So how can we reclaim our emotional health? We need to re-calibrate our emotional health by regaining our spiritual balance. Only be viewing ourselves the way God views us can we be the persons He created us to be. And why is that so important? Because each of us is gifted to perform unique tasks for the Kingdom, and without an proper understanding of our role and importance the work will go undone.
The Book of Ephesians provides us with the blueprint for a healthy self-esteem. We just have to understand who we are at our core to achieve the life balance that God wants each of us to possess. God's Word and my obedience to His teaching is the antidote to this world's dependence upon gratification and narcissistic behavior. Okay, so enough talk - let me show you God's solution to this problem.
"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, even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us for adoption to Himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed us in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His purpose, which He set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth. In Him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of His glory. In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it to the praise of His glory." (Ephesians 1: 3-14)
A Bible verse? That's the antidote? And its not even a short, compact verse, its a long, convoluted paragraph that runs over 200 words! That is all true. But what a paragraph! Let's unpack just some of the blessings that God has promised us in these 12 verses.
Repeat after me, "every spiritual blessing", "chose us in Him", "adoption to Himself", "blessed us in the Beloved", "redemption through His blood", "forgiveness of our trespasses", "the riches of His grace", "which He lavished upon us", "to unite all things in Him", "we have obtained an inheritance", "sealed with the promised Holy Spirit", "until we acquire possession of it to the praise of His glory."
That is a lot of promises. We could write thousands of words on just the promise of God adopting us to Himself! But just like those K-Tel commercials in years past, but wait, there's more!
God is revealing so many things to us in these verses, for instance, unlike every other major religion in the world, we clearly see the tribune Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, all at work in different ways in our lives. We also get a glimpse into the inner working of heaven before the world was even created, and can you guess what God was doing in those moments? (Hint: You don't have to guess, He tells us . . . ) God was choosing us! Before the creation of the world, God was drawing up the plans for our salvation and inheritance as well as the plans for the Church, God's platform to advance His Kingdom on this planet.
And for what purpose? To unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth. Everything will one day be of one heart and mind. Every person, every animal, mountain, rocks and tree will all be united in their praise and gratitude to their Creator. And beyond being picked to be a child of God, sealed with the Holy Spirit, we are also promised an inheritance which the Spirit insures we will receive to the praise of His glory.
So before Adam drew his first breath, God had already set in motion the way of salvation, the hope of our freedom and the eternal reward that each of His children would receive. Is it any wonder that God scoffs at the kings of this planet and their pitiful plans? Nothing that God has sealed will ever be unsealed. Nothing that He has ever promised will not come true. Nothing that He wills to happen will not be brought into fruition. Praise the One who holds each of us closely in His mighty hands! And if all of these things are true, do you think the promise of who we are in Christ is any less true. We are children of the King of Kings. There has never been and will never be a challenger to His power. He is unmatched in His majesty and He is clothed in holiness. Yet this Holy God saw fit to create a path of redemption to rebels like you and me who only sought our own pleasure and cared little for the things of God. But His mercies are great and His grace is the like the ocean crashing over our heads. He pursues us because He made us. He has stamped His mark on each one of our hearts. Can we do anything less but give him our lives?
That is who we are, because that is who He is. Don't settle for less and don't forget the life-changing truths and promises He has given. He desires the best and longs to see everyone come to Him and accept the gift of salvation. If you have never done so today is the day that you too can be assured of your identity, the real person you were created to be.
"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God." (John 3: 16-21)
