COMMENTARY ON EPHESIANS
LESSON NUMBER 11
THE OBTAINING OF AN INHERITANCE
" 11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will: 12 That we should be to the praise of His glory, who first trusted in Christ."
(Eph 1:11-12)
In delineating God's great salvation, Paul has confirmed that God has special words to be delivered to "the faithful in Christ Jesus" (1:1). He has introduced us to the dispensing of "grace and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ" (1:1), and has faithfully informed us that God has "blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ" (1:3). With spiritual expertise he has revealed what he has been given to see - namely that these things are in strict accord with a choice God made "before the foundation of the world," and that this choosing is in order that we might be "holy and without blame before Him in love" (1:4). Further, this is the outworking of a predetermination that we should be His adopted children "by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will" (1:5). All of this required that we receive "redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace in which He has abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence" (1:7). Because, according to His purpose, it is necessary for us to know it, God has "made known unto us the mystery of His will," in strict accord with "His good pleasure which He hath purposed in Himself" (1:9). The appointed outcome of all of this marvelous work, revelation, and participation is "that in the fulness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him" (1:10). It is inconceivable that God Himself would work with this in mind, all the while condoning a salvation that left man neither thinking nor planning for this outcome. Yet, the wheels of institutionalism has disregarded these things in favor of an earth-centered religious emphasis. Paul wrote to ensure that this kind of spirit will not capture the hearts of the saints, but that they will rather maintain a proper view of salvation.
WE HAVE OBTAINED AN INHERITANCE
Eph 1:11a "In whom also we have obtained an inheritance . . ."
The spotlight is now shining on Jesus. He is the One in whom all of the following thoughts are to be considered. Paul has said he is "an apostle of Jesus Christ" (1:1). He confirmed that grace and peace come from Him (1:2). "All spiritual blessings" have been made available to us "In Christ", (1:3). God chose us "in Him" (1:4). We were predestinated unto the adoption of children "by Jesus Christ to Himself" (1:5). God has "made us accepted in the Beloved" (1:6). We have "obtained redemption through His blood" (1:7a). We have "the forgiveness of sins" through Jesus (1:7b). God's purpose is to "gather together in one all things in Christ" (1:10).
When we begin to speak about salvation and all of the things included in it, Jesus Christ must be the prominent part of our speaking, and it must all be gathered together under the heading of the purpose of God. This is not a time to major on human response, but is rather the time to emphasize the One through whom salvation is acquired, and the One to whom He has reconciled us. I fear there is too much talk about salvation without a due emphasis upon the Savior and the God who sent Him.
IN WHOM. The "whom" of reference is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the required environment in which everything about salvation is realized. The prominence of this perspective in Scripture is staggering for its greatness. Things that are declared to be "in" Him are: faith (Acts 24:24), redemption (Rom 3:24), believing (Rom 3:26), the saved themselves (Rom 8:1), and "the law of the Spirit of life" (Rom 8:2). There is also "the love of God" (Rom 8:39), "one body" (Rom 12:5), approval (Rom 16:10), sanctification (1 Cor 1:2), hope (1 Cor 15:19), and establishment (2 Cor 1:21). There is also triumph (2 Cor 2:14), speaking truth (2 Cor 2:17), the doing away of the veil of obscurity (2 Cor 3:14), and new creatureship (2 Cor 5:17; Eph 2:10). Add to that liberty (Gal 2:4), the confirmation of the covenant (Gal 3:17), the oneness of believers (Gal 3:26), faithfulness (Eph 1:1), all spiritual blessings (Eph 1:3), trust (Eph 1:12), and being made nigh (Eph 2:14). There are also God's promises (Eph 3:6), God's eternal purpose (Eph 3:11), the truth (Eph 4:21), rejoicing (Phil 1:26), consolation (Phil 2:1), the proper mind-set (Phil 2:5), the prize of the high calling (Phil 3:14), ultimate perfection (Col 1:28), the will of God (1 Thess 5:18), faith and love (1 Tim 1:14), the promise of life (2 Tim 1:1), and God's purpose and grace (2 Tim 1:9). Let us not forget grace (2 Tim 2:1), salvation (2 Tim 2:10), living godly (2 Tim 3:12), boldness (Phile 1:8), a good manner of life (1 Pet 3:16), and preservation (Jude 1:1).
I hardly see how the Lord could have made the absolute centrality of Christ more plain! Yet, this has been largely hidden from the nominal church. The average "Christian" has had to wait many years for this to dawn upon his soul. This has not been owing to any ambiguity of the truth, but because the professing church has embraced another man-made emphasis.
WE HAVE OBTAINED. There is a certain perspective that is unique to those in Christ Jesus. They are said to have obtained things of which they only have the firstfruits. We have, for example "obtained mercy" (Rom 11:31; Heb 4:16) - yet, not the whole of it. We have obtained salvation (1 Thess 5:9; 2 Tim 2:10) - but the greater part of it is yet to come (1 Pet 1:5). Abraham "obtained" the promise after he had patently endured (Heb 6:15) - yet, not the whole of it. We have "obtained like precious faith" (2 Pet 1:11) - and yet it continues to grow (2 Thess 1:3). The firstfruits are a pledge of what is to come. Forsake them, and the inheritance is forfeited.
AN INHERITANCE. What a statement is this: "we HAVE OBTAINED an inheritance." The NIV omits this phrase, substituting "we were also chosen." Other versions read, "we were made a heritage," ASV "we have a heritage," BBE "we were given an inheritance," CJB "made us His inheritance," CSB "we are called by lot," DOUAY "we have become gifts to God that He delights in." LIVING "were made [God's] heritage (portion) and we obtained an inheritance." AMPLIFIED
Although this expression is, in a sense, a difficult one, it must be considered within the context of God making a people for Himself (2 Cor 5:18; 1 Pet 2:9), and the church being prepared to be presented unto Christ (Eph 5:27). Our inheritance is within that context - what we will be to God and Christ. In its essence, salvation has to do with what is left after we have passed away, and the heavens and earth themselves pass away. Then God shall have the people He intended, Christ shall have the bride He was destined to have, and we will possess what salvation has suited us to have.
By saying we "have obtained an inheritance," the Spirit is calling upon us to see the matter from God's perspective - -and that is precisely what He will develop in the following clauses. From heaven's point of view, the inheritance is sure because God has chosen the ones who will partake of it. From our point of view, we have "obtained" it by virtue of where God has placed us - "in Christ." Everything required for our adequate preparation is provided in the environment in which God has placed us. If we will abide there, working out our own salvation with fear and trembling, the inheritance is sure. If we choose to leave the environment because of an inordinate love for the world, the inheritance is forfeited. Paul reasons from the standpoint of us abiding.
BEING PREDESTINATED ACCORDING TO PURPOSE
1:11b " . . . being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of is own will."
When speaking of the sureness of obtaining the inheritance, Paul does not draw our attention to what we did. It is certainly not that our response to the Gospel is of no importance, and no person of understanding would presume such a thing. There was inestimable value in us calling upon the name of the Lord (Acts 2:21), coming to Jesus (Matt 11:28), believing on His name (Acts 16:31), repenting of our sin (Acts 3:19), confessing Jesus before men (Acts 8:37), being baptized into Christ (Acts 2:38), and rising to walk in the newness of life (Rom 6:4). It is a blessed thing when men turn to God from idols, to serve the living God, and to wait for His Son from heaven (1 Thess 1:9). Who does not know the worth of receiving the Word of God in truth (1 Thess 2:13). However, if the faith of the saints is to be so anchored that they will grow and mature, we must consider what God has done in the matter of our salvation. You cannot promote faith in God and commitment to Christ by speaking of what you have done! Even though what you have done in responding to the Gospel is good, it is not a suitable foundation for reasoning.
BEING PREDESTINATED. "Being predestinated." Other versions read, "having been predestined," NASB "having been destined," NRSV "having been foreordained," ASV "being marked out from the first," BBE "who were picked in advance," CJB "God also decided ahead of time to choose us," GWN and "for we had been foreordained (chosen and appointed beforehand)." AMPLIFIED
You will notice that Paul takes no time to provide an explanation concerning how this does not mean we do not have a free will, or that it does not violate man's free moral agency. He makes no attempt to harmonize it with any particular doctrine concerning man and his ability or freedom. One cannot read this text and conclude that man in any way compelled or dictated this choice. This is the Divine explanation for why we have "obtained an inheritance." Viewing the inheritance from another point of view, Peter traces it back to God's work: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you" (1 Pet 1:3-4).
In this first chapter of Ephesians, this is now the third time the Spirit has brought up the matter of being predestinated or chosen. "He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world . . . having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself . . . being predestinated" (Eph 1:3,5,11). In all three texts the means through which the choosing or predestination took place was Jesus Christ: "in Him . . . by Jesus Christ . . . In whom." The cause, then, was not what man did, or what God saw men would do! This will be further developed in the next clause.
ACCORDING TO THE PURPOSE OF HIM. Other versions read, "the plan of Him," NIV "God's sovereign plan," LIVING "the intention of Him." WEYMOUTH Most of the versions read "purpose" - not man's purpose, but God's "purpose!" The text does not say the predestination was according to Divine prescience - seeing what man would do. What kind of confidence would such a statement gender in the heart of men? We are plainly told that the determination of those who would "obtain" the inheritance was what God had purposed to do. No matter how many theological filters a person attempts to pass this text through, it is imperative that their conclusion be that it all was because God had purposed to do it. That is what the text says.
WHO WORKETH ALL THINGS AFTER THE COUNSEL. Now Paul elaborates on this statement. Other versions read, "works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will," NIV "who accomplishes all things according to the counsel of His will," NRSV "who does all things in agreement with His designs," BBE "effects everything in keeping with the decision of His will," CJB "which makes everything work the way He intends," GWN "who guides all things as He decides by His own will," NJB and "Who works out everything in agreement with the counsel and design of His [own] will." AMPLIFIED
God does not work according to what He sees, but according to what He wills. It is His will that He is pleased to carry out, not man's will. There is such a stress on this that it is astounding that men have missed it so easily. This can only be missed if a corrupt view of Divine intentions is embraced, and, in view of the abundance of revaluation, that is not permissible.
By saying God "works all things according to the counsel of His will, NKJV the Spirit is plainly saying that salvation is wholly God's work. The driving power behind every aspect of salvation clearly belongs to God alone, and that power is employed in strict accordance with what He purposed before the world was ever formed. Thus Paul wrote to Timothy, "God . . . Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began" (2 Tim 1:8-9). That is the very thing being affirmed in this text. The purpose for the affirmation is the establishment and maturity of the saints of God.
THAT WE SHOULD BE TO THE PRAISE OF HIS GLORY
1:12 "That we should be to the praise of His glory, who first trusted in Christ."
Paul continues to underscore the ultimate purpose of salvation. If professing believers are to finish the race set before them, they must be made aware of the purpose for which they have been saved. They are primarily to be an exhibit of what God can produce by His grace. It is the work of grace that is being made known, not merely its reality. God is not showing the world and angels that He can overlook sin, or learn to live with it being lived out before His face. He is not showing principalities and powers that He can love the unlovable and treat men as though they were good, when they really are corrupt. Such views reveal a serious misapprehension of God!
THAT WE SHOULD BE. Other versions read, "in order that we . . . might be," NIV "might live," NRSV "to the end that we should be," ASV "in order that." NIB
This, then, is the objective that compelled the choice of God and His predestination. It is why we have been called and justified, and why we have obtained an inheritance. It is the reason for salvation - from its initiation to its completion. This is the purpose for which we were chosen, adopted, redeemed, and forgiven. Actually, there is no salvation that is independent from this Divine determination.
TO THE PRAISE OF HIS GLORY. Other versions read, "might be for the praise of God's glory," NIV "might live for the praise of His glory," NRSV "So that His glory might have praise through us," BBE "might bring praise to His glory," CSB "so that we might exist for the praise of His glory," NAB and "that we should praise God and give glory to Him for doing these mighty things for us." LIVING The "glory of God" is what has been revealed concerning His Person and purpose. That is, the Person of God is made known in what He has done, and is doing. If "even a child is known by his doings" (Prov 20:11), what may be said of the mighty God of heaven? The phrase "to the praise of His glory" is mentioned twice in Scripture - both times in Ephesians (1:12,14). Ephesians 1:6 speaks of "the praise of the glory of His grace" - that is, when God's grace is perceived, He is given glory for it.
Some versions read that "we should praise God and give Him glory" for what He has done in us. LIVING While this is certainly true, it is not the meaning of this text. We are not the ones praising God's glory, but are exhibits of His grace, which prompts others to give God glory. This includes angelic hosts who "desire to look into these things" which are announced in the Gospel.
Ponder once again the things through which God has revealed Himself - things declared in this first chapter of Ephesians; (1) - God has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places (1:3). (2) - God has chosen us in Christ before the foundation of the world (1:4). (3) - He predestinated us to the adoption of sons (1:5). (4) - He made us accepted in the Beloved (1:6). (5) - We have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace (1:7). (6) - He has abounded toward in His grace in all wisdom and prudence (1:8). (7) - He has made known unto us the mystery of His will (1:9). (8) - We have obtained an inheritance (1:11).
God is revealed in all of these matters. They constitute His "glory," or the manifestation of His Person. However, the "praise of His glory" is not rendered because we have read these things in the Scriptures, and that is not the intent of this text. It is the believers themselves that become the praise. That is, they themselves evidence the effectiveness of Divine provision, God's choice, His predestination, making men accepted, obtaining redemption and forgiveness, the wise and prudent work of God within, making known His mystery, and obtaining an inheritance. These realities have produced a people that are exhibits of what the Lord can do with a body of believers that had no resources of their own.
But what of a people that do not exhibit the "good works" that provoke men to give glory to God (Matt 5:16)? What of those who do not emit the fragrance of Christ in their lives (2 Cor 2:15), and who are not a suitable epistle from Christ, written with the Spirit of the living God (2 Cor 3:4). What of those who never cause a report of their faith and love, whose bodies have not been offered as a living sacrifice to God, and who refuse to set their affection on things above, and not on things on the earth? What kind praise is rendered to God because of them? What of those who argue about God choosing or electing? And, what of those who acknowledge God chooses and elects, yet provide no evidence of the effectiveness of God.
WHO FIRST TRUSTED IN CHRIST. Other versions read, "we who were the first to hope in Christ." NIV Some feel this is a reference to the Jews, while others feel Paul is referring to himself and those laboring with him. It seems to me that he is rather referring to the appointed means by which Divine intentions are carried out. Paul himself and those with him are exhibits of the process. It all began with believing, then living by that faith. It is true that Paul and those with him believed "first" in the sense of being before the Ephesians believed. However, in so doing they were a living example of how God's glory is praised when his purposes are lived out before the people. The life of Paul, and the response of the Ephesians to it, praised God's glory.