We Are Heirs: A Look at Ephesians 1:11-14

Below is a piece that I had originally written for a devotion contest, the winner of which would be published. While I wasn't selected for that opportunity, I still believe this is a solid devotion that I pray can help you. Many hours were spent editing, revising, and laboring over this piece. I have left nearly all of the contest formatting intact. Thanks to my editing team that helped make this possible!

Today’s Reading: Ephesians 1:11-14

        Today's passage continues a long list of God's blessings. Paul is praising God for all the blessings bestowed upon us. Ironically, Paul is writing this from a Roman prison cell. What a man of faith! I don't know that I could write about how good God is while living in such circumstances. Paul understood the gravity of these blessings, as well as the great cost they required to receive them; he was trying to convey to the Ephesians that these blessings outweighed any difficult situation he found himself in.

        The first blessing mentioned in today’s passage is an inheritance. Roman law in Paul’s time specified two types of heirs—familial heirs and external heirs. Familial heirs were typically sons, and they weren’t allowed to refuse their inheritance. External heirs, on the other hand, had the option to decline what they were meant to inherit. Their inheritance could include the rights, property, responsibilities, and even debts of their benefactors. Understanding Paul’s historical context sheds new light on our inheritance from God.  

        When it comes to salvation, we’re external heirs. God has given us free will, which means we can choose to reject the inheritance He has offered to us. When we accept His offer and trust Jesus as our Savior, however, we become familial heirs. We can be confident that we have been adopted into God’s household and are joint-heirs with Christ (Rom. 8:17). Our family inheritance is in Heaven – Christ goes to prepare a place for us (John 14:3). What a wonderful transformation we undergo at the point of salvation – from outsiders to a part of the family of God!

        This is not all we inherit, however. Christ owed no debt but chose to die in our place, so instead of inheriting a debt we inherit a credit to our account in the form of eternal life. With this credit comes its own rights and duties. One right God’s children enjoy is a direct line of communication with God (Heb. 4:14-16). We can always count on having an audience with the Father, and the Holy Spirit speaks on our behalf when we can’t find the words to pray (Rom. 8:26). Our inheritance means that we must also perform duties that may feel like heavy burdens at times. As Christians, we have the duty to be more Christ-like and to obey Biblical teachings. We are not perfect and we’re going to fail daily, but knowing this, God sent the Holy Spirit to dwell within us. Receiving the Holy Spirit is a result of initially trusting God, and in verses 12-13 of our passage, we see that we’re called to trust God in every aspect of our lives, not just salvation. What a wonderful blessing God has given us, that He meets us right where we stand in need!

My Moment

        Which parts of your inheritance do you accept most willingly (debts, rights, or responsibilities)? Which parts do you struggle to accept?

Comment

        It is easiest for me to accept the rights which a Christian should enjoy, such as liberty and open communication with the Father. On some level, I feel like I am entitled to them, even though that is certainly not the case! I struggle with the duties aspect of my inheritance, especially when it comes to serving in ministry. It is so easy to see my responsibilities as more of a burden than a blessing.

More Moments About Ephesians 1:11-14

        We don’t just have an inheritance. We’re also sealed with the Holy Spirit! A little research on my part revealed that seals were unique and recognizable symbols for most of history. They represented who the sealed object belonged to and all the authority that owner held. Seals couldn’t be stamped into just anything; you needed a soft surface to place a stamp. Did you catch that? God sealed our hearts when they were soft toward Him, just as they must be when we’re drawn to Him by the Spirit, and that’s just the beginning of His process (John 6:44)! God wants to continue making us more like Himself, and hardening our hearts makes the process more painful for us as God shapes us into His image. This is all to the “praise of His glory” (v 12, 14), meaning that our becoming more like Christ glorifies God. 

        This seal of the Holy Spirit isn’t all God wants us to inherit. In fact, He says in verse fourteen of today’s passage that it’s just a down payment on what’s to come. We will receive our full inheritance in glory when we are all united in Heaven!

Major Moment:

        We have a guarantee.