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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, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. Ephesians 1:3-6
Every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. Think of it! The Creator of the Universe chose that His followers should be holy and blameless before Him and has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. Not some. EVERY spiritual blessing!
Throughout the Bible, God reveals the earthly and spiritual promises and blessings that are available to His followers.
Have you taken the time to list the promises and blessings that you read about in the Bible? I Googled “spiritual blessings” and found a few at GotQuestions.org. I looked in my study Bible and gleaned a few more.
30 Blessings
In Ephesians alone, I found 30 blessings that are available to those who abide in Jesus.
- Chosen by God (1:4)
- Adopted by God (1:5; 2:19)
- Accepted before God (1:6)
- Forgiven of sins (1:7)
- Know God’s will (1:9)
- Eternal Inheritance (1:11)
- Salvation (1:13)
- Sealed by the Spirit (1:13; 2:38)
- Wisdom (1:17)
- Knowledge of God (1:17)
- Alive with Jesus (2:1, 5)
- Dead to sin (2:1)
- God’s mercy (2:4; 3:17-19)
- God’s love (2:4; 3:17-19)
- Divine power toward believers (1:19, 20; 3:16, 20)
- Spiritual life (2:1, 5)
- Believers sit together in heavenly places in Jesus (2:6)
- Eternal kindness (2:7)
- Know God’s good plan (2:10)
- Our works prepared by God (2:10)
- Jesus is our peace (2:14)
- Believers united (1:11-18; 3:6)
- Peace with believers (1:11-18; 3:6; 4:4-6)
- Citizens of heaven (2:19)
- Members of God’s household (2:19)
- Built on apostles’ & prophets’ foundation (2:20)
- Access to God through Jesus (3:12)
- Gifts given for body (4:7-16)
- Jesus loves us & sacrificed Himself for us (5:2)
- Armor of God (6:10-20)
Responsibilities
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:8-10
Christians are so very blessed by God, and from those who have received much, much is required.
The Bible tells us that God’s kindness is meant to lead us to repentance and that as we abide in Jesus, just like the branches receive their water and nourishment from the roots and grapevine and produce grapes, Christians produce good works, John 15:5. Fruit is the result of abiding in Jesus.
Good works are the fruit of the blessings of God. He equipped us to accomplish these good works. They are our responsibility to walk out. In Ephesians, I found 25 responsibilities.
- Walk worthy (4:3-6)
- Walk in unity (4:1-6)
- Use gifts for believers’ benefit (4:7-13)
- Grow & mature (4:14-15)
- Put away sinful ways (4:17-24; 25-31)
- Speak honestly & purely (4:25,29)
- Obey the Spirit (4:30)
- Put off the old man (4:22)
- Be renewed (4:23)
- Put on the new man (4:24)
- Don’t grieve the Holy Spirit (4:30)
- Be kind, tender-hearted, forgiving (4:32)
- Imitate God (5:1)
- Walk in love (5:2)
- Walk in light (5:8)
- Learn God’s will (5:10, 17)
- Walk in wisdom (5:15)
- Redeem the time (5:16)
- Praise God & give thanks (5:18-20)
- Submit to one another (5:21)
- Honor God in marriage (5:22-33)
- Honor God in families (6:1-4)
- Honor God in workplace (6:5-9)
- Stand strong (6:10-18)
- Put on whole armor of God (6:13-18)
Meditation
Blessings and responsibilities. They go together.
Perhaps you have been blessed with a child. When that child was placed in your arms for the first time, remember the overwhelming sense of responsibility? You were deeply thrilled to give life to this child, but when it became a reality, you understood that you were responsible for feeding the child, bringing the child up in the way he or she should go, and ensuring that the child thrived.
The Bible describes God’s followers as His workmanship. “Workmanship” can be translated as God’s poem. God smiles when He sees His poem or hears His poem spoken. God’s workmanship has been prepared to perform good works. These good works were prepared for His own to accomplish from before the foundation of the world.
All we have to do is start walking out those good works. We’ve been equipped for them.
Just like God told Moses to have the priests step into the water first before the waters parted and the Israelites walked across the Red Sea and the Jordan, we must first step out in faith, and God will accomplish His good works in us.
My prayer
Our Father in heaven, thank You for Your great and precious promises, Your blessings, and the good works that You have equipped us to accomplish. You are God Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth. You have created every small detail of our lives, and they are good. Increase our faith in You, O Lord. Empower us to be strong and of great courage as we step out in faith. Prompt us to recount the many blessings that You have poured out abundantly upon us. We praise You, Father, and bow down before You in worship.
For Your Comments
If we were to meditate on these blessings and responsibilities in light of Galatians 5:22-25 and 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, how might we step out?
Please start a discussion in the Comment Section of this post.
Related links
Spurgeon’s Sermon: Blessing for Blessing
22 responses to “30 Blessings & 25 Responsibilities for Christians”
Thank you God for reminding us that it not by our own efforts but through God s grace and without him we can do nothing!!!
Heavenly father please help us accomplish your divine purpose here on earth according to your will.
Please increase our faith in Jesus Christ and help us remain steady in your word, so that you can accomplish your good works in us.Amen.
Yes, Lord, one thing have we desired and that is to behold Your glory, to inquire in Your temple. We want to honor You and accomplish the works that You have prepared for us to do.
Lord, I pray for Someone. Bless Someone and cause Someone to walk in Your ways all the days of Someone’s life. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
By Grace through Faith! Yes! <3
Amen! God’s Riches at Christ’s Expense! Faith produces works, love labors and hope remains steadfast. May the Lord richly bless you. Karen
I love Ephesians and you’ve gleaned so much insight from it! As believers, we are truly blessed but also have great responsibility! We are nothing and can do nothing worthwhile without Jesus, but with Him working in us and through us, we are transformed and can walk in His light. With His love overflowing from us to others, our changed lives are a witness to His power, often speaking louder than words of His love, grace, mercy, and the gift of salvation.
Great read, thank you for you effort in writing this out. Just like you said, fruit is the result from abiding, all of these virtues are a result of God’s grace towards us, that we can show through us. If we genuinely follow and abide in Him – these conducts and attitudes will come almost effortlessly. Of course we are human so we fail Him daily but we have to keep picking up the cross and choosing to read more, pray more and speak more of His Word so that our light can shine. When we change and produce these fruits, others will want to know what makes us so genuinely different. And like you also said, the Bible is so full of His promises. He loves us and wants the best for us, but we have to be in according to His will. I am glad to have found this blog, Have a blessed day!
Thank you for your gracious comments and your reminder that it is ALL about Jesus and that our focus needs to be disciplined as we choose to read, pray and speak so that His light shines through us. May you experience the grace, mercy, peace, and love of God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Karen
[…] His Promises- 30 Blessings & 25 Responsibilities for Christians– Karen wrote a beautiful post filled with fruit-bearing scripture all from the book of […]
Thank you for, T.R., for the link. Grace and peace to you from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. May your day be fabulous. Karen
I guess my most prominent thought is that we are in the world but not of the world! All your scriptures were so rich. And if we soak them in they are very powerful. We are the Bride of Christ!
Patty, Thank you for adding your awesome insight! Yes, indeed, we are just passing through this world, and we have unimaginable blessings yet before us. The Bride of Christ! How deep and loving is that? And yet, on earth, we have the Holy Spirit living inside of us. Oh, Father, help us to become more aware of Your love and Your presence in our lives!
Patty, May our loving Father prompt you to a deeper awareness of His great love for you today.
Wishing you many unexpected blessings today and throughout April.
Karen
I think we sometimes forget that the more we are given, the more will be asked of us. Good reminders Karen!
Sheila, It is so true. However, I’ve found that the more I am given, the more I want to do. I think it is a natural response to God’s blessings. May you rest in His blessings and know that every spiritual blessing is yours. Much love, Karen
This is brilliant! Thank you!
Thank you. Please add your insights as you meditate on God’s blessings and our responsibilities. May God’s blessings fill you to overflowing. Karen
My favorite “responsibility”…though not in Ephesians, but Proverbs 3:5 ‘ Trust in the Lord with all your heart…” this trusting enables me, through the help of the Spirit, to live out His call in the arena of responsibility the best I can in the seasons of my life. I printed the lists as reminders to keep on my study desk.
Hi Jenelle, Thank you for adding to the responsibilities list. It is amazing how many blessings God has poured out on his daughters and sons. Good to hear from you. I pray that God is blessing you and Pastor Chris in a magnitude that astounds you. Much love, Karen
Oh my goodness! There is an abundance of fruit here in this post! I’m going to have write these down separately. Thank you for sharing!!
I am going to add this post in my Community Spotlight 🙂 it will appear at the end of the month.
T.R., Yes, one book, 6 chapters, and filled to the brim with blessings and application. Thank you for the spotlight, too. May the Lord richly bless you and keep you. Karen
Wow! There is so much to savor here!! I’m going to return again and again and meditate on each one. Thank you! <3
Thanks, Lynn.
Another thing I found was to mark all the “in Christ,” “in God,” “through Christ,” and “by Him” and similar phrases. I was blown away by this book. There is so much here that we could spend many years just in Ephesians. Bottom line, we can do nothing, be nothing, without Jesus. It’s all vanity of vanities without Jesus. Please add your insight as the Holy Spirit gives you insight. He delights in you, and I delight in you. Many, many blessings, Karen
God bless you, dear Karen!! <3 <3