Ephesians 1

Paul tells the Ephesians that God makes those He has elected into the image of Jesus as well as his blessings and characteristics. So us as sanctified people should pursue holiness not because we chose God but rather we were chosen by God. In the process of our sanctification we align ourselves, or more accurately, God aligns our interests along His interests. Next Paul talks about the inheritance of our adoption into Gods kingdom. Those who submit under the gospel message and pursue God with their hearts, souls and minds are promised holiness and salvation, this continual lifelong process is called sanctification. 

The doctrine of unconditional election states that when someone is adopted to Christs family, there is no way we can resist this grace. The way I know I am God's son is if I am repentant, and continue to grow and mature in repentance in a greater degree. Something important that I should note is verse 22 in how they describe Christ "and hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the church". This is a blunt statement, Jesus is the highest authority. Whatever signs and symbols from God we are convinced to be genuine are only proved legitimate when looked through the context of scripture. Personal interpretation of scripture must fall under submission of all of scripture, how would I know how to do this in the best way I know to right now? Study context, maybe even study original greek and Aramaic to juice out directly what the passages are trying to say. 


Prayer/response:
- Align my interests along Gods interests
- Study scripture
- Be a better son to my earthly father