Count Your Many Blessings

COUNT YOUR MANY BLESSINGS

Eph. 1: 3-14

Song: Count your Blessings (742)

Just a few minutes ago we sang about counting your blessings and I want you to notice the words of the first verse again…and the reason I do is because this verse is a pretty good commentary on the passage of scripture we just read.

You see, in these 11 verses of scripture that we read Paul is counting not only his blessing but the blessings that belong to everyone of us who are IN Christ.

Look what he says in verse 3.

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.

For the next 11 verses Paul is going to talk to us about these blessings.

And notice, they are things that “God has done.”
This chapter is not about you or me and what we have done.
This chapter…in fact, the first three chapters of this letter, is about what “God has done” for us.
The last three chapters of the letter are about what we are to do in response to what God has done for us.
The first three are about what God has done.
It is only by HIS mercy and grace that we have these things
So, Paul is going to “count our blessings.”

Now, there is something pretty special here that I want you to see…something we need to learn. Look at the words to the song.

“When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,”

Do you know where Paul was when he wrote this letter to the Ephesians?

Paul was in prison…he was in the middle of a “tempest being tossed.”
But you would never know that by the way he opens this letter.
Look at how he starts verse 3: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
This is an expression of praise…of adoration!

But wait a minute! Paul is in prison! He is in prison because he has been preaching the message of God! And yet, he starts out this letter with praise and adoration!

I would start out complaining…and feeling sorry for myself…and being critical.
How could Paul do this? How could Paul be in a spirit of praise when his life is in the middle of a “tempest being tossed?”

The reason he could praise God instead of complaining is because he “counts his blessings.”

He starts here in verse 3 and he starts talking about the blessings that God has provided through and IN Christ.

And he thinks of one blessing…and then another…and then another…and for 202 words without stopping Paul mentions these blessings.
You see, in the Greek, verses 3-14 are all one sentence…and it is as though Paul gets started mentioning these blessings…and he is so excited and so grateful that he can’t stop.
That is how and why Paul praised God instead of complaining and criticizing.
He looked at his blessings and he marveled at the fact that God did all this for him.
To Paul, his blessings far outweighed his difficulties and he felt so rich in blessings that he felt no need to complain.

And if we will count our blessings too…if we will look at what God has done…we too might spend more time praising and adoring God instead of complaining and criticizing.

In fact, that is one of the reason why Paul wrote this.

Many of the letters that Paul wrote are polemic in nature…that means what he writes indicates what the problems are.
So if you go over to chapter 4 and start toward the end of the chapter one of the things you will notice is that apparently some of these brothers were at conflict with one another.
In verse 25 of verse 4 Paul tells them to “speak the truth to one another”.
In verse 26 he says, “be angry but do not sin.”
In verse 29 he says, “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification.”
And in verse 31 he says, “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.”
From these verses the indication is that some of these people had some strong feelings toward each other.

And what Paul writes tells us why.

Chapter 2: 11-15 indicates that there were some Christians here in this church with Jewish backgrounds …and the Jewish brethren apparently didn’t like the Gentile brethren that much.
And the Gentile brethren didn’t care much for the Jewish brethren.
Old feelings sometimes are hard to over come…and so they were bickering back and forth.

And so what Paul does here in these first 14 verses is he starts out and he says, “None of you have anything to boast of on your own…the blessings that you possess are yours because of God’s doings.”

And ALL these blessings belong to ALL of you…and therefore no one has any right to put himself above anyone else.
And no one should feel inferior to another.

And so, Paul counts these blessings and brings them to these people’s remembrance, to tell them to stop their bickering…and their slandering…and prejudice.

And if we will count our blessings too…and realize that those blessings are ours only because of what God has done.
And that those same blessings belong to our brothers and sisters IN Christ…then we will not put ourselves above another…or below another.
And when we realize that there is no need to be jealous of each other then we will also realize that there is no need to attack each other and criticize.

Brethren, we need to continually count not only the blessings that God has given to us through Christ…but we need to constantly be aware of the fact that those same blessings belong to others who are IN Christ…and if we will do that…we will eliminate a lot of problems.

So, here are the words to the song again:

“When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed, When you are discouraged thinking all is lost, Count your many blessings, name them one by one, And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.”

Let’s look at a few of the blessings that God has blessed us with IN Christ…I believe they will encourage you…just as the song says.

Look at verse 4.

In verse 4 Paul says that God “has chose us IN Him.”

The first thing to understand is you were not chosen based on who you are.
You were chosen because of whose you are….because you are IN Christ.
Way back before the foundation of the world God had a plan to save people and He didn’t say, “In 1971 I am going to save Virgil Webb and in 1995 I am going to save this guy and this guy.”
God didn’t put it in His mind that there were certain individuals that He was going to save and there was nothing they could do about it.
There are some people who believe that…that if you are one of the chosen ones you are going to be saved and there is nothing you can do to prevent it.
That is not what God did.

What God did before the foundation of the world is He determined to send a savior to save mankind…that savior was Christ…and everyone who is IN Christ… will be saved.

Christ is the arena in which salvation is found…and it is up to each of us to do what God commands to get IN Christ.
So those who are IN Christ are God’s chosen people.
Not IN Christ? You are not one of the chosen.

Now, notice that “He chose us.”

The word “chose” means to “select…to pick.”
And that word has many implications to it.

We have all been in a situation where we have been picked to be on a team.

When you are picked you are on “their side.”
If I pick you, you are on my side.

You go to the car lot and you “pick out” the car you want.

That is the one you want…you choose it to belong to you.

You pick out a shirt or a dress…because it is your favorite…or the one you like best.

All of these implications are behind this idea of being “chosen by God.”
You belong to Him…you are on His side and He is on yours…you are one of His favorites.

There have been times when I have been out among people…and I start to feel pretty insignificant…pretty intimidated…and somewhat discouraged.

They are important people as far as the world is concerned…and I am nobody…haven’t accomplished what they have.
But when I think about this blessing…and the fact that I am one of God’s chosen people…I realize that I have nothing to feel insignificant or intimidated about.
I don’t get puffed up and say, “I am a child of God and you aren’t.”
But I am encouraged by the fact that I am one of the chosen ones of the Supreme Ruler of the Universe…and that is something that many important people don’t have…but need.

Brethren, IN Christ you are one of God’s chosen people…and we know what God has promised in eternity for those that He has chosen.

Look at verse 5. Paul says that “God has predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself.”

Did you know that adopted children are special?
Most children do not choose their parents and their parents do not choose them…they simply get what they get.
But adopted children are chosen…they are picked out.

This world is full of wayward, lost, Father-less children…people who have orphaned themselves away from God by their sins.

And what God did was He sent His only “begotten” Son into the world to do all that was necessary so that everyone could be adopted to be a son of God.
Christ went through the necessary process…but only a few have responded to that adoption process.
Only a few have become sons through Christ.
You are one of them…and as a chosen son you are an heir to all the eternal promises of God.

It is easy sometimes to look around at all the things…the possessions that other people have and to feel as though you are a failure…that you haven’t accomplished much.

But let me tell you this…as an adopted child of God…you may not always have the nicest…and most things in this life.
But the inheritance that is waiting for you after this life is over…is far better than any amount of things that any one can possess in this life.

Count your blessings and they will lift your spirits up.

One more, look at verse 7.

7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us in all wisdom and insight.”

Did you know that there is not a sin that you can commit…not a debt of sin that you owe…that HE cannot pay?

That is exactly what this verse says.

“In Christ you have the forgiveness of your trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us…”

Some people think they are hopeless.

They think they have lived so badly…done so many bad things…ugly things…that there is no way they can be forgiven.
And they walk around so discouraged…or completely racked by despair and doubt.
But let me tell you something…this verse says that there is no sin…no amount of sin that God cannot and will not forgive.

And the next time you find yourself feeling guilty…or feeling like there is no hope for you…count this blessing…and get up, rejoice, and give praise to God just like Paul is here…because He has lavished His grace upon you…

You have been redeemed from the condemnation of sin.
And all your trespasses…every single one of them…has been forgiven.

Over in Phil. 4:4 the apostle Paul says: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!”

I know that you each have problems…this life is full of problems…God has always told us that it would be.
But these blessings listed her far exceed the physical, material realm of this life.
And if you are IN Christ they are yours…and if you will count them…and realize that these blessings reach far beyond this life into eternity…even in the difficulties of this life…you won’t be able to do anything but rejoice.

I tell you what you do…sit down with a piece of paper and write these blessings down listed here.

And then write down your problems next to these…and see if these blessings don’t outweigh everything else.
Compared to these your problems will seem and are temporary, tolerable, and relatively insignificant.
Because the momentary light affliction is minor compared to the weight of the eternal glory that is yours IN Christ.

“When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed, Do not be discouraged thinking all is lost. Count your many blessings name them one by one, and rejoice at what God has done.”

Folks, these blessings are IN Christ. The question is then, “Are you IN Christ?”

God desires that no man should perish…He desires that all should be saved.
You can have ALL the spiritual blessings if you will only confess Christ as Lord, repent of your sins, be baptized INTO Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and then remain faithful even unto death.
Count these blessings and make them yours today IN Christ…won’t you come.