THIS VERSE IS beautiful: “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” (Eph. 1:3). Here it is said that God “has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing.” Does this mean that in Christ we have everything which the human personality needs for its fulfillment, growth, and development, and that we need not go outside of Him for anything? Yes. We need not go outside of Christ for anything that is good for us. We have it all in Him. I have a friend who once believed that Jesus is the Way. He now believes that Jesus is a way. He has gone over to a Hindu cult to piece out Jesus—to get something larger and more comprehensive. Result? His wife drew a long breath when asked how they were getting along in their quest and said, “We have a long way to go.” The bypaths were dead ends. Their weary feet will wander and wander until they put their feet upon the way. Now they worship before the tomb of a dead guru instead of walking the open road with the resurrected Jesus. In the meantime their photos tell us by their sad faces that they have a long way to go to get to every spiritual blessing.
This doesn’t mean that I believe that every denominational expression of Christ is synonymous with “every spiritual blessing.” Often the denomination is built upon a phase of truth in Christ, and emphasizing that phase they miss the fullness of life in Christ. Christ is so defined that He is confined. They have a crescent moon instead of a full moon—a quarter Christ instead of the full Christ. A full surrender to the full Christ brings every spiritual blessing. It is “in heavenly places”—you feel you are in heaven while getting heavenly blessings. And you are! You can’t miss heaven, for you’ve got it—here and now.
O Jesus, my Lord, I am in touch with Thee, and I’m in touch with all I need now and hereafter. Anything outside Thee is emptiness, everything inside Thee is fullness. In Thee all my needs are met—plus. I am grateful. Amen.
AFFIRMATION FOR THE DAY: Everything outside Jesus does not complete me; it only depletes me.
