Ephesians 1:7-8 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight
 
JESUS has risen! He is alive. Now what do you do? Let’s pause and consider, “We have redemption through his blood”. You know that, right? Joyfully, there are numerous songs celebrating this wondrous truth. For example, there is Fanny Crosby’s 1862 hymn “I am redeemed, O praise the Lord!” and we can go to today’s Big Daddy Weave loving rendition of “Redeemed” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzGAYNKDyIU)
    See the wonder of redemption. “Redeemed” means “to exchange”. Redeemed, you are no longer a sinner in God’s sight. Oh no, you haven’t become perfect in the flesh. But you have become perfect in Christ because the perfect, sinless Jesus exchanged his perfection for your sin!
    Paul summarizes God’s loving, wondrous exchange in 2 Corinthians 5:21 “For our sake the Father made the Son to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”  I refer you to that remarkable chapter in its entirety. Take some time to read it, so you may do so in reverence and joy. Pray the Holy Spirit will pour over you the wonder of God’s redeeming gift that you and I do not deserve. 
    Living in Jesus’ resurrection, you can surely, humbly, joyfully and lovingly tell the world, “I am redeemed.” Speak it in awe. Remember that the holy Son of God took his perfection to the cross. He poured out his holiness to all who would believe in him. In him, each Christian, one who confesses his sins and confesses Christ, became sinless. In exchange, Jesus gathered the Christ-believer’s sins to himself. The debt-free Christ took on the full burden of your debts – your sins – against the holy God.
    The Old Testament law gives us a physical picture of this exchange. In God’s law, to redeem land was to remove any debt against it, so it could remain in the family. This redemption of land could only occur through a close relative exchanging his money for the debt. See Ruth, for example, where Boaz, Naomi’s kinsman, reddems her property to her and marries Ruth. Boaz is an example of Christ, a kinsman redeemer who paid the debt for Naomi’s land.
    Yes, your eternal redeemer is your brother, Christ Jesus. He has paid all of your debt against the Father, so you can be in the family of God. In the name of the Father and the power of the Spirit, welcome to God’s etrnal Land of the Living!
    In conclusion, see how Paul describes our redemption. It is the Father’s riches, his lavish grace offering to you. In his grace, the Father pours new life into you. His wisdom and his knowledge washes over us as a cleansing, pure shower of fresh water!
    Again, what do you do with Jesus’ resurrection? You shout to the world, “I am redeemed!” And you let the world know why you love your Lord, Savior and Brother Jesus so very much.
 
Prayer: Thank you, Father, Son and Spirit that I can say, “I am redeemed!” I pray for my friends and relatives who cannot say that today. Move into their lives, Spirit, that they may know Jesus’ knowledge and wisdom for their eternal souls. Amen.

Ephesians 1:4b in love 5 he predestined us for adoption through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will. 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
 
AS you are an astute reader, I’m sure you have noticed the words “In love” at the end of verse 4 yesterday and now here I’ve included it with verse 5. This is the way it is written in several translations, including the English Standard Version I’m using.
    In this week following Easter – Resurrection Sunday – I focus on this “in love” phrase for a resurrection reason. Paul beautifully summarizes why you and I are celebrating our risen Lord today and each day of our lives forevermore. See here how 1) In love, our Lord God predestined – preplanned and planned for – you and I to become his children. 2) In love, the Father has adopted you to become his child as proclaimed in John 1:12 “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” 3) In love, your salvation is not an accident but results from the Father’s “purpose of his will.” 4) In love, we now offer praise to the Father’s glorious grace, the gift of new life in Jesus. And 5) In love, you rejoice in your Risen Savior as the Father has blessed you as his beloved child. In God’s love, you are his. In your love, you worship the living Savior. I like the way the Complete Jewish Bible writes this: Ephesians 1:4-5 In the Messiah he chose us in love before the creation of the universe to be holy and without defect in his presence. 5 He determined in advance that through Yeshua (Jesus) the Messiah we would be his sons — in keeping with his pleasure and purpose.”
    Yes, surely as you confess, “Jesus is my Lord.” you can believe and confess the greatest message in history: Matthew 28:6 He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.
    Celebrate the love God has chosen for you to receive. Rejoice in your heart that loves him in return.
 
Prayer: Thank you, Father, for your gracious love on my eternal soul. I love you, Lord God, Father, Son and Spirit. In my risen Savior’s name, I pray. Amen.
 

Ephesians 1:4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love
 
FROM the Bible’s beginning, we are confronted with God’s holiness. For example, consider, “And the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.” (Genesis 1:1) Who else but sacred perfection, the holiness of God in the Person of the Holy Spirit prepare a formless void to be reformed into a perfect creation?
    Theologian Dr. R.C. Sproul has written a remarkable account of God’s holy character in his aptly named book “The Holiness of God”. He begins the book with his own experience, describing how the holy God called him out of a formless unholy life to reform his life into a worldwide ministry for the gospel.
    What’s your story? Has God reformed your life to his holiness? He has if you name Jesus Christ as your Lord. Hear Paul powerfully teach Jesus’ reforming work in 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” What joy! A holy result of your faith is that you are no longer formless and void. Bless God that with the same power that formed the heavens and the earth, the Spirit has formed you anew into God’s holy presence.
    What, then, is to be your response? Surely we must strive to “be holy and blameless before him”. Yes, we will sin. But our lives are to be a striving to follow God’s true teachings, to live as perfectly as we can because we have a heart to please God.
    Many people say, “God loves me where I am.” That’s true. But know this: Your Creator’s love is so great he doesn’t want to leave you where you are. His passion to make you new is so great, he died for you. How can anyone think the holy God would welcome us as we are covered in sin? You can only stand before God with God’s permission.  
    Paul is affirming that through Christ we have been granted permission to be in God’s holy presence. Confess your sins. Confess Jesus is your Lord and Savior. Be baptized. Enter confidently into a holy life with the Holy God.
    Rejoice and be glad that God has not left you void and formless where you are, but he has reformed you to perfectly welcome you into his holy presence.
 
Prayer: My Father in Heaven, holy be your name. Thank you for making me holy through Jesus’ blood washed over me. In his name I rejoice. Amen.

Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places
 
HAVE you ever wondered what it means to say, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Is it possible to bless God? After all, the Scripture goes on to say, he “has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.” How is it possible to bless the One Who Blesses?
    One way to understand Scripture is to read other translations. We were doing this with our 11-year-old granddaughters the other day. Reading different versions can help unveil the Bible’s meaning. I know most of us don’t have several translations at our disposal, but it is more possible today with the many apps, digital Bible downloads and such websites as Bible Gateway.
    “Oh,” you say, “that takes time.” You are right. What a joyous use of the time God gives to you! Our relational God wants you to invest your time in getting to personally know him. When you know him intimately, you will see how much he loves you.
     Let’s then take a minute to see two other translations on this verse. Here is the Amplified Bible: Ephesians 1:3 “May blessing (praise, commendation, and eulogy [written praise]) be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah) Who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual (given by the Holy Spirit) blessing in the heavenly realm!” The parenthetical phrase is in the Bible translation for the purpose of amplifying or expanding the way the Scripture can be understood. Thus, we see that we can bless the One Who Blesses when we praise him with our spoken and written words.
    Now let’s look at The Living Bible: Ephesians 1:3 “How we praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every blessing in Heaven because we belong to Christ.” Here we see Paul’s language very clearly. We offer blessing to God in the form of praise. Praise is the only appropriate response to the One Who Blesses us with all of “every spiritual blessing” through the life of Jesus Christ.
    We’ll look in the next several days at Ephesians 1:3-14. Through these teachings, I encourage you to read each day this one long sentence. The time you take to become familiar with the passage will open your mind to ways you, as Paul, can live to bless God with praise of his wondrous ways. And now I offer you this spiritual blessing from your Lord God: Numbers 6:22-25 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them, 24 The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.’”
 
Prayer: I am most grateful for your eternal blessing on my soul, Father. Thank you for your great love to come face-to-face with me through Jesus Christ. I pray my life will bless you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

 
Ephesians 1:1-2 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
 
HOW appropriate it is that our study of God’s Word has brought us out of the Old Testament and into the New Testament as we begin to study Ephesians. Jesus is alive! The New Testament of grace is in force. God’s eternal promises proclaimed through his prophets and his servants recorded in the Old Testament are now true for the apostles and for you.
    Yes, the Bible is about God’s plan to redeem mankind from sin. As we have studied the ministries of Ezekiel, Elijah, Elisha, Esther and Mordecai we have seen how God calls upon particular people to deliver his very particular messages of promised redemption. That promise began first to the Jews, then to the Gentiles - the non-Jews.
    As we now go to Ephesians, we will hear great assurance of God’s salvation from the Apostle Paul. Be prepared to “hear” him explain in living detail, the wonder of God’s gospel to the Jews and to the Gentiles. Listening to his inspired words, you will understand more deeply the reasons for the joy in Paul’s heart as he described in Philippians 1:3-4 “I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy.” Let us, too, find joy in Jesus’ resurrection!
    That joy begins in Eph 1:2 “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”  How easy it is for us to quickly go past this miraculous sentence. After all, it is an opening, a greeting. But oh what a greeting! Stop and think of the word “grace”. This is the expression of God’s free life offering to you. Offering his only Son, Jesus, to the cross, God, the Father paid the great, awful and holy price for your great, awful and unholy sins. Purity paid for impurity. By the agent of grace, you receive the free salvation through Jesus’ costly death. Paul could have written his greeting in this way: “God’s great cost to himself became his free offering of eternal life to you. May you know the peace that comes from him forevermore.”
    Know your sin. Know the cost for your sin. Know God’s grace. Receive God’s gracious gift. Confess Jesus, who has died, suffered the tomb and now is alive! Live in joy forevermore!
 
Prayer: Thank you, Father, for your extraordinary, eternal gift of life to me. I pray I live in the joy of my salvation as I submit my life to you. In Jesus’ name I celebrate this day. Amen.

Esther 10:1-3 King Ahasuerus imposed tax on the land and on the coastlands of the sea. 2 And all the acts of his power and might, and the full account of the high honor of Mordecai, to which the king advanced him, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia? 3 For Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Ahasuerus, and he was great among the Jews and popular with the multitude of his brothers, for he sought the welfare of his people and spoke peace to all his people.

AS Esther is typically the focus of the book bearing her name, we must also remember how Mordecai’s life teaches us the power of faithfully trusting God.
    Mordecai acted in the truth of God’s laws. He spoke to protect the king as he revealed a plot to kill the king. He did not bow down to Haman. He cared for his orphaned cousin Esther. Mordecai spoke words of discipline and directive to Esther. And he is remembered for his words of God’s sovereign power: Esther 4:14 “For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”  (Esther 4:14)
    In response to Mordecai’s faith in God’s ways, the Jews saw Mordecai as a savior. Saved from death, they claimed victory against their enemies. This is Mordecai’s legacy to his people. Faithful Jews reading this story in the generations since Mordecai have in this man’s life a testimony to the power of faithfully trusting God’s Word.
    Do you express your faith to your children and their children? Do you live as if God’s Word is true? If you say, “I am a Christian.” then know he has called you “for such a time as this.” Stop and remember, too, the other part of that verse, “For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish.” Be assured God will do his work with or without you. Choose then this day to be a testimony that you are a faithful witness of God’s Word. Be of integrity. Offer a godly legacy. Confess, praise and celebrate your Sovereign Lord, who has saved you.

Prayer: Lord God, give me faith to speak clearly of you and for you for such a desperate time as this for your church. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Esther 9:29-31 Then Queen Esther, the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai the Jew gave full written authority, confirming this second letter about Purim. 30 Letters were sent to all the Jews, to the 127 provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, in words of peace and truth, 31 that these days of Purim should be observed at their appointed seasons, as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther obligated them, and as they had obligated themselves and their offspring, with regard to their fasts and their lamenting. 32 The command of Queen Esther confirmed these practices of Purim, and it was recorded in writing.
 
ESTHER has come a long way, hasn’t she? You could look at her journey from a simple to a lavish material life. You can see how she had no authority as a young woman in Persia, but now you can see how she is a very powerful woman. Her journey of biggest change, though, may have been her journey with God.
    We don’t know her level of faith when she was taken to King Ahasuerus’ court. There is no mention of her faith life while she was in the king’s harem. We don’t know if she believed in God and his commands until she called for prayer and fasting at the critical time to save the Jews. But we do know this: Esther has moved spiritually from where she was in Esther 1 to this point here.
    Esther has experienced God. In the midst of terrible trouble, she put her trust in God. She turned in prayer and fasting to the Lord. Then she literally walked forward in very big faith steps to encounter an all-consuming, self-focused king. She continued forward from that encounter to boldly accuse Haman and to plead with the king for the Jews.
    Esther received into her life the power of such Scripture as 2 Chronicles 7:14 if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. 
    Esther acted for God’s people. God certainly healed her heart to cleanse her of sin. He healed Persia to remove the curse of Haman’s murderous intent. He healed his people’s fear and drew them closer to him. His people are made new through God’s work in Esther.
 
Prayer: Lord God, grow my heart more deeply into you as I experience your saving work over my life and my community. In Jesus’ name, amen.
 
Good Friday Blessing
 
Each day we must stop to praise God for offering to us his heavenly blessings. But with a special heart of blessing, we must stop this Good Friday to praise our Lord Jesus Christ. Today is a day we more acutely recall our Lord’s suffering. We recall his obedience to the Father’s will to step into enemy territory. We remember the Jews’ heinous outcry, “Crucify, crucify him!” (Luke 23:21). We revolt against the account of his lashings. Then Pilate took Jesus and flogged him. (John 19:1) Our souls writhe in grief as we consider the piercing crown of thorns. “Twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand.” (Matthew 27:29)
    Even more, we hear our Lord’s deep anguish as he cries out, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me!” (Mark 15:34) And we weep as the world mocks our loving Savior. “You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” (Matthew 27:40)
    Pause today and consider for a few moments our Lord’s death for your soul. Then praise Jesus he has submitted to the cross, so you have victory over death.
 
Prayer: I praise you Father, Son and Spirit for exchanging Jesus’ holiness for my filthiness. I praise you for confronting the Evil One to save my soul to eternal life with you. In Jesus’ blessed name, amen.

Esther 9:19, 23-24, 26-28 Therefore the Jews of the villages, who live in the rural towns, hold the fourteenth day of the month of Adar as a day for gladness and feasting, as a holiday, and as a day on which they send gifts of food to one another…23 So the Jews accepted what they had started to do, and what Mordecai had written to them. 24 For Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast Pur (that is, cast lots), to crush and to destroy them…26 Therefore they called these days Purim, after the term Pur. Therefore, because of all that was written in this letter, and of what they had faced in this matter, and of what had happened to them, 27 the Jews firmly obligated themselves and their offspring and all who joined them, that without fail they would keep these two days according to what was written and at the time appointed every year, 28 that these days should be remembered and kept throughout every generation, in every clan, province, and city, and that these days of Purim should never fall into disuse among the Jews, nor should the commemoration of these days cease among their descendants.
 
GOD had given to the Jews three Feasts to celebrate annually. In Passover, Pentecost and Tabernacles, the feasts were reminders to the Jews of God’s salvation through the exodus from Egypt, the giving of the law from Mt. Sinai and their shelter during the 40-years journey to the Promised Land. Now comes a fourth feast – Purim – named after the lot or the pur. Haman had used the pur to set the date for the Jews extermination. In God’s sovereign authority, the date was set nearly one year after the decree. In that time, God used Esther and Mordecai to be instruments of his salvation. The set date of the Jews’ destruction became the day of the Jews’ salvation in Persia. Death turned from the Jews to go to the destroyers. This is a picture of God’s eternal plan of salvation for all of those chosen in Christ.
    To claim the victory, though, the Jews couldn’t sit still. The original edict to destroy them was still in effect. The only way for them to stop being killed was to wage war against their enemies. Some could see this as a violation of God’s command, “Do not kill.” But the command is not against self-protection. It is given to prevent selfish murderous intent against one another.
    As mentioned yesterday, there is a time for war. God does not want us to stay silent when evil threatens our children or our nation. History has proven the relevant truth of Ecclesiastes 3:3 a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up.
    The Jews acted with justice to protect their lives. They did not plunder their enemies’ possessions. Their war was a just war to avenge evil and to establish healing in their land.
    One day our Lord will come to protect his own for eternity. He will destroy the wicked and heal the earth of its sin. Jesus will build up a new Heaven and new earth to bring peace to our lives forevermore. Praise the Lord.
 
Prayer: Come quickly, Lord Jesus. Amen.

Esther 9:5-15 The Jews struck all their enemies with the sword, killing and destroying them, and did as they pleased to those who hated them. 6 In Susa the citadel itself the Jews killed and destroyed 500 men, 7 and also killed Parshandatha and Dalphon and Aspatha 8 and Poratha and Adalia and Aridatha 9 and Parmashta and Arisai and Aridai and Vaizatha, 10 the ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews, but they laid no hand on the plunder. 11 That very day the number of those killed in Susa the citadel was reported to the king. 12 And the king said to Queen Esther, “In Susa the citadel the Jews have killed and destroyed 500 men and also the ten sons of Haman. What then have they done in the rest of the king's provinces! Now what is your wish? It shall be granted you. And what further is your request? It shall be fulfilled.” 13 And Esther said, “If it please the king, let the Jews who are in Susa be allowed tomorrow also to do according to this day's edict. And let the ten sons of Haman be hanged on the gallows.” 14 So the king commanded this to be done. A decree was issued in Susa, and the ten sons of Haman were hanged. 15 The Jews who were in Susa gathered also on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar and they killed 300 men in Susa, but they laid no hands on the plunder.
 
A few weeks ago, I summarized the Bible’s teaching on submission to government with this: “In short, yes we are to submit to government’s authority. And we are to work peaceably to affect change.” How then, are the Jews justified to kill those who seek to destroy them? Remember, Persia’s king first decreed the Jews’ destruction!
    First, as Jesus’ words, “But I say to you, do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39) may sound as if we are to be nonresistant against all assault. But this is not a command to allow governments nor anyone to abuse and kill you. Through God’s servants Esther and Mordecai, the Jews were also under Persia’s permission to defend themselves. This was God’s hand of protection over his people.
    Second, Scripture reveals God’s call to his people to defend themselves and to destroy those who would destroy them. God’s calls to war are under his purpose to destroy idolatrous nations whose horrid religions brought death to children and the Jews’ relationship with God.
    There is, then, a time for a holy war. This must be only at God’s decree and not for self-gain. Notice here the Jews did not act to possess their enemies’ plunder but only to be delivered from evil.
    Submission is the Bible’s teaching to help us know God is sovereign over all things. Submission teaches us we are to be humble and obedient to God and one another. And yet, there are occasions we are even called to submit to war. This, too, is God’s providential care over our lives.
 
Prayer: Help us to know, Father, when it is “a time for war and a time for peace. a time for war, and a time for peace.” (Ecclesiastes 3:8) that we may truly submit to your Holy Word. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Esther 9:1-4 Now in the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, on the thirteenth day of the same, when the king's command and edict were about to be carried out, on the very day when the enemies of the Jews hoped to gain the mastery over them, the reverse occurred: the Jews gained mastery over those who hated them. 2 The Jews gathered in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to lay hands on those who sought their harm. And no one could stand against them, for the fear of them had fallen on all peoples. 3 All the officials of the provinces and the satraps and the governors and the royal agents also helped the Jews, for the fear of Mordecai had fallen on them. 4 For Mordecai was great in the king's house, and his fame spread throughout all the provinces, for the man Mordecai grew more and more powerful. 
 
NOW Mordecai has become a man of great power in Persia. A man once among the common servants of the king’s court became “more and more powerful.”
    How do you think Mordecai responded to his new position of authority in Persia? Essentially, he could have anything he wanted. Now all the governors of Persia feared Mordecai. Their authority and even their lives were subject to Mordecai. One of their main priorities certainly was to know, “What does Mordecai want? How do I please him?”
    What do you think? Did Mordecai fall into the “pride trap”? You know what that looks like, don’t you? Powerful people can see their position from, “I did this. Look at me.” They become arrogant against God and the people who put them in power. Read through 1 & 2 Kings. See men who arrogantly disdained God and their people. Even David and Solomon committed these sins.
    The tone of Esther’s author, though, is that Mordecai ruled other godly leaders of the Bible. We have looked throughout the past 10 months at the humble Ezekiel, Elijah and Elisha. We can consider also Moses, who is described in Numbers 12:3 Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth. King David did sin as we all do, but we know, too, he often expressed great humility. Pride caused him to betray God’s laws. Humility then led him to repent. Psalms 31:5 Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God.
    In whatever God has given you to do, be reminded your Lord is the source of who you are. Be humble to serve his people in the Lord’s humility. Be mindful of the Lord’s Word. Set your life to his truth.
 
Prayer: Jesus, my Redeemer, into your hands I commit my spirit. Holy Spirit, teach me to live humbly in the Lord’s Word. Amen.