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Ephesians 1:3-6 (JDV)

Ephesians 1:3 The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is to be applauded,¹ who has endorsed² us with every spiritual endorsement³ in the sky realms⁴ in Christ

Ephesians 1:4 when⁵ he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be devoted and blameless in care⁶ before him.

Ephesians 1:5 He predestined us to be adopted as sons through Jesus Christ for himself, according to the good intention⁷ of his preference,

Ephesians 1:6 to the praise of his glorious favor that he lavished on us in the One Cared About.⁸

the One Cared About

There is a tendency to see the message of Ephesians as being all about us – a treatise on the Christian church. We – the church – are endorsed, chosen, predestined to be adopted. It is true that there is a lot of ecclesiology in this letter, but Paul makes it very clear in this early section that everything we are or have ambition to be is all because of Jesus Christ. We are endorsed in Christ. We are chosen in him to be blameless before him. We are predestined to be adopted through Jesus Christ. He is the One Cared About. Everything God did or does for us is because of his love for Christ.

Father, thank you for your divine love for your Son, which results in our present blessing and future hope.