Lesson 3 - Am I Worthy of All God Has Done?
Read: Ephesians 1 - https://www.bible.com/bible/59/eph.1.esv

The list of what God has done we looked at in the last lesson is pretty intimidating when we consider our ability to live up to all those good things. We know there is no way we can ever measure up or deserve all that. We’re right, of course, we don’t deserve it.

But God . . . That’s a wonderful phrase wherever you find it in the Bible. “But God, being rich in mercy” is a verse we will look at in our next lesson. In Matthew 19:26 the disciples asked Jesus how something could be done, He answered, “With man this is impossible but with God all things are possible.”

As you read over these verses in the Bible again today, I want you to mark or make a note of one word – IN. It’s there over 20 times. What/whom are you in? What/who is in you? What/who is in heaven?

God knows us because He made us. He also knows that sin has left a dark stain on us that won’t be completely gone until He gives us new bodies. So He has done something wonderful, extraordinary, and incredible to us – He has put each of us INTO Christ. In John 14:20 Jesus said He was in the Father, we are in Him and He is in us.

This puts us into a most wonderful position. We are in Him. Can He die again? No. Can anything harm Him? No. Therefore, when we are in Him can we suffer spiritual death or be harmed? No. In Him we have eternal life!

How does God see us now that we’re in Christ? When God looks at us, whom does He see? Christ. Therefore, we are “in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:30). When God looks at us He sees only Christ and His righteousness – never our own.

But God takes it one step further, He “sealed” us in Christ – see verse 13. To understand this sealing, I ask you to go to Exodus 27:1-3 where the people of Israel built the altar of burnt offerings. This was made of wood – what happens when you burn something in a wooden box? The box burns, correct? But this wooden box was “sealed” inside a coating of bronze or copper. Did the bronze keep the heat of the fire away from the wood box? No, if anything the bronze made the fire hotter on the wood. Why didn’t the wood box burn up? The “seal” of bronze kept oxygen away from the wood so it could not be destroyed. Yes, it was very hot at times, but it was never burned up. So we are also protected by the “seal” of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes it may seem that what we face will destroy us, but we are “sealed” in Christ. Since Christ cannot be destroyed, neither are we destroyed.

You are protected, righteous, justified, at peace, and possess all those things in our list – in Christ.
*God knows us because _____
*We are in Jesus and because of that we have _____
*When we are following Jesus, when God the Father looks at us, who does He see?
*We are protected by the seal of the _____