Seek First – Kingdom Focused Devotionals

“And you were dead in your trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1)

                 We are all familiar with the wonderful promise of Ephesians 2:8 and 9 concerning our redemption.  But before Paul can talk about that great truth, he must first look at the condition of man apart from Christ.  It is not that man is out of sync with himself, his environment, and his fellow-man; he is alienated and separated from God who alone is the source of life.  Thus he is dead in trespasses and sins.

                The root meaning of “trespasses” is “missing the mark” while the root meaning of the second term is “falling away from.”  Taken together they express man’s failure to live as was created to live. Man was created in God’s image and destined to live as members of His presence as a member of His family.  You may recall that man was given both freedom and responsibility in the garden.  With freedom comes the possibility of disobedience which would lead to death (Gen.  2:17). This death is not primarily physical death; it is something far worse.  It is the loss of the spiritual life available in God. 

                Man who is dead needs nothing less than new life from God.  Thus Nicodemus is told that He must be born again if he is to enter God’s kingdom.  Do you know for certain that you have been born again?  If not, why not invite Him into your life right now. 

Prayer: Father, thank You for new life in Christ.  Amen

“And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all” (Eph. 1:22-23).

                I admit it—I love the church.  I love it because the Father loves it and because the Father put everything under the feet of Christ for the advantage of His church, His bride, who is destined to express God’s fullness in the world as Christ did in His incarnation.

                The affirmation that Christ is Lord over all has particular application to the Church.  The Father made Him Lord of all things “to the church” which is described here as “His body.”  As Lord He presides over the church and directs all its parts (members) that are joined to each other and to Him in organic unity (Eph. 4:15).  It should not escape our attention that He is supreme head, that is, He is head over “all things.”  We have as our head the One who is Head over all things. 

                When Paul indicates that the church is “His body” he is expressing the essential union between Christ and His redeemed people.  The same idea is present in the picture of the vine and the branches in John 15.  The very life of God flows through the vine and branches, allowing the disciples to bring to completion Christ’s work in the world.  As such the church is designed, empowered, and called to express God’s fullness in the world today as Christ did in His incarnation.  How is the church to achieve such a lofty goal?  When all the gifted members function according to their gifted potential, the church grows up to maturity which is measured by the fullness of Christ (Eph. 4:13). 

                If your church doesn’t seem to be expressing God’s fullness, you should look inwardly to see if you are serving to your full capacity. 

Prayer:  Father, may I discover, develop, and deploy the gift(s) you have given me.  Amen

“Far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come” (Eph. 1:21)

                The heresy that was swirling through the Lycus Valley made much of a hierarchy of spiritual powers.  Three of the four words used are found in their plural form in Colossians 1:16 where Paul asserts that Christ is the creator of all powers.  In our present passage Paul affirms that Christ is “far above” them, indicating that He is Lord over all.  Paul seems to be uninterested and unimpressed with the various powers and thus pays little attention to differentiating between the four terms.  He is affirming that whatever powers might exist, they are created powers and thus inferior to the Creator.  No power in this age or in the age to come should be feared by the Christian, for Christ has vanquished all the evil powers (Col. 2:15). 

                The Christian is to do battle with the spiritual powers of evil in the Master’s strength and clothed in His armor (Eph. 6:12).  We should always remember that the church is uniquely gifted and empowered to demonstrate “the manifold wisdom of God” to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places (Eph. 3:10). 

                The reference to the present age and the age to come underlines the sovereign majesty of the exalted Lord.  When we are “in Christ” we have access to “every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ” (Eph. 1:3).  That being true, why are we so often defeated in our Christian walk?  Why are we sometimes frightened and intimidated by the “supposed” powers of this age?

Prayer:  By the power of the One whose name is above every name, I chose to live victoriously.  Amen

“These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places” (Eph. 1:19b-20).

                Paul is not finished talking about the power available to believers for the living of the Christian life and the advancing of God’s kingdom.  First, God demonstrated this power when He raised Jesus from the dead. 

                God’s raising of His Son from the dead is declared to be a mark of His approval and the declaration that He is Lord of all (Rom. 1:4).  While this is certainly true, it is also a graphic portrayal of the power of God.  No one has ever seen a greater demonstration of power than that manifested on Easter morning. 

                Secondly, God’s power is seen as He places His Son at His own right hand.  The cross, resurrection, and ascension are often seen as different facets of one great work.  The ascension and the seating at His right hand is the highest possible honor that the Father can give to the Son. 

                God’s mighty power demonstrated in the resurrection and exaltation of Christ are available to you today.  Are you walking in this power? 

Prayer:  Father, thank You for empowering me to live victoriously.  Amen

“I pray…that you will know…what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe” (Eph. 1:18-19a).

                We have a fascination with power.  We are curious about how many horsepower an engine produces or how many watts a speaker can handle.  I once had the privilege of a visit on board a nuclear powered aircraft carrier.  The power produced by just a small amount of nuclear fuel is mind-boggling.  But Paul speaks of a power that goes beyond anything we can comprehend.  And this power is available to those of us who believe.

                Paul uses the strongest terms available to attempt to express the magnitude of the power available to us, using four different synonyms.  They can be literally translated as “power,” “working,” “strength,” and “might.”  The word translated “power” is dunamis from which we get the word “dynamite.”  The Greek word translated “working” is energeia from which our word “energy” comes.  Paul wants us to understand that what is made available to us is nothing less than divine power that is made available to us. 

                This power is available to us on the simple condition that we believe.  In other words, we must believe in Christ for our redemption and for our empowering.  It is a gift God wants us to have.  One must wonder why we attempt so little when so much power has been made available to us. 

Prayer:  Father, forgive me when I attempt to live my Christian life out of my puny power.  Amen

“I pray…that you will know…what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.” Eph. 1:18

                We all understand the concept of “inheritance.”  But Bible teachers are actually divided about whose inheritance this verse is talking about.  Is Paul referring to the incredible inheritance we have “in Christ” of the inheritance God has “in the saints.” 

                Both ideas are actually true.  In verses 3 and following we looked at some of the inheritance we have by virtue of our relationship with Christ who sits on the right hand of God pouring out blessing.  We talked about adoption as sons, redemption, and forgiveness.  In fact, in verse 11 Paul points out that we have obtained an inheritance which is assured because of the pledge of the Holy Spirit. 

                It may be that Paul is actually referring to God’s inheritance “in the saints.”  This thought would certainly pick up on the Old Testament theme of Israel being God’s heritage.  Now the church, those “in Christ” are His heritage.  It is a profound and mysterious thought that God has called us His heritage.  He has chosen us and desires to work through us to advance His kingdom until He returns.  As His heritage are you declaring through life and words His kingly rule in your life? 

Prayer:  Thank you for calling me Your own.  May I demonstrate Your character today.  Amen

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you will know what is the hope of His calling…” (Eph. 1:18).

                Over the next several days we will learn that Paul prays that they would understand three unique aspects of what it means to be “in Christ.”  The first is “the hope of His calling.”

                In Ephesians 4:4 Paul reminds them of the “one hope of your calling.”  But here he is emphasizing something quite different.  He is underlining God’s initiative in calling men to Himself.  Throughout the New Testament this calling can be spoken of as a past event which brought us into fellowship with God.   Additionally it can be spoken of as a present tense calling to a life of sanctification and service (1 Th. 2:12).  Finally it can be spoken of as a call by the eternal God to an eternal destiny with Him. 

                Sometimes when we use the word “hope” it contains an element of doubt.  In the case of His calling there is no element of doubt or wishful longing.  It is an assured hope because of the faithfulness of God who has given us the Spirit as a sure guarantee (1:14).  Thus the call of God is operative in the past, the present, and the future.  This hope should radically alter the way we live daily. 

Prayer:  Thank you for the sure hope of Your calling in my life.  Amen

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened…” (Eph. 1:18)

                Have you ever thought about having eyes in your heart?  It is a curious phrase, isn’t it? 

                One facet of the heresy that was threatening the churches in pro-consular Asia was similar to present day new age teaching.  The false teaching maintained that each person had a spark of divinity and thus man needed “enlightenment” so that he would recognize his inner divinity.  Paul counters this teaching by insisting that man is dead in trespasses and sins and thus needs redemption.  Nonetheless, he does speak of “enlightenment” but it is illumination that comes from God. 

                Knowledge of God is described in both the Old and New Testaments as man’s enlightenment.  The Old Testament spoke of man’s hope in terms of the coming of light into a world of darkness and in terms of opening the eyes of the blind.  Christ’s presence is described as the dawning of a new day and the breaking of the light of God.  Apart from Him, the eyes of men’s hearts are closed and they dwell in the darkness of sin (Eph. 5:8). 

                “Heart” in the Bible is not simply the center of man’s intellect or emotion, but the very essence of His being.  It is the center of the whole personality.  Our redemption involves every aspect of our total being and thus it is appropriate that Paul prays that the eyes of our total being be enlightened by the truth of God’s Word. 

Prayer:  Lord, open the eyes of my heart that I may fully understand Your plan for my life.  Amen

“That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him” (Eph. 1:17).

                Did you notice the phrase—“the God of our Lord Jesus Christ?”  It simply means that the One True God is the God whom Jesus acknowledges and reveals to us.  There is nothing in the expression which is contrary to His own sharing of Godhead.  Jesus readily spoke of the Father as “my God” (Matt. 27:46, Jn. 20:17).  God is also the Father to whom all glory belongs. 

                Paul prays that they would have a spirit of wisdom and revelation.  This is not a matter of higher intelligence accomplished by human effort but a gift of God provided by the Holy Spirit.  “The knowledge of Him” is the personal knowledge of God Himself, which means life in union and intimate fellowship with God.  It is impossible for us to see God’s glory unless it is revealed to us by God Himself.  This is the reason Paul passionately and regularly prays for the members of churches he established. 

                Would you ask the Father to give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him?  Are you willing to hear Him and allow Him to teach you from His word? 

Prayer:  Father, I hunger for Your wisdom.  Amen

“For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus Christ which exists among you and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers” (Eph. 1:15-16).

                This letter allows us to place our ear to the door of Paul’s prayer closet as he prayed for the church.  We will be looking at one of those prayers over the next several days.  In both this text and Col. 1:6-8 Paul indicates that he has been constantly praying since he had heard of the faith and love that existed among the believers in pro-consular Asia.  It was expected that both letters would be shared with other churches in the area and thus Paul speaks of that which he has heard. 

                It is not insignificant that faith in the Lord and love for the saints are mentioned together.  When a person begins a faith relationship with Christ, it will ultimately lead to “love for all the saints.”  We are “born again” into a family of believers that spans the globe and has no time barriers.  When one loves the Lord, it will necessarily affect one’s conduct toward “all the saints.”  One’s relationship with other believers is a clear indicator of the depth of his/her relationship with Christ.  Living in community is so difficult Paul does not cease to give thanks for their faith nor does he cease to make mention of them in his prayers. 

                Are you living in unhindered relationship with other believers?  Are you allowing hurt feelings and differences of opinion to become a stumbling block to your growth in faith? 

Prayer:  Father, forgive me when I claim to have faith but fail to exhibit love.  Amen