It Begins With a Divine Inheritance

Turn with me in your Bible, if you would, to Ephesians chapter 1. We've been talking about in this series. Our invitation to intimacy with the Lord God. Tonight we want to see where does that intimacy begin? And it begins with a divine Inheritance. Now, I don't know if any of you have received your inheritance from your folks. Maybe your folks haven't left you an inheritance. I'm not sure what my folks are doing, and I think they're going to spend it all. At least that's what they tell me. But, you know, if you receive an inheritance, that means you receive a blessing, you receive some kind of possession.

As a gift from someone else. That's how Webster defines it. And so when you receive an inheritance, you're getting something basically for free that someone gives you. Our walk with God begins with a divine inheritance. And this evening, what I want to do is, I want to look at five elements with you of that inheritance.

I want to look at the fact of that inheritance. Then, the foundation on which that inheritance is based, and then the fascination we are to have with that inheritance, and then the fulfillment of that inheritance. How do you know it's going to happen? And then lastly, the fame. Who gets all the glory? Through this inheritance. Ephesians chapter 1. Read down with me verses 11 through 14. In him also we have obtained an inheritance. Having been predestined according to his purpose, who works all things after the counsel of his will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ should be to the praise of his glory.

In him, you also, having listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, having also believed, you were sealed in him with the Holy Spirit of promise. Who was given as a pledge of our inheritance with a view to the redemption of God's own possession to the praise of His glory. The first thing I want you to see tonight is the fact of our inheritance.

We have received something because we have responded to. The invitation. If you have come to saving faith in Jesus Christ, responded to the work that He accomplished on the cross. Then when you come to Jesus Christ by faith, you receive this inheritance. That's a fact. And that fact, I want you to see the basis for that fact and the blessing of that fact. First of all, it basis.

It says, in him. Who's him? Well, that's the Lord Jesus Christ. Our inheritance comes. From being one with Jesus Christ, our union is described over in Romans chapter 6, verses 3 to 5, and Paul says this. Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into his death? Therefore, we have been buried with him through baptism. Into death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

For if we have become united with him in the likeness of his death, certainly we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection. When you became a Christian, it was as if you were transported back in time, sort of. You were nailed to the cross. You are buried with Christ. You are raised with Christ. And now you are one with Christ forever. And therefore, you receive the inheritance that God gives His bel Son. Which leads us to this: the blessing of that inheritance. It says in verse 11 of Ephesians chapter 1: in him also we have obtained an inheritance.

It's an Old Testament idea arising out of God's promise to Israel to provide for them an earthly inheritance, specifically the land of Canaan. It was physical. It was tangible. It was something they could set their sights on. They could see it. But our inheritance is different than Israel's. Inheritance. Ours is greater than Israel's. Ours is higher. Ours is enduring. Over in 2 Corinthians 1, verse 20, all the promises of God in him, that is Christ, are yes, and in him. Amen, Paul says. So, all these great promises are in Christ.

And so, whatever you might be looking for. Whatever you might be longing for, you can be sure God promised to give it to those people who believe in Him, whether it be peace. Love, grace, wisdom, eternal life, joy, victory, strength, guidance, provision for all of our needs, power, knowledge, mercy, forgiveness, righteousness, gifts of the Spirit, fellowship with the Trinity. Instruction from His Word, truth, spiritual discernment, eternal riches, just to name a few of the blessings. That God gives to those who are heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ.

Romans:. So, what's the foundation? Of this inheritance. That's point number two. That's in the second part of verse 11.

Let's know what it says. In him also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to his purpose. Who works all things after the counsel of his will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ should be to the praise.

Of his glory. Now, stop right there for a second. The foundation of that inheritance is a sovereign call, a heavenly perspective. We have been predetermined by God to obtain an inheritance. That word predetermined means, or predestined, means to mark out the boundaries. That is, God planned the salvation of the believer. God predetermined it. It's predestined to occur. It is the Holy Spirit who opens our eyes to understand the truth of what Christ has done. And the Holy Spirit grants faith for us to believe and moves our wills to embrace the Lord.

John 16: to 11 talks about the Holy Spirit's work and how He convicts the world of sin and righteousness and judgment, of sin because they do not believe. So it's the Holy Spirit. Who causes us to believe. And why did God do this? God did this to the praise of his glory. That's why God did it. God wants to receive all the glory. You say, well, a little selfish, isn't it? No. Because, see, God's pure. God's holy. God's sinless. See, we're so sinful, we can't think of it properly. You know, we like to receive glory for ourselves, don't we?

We like to gain recognition for the things that we do. We like the pats on the back, we like the accolades. That's because we're sinful. But God is sinless. He's pure. He's holy. So, whatever he sets out to do, whatever he wants to do, is pure and true and holy because that's who he is. And so he does what he does for his glory and his glory only. He doesn't do it for you. You happen to reap the benefits, but he does it for his glory. And so, the foundation from a heavenly perspective is that it's God's sovereign call.

But there is a human perspective, and that's man's submissive will. It says this. To the end, verse 12, that we who were the first to hope in Christ should be to the praise of his glory.

In him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having also believed, you were sealed. So you were sealed when? You were sealed when you believed. Well, wait a minute. I thought we were. Pred to believe. Yes, that's true. That's what the Bible teaches. But the Bible also teaches the volition of man. And I really can't reconcile the two in my mind. I'm not supposed to. It satisfies the mind of God. And my job is to sit back and praise him for what he's done.

But I do know that my salvation is totally a work of God. And it's God who draws me to him. And because he draws me to him and causes me to believe and to have faith in him, I listen to the gospel and I respond. From God's perspective, we're predestined. From our perspective, we put our trust and hope in God. The Bible says in John 1:12, to as many as received Him, to them give you power to become the sons of God.

Then it goes on to say in verse number 13, who are born not of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of what? The will of God. If you go through the New Testament, you're able to see the predetermined plan of God and closely associated with that the volition of man. Within the same verse or verses thereafter. It's amazing how the Spirit of God works because it's 100% God. Get it's 100% man-tuned. And that's 200% of something, and we can't figure that one out. But that's okay, we're not supposed to figure it out.

There are some things left unfigured out here on earth that are finite minds. But when you get to heaven, it'll all be revealed and you'll understand it. God just wants you to make sure that. You have no part of your salvation, and you don't think that you do. Romans 10:17 says, What? Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God, right? So we know that because people give the Word of God and they preach the Word of God, and people listen and hear. The word of God, then we know that there's some volition involved in it, right?

Learn about that with Acts chapter 10 and Cornelius. Here was a man who was a devout Jew. He belie in God, but he needed to have the revel. And Peter was to come, and Peter was to tell him all the facts of the gospel. And Peter's talking and spelling everything about the incarnation of Christ and the resurrection of Christ and the crucifixion of Christ and all that's there. And before he could finish his sermon, they all believed. And the Holy Spirit came down upon them, and they were baptized with the Holy Spirit.

Can you imagine that? The Spirit of God interrupting Peter's sermon. But he did, because these people were so right to believe. They listened and they received. The word of God. Which leads me to the third point: the fascination of inheritance.

Over in Ephesians chapter 1, verse 18, it says, Paul prays. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what are the riches of the glory of his inheritance. And then in Romans:, the riches of his goodness. Colossians 1:2, the riches of his glory, of the mystery of Christ. Colossians 2 :2, the riches of understand. See, the whole concept of this fascination is the fact that God is immeasurably wealthy. The riches of glory, the riches of his mercy.

The riches of his grace, the riches of his patience, oh, the depth of his riches, Paul says, that he would come down to man who is so poor, so poverty-stricken, that he would scoop him up, make him a part of his inheritance. And give him the glories of heaven. That should fascinate man. That should fascinate man so much it should consume his thinking, as it did the Apostle Paul. He was filled. With wonder and amazement. The kindness of God could never be forgotten. And I wonder how often. We forget about the goodness and kindness of God, the riches of His mercy.

How often we just glaze over it, how often we just don't even pay attention to it. So many times. Paul couldn't. He was consumed by it. Which leads us to the cont. Of that inheritance. We're fascinated by it because of its concept and because of the content that's involved. When we came to Christ, The first thing we inherit is eternal life.

Eternal life is not longevity in life. Everybody lives forever, my friends. Right? It's a question of where you're going to live. But everybody lives forever. After death, either absent from the body, present with the Lord, or absent from the body, absent from the Lord. See? But you're going to be someplace. And so eternal life is not longevity of life. It speaks not of the quantity of that life. It speaks of the quality of that life, a kind of living. John says it well over in 1 John 5, verse number 20, when he says these words.

And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding in order that we might know him who is true. We are in him who is true. In His Son, Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. John says, This is eternal life. We are in God. God is in us, and we are in His Son. So it's God living in me. That's eternal life. It's a quality of existence. The Spirit of God takes up His abode in your life. He works through your life. You commune with God in your life. Why? Because He has taken up residence.

With you. You're going to have a new kind of living, an exciting kind of living. Jesus says, This is for you.

That's what you need to be fascinated about. But not only do you receive eternal life, but you inherit the whole earth. Did you know that? Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. That's part of our inheritance. The earth is part of our inheritance. You say, well, I don't have much land right now.

That's right, you might not, but you will. In fact, 1 Corinthians 6:2 says that we are going to judge the earth. You and me, belie, we're not only going to judge angels, but we're going to judge the earth. That's an amazing thing that God's given to us. But we inherit the earth. Luke 22:-3 with Revelation 20. Verse number four extends the promise of what we will do and what we will receive when Christ comes back in all of his glory to rule and reign. We will rule and reign with him. Why? Because the earth is going to be ours.

And then you also receive not only eternal life and not only the whole earth, but you get all the promises. Over in Hebrews chapter 6, listen to what. The writer of Hebrews says in verse number 10 and following, For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love which you have shown toward his name and having ministered and still ministering to the saints. And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope until the end, that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who, through faith and patience, inherit.

The promises. What promises? What promises do we inherit? All the promises that God has given in His Word. Are our. God has given them to us. He says over in Revelation 21, verses 1 and 2. When he talks about that new heaven and the new earth in the new Jerusalem descending down, he says in verse number seven, He that overcomet shall inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. We are the sons of God. We are the overcomers. And you're going to inherit all things. Everything that the Son has, you have.

Everything that God has, you have. That's our inheritance. Now, when my parents die, I will obtain all that they have, unless, of course, they Spend it all and settle it all between now and then. And they have the right to do that. But when they die, if the Lord takes them home, that's all mine. But, folks, I want to know something. That's not very much. I don't know what your folks are going to leave you. I'm not sure where I'm going to leave my kids. But it's not very much. But with God, He owns it all, right?

The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. And we are the ones who are going to inherit the earth. And we are the ones that are going to rule on the earth. And God says, it's yours.

You're going to inherit all things. Take it. And nobody said amen. How come? You say, hey, amen, this is great. Let's all die and go to heaven. Come back, Lord. Come quickly. And the fascination of this thing is something that should consume us. Because to walk in the intimate relationship with God, you've got to be fascinated with Him. In what he gives. Which leads us to the fulfillment. How do I know this is going to happen? How do I know that I'm going to die and wake up, and God's going to say, Sorry, we gave it all away.

You get nothing. You know, sorry, we gave it to those who came before you. You'll have to have virtually zilch. How do I know it's going to happen? I know because God tells me, He gives me a seal. And then he gives me a sure. It says down in Ephesians chapter 1, verse 13. In him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, having also believed, you were sealed in him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge. Of our inheritance with a view to the redemption of God's own possession.

He says, You were sealed. You've been sealed. To be sealed means that an official document would be sealed with wax. And some king or some dignitary would take his signet ring and place it in that wax to certify the fact that that document was official. And the Lord God says, This is an official document.

This is truth. Because my spirit is the signet ring, my spirit is that seal. That confirms the fulfillment of my promises. When you come to Christ, the Spirit of God resides within you, right? It says over in Romans chapter 8, verse 9: if any man had not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. So, if you don't have the Spirit, you're not a Christian. If you're a Christian, you've got the Spirit. 1 Corinthians 6:19, your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Romans 8:14: As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

How do you know the sons of God? Well, they are the ones who are being led by the Spirit of God. Why? Because the Spirit of God indwells them, and God says, I've given you my Spirit.

That's the seal. That's the thing that puts it all together. It makes it official. And then he goes on and says this: the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge. Of our inheritance. Or maybe your Bible says the earnest or earnest of our inheritance. It's a word that means down payment. God says, I guarantee this.

To do that, I'm going to give you my spirit. Which leads us to the fame of our inheritance. Who gets all the glory? Last phrase, verse number 14, to the praise of his glory. Again, he uses it. Four times. Blessed. Praise. Glory be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Verse number three.

Verse number six: the praise of his glory, of his grace. Verse number 12, to the praise of his glory. Verse number 14, to the praise of His glory. The Lord said in Isaiah 4, verse 8: I will not give my glory to another. It 's just not going to happen. Can't happen because God's not going to let it happen. Satan tried to get that glory. God booted him. Can't have it. It's his. He's got a market on glory because he is the God of glory. And I don't want to burst anybody's ego or anything, but just let you know that God did not save you because he had pity on you.

God did not save you because he wanted to rescue you from eternal damnation. You know why God saved you? For his glory. That's the only reason. Oh, granted, you are rescued from the pit. Granted, he does have pity on you. But that's not why he saved you. He saved you to the praise of his glory. Remember Philippians 1, verse number 29? For to you it has been grant for Christ's sake. To believe on him. Not for your sake, but for Christ's sake. Everything has to do with God. It begins with God. And his will, his design, his direction, and it ends with God and His will.

In his glory, because he gets all the glory, and he should. I mean, look at what has happened to our lives.

Look what he's done for us, look what he's given to us. We claim not. We can't claim a thing. There 's nothing that we've done that can say, yeah, I did it. I had enough faith to believe. I repented. Oh, you have faith and you got to repent, but it's all of God. He grants all those things because it's the Lord God who draws us to Himself. He's going to receive all the glory. He's going to receive all the credit. And we'll bow down before Him. We'll praise His holy name all through eternity for what He's done.

And he wants you to understand that if you're going to walk with me, if you're going to have an intimate relationship with me, it all begins with a divine inheritance that I have given you. It's all of me. And that inheritance includes eternal life because you're in Christ and Christ is in you. Therefore, all kinds of things have happened. There's a distinct transformation. There's a kind of life that gives you an affliction because you identify with me. But there's deep satisfaction that can only come through the Lord Jesus Christ.

And I've given it to you. That's part of your inheritance. That's where it all begins. I'm going to spell it all out for you. I don want you to be dismayed. I don want you to be troubled. I don want you to wonder about what's there. It's all there. It's all Yours is given to you. Freely, because you have become joint heirs of God and with His Son, Jesus Christ. Now, there's a balance to that. And the balance is this: this is what I've done. I've predestined you, I've adopted you as my sons, I've forgiven you of your sins, you're mine, I've done all these things.

Salvation is a total work of God. But now, listen, this is what you've got to do. And to walk in intimacy with God, it begins with the divine inheritance. And it's balanced with a disciplined obedience. And over the next few weeks, we'll talk about what it means to fulfill the disciplines of Scripture, the disciplines of supplication. The disciplines of service, the discipline of silence, the discipline of solitude, the discipline of surrender. What does that mean? And how does all that come to play so that my walk with God is so close-knit that everybody can see Jesus in my life?