The Letter to the Ephesians Pt. 2
Do you have a memory that you cling to when you are in a tough place in life, for some it may be the birth of a child, a wedding, graduation, first job, a special birthday. Memories have this amazing impact on us. This Sunday as we celebrate 4 wonderful people declaring their faith in Jesus by being baptized i want us to think about our own salvation and fond memories with Christ. In’s Paul’s letter to the Ephesians he gives us a wonderful description of God’s plan in salvation, the importance of Christ and his redeeming sacrifice and how we are adopted into God’s family. I wonder if when Paul is writing this he is thinking of is own conversion, how he was changed, the beginning of this memory may not be pleasant as he fell of his horse and was blinded for 3 days but he saw the living Christ and became souled out for the living Christ. As we anticipate the baptisms this Sunday we will look over this passage and be reminded of Christ and his redemption through Gods plan then we will celebrate through a time of baptism.
Anchor Passage
Questions
When does salvation start? Can you remember the date you accepted Jesus into your heart?
What made you decide to become baptized? do you remember the experience?
Paul uses the word predestined, does that mean we had no choice to be adopted if it was already decided? some translations use different words for predestined, such as chosen or decided, does that change the idea of the verse?
what does it mean to be adopted and be a part of God’s family?
Paul uses the term “in Christ” multiple times, what do you think that means and how can we apply it to our Christian walk?