Eph 1:1  "Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus.  Eph 1:2  Grace be to you, and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ."

A verse-by-verse study of the letter to the Ephesians.

The Biblical Resurrection is an essential Gospel doctrine. It is part of God's eternal decree, prophesied centuries before Christ on earth, displaying His absolute, sovereign control over the complete (past, present, and future of both) time and eternity, as well as the full salvation of His people. As we look at this doctrine more closely, we need to see it a bit deeper, into the eternal mind and counsel of God, in the way His wise Trinitarian purpose shows Christ being set forth as FIRST in consideration of revealing God's Triune glory, in the inter-workings of the economy of the Trinity as revealed in the righteousness of God, manifested in the Person of Christ and His complete work. AGAIN, the ontology of the Trinity (His nature and essence) WHO He IS, and the expression of that in the economy by WHAT He DOES, based on who He IS. Psa 16:8 "I have set the LORD always before Me; because He is at My right hand, I shall not be moved. Psa 16:9 Therefore My heart is glad, and My glory rejoices; My flesh also shall rest in hope; Psa 16:10 For You will not leave My soul in hell; You will not allow Your Holy One to see corruption. Psa 16:11 You will make Me know the way of life; in Your presence is fullness of joys. At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore."

Rom 1:16-17 "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, "The just shall live by faith." This topic series is MILK, and the push-back from most claiming to be sovereign grace, Calvinist, Reformed is clear evidence of the offense of the cross, and that most of them are merely toying with theology to intellectually tickle their brain. Define: The context of Universal Atonement (Unlimited Atonement) comes in a trio of 3 combined lies: God loves everybody, Christ died for everybody, and God wants to save everybody. These 3 things stand or fall together.

So, we are seeing very clearly, so far, they are not even close (They oppose each other.) The interpretations of biblical texts are nowhere near each other. God's ETERNAL Purpose of the cross of Christ. The roll-out in executing that purpose as we examine BOTH the Person and work of Christ. Assessing the merit of the Person and work of Christ, specifically, whether it accomplished anything up to that point. The effect of what it accomplished in the application of the benefits. If anyone has been paying attention so far (we're in part 12), nothing in the comparison even remotely resembles the other view. One is accurately described, biblically, for the glory of God Almighty, and the other is propped up and upheld by humanistic imagination under the influence of the spirit of antichrist. In case clarity escaped anyone, Universal Atonement is a Satanic, blasphemous lie that has never been used as a means of the power of God unto Salvation.

We need to be reminded about the manner in which God loves His people: God's love for His people is gracious. GRACE is an attribute of God. He gives them what they do not deserve in and of themselves, and they are only loved by SOVEREIGN GRACE: FOR HIS SAKE or ON HIS BEHALF, the elect are loved IN Him. ("in Him" as their Head and Representative). They DO NOT become worthy of love (by payment), but because the basis of God's unconditional love is His Own sovereign purpose within Himself. *They are not MADE potentially LOVEABLE by Christ's death (merit). It's God's sovereignty and grace, NOT justice, as the moving cause of love. It's by unconditional grace. Christ did not have to purchase the right for God to show grace in His love and election. Again, grace, like love, is WHO God IS, eternally and unchanging. And that is in harmony with His sovereignty (as the basis). At the same time, God was, eternally, a God of justice. BUT, justice did not have to be satisfied BEFORE God set His affection on and chose His people. That same sovereign love ensured that justice would be satisfied for their Justification. BUT love and Justification are not synonymous terms.

Since God is FAITHFUL to Himself, His own character, He will DO accordingly. Just remember: In this Trinitarian purpose, God CANNOT be separated from what He purposes, what He does in fulfilment of that purpose, both in the execution of it in the WORK of Christ and the application of the benefits of that work to all His people. To be more specific, we said we CANNOT divorce or separate the Person of Christ from His work, nor can we separate the work of Christ from the Gospel itself (compromising Sovereign Grace, Calvinist, Reformed folks do that when they say Universal Atonement is a legitimate form of the gospel). In other words, a failed christ most own his failed work and be labeled and rejected as such, because God's character is at stake here. In this message, we start dealing with the love and power of God as it pertains to the Gospel.

Today, we will begin examining the character of God, WHO He really IS, as compared to a god that people have made up in their imagination by twisting and perverting the truth of what God says about Himself. We've mentioned several times that God ALONE, by grace, is sovereign in ALL of Salvation from start to finish: In His eternal purpose, the execution of that purpose in the work of Christ, and the application of both of those to the recipients of this grace, in its fulfillment, in time. At this point, in this general description, many would give a loud and hearty AMEN. As I have mentioned a few times so far in the previous 8 parts, this series is not to exhaustively prove, in detail, the doctrines of grace, or more specifically, a limited atonement that is sufficient, satisfactory, accomplished, finished, and effectual. My content on that is spread out over the years since I started recording it. My purpose in this series is threefold: 1) Bring GLORY due to God Almighty in the magnification of His character in the accomplished work of Christ. 2) Be a means to strengthen the faith of God's people by showing WHO this God IS and what was actually ACCOMPLISHED by the work of Christ. This is for understanding, assurance, rest, peace, joy, and to stir up worship. AND, by grace, by just considering what God's word teaches about the MAIN THING, have the knowledge, confidence, and boldness to speak these things in love, care, compassion, patience, in SIMPLICITY and CLARITY for God's glory. 3) This is also for those who ALREADY claim to believe the doctrines of grace but have divorced these doctrines from the Gospel itself and separated these doctrines of sovereign grace.

In this message, we examine the extent of redemption and the use of the term. Rom 3:24 "Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption (ransom, salvation) that is in Christ Jesus: Rom 3:25 Whom God has set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; Rom 3:26 To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believes in Jesus."

Reconciliation: (The NEED - Enemies that make a separation) Rom 8:6 "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Rom 8:7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. Rom 8:8 So then they that are in the flesh (in Adam) cannot please God."