Reading
Ephesians 1:3–6
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
Discussion
Yesterday, we saw how God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world (v. 4). Now Paul tells us that we were predestinated unto adoption.
"Predestinated" means God determined this beforehand. The decision was His, rooted entirely in "the good pleasure of his will." God didn't adopt us because we were worthy, or because we earned a place in His family through our efforts. He did it because it pleased Him to do it.
Adoption in the Roman world carried real weight. An adopted son received the full legal standing of a natural-born child: the family name, the inheritance, the father's protection. Paul uses that picture deliberately. In Christ, we aren't guests in God's house. We aren't servants on probation. We are sons (children of God) in Christ, brought in by the will of the Father, not through works but through His grace (see Eph. 2:8–9).
That knowledge can influence how we think and act through an ordinary day. When we're tempted to feel forgotten, or to wonder whether we still belong to God after a week of failures, this verse answers plainly: our place in His family wasn't earned, so it can't be lost by falling short.
And that same grace in Christ that came to us is available to the whole world. We carry that good news simply by living as people who know to whom they belong.
Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father, forgive us when we live in ways that bring shame to your name. Grant us the grace to walk today as your children. And may the light of Christ shine from us to those around us that they may learn your grace through Christ is available to everyone.
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Created and refined by JerryS on April 30, 2025 using digital tools. For conservative Christian devotional purposes only. All Bible references are from the King James Bible unless otherwise noted.
