Home: The God Who Adopts - Week 2 (Ephesians 1:3-10**)
Ephesians 1:3-10
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Chosen and Adopted
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Ephesians 1:3-10 〰️ Chosen and Adopted 〰️
Note for this week’s passage: I wrote this discussion guide, and the next day, we shifted the passage for the week from Ephesians 1:3-10 to only 3-6. As we always say, every part of God’s Word has something to teach us, so we’ll remain in v3-10 for the Discussion Guide, but know that JP’s sermon was on v3-6, in case there’s some confusion!
This week's passage is in Ephesians 1:3-10, and we couldn't be more excited about our time in Advent so far. We hope that these weeks provide rest in the Lord. As this series is focusing on our adoption by God through Christ, this passage in Ephesians is one of the hallmarks of how we view our salvation in Jesus.
One of the key recurring aspects of the language in this passage is similar to that of our last series (Titus: Grace Precedes Obedience): God alone is the author of our salvation. We see this explicitly in each of these verses:
v4 - "he chose us..."
v5 - "he predestined us...according to...his will"
v6 - "that he lavished on us..."
v7 - "through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses..."
v8 - "that he richly poured out..."
v9 - "he made known to us...according to his good pleasure that he purposed..."
v10 - "as a plan for the right time..."
Now, it can be relatively easy to cherry-pick certain verses for certain beliefs and/or doctrines, but this concept of Godinitiating salvation is on full display here. In each of these verses above, we see the truth of God doing the work inbringing us into His family. It was the Father who initiated adoption, not the adopted. Now, any analogy breaks down at some point, but adoption is an excellent example, as (in our cultural and global context) those adopted are done so by no merit of their own.
The same is true here, as "it would be perfectly fair for God to not save anyone," because it would be perfectly fair for God to do with us as he did with angels, saving "none of those who sinned and rebelled against him. But if he does save some at all, this is a demonstration of grace that goes far beyond the requirements of fairness and justice."¹
And here is where there is some degree of paradox: we hold in tension the belief that salvation is entirely initiated and revealed by God, while at the same time we are to "repent and believe the good news!" (Mark 1:15). Most of the discussion around these two very real and very true doctrines can often cause division or confusion, but much like the Trinity being something that we can't fully understand or explain with an analogy.
With this in mind, we must be careful not to slip into a "believe it and don't ask questions" mentality. We should always seek out truth according to God's Word! But the reality is that both of these doctrines are present in Scripture. Doctrine around election and free will are both present, and after enough digging and studying, we can sometimes come to an uncomfortable conclusion that God has predestined some, not all, to come to saving faith in Him. But the most important truth for us today is that it's God's work that saves us, not our own merit.
It feels like (at least for me) that the last two months we've hung our hat on this concept, as we wrapped up Titus, and today, we are in this passage. While the focus of Titus was that God's finished work should enable and encourage us to good works, in this series, we're seeing that God's initiating our salvation and adoption should compel us to 1) worship Him and 2) consider what reproducing this kindness looks like for us. Our heart and focus for this series is that we wouldsee God's overflowing mercy towards us and, in turn, extend that love towards those around us. For many in our community at King's Table, this means supporting in prayer and action those who foster, adopt, and create space in their homes for those without. For some in our community-- including some of you who are reading this now-- this means you, yourself, fostering and/or adopting. We have several families who have taken a step in faith to create a home for those without biological families to support and nurture them. Through adoption and fostering, we as a church can live out sucha glorious witness to the Gospel, as Christ adopted us, we also can adopt (and support those who do) for children in our community! I hope this doesn't feel like a sales pitch to foster or adopt, but rather, a rallying cry to link arms with fellow believers in our community and live out the Gospel every day.
Discussion Questions
Could someone read Ephesians 1:3-10 for us?
What stood out to you from the passage?
Does this passage remind you of another part of Scripture?
Do you have any questions?
What do we learn about God's character in this passage?
What is the "mystery" Paul writes about in v9? (Hint: it's the method God used to save us, Christ's life, death, and resurrection, found in the Gospel through the Spirit of truth)
How would you define "adoption through Jesus" based on this passage?
What truth about salvation in Christ do we see in this passage?
1. Wayne Grudem, Bible Doctrine: Essential Teachings of the Christian Faith (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Academic, 2001), 289.