"Every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm"

[jkiernan56]

St. Paul in Ephesians 1:3 says “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”

What did he mean by this statement? We have been blessed with “every” spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms. What is your understanding of this passage?

 

[MarcoPolo]

This is what the Haydock Bible Commentary says.

Blessed be the God, who, through his Son Jesus Christ, made man, hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings and gifts; and by his grace, infused into our souls, has given us a title to a happy eternity in heaven. (Witham) — In heavenly things; (in cœlestibus) i.e. all spiritual blessings for heaven, or for eternity. This is the object of all the blessings we receive from God; and we ought, according to the first intention of them, to refer them all to eternal or heavenly beatitude. St. Paul distinguishes the blessings which we receive in Jesus Christ from those bestowed upon the Jews, which were temporal and limited to this earth. (Calmet; Challoner

 

[jkiernan56]

This is what the Haydock Bible Commentary says.

Blessed be the God, who, through his Son Jesus Christ, made man, hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings and gifts; and by his grace, infused into our souls, has given us a title to a happy eternity in heaven. (Witham) — In heavenly things; (in cœlestibus) i.e. all spiritual blessings for heaven, or for eternity. This is the object of all the blessings we receive from God; and we ought, according to the first intention of them, to refer them all to eternal or heavenly beatitude. St. Paul distinguishes the blessings which we receive in Jesus Christ from those bestowed upon the Jews, which were temporal and limited to this earth. (Calmet; Challoner

I looked up the commentary link to see what was said about this particular verse in Ephesians. Here is what it said:

Ver. 3. With all spiritual blessings in heavenly places: literally, in heavenlies,[1] or celestials, which some expound and translate, in heavenly things; but this being expressed just before by spiritual blessings, it rather seems to be understood of the glory prepared for us in heaven, or in the heavenly mansions; in which sense it seems to me, according to the interpretation both of St. Jerome and of St. Chrysostom in their commentaries on these words. Estius takes notice that the same expression, in the celestials, is used five times in this epistle, and in all of them signifies places above us. (Witham)

I’m not so sure the commentary has hit the of the bullseye yet, although it hints in the expression “the glory prepared for us in the heavens.” What is this glory that St. Paul speaks of? I think he tells us in a later verse in Ephesians 1 about being adopted sons and daughters of God. What do you think?

 

[ryanoneil]

I’m not so sure the commentary has hit the of the bullseye yet, although it hints in the expression “the glory prepared for us in the heavens.” What is this glory that St. Paul speaks of? I think he tells us in a later verse in Ephesians 1 about being adopted sons and daughters of God. What do you think?

It makes sense to me that the blessings are linked with Baptism. Sonship (1:5), grace (1:6), forgiveness (1:7), and sealing or downpayment of the blessings we hope to possess in heaven (1:13).

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love he had for us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, brought us to life with Christ (by grace you have been saved), raised us up with him, and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus (Eph 2:5-6)

 

[Strategery]

St. Paul in Ephesians 1:3 says “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”

What did he mean by this statement? We have been blessed with “every” spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms. What is your understanding of this passage?

You’re touching on something extremely significant here. I’ve been wanting to write a cohesive piece on this subject but I haven’t gotten around to it.

In several of his letters, Paul gives a glimpse of what it’s like to experience what I call “transcendent faith” - (I get that from Philippians 4:6-7 - “the peace of God that transcends all understanding”). This is another allusion to it.

Spiritual blessings are what come as one matures in their spiritual development.

Check out some other passages:

Ephesians 1-18-22
18 May the eyes of (your) hearts be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call, what are the riches of glory in his inheritance among the holy ones,
19 and what is the surpassing greatness of his power for us who believe, in accord with the exercise of his great might,
20 which he worked in Christ, raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavens,
21 far above every principality, authority, power, and dominion, and every name that is named not only in this age but also in the one to come.

There are similar passages all over Paul’s letters. There is a higher, transcendent level of faith to be grasped. IMO the keys to this are:

• Prayer - ask God what this passage means. Ask Him to reveal it to you. Whenever I make a prayer like this, the answers come eventually. Recall Matthew 6 - ask, seek, and knock.
• Commit to obedience. Putting the flesh to death is a key step in attaining spiritual blessings. Recall that in John 3, Christ himself states that disobedience is the opposite of belief.
• Meditate over the scriptures daily
• Frequent the sacraments

I’ll add more on this tomorrow. I’ve got various pieces of this together on a different computer.

 

[Strategery]

Here are a few more bits and pieces. For the last nine months I’ve been writing a daily devotional for the men’s CRHP community in our parish. I’ve spent a fair amount of that time chasing this idea.

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Ephesians 1:15-21

15 Therefore, I, too, hearing of your faith in the Lord Jesus and of your love for all the holy ones,
16 do not cease giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers,
17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation resulting in knowledge of him.
18 May the eyes of (your) hearts be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call, what are the riches of glory in his inheritance among the holy ones,
19 and what is the surpassing greatness of his power for us who believe, in accord with the exercise of his great might,
20 which he worked in Christ, raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavens,
21 far above every principality, authority, power, and dominion, and every name that is named not only in this age but also in the one to come.

I love this passage because it gives a glimpse of what lies ahead for those who truly pursue spiritual maturity. I am at times a “studier” of the bible, and can get frustrated when I see descriptions of a spiritual life that I haven’t yet experienced. How do I get there? Paul gives the answer in this passage. He prays that the Ephesians receive a spirit of wisdom and revelation. For me personally, when there’s something that I study but can’t understand, I have taken to praying that God show me the answer. It is amazing how often this prayer gets answered. As it says in Matthew 7:

7 Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
8 For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

Look again at Ephesians 1:17 see the description of private revelation that can occur for each of us. God gives a spirit of wisdom that results in knowledge of Him. Our hearts are enlightened, we begin to know the riches of glory, and we experience the surpassing greatness of his power. This is pretty heavy stuff that Paul is describing. It is a glimpse of what I call transcendent faith, and is the product of drawing ever closer to Christ.

 

[Strategery]

Here’s one that talks about the role of obedience:​

Ephesians 5:8-14

8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light,
9 for light produces every kind of goodness and righteousness and truth.
10 Try to learn what is pleasing to the Lord.
11 Take no part in the fruitless works of darkness; rather expose them,
12 for it is shameful even to mention the things done by them in secret;
13 but everything exposed by the light becomes visible,
14 for everything that becomes visible is light. Therefore, it says: “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”

We are called to live in the light, and to try and learn what is pleasing to the Lord. How do we know what is pleasing? Really there are two easy answers. First – search the Word and you will find plenty of descriptions of what God does and does not want us to do. At times I’ve found the lists of “don’ts” depressing, but eventually I learned that taking the first steps of obedience really requires focusing on the “don’ts” than the “do’s”. Before we truly commit to Christ we live as the World lives. But we are told not to do that, to not take part in the fruitless works of darkness. These are the first steps of obedience, to recognize things are not doing to God and stop doing them (aka, putting sin to death).

What else can we do? Prayer. One of the best ways to learn what is pleasing to the Lord is to ASK HIM to tell you what is pleasing to Him. Ask God to reveal to you what he wants you to do, or what he wants you to stop doing. Then … pay attention to the answer and try and put it into practice. I have found that the more often I put such questions to God, the easier things become for me.

If we do these things, in time we move further into the light, and in turn our light shines for others to see.

 

[Strategery]

Here’s another on “pressing on toward the goal.” Hope some of these help paint the picture of what spiritual blessings can mean for those who seek them out.​

Philippians 3:8-16

8 More than that, I even consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things and I consider them so much rubbish, that I may gain Christ
9 and be found in him, not having any righteousness of my own based on the law but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God, depending on faith
10 to know him and the power of his resurrection and (the) sharing of his sufferings by being conformed to his death,
11 if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
12 It is not that I have already taken hold of it or have already attained perfect maturity, but I continue my pursuit in hope that I may possess it, since I have indeed been taken possession of by Christ (Jesus).
13 Brothers, I for my part do not consider myself to have taken possession. Just one thing: forgetting what lies behind but straining forward to what lies ahead,
14 I continue my pursuit toward the goal, the prize of God’s upward calling, in Christ Jesus.
15 Let us, then, who are “perfectly mature” adopt this attitude. And if you have a different attitude, this too God will reveal to you.
16 Only, with regard to what we have attained, continue on the same course.

I was speaking with one of my CHRP brothers last Friday about this search for spiritual maturity that I’ve been writing about lately. We discussed whether that life is fully attainable. My response was maybe not fully, but I can sure get farther along the road than I am now.

Later on I thought about the Philippians passage shown above, that discusses Paul’s search for the same thing. In several places he provides vivid descriptions of this higher level of faith, which he wouldn’t be able to do if he hadn’t experienced it himself. Yet even with all the riches of faith that he has experienced, he still sees that there is more out there for him. He’s seen enough to know that he wants it fully and completely. He says forget what lies behind, and keep up your pursuit of the goal. And he says that this attitude of pursuit is a sign of spiritual maturity.

PS – as a little refresher, here are some descriptions of the “abundant life” that I’ve provided in previous messages in the past month or so. This is far more than going to church every Sunday, working booths at the church picnic, and helping little old ladies across the street. This is a life where you have so much faith that you’re perfectly balanced between the lives in spirit and flesh, where you have no anxieties at all, where your prayer life becomes a pouring out of your heart to God.

• Philippians 4:6-7 - Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
• Ephesians 1:18-19 - May the eyes of (your) hearts be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call, what are the riches of glory in his inheritance among the holy ones and what is the surpassing greatness of his power for us who believe, in accord with the exercise of his great might,
• Ephesians 3:16-17 … that he may grant you in accord with the riches of his glory to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner self, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith
• Ephesians 3:18-19 that you, rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.