Verses 1-12
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Think of how blessed you are by God! And praise God's grace, because He was gracious enough to choose you for salvation before the earth was ever created.
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Well before you were ever born or ever sinned, you were chosen.
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You were chosen to be blessed with every spiritual blessing that exists in heaven (verse 3).
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You were chosen to be holy and blameless in His sight (verse 4).
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You were chosen to be welcomed into His kingdom and loved as Jesus Himself is loved (verse 6) (John 17:23).
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You were chosen to be redeemed from sin and forgiven.
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You were chosen to receive wisdom and know God's will
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So praise God's grace and glory, and rejoice in your salvation! God is so good!
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Verse 11. Understand that everything in creation happens according to God's will. Everything that happens is in God's will.
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God's will isn't His desire. He desires that everyone be saved (2 Peter 3:9), but not everyone is saved. But He foregoes His desire in order to allow us free will to choose between life and death (Deuteronomy 30:17-20).
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His will is still what's best for the world we live in, even though it includes suffering and death, as everything will end well for believers (Romans 8:28), and everyone will know that God is right, glorifying His name (Philippians 2:9-11).
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Verses 13-14
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After we believe the gospel and repent, the Holy Spirit comes to live within us. The Spirit acts as a down-payment or security deposit of the full eternal life that is coming in the future. We are now citizens of the kingdom of God, but the presence of the Spirit guarantees that our bodies will be transformed into immortality when Christ returns.
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Knowing this, signs of the Spirit's presence in a person's life act as proof that they are saved. Look for signs of the Spirit in a person.
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Are they convicted of sin (John 16:9) and repenting from their sin? Are they showing fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22)? Do they shows signs of gifts of the Spirit (Acts 10:45-46, 11:15-17)? All these serve as markers of the Spirit.
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Verses 15-21
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We should especially be praying for our fellow believers. Think of the believers in your life, and purpose to pray for them continually. We should prioritize praying for believers (John 17:9,20).
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Pray for wisdom and understanding to know God, to know Christ, and to know every precious thing we have in Christ.
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There are depths of meaning to knowing the future God calls us into, plus the riches and power of Christ that dwell within us—that same power that raised Jesus from the dead! There is so much to understand!
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Praying for understanding of all this is important because, as our understanding grows, the more our action will grow. Obedience to the Word increases with understanding of the Word.
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Pray for understanding always! “...Get wisdom; in all your getting, get understanding” (Proverbs 4:7).
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Verse 22-23
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Jesus has all authority, and we, as the church, get to use that authority to make disciples and undo the works of the devil (Matthew 28:18-19, Luke 10:19).
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“As the Father sent Me, so I send you” (John 20:21). Since you are sent with Christ's authority (Mark 16:17-18), use that authority well!
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As such, believers act as the current, physical presence of Christ on the earth, which is one reason why we're called “His body.” Believers filling the earth is meant to be like Jesus filling the earth through the presence of His body.
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Therefore, see yourself and your believing community as people who are meant to be the presence of Christ to others. Represent Jesus well!
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