie as Numbers 23:19 and Titus 1:2 tell us. Abraham had faith in God’s character. Abraham lived by the promises of God and not by what he naturally saw. The Apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:7 that we are to live by faith and not by sight. Paul writes in Hebrews 11:8 on Abraham’s faithful obedience, “By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.”He also mentions Abraham’s faith offering up Isaac in Hebrews 11:17-19, “By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.” Abraham’s faith was rooted in what God had told him beforehand and not in what he saw. He was patient because he knew God was able to raise Isaac up from the dead. It was through Isaac that the Seed would be born in order to provide redemption.
However, God not only tests us but He allows us to be tempted. Notice I said, “Allowed.” God doesn’t tempt us but He allows temptation. Look at the example of Job in Job 1:6-12, “Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them. And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face. And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord.” Biblically speaking, God tests us and He allows temptation to come to us. He doesn’t tempt us to do evil.
Follow Through
I remember playing basketball and my friends would tell me to follow through on my goal-shooting. They said if I would learn to follow through I would have a better chance scoring. The “follow-through” is all about continuing your arm movement after the ball is thrown. I played a better game because of it. My scoring was consistent because I didn’t let go of the ball too soon. I followed through.
When we are not confident in what God has called us to do or we halfway trust Him; we don’t follow through. We let go too soon. We give up too soon. Consider the Scriptures urging us to be consistent.
Imagine being in Noah’s shoes. Noah was told to build a big boat because God was going to send a flood. Judgement was coming because God saw the earth was corrupt and filled with violence. Noah did everything God told him to do. God actually told Noah that he alone was righteous. Noah lead his family and was consistent in the will of God. His consistent relationship with God allowed him to follow through.
Abraham and Sarah were considerably old when Sarah gave birth to Isaac. However, Abraham didn’t waver at the promise of God. It was through Isaac that Jesus would be born. Abraham cooperated with the redemptive plan of God before Jesus was ever born. Jesus said, “Your father Abraham rejoiced as he looked forward to my coming. He saw it and was glad.” Abraham was consistent.
Daniel kept praying after the Babylonian government decreed no one could pray to Daniel’s God. Daniel followed through and he reaped a harvest of blessings. Daniel was consistent and intentional with his relationship with God.
Jesus followed through with the Father’s will by taking our sins and giving us His righteousness. If we follow His example, then we will reap an untold harvest of blessings.
“Who Are You Living For?”
Out of the 26,639 people who completed the 2016 Boston Marathon, 72-year-old Fran Drozdz finished 26,639th. Dead last. The roaring crowds and official coronations had departed. Workers were still tearing down the stands and barricades when she crossed the finish line at 8:45 p.m.
But the real story is not her last place finish; it’s about who she was running for. Drozdz has run in more than 75 marathons throughout her life, and she ran the Boston Marathon this year for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Her husband, who is currently battling cancer himself (for the third time), met her with a medal at the finish line. He had called the police earlier in the day, thinking his wife might have gotten lost or hurt. As one media outlet reported, “It turns out this race’s ‘loser’ is quite the winner.”
Who are you living for?
In the end, only what is done for Christ will last. Where are your priorities? What do you deem important? Are you living in complete abandon to the will of God?
No one likes to finish in last place. In any sport, last place is an embarrassment to most. However, in the journey with God, last place isn’t an embarrassment. It’s a joy. If I know I’m running for Christ, then that’s the only thing that matters. Jesus said, “The first shall be last and the last shall be first.” It doesn’t matter how fast you get there. It only matters who you’re running for when you get there. I love the Scripture:
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
It’s about endurance and if you keep your eye on Jesus you will find He has His reward with Him to give you. After all, He is the Author and the Finisher of our faith. Who are you living for?
DEVOTIONAL STANDARD
Way back when I was a young whipper-snapper and in school, every morning we had devotions. We had a small Christian school at our church. We would gather every morning and recite the pledges (to the American flag, The Christian flag, and the Bible), read our monthly Scripture passage, and pray. This is what we called devotions. It was time taken at the beginning of the day to exemplify our loyalty to our God, His word, and our country. I thank God for those moments! Although, we didn’t understand what was happening then, I definitely see it now. I have no doubt in my mind that the passages of scripture that I committed to memory during those moments have helped me keep up the fight when I thought about giving in. When I would think about calling it quits for good I would always remember Psalm 23, Psalm 1, Psalm 34 or Psalm 119:11, “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.”
Webster’s dictionary defines devotion as a feeling of strong love or loyalty; the quality of being devoted; the use of time, money, energy, etc., for a particular purpose
When you devote something for a purpose or cause, that thing becomes useless for anything else. If Nascar called and said, “We want to use your car as the Pace Car for the Daytona 500.” How many people are going to get in that car and drive it anywhere? A BIG, FAT ZERO! You won’t drive it, your spouse won’t drive it, your kids won’t drive it, and as a matter of fact you wouldn’t let your own mamma drive it to pick up her medication from the drugstore! That car is parked for the duration of time leading up to the Daytona 500. That car gets washed more, waxed more, tires shined, motor cleaned and upgraded, and guarded like the National Armory of the United States, all because it is now devoted to being the Pace Car for the Daytona 500.
“WE GO TO CHURCH ONCE A WEEK ON SUNDAY AND CALL THAT DEVOTION. WE GET UP, SPEND 5 MINUTES SAYING A CANNED PRAYER AND READ A COUPLE OF PAGES OUT OF BOOK AND CALL THAT DEVOTION. “
If this is our idea of devotion we don’t have a clue, and I am preaching to the choir, the preachers, the worship leaders, the pew setters, the pew jumpers, the aisle runners and myself included! We have downgraded the devotional standard to better suit our lifestyles. When Jesus walks up to us and says, “Follow Me” we can’t lug around the net and follow Him. We have to lay aside every weight and sin that easily entangles us and run with patience the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:1-2).
Now, what I’m not saying is that you become a monk and run off to the Himalayas. You don’t have to quit your job, divorce your spouse, and live every day of the rest of your life in seclusion. God wants you in the world. He wants you planted dead smack in the middle of the different cultures of this world. He wants you there because He wants to use you to change those cultures. We have been given an unshakable Kingdom (Hebrews 12:28) and when the unshakable Kingdom shows up through us in the culture, the culture begins to to reveal its shakiness. All of the sudden every culture that can be shaken will be shaken all because God was able to plant His sons and daughters, who carry the unshakable Kingdom, in the middle of a jacked up culture.
But none of this happens without complete and total, sold-out devotion. Ellen G. White said, “We do not belong to Christ unless we are His wholly. It is by half-heartedness in the Christian life that men become feeble in purpose and changeable in desire.” If everything we do isn’t saturated with the presence of God from a place of deep devotion then we aren’t “His wholly.” We are trying to follow God from a distance and distant followers make poor listeners. Distant, halfhearted followers are feeble in purpose because they don’t spend enough time in the presence of Jesus, hearing His words, and being filled with the knowledge of His will (Colossians 1:9). They are changeable in desire because the desire of their heart isn’t Jesus. Jesus hasn’t become the “one thing” in their life. When there is a singleness of the eye there is the ability to focus. When Jesus becomes your focal point and single desire then you have an unshakable, unchangeable desire. So when the culture around you starts falling apart and shaking you have the assurance of being a house built on the Rock!
So don’t diminish the devotional standard because it conflicts with your lifestyle. Sit at the feet of Jesus, spend time with Him, let His words fill you and transform you. The culture wants to put you in a mold and force you to conform, but Jesus is offering you the opportunity to be uniquely transformed! He wants you to be set apart and different!
