Ephesians 1:15-19a: For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
This week I want to examine the phrase the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints.
In the New Testament the church is referred to as the "body of Christ." I Corinthians 12 has an excellent discussion on this topic. I encourage you to read all of I Corinthians 12.
The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body-whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free-and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. If the foot should say, "Because I am a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, jast as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? (I Corinthians 12:12-19)
I think many Christians understand the concept of the "body of Christ." I also think that many Christians understand that there are a variety of gifts and functions within the body of Christ. We each have our place. And as you function in the proper gift and ministry, then others are blessed.
It is good and right that we focus on what we can give to others. Certainly, we should always have a mentality of wanting to help others, especially our brothers and sisters in the body of Christ.
But I think the intent of the phrase, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, is to remind us of the wealth of resources available to us as members of the body of Christ.
I will admit that I sometimes get very irritated with Christians in general. Sometimes it seems that I run across every narrow-minded, legalistic Christian. In fact sometimes I am so thankful, that I met Jesus before I met certain Christians.
Reality is that none of us is perfect. All believers are people. And all people have the potential to be a royal pain.
But reality is also that God has gifted every believer. God has given every believer gifts to use to bless the body of Christ. We have a family who is incredibly rich. We have a family who is incredibly talented. We have a family who is incredibly wise. We have a family who is incredibly anointed of the Most High God.
Paul prayed for the church at Ephesus that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened. We need the eyes of our hearts enlightened to see the church the way that God sees it.
It is comforting thought to know, that I am part of a family of believers that is the richest, most gifted group of people on the face of the earth.
Whatever you need there is someone in the church that can help. We are so blessed by the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints.
Wayne L. Williams
wayne@fotwm.org