“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly realms in Christ,” the apostle Paul said in his introduction to the epistle to the church at Ephesus (Eph. 1:3). We would have adequate motivation to move in that path even if we had no other passage of scripture that linked any desirable end consequence to entering into Christ than this one verse. Although this phrase states that “all” spiritual blessings are “in Christ,” there are several verses that list one or more specific blessings that can be found there. We'll take notice of a handful of them.
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However, before getting into the many benefits found in Christ, we would be remiss if we did not state up front exactly what one must do to get there. Only two verses directly indicate how we can enter Christ, while one verse depicts the same thing from a different perspective. “Know ye not that so many of us who were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?” Paul asked the Roman Christians. (Romans 6:3) “For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ,” he wrote to the Galatians (Gal. 3:27). I Corinthians 12:13, which indicates that we are baptized into His body, is the third passage mentioned. Being baptized into Christ is the only way to enter the kingdom of God. To misunderstand that, you'll need assistance.
When it comes to knowing where one has to go in order to be saved, one must first know what he needs to be saved from. The ark that Noah built was the best location to be if you wanted to be saved from the flood of Noah's day. By being in that area, eight souls were saved (I Pet. 3:20). If one wishes to be redeemed from the wages of sin (Rom. 6:23), or from eternal destruction, one must be in Christ Jesus, who is the source of all spiritual blessings. “I endured all things for the elect's sakes,” Paul informed Timothy, “so they may also get the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory” (II Tim. 2:10). “And this is the record,” said the apostle John, “that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son” (I John 5:11). The text we mentioned from the book of Romans also reveals that our salvation is in Christ, but the words are not spoken. “Therefore, we are buried with him by baptism into death,” Paul said, “that like as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also might live in newness of life” (Rom. 6:3-4). Take note of when the newness of life began, at the time of baptism into Christ. “Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things have passed away, behold, all things have become new,” Paul told the Corinthians (II Cor. 5:17). It is self-evident that one must be baptized into Christ in order to be saved, for salvation is found there. And, once again, one would need assistance to misunderstand that. However, we must recognize that there is a lot of assistance accessible in the area of misunderstanding.
Now, let's look at some of the other benefits that can be found “in” Christ Jesus. We might easily fill the rest of our space with specific blessings that the exact words used to describe them are employed to describe. Following the assertion that “all spiritual blessings in heavenly regions” are in Christ (Eph. 1:3), Paul wrote in the book of Ephesians that we are chosen in Him (Eph. 1:4), that we have redemption via His blood (Eph. 1:7), and that we have forgiveness of sins (Eph. 1:8). (Eph. 1:7). He also remarked that we have received an inheritance via Christ (Eph. 1:11). It would take all of our room and more to go through the New Testament and list all of the blessings we have “in Christ.”
With the remaining space, let us focus on one particular blessing that is frequently missed by the world at large. People who profess to be Christians but have never been baptized into Christ can be found all around our country. Many people have been baptized, but not in the way that the baptism that brings us into Christ requires. To be baptized into Christ for the remission of sins, one must believe the gospel, repent of their sins, confess Christ as the Son of God, and confess Christ as the Son of God. The Lord then accepts that person into His body, the church (Acts 2:41, 47). Many people who haven't done so still pray to God with their heads bowed. Prayer is a blessing that is conferred upon people who are in Christ Jesus, dear friends and brethren. Those who accept Christ have the ability to become God's sons (John 1:12). This demonstrates that mankind as a whole is not God's child. Paul declared to the Philippians that they were God's sons (Phil. 2:15). We can't pray to God as “our Father” because God isn't our Father. “God heareth not sinners,” the previously blind man said (John 9:31), yet he was not an inspired speaker. “For the Lord's eyes are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers,” Peter wrote, “but the Lord's face is against those who do evil” (I Pet. 3:12). The blessing of prayer is one of the many magnificent blessings that God has bestowed upon us via His precious Son. Thank God for that, since it is your birthright.
What does it mean to be blessed in spirit?
‘Poor in spirit,' to modern ears, is an unusual statement, at least outside of religious circles. The traditional interpretation, which is popular among evangelicals, is that it refers to persons who recognize their spiritual poverty and need for God. The phrase “blessed are the mourners” refers to people who repent and lament for their misdeeds.
Now, all of this is very true. If you come to God like that, he will not reject you. In the story of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector, Jesus teaches this. “God, thank you that I'm not like other peoplegreedy, unrighteous, adulterers, or even like this tax collector,” the Pharisee prayed. “God, have mercy on me, a sinner!” said the tax collector as he hung his head. CSB Luke 18:10-14 The tax collector, not the Pharisee, went home with God, according to Jesus.
In Luke's Gospel's Beatitudes, Jesus simply declares, “Blessed are you who are impoverished, for the kingdom of God is yours.” 6:20 in the Bible. There isn't any talk of being impoverished in spirit, only destitute. Not only that, but the impoverished are pitted against the wealthy. “But woe to the wealthy, for you have earned your reward” (v 24). Similarly, Jesus contrasted those who are hungry with those who are already full, and those who grieve with those who laugh (verses 21&25).
In Matthew, this is the same word meaning poor, and it is a very severe epithet. There are two separate words in Greek that we interpret as impoverished in the New Testament. The word alludes to the grinding poverty of the absolute poorest, the beggar bowed down by poverty (ptchos).
Jesus is implying that the kingdom of God belongs to the lowest of the poor financially, to those who have been crushed by poverty, whereas the wealthy have already received their recompense. This may appear radical, but it is similar to another of Jesus' teachings, which he repeated over and over: “Many who are first will be last, and the last will be first” (Matt 19:30 also Matt 20:16 Mark 10:31 & Luke 13:30).
Who are the poor in spirit in Matthew's Beatitudes if Jesus is standing with those who are materially impoverished in Luke's Beatitudes? How can a human spirit be impoverished?
There's no need to engage into philosophical debates about the nature of the human spirit, thankfully. The depictions of this inner component of the human being in the Bible are much simpler, and the people portrayed are extremely recognisable when we see them.
Because of everything God had done, Mary characterized her spirit as celebrating, literally bouncing with delight, when she visited her cousin Elizabeth Luke 1:47.
Peter's spirit was defined by Jesus as willing, albeit the word ‘willing' does not do the word credit. ‘Eager' is getting closer. “Stay attentive and pray so that you will not succumb to temptation,” Jesus advised. “The flesh is weak, but the spirit is eager.” CEB (Matthew 26:41). Peter was filled with zeal in his heart, resolved to follow Jesus no matter what the cost. However, Jesus recognized that the remainder of Peter was not up to the task and that Peter would soon betray him. Peter's attitude was strong and full of passion and self-assurance. His spirit, on the other hand, was ‘writing checks that his body couldn't cash.'
On the other hand, below are some of the Old Testament's portrayals of the human spirit (quotations from the Christian Standard Bible CSB).
The human soul might be cheerful, as Mary was, or eager, as Peter was, or it can be broken, crushed, or afflicted. If the kingdom of God is for people who are bowed down by financial necessity and exterior conditions in Luke's Beatitudes, Jesus welcomes those who are crushed and shattered on the inside in Matthew.
These Beatitudes aren't about our dependence on God, though that is true as well. Instead, it's about Jesus' personal compassion, his identification with the poorest of the poor, and his outreach to the outcasts and shattered.
We cannot undervalue how significant this is to Jesus, and how significant it should be to us as his followers. The gospels are replete with instances of Jesus ministering to the impoverished and misfits. By eating with tax collectors and sinners, Jesus astonished and outraged polite society and the religious elite. After the Sermon on the Mount, the first thing we see Jesus do is transgress the Old Testament purity requirements by touching an unclean leper and curing him (Matthew 8:1-4).
If the Sermon on the Mount is “the manifesto of the Kingdom of God,” then Jesus' inaugural speech, where he revealed his personal commission from God his father, was when he spoke in the Synagogue in Nazareth and read out from the Messianic prophesy in Isaiah 61.
4:16 Luke (WEB) He returned to Nazareth, where he had been raised. On the Sabbath, he went inside the synagogue and stood up to read, as was his tradition.
17
He was given the book of the prophet Isaiah. He took out the book and opened it to the page where it was written.
18″The Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the needy, thus the Spirit of the Lord is upon me. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom to the prisoners, to restore sight to the blind, and to set free those who have been crushed.
20He sat down after closing the book and returning it to the attendant. Everyone in the synagogue had their gaze fixed on him.
21He began by telling them, “Today, in your hearing, this Scripture has been fulfilled.”
See the similarities between Jesus' preaching of Isaiah 61 and the Beatitudes, Jesus' compassion for the impoverished, the crushed, and the brokenhearted?
It's not simply about being forgiven of our sins and going to heaven in the kingdom of God that Jesus calls us to. It's about God's love and compassion for us, and how that love manifests itself in our lives, the church, and society as a whole. It's about encouraging oppressed people to love their adversaries and forgive their oppressors while fighting injustices, discrimination, and intolerance that oppress and marginalize them. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus went on to tell his followers that they should be salt and light to the entire world. It was just as extreme to read from Isaiah 61 and announce its fulfillment. Spiritually, we comprehend it, but it was also social. This prophecy was a pronouncement of the year of Jubilee (Lev 25:8-55) for 1st century Jews, with all its social demands of property redistribution, debt forgiveness, and the release of criminals and slaves.
The Beatitudes present a challenge to the well-off and well-adjusted in terms of how we welcome and treat those who are less fortunate than we are. It is a radical statement of Jesus' compassion and open-armed welcome to us in all our brokenness and anguish to the impoverished and hurting.
Where in the Bible does it talk about blessings?
God's blessings on mankind. God's first blessing to man is recorded in Genesis 1:28: “God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fertile and increase, fill the world and master it.” 1. God bestows blessings (rather than commands!).
What are physical blessings?
Physical blessings are easy to comprehend when you think about it. They are God's blessings that have to do with our physical well-being. They include the provisions God provides in the shape of food, water, and shelter so that we might live a safe and secure existence.
“Come to the waters, all you who are thirsty; and come, buy and eat, all you who have no money! Come and buy wine and milk with no money and no expense ” (Isaiah 55:1).
What are the 3 realms of heaven?
There are three degrees of glory (alternatively, kingdoms of glory) in Mormon theology and cosmology, which are the final, eternal resting place for practically all who lived on earth once they are raised from the spirit realm.
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), the biggest denomination in the Latter-day Saint movement, believe that the apostle Paul briefly outlined these degrees of glory in 1 Corinthians 15:40-42 and 2 Corinthians 12:2. Joseph Smith elaborated on Paul's descriptions, based mostly on a vision he had with Sidney Rigdon in 1832, which is recorded in D&C Section 76. According to this vision, everyone will be resurrected and allocated to one of three degrees of splendor at the Final Judgment: heavenly, terrestrial, or telestial kingdoms. A small number of people who commit the unpardonable sin will be sent to outer darkness with Satan, where they will be called “sons of Perdition,” rather than receiving a kingdom of glory.
What are the seven blessings of God?
K'samechacha yetzircha b'Gan Eden mi-kedem, sameach te-samach re'im ahuvim, k'samechacha yetzircha b'Gan Eden mi-kedem. Mesame'ach chatan v'kalah, Baruch Atah Adonai.
- Blessed are You, Adonai, our God, Creator of all things, Ruler of the Universe, Who gave us joy and gladness, loving couples, merriment, joyous music, pleasure, delight, love, loving communities, peace, and fellowship. Adonai, our God, make the sound of joy and gladness, the voice of the loving couple, the sound of their jubilation from their canopies, and the sound of the youths from their song-filled feasts, soon be heard in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. Blessed are You who bring joy to the pair, one to the other.