R346 What a Blessing

God has an encouraging word for you and me today through the Bible-based preaching of Dr. Don Wilton and a message called, What a Blessing. As we study the word together, we'd love to bless you by praying with you and connecting with resources. We can do that on the phone at 866-899-WORD. That's 866-899-9673.

We'd love to connect with you. And now, Dr. Don Wilton. Please take a copy of God's Word this morning and turn with me to Paul's letter to the Ephesians chapter 1. Ephesians chapter 1. The greatest thing that God could have done for man was that Jesus Christ, His Son, would come to this earth and then die upon a cross in order that we might live. What a blessing.

That's our subject this morning. I want to read from verse 7 of Paul's letter to the Ephesians. In Christ Jesus, we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins in accordance with the riches of God's grace, that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. And He made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ. In Him, we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of His glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession, all to the praise of His glory.

What a blessing. May the Lord write His word upon our hearts this morning. This word redemption that we find right throughout Scripture and that Janet sang about so beautifully just a moment ago, written in red, it comes from a legal term and it has six basic meanings in Scripture. And I want to just share those with you very briefly because they help us to understand somewhat of what the Lord Jesus Christ has done for us. Six meanings about the term that we find right there in verse seven. In Him, we have redemption through His blood. Number one, it meant legal acquittal. That is, you are acquitted legally in a court of law from a possibility of having been found guilty for a crime.

Romans 4.25 tells us about that. Number two, a second meaning. It means cancellation of a debt. I like that one particularly.

Why? Because it speaks about pardon. It means forgiveness. We read about it in Romans 4.7, Ephesians chapter one verse seven that we've just read about, and it has everything to do with the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ has acquitted us.

He has cancelled the debt once and for all. A third meaning. It means the legal process of adoption. One of the most joyful things that some couples experience is the joy of adopting a baby. A wonderful thing.

It's a process and it involves legal processes and documentation. The Bible talks about this. Romans 8.15, Ephesians chapter one and verse five. And when Jesus Christ died upon the cross, the redemption that we have is tantamount to the fact that in him we become legally and willfully adopted into the family of God's grace.

You know the remarkable thing? Even though that child may not have been born by those birth parents, I want you to know something. When children are adopted, my friends, they are 100% in every sense, 100% an integral part of their adoptive family in every sense. A fourth meaning behind the word redemption. It means to reconcile two disputing parties. Romans 5.10, Paul talks about it. 2 Corinthians 5, 18 through 20. God has taken the dispute that exists between God and man because of our sin and the word of God says because of redemption, we have become reconciled to the Father.

A fifth meaning. It means that we are bought with a price in the marketplace. Here when Paul was writing the letter to the Ephesians, the Roman Empire had over six million slaves. They understood what it was and what it meant to be bought with a price. And if you wanted to gain a slave's freedom, what you did is you went to go and buy him from his former master and then when you bought him, you set him free. You set him free.

You bought him with a price. What does the Bible say? We read about it in Revelation 5.19 and Galatians 3.13 and it's on and on. The Bible says, my friends, that we are literally bought with the price of the Lord Jesus Christ. But there's a sixth meaning behind redemption. It means, my friends, that we are released from captivity.

I love that. You know what Jesus said? Jesus said in John 8 and verse 34, everyone who commits sin is what? Is a slave to sin. Paul put it like this. He said, all of us have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

And here's what happened. You see, sin, my friend, is man's captor and sin captors man, puts him in bondage and demands release. What is death? Death is the price for sin. It is the end result of our captivity and death, my friend, is the price that has to be paid for our redemption. So what is redemption? What then is redemption? What was the Apostle Paul talking about? Why was this such a blessing? Why is this the longest verse in all of scripture?

Why in the original language are there no punctuation marks? I mean, it just goes on and on. It just bubbles up. You can feel it coming from his toenails. The Apostle Paul doesn't even know how to get a hold of himself. Why is he so excited about the redemption that we have in the Lord Jesus Christ?

Why? Because redemption is the act of God by which the price was paid in full. That's what redemption is. It is God's ultimate act in which the price for our sin has been paid in full. I spoke to someone this week again.

Happens week after week and day after day. There are people in this congregation, others watching by way of television today, who would say, but pastor, how could I ever be forgiven after what I've done? I've got such good news for you this morning. The price has been paid in full. That is God's ultimate act. That is God's grace. That is the love of God. The epitome of everything that God is, that he would reach down to us as sinners condemned to die. And because of the blood of Jesus Christ, you and I have been set free. That's what Paul is trying to say in verse seven. In him, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sin in accordance with the riches of God's grace. It is everything to do with the grace of God. Well, what are the elements of redemption?

Three elements. I want to give them to you. Number one, the redeemer. You cannot talk about redemption without talking about God.

Verse six, the first part there is talking about the grace of God, not man's grace. You see, it's the Old Testament concept of the kinsman redeemer that Paul begins to evoke here in the opening verses of his letter to the Ephesians. The kinsman redeemer. What qualified a person to be a kinsman redeemer? Number one, he had to be related to the one needing redemption.

He had to be. He couldn't be a kinsman redeemer if he wasn't related to the one who needed to be set free. Well, how did God overcome that? God so loved the world that he gave his only son. What did Jesus do? Jesus became one with us.

He was related to us. He was, he is man. He was fully God and fully man. He took upon himself the sin of the world, even though he knew no sin.

But there was a second qualification. He had to be able to pay the price. And God said, you are my son. You are the only one who is capable of, and you are the only one who has my authority to do what? To pay the price for man's sin.

Now mankind today doesn't want to accept that. So what do we do? We go to church. We go to seminary. We sing in the choir. We go on tour. We play the piano.

We give money to the building fund. We stand on our heads. We get involved in everything.

We sing songs. We stand up and we preach and we say, I'm going to do whatever it takes and whatever I can do in order to gain God's forgiveness and his grace. And the Bible says that there was only one person who was qualified to be our kinsman redeemer. And that was the Lord Jesus Christ.

Why? Because he alone is the son of the living God. He is related to us because he became man. He's able to pay the price because he has the permission of his father, which is in heaven. But in the third place, he is qualified because he was willing to do so. There was nothing reluctant about the Lord Jesus Christ.

There was no hesitancy. The Bible says God's love is demonstrated toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ willingly gave his life for us. He was willing to set us free.

Can you imagine that just for one moment? There's the redeemer, but second element is the redeemed. That's us. Verse one tells us about it. To the saints which are in Spartanburg, South Carolina. In my letter in the Encourage of this week, I started out trying to be like Paul. To all the faithful brethren in Spartanburg, Paul was talking about the redeemed. He was talking about the focus of God's grace. He was talking about the most wonderful news that could ever be shared with any person at any time and that is that all people, all people are eligible for God's grace.

No one is exempt. The word says red and yellow and black and white. All people are so precious in God's sight. The redeemer and the redeemed. But then the third element is the redemptive price.

What did it cost? In order for us to be set free. That's what verse seven is all about. And it points right there, Janet Pascal, to the blood of Jesus. Exactly what you and our choir were singing about a moment ago. Oh the blood of the Lord Jesus.

Why? Because it was the blood that brought men back from the slave market. I want you to all turn with me to Hebrews. Get your Bibles, turn with me to Hebrews chapter nine.

Love to hear those pages turning here in God's house. Hebrews chapter nine. Listen to verse 12 through 14. The Bible says that Jesus did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves. But he entered the most holy place once for all hell by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more then will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death so that we may serve the living God.

Peter put it like this in First Peter. He said, We are not redeemed with perishable and corruptible things like silver and gold, but with the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Isn't it wonderful? What a blessing, my friends, to think this morning that every single one of us are prime candidates to receive the riches of God's grace because he shed his blood upon the cross. So why is this a blessing?

Let's just look at it very briefly. Why is redemption such a blessing? Reason number one, because we receive forgiveness through redemption. That's what the word tells us.

It is undeserved, it is free and it is completely complete. The Psalmist tells us in Psalm 103, he said, Guess what? God takes your sin and he cast it as far as the east is from the west and he remembers it no more.

What takes place? Number one, we are forgiven of our sin when we trust by faith and repentance in Jesus Christ. Number two, it enables us to go and forgive somebody else. Is there somebody else that you haven't forgiven? That's what redemption does for you. But number three, you're listening?

Number three, it helps you to forgive yourself. Friends, I become more and more convinced today that one of the greatest problems that we have is our inability to forgive ourselves. And we carry all this baggage around with us all the time. And we just can't. I see some people who are so loaded and weighed down.

They're just so down. They're carrying all this baggage with them all the time because of what they've done or they haven't done. And what does God's word say? God's word says that because of the redemption that we have in Christ Jesus, number one, we are set free. Burdens are lifted at Calvary. Number two, by his grace, he enables us to forgive others for what they've done to us. And then number three, he helps us to forgive ourselves, to be set free within our own hearts and lives. What a blessing to think that we have the forgiveness of God in Christ Jesus.

But there's a second reason why this is such a blessing. Because we receive wisdom and prudence. Look with me at verse eight. Look at verse eight in Ephesians.

Remarkable verse. That he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. You say to me, Pastor, what in the world is wisdom according to what Paul is trying to say? Wisdom, my friends, is the knowledge that sees into the heart of things. When you receive Jesus Christ as your Savior, and when you appropriate and apply his redemptive grace in your own life because it has been freely given to you, one of the blessings God gives to you is wisdom. And wisdom, my friend, is the knowledge that helps you to see into the heart of things. It is intellectual knowledge. But running alongside on a parallel track, the Apostle Paul says in verse eight, God not only gives to you wisdom, but he gives you prudence or understanding. Well, what is understanding and prudence? It's discernment. It is insight. It is practical wisdom. It is practical understanding. So listen to this.

Watch me for a minute. As a born again believer, God's taken care of the whole person. He's taken care of your intellectual knowledge. And then he's taken care of your practical understanding. One satisfies the mental and the mind.

The other leads to right conduct. We take what God has given to us in the appropriation of our mind and because of the spiritual wisdom of God's grace, he enables us to see things that we cannot see with our infinite minds. But once we get beyond that point, God puts upon us his understanding and prudence, which is the practical art working of the intellectual basis that God has given us to stand upon. In other words, he says, I'm going to take you from the church place to the marketplace.

He says, if you're a politician, I'm going to take you from the ballot box to the White House. He says, if you're a school teacher, I'm going to teach you my great truths and I'm going to let you take it from the book into the classroom. He said, I'm going to enable you to apply all the riches of my eternal grace because of redemption in and through the Lord Jesus Christ, the practical application of all that I am. It gives us the ability to obey him. Let me ask a question, how are we going to get by without the Lord Jesus Christ? The hymn writer said, without him, I am absolutely nothing. Friend, listen, according to what Paul was saying, outside of the redemption of Jesus Christ, the world is hopeless.

People are helpless. Listen to what the French philosopher, André Morois had to say. This is what he said, quote, the universe is indifferent. Who created it? Why are we on this puny mud heap, spinning in infinite space? I do not have the slightest idea and I am convinced that no one has the least idea.

I do not have the slightest idea. Ernest Hemingway, well respected author, novelist, on his deathbed, he said, crying out, my life is as empty as a broken television with a plug pulled out of it. But, William Shakespeare, one of the greatest playwrights that ever lived, writing in probably his most well known drama, Macbeth, this is what he said, and I quote, he said, history is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, but signifying nothing. What hopelessness. The world out there, my friend, is standing on platforms from San Diego to Chicago, making all kinds of wonderful pronouncements about how the world is going to sort itself out and turn around.

But I'm going to say to you, my friend, that when God, by his grace, sent Jesus Christ to die upon the cross, he said, I'm not only going to give to you my forgiveness, I'm going to pour out upon my people not only wisdom, but I'm going to give you spiritual understanding. I'm going to make the hopeless hopeful. I'm going to make the helpless have sense and purpose in life. I'm going to turn the world around. I'm going to give you meaning. I'm going to write a new song upon your heart. I'm going to answer your prayer and I'm going to lift you up by the very fabric of your being and I'm going to make you a real person again. And because I'm the only person who can do it, I alone am God. I am the Lord your God and you shall have no other gods before me because I am God. That's why.

That's what he said. What a blessing. Please forgive the interruption. We'll be back with more of Dr. Wilton's message in just a moment. But so many folks are asking about this wonderful DVD that we have available on our website right now at www.tewonline.org celebrating the life and legacy of Ruth Bell Graham. Not only does it have a great deal of insight on Ruth Bell Graham, but also a special performance from Bill and Gloria Gaither.

Again, if you're interested, visit our website www.tewonline.org to discover more. Now back to today's message, What a Blessing with Dr. Don Wilton. Forgiveness, wisdom, and understanding. But there's a third reason for the blessing. We receive a holy heritage. Look with me at verse 11. In Him we were also chosen. In the Greek text, my friend, that reads quite accurate. In Him we were also made heirs.

You could also translate it. We also receive an heritage. And here the apostle Paul is saying what a blessing this is.

Why? Because it points to the aspect of salvation which is primarily future. We were predestined before the world began. We received redemption in this present age. But we will receive our completed heritage when we are transported by the angels to be seated at the feast table of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. And I'm here to make an announcement this morning that when you give your life to Jesus Christ, death loses its victory.

Why? Because we will receive a holy heritage. But there's a fourth blessing.

There's a fourth blessing. We will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. I want you to notice that we're not talking about the gifts that 1 Corinthians 12 talks about.

Here it is in verse 13 and 14. Having believed, you were marked in Him with the seal, the promise of the Holy Spirit. What is the gift of the Holy Spirit? When Jesus went back to heaven, He said, don't be afraid. I'm going to send My Spirit. At Pentecost, His Spirit came down in cloven tongues of fire and filled those that were there.

And they knew that they were in the presence of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. The gift of the Spirit is the guarantee of God's salvation in the life of His believers. How does He do it? Two ways. First of all, He puts His seal upon you.

That's what the Word says. It is the mark of God's seal. What does the seal do? It does three things. It authenticates you as being genuine. Number two, it renders you as being secure. Number three, it denotes God's ownership over your life.

I want to run those by again. Number one, the seal of God's Spirit in your life, my friend, authenticates you as being a genuine product. Number two, it absolutely settles the issue of your security according to Matthew chapter 27 and verse 66.

And number three, it denotes ownership. Revelation 7 verse 3. It means that you belong to God.

That's what it means. You are sealed with the mark of the Holy Spirit. God has given evidence. You belong to Him. But that's not only the first thing.

There's a second thing. The Bible says that the gift of the Holy Spirit is your deposit. It is God's deposit. Guarantee it is His earnest. Look at verse 14.

What is it? It's like an engagement ring whereby the two are betrothed to one another, accepting one big difference. Once God puts His guarantee, His deposit, His earnest upon your life, no matter what you happen to feel about it, you're never going to give that ring back to Him again. God has saved you once and for all. So what is the gift of the Spirit?

It is God's guarantee and God's pledge to the life of all believers. Wow. Wow. What a blessing. Redemption. Forgiveness. Wisdom and understanding. A holy heritage. The gift of the Spirit. What does it do for me? It makes me want to worship Him.

It encourages me and it absolutely demands of my heart and soul to tell every person, every man and woman and boy and girl that you must, you must give your life to the Lord Jesus Christ. You must. Because without Him, you're nothing, friend. I'm nothing.

But with Him, we have everything. You've been listening to Dr. Don Wilton as he's been preaching and teaching God's word from Ephesians chapter one in the pulpit. But now he steps into the studio to share his heart. Are you ready to give your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ? Why don't you pray this prayer with me right now? Dear God, I know that I'm a sinner and I know that Jesus died for me on the cross. Today, I repent of my sin and by faith, I receive you into my heart. In Jesus' name, my friend, I welcome you today into the family of God.

This is exciting news. And by the way, don't go away because I'll be right back in just a minute. Perhaps you just prayed with a pastor giving your life to Jesus Christ or rededicating your life. We have wonderful resources. Dr. Don wants you to have absolutely free if you'll call us at 866-899-WORD. That's 866-899-9673 or meet us online at www.tewonline.org. That's www.tewonline.org. We have a number of resources that we believe God can use to strengthen your walk and your faith.

Here's Dr. Don to mention one particular one. You know, I'd love to be a part of your daily devotional. I'd love to be able to send you the Encouraging Word daily devotional and be a part of what God says to each one of us through His Word every day. You can become part of that and receive one yourself from me. Just go online to www.tewonline.org. That's www.tewonline.org and get your copy of the Encouraging Word Bible devotion today. That number to call is 866-899-WORD, 866-899-9673 or meet us online at www.tewonline.org. Remember, this broadcast ministry is sponsored by the Encouraging Word and your generous prayer and financial support. Thank you so very much.