X Gospel

  • The Good News

    Eph 1:13 NLT

    And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago.

    The Good News

    God saves you. This is what God wants to do, save us.

    The How

    When you believe Christ.

    New Identity

    God has identified believers as His own, by giving the Holy Spirit, whom God had promised long ago.

    Now it is up to those of us who believe that through Christ we are saved, to also believe that God has given us His Holy Spirit.

  • God’s Purpose For The Jews

    EPH 1:12 NLT

    God’s purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God.

    God’s Purpose

    His purpose for the Jewish people has never changed. They were to bring glory to God so that the whole world would know that He is God. So that the rest of the world too, would trust Him.

    This is now God’s purpose, for all of us who believe Him through Christ.

  • An Inheritance

    Eph 1:11 NLT

    Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan.

    The Inheritance

    This inheritance we have already received. Paul will go deeper into what this inheritance is in the coming chapters and verses. But the point here is that, we have received, past tense, this inheritance.

    We have received this inheritance because we are united in Christ. We are in other words, one with Him (Christ).

    Who

    Again we go back to verse 1, those who are faithful believers in Christ. He didn’t say that He chose those who believe, but those who believe He has chosen.

    What

    His plan for His people, and all created things will be completed.

  • The End Plan

    Eph 1:10 NLT

    And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth.

    The Plan

    All things will be placed under the authority of Christ. This is obviously a future date.

    Christ is going to return. When He does return, He will not come as a savior, but as the King of Kings.

    Are you ready for that?

  • God’s Good Plan

    Eph 1:9 NLT

    God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ—which is to fulfill his own good plan.

    Mysterious Will

    God had kept His plan a secret from the beginning. His plan was that Jesus would be the perfect sacrifice to redeem who so ever will back to Himself.

    God’s Good Plan

    God created mankind for fellowship with him. That was always the plan. Christ has now made that plan possible. Christ was always the plan, from before He created the world.

    We can only be in right standing with God through Christ!

  • Wisdom and Understanding

    Eph 1:8 NLT

    He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.

    Wisdom and Understanding

    For those faithful followers of Christ, God has showered us with all wisdom and understanding.

    Don’t abdicate from this wisdom that God has showered on his people. Dig into His word for yourselves, seek to understand Him, for yourselves. He has given each of us the wisdom to do so.

    There are those who will try to take this wisdom and understanding away from us, do not allow them.

  • Freedom and Forgiveness

    Eph 1:7 NLT

    He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.

    Freedom

    What are we free from?

    The bondage of the sin in which we lived before Christ.

    The condemnation of sin under which we lived before Christ.

    Forgiveness

    Notice forgave is in the past tense. We have already been forgiven in Christ. Now it is up to us to accept that forgiveness!

    This freedom and forgiveness has been purchased for us completely by the blood of Christ. In other words we deserved to die, but God substituted Christ’s death for ours!

    We are free and forgiven at a very high price. A price that we do not have to pay. Another word used for this is redemption.

  • Glorious Grace

    Eph 1:6

    So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son.

    Grace

    God’s favor given on the merit of Christ Jesus.

    Thought

    So we should praise God because we know the person we were before Christ. How can God possibly accept us? Because He also knew who we were.

    Yet He has poured out on us in a lavish manner His favor.

    The us, once again, refers to those who belong to Christ.

  • God’s Pleasure

    Eph 1:5 NLT

    God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.

    The Plan

    God’s plan was always to commune with mankind. Knowing all, He was not surprised by mankind falling into sin.

    So His plan all along was to reconcile those who believe Him to Himself through Jesus Christ.

    To adopt us into His family!

    Why

    For His pleasure. We who believe Him and are faithful to Him are pleasing to Him.

  • Without Fault

    Eph 1:4 NLT

    Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.

    Who is us?

    These verses are not written in isolation. So us is referring to Vs. 1 God’s holy faithful followers. It is not more complicated than that.

    When

    God had this plan from the beginning, He would make those who would believe Him holy and without fault.

    How

    In Christ. It is only possible through the completed work of Christ that we can be seen by God as completely holy.

    Result

    Is that we are without fault in God’s eyes. Imagine that, the all knowing creator God, sees those of us in Christ as perfectly clean, without fault. Wow!

    Grace and peace!