The letter to the church at Ephesus was written to a community of Christ followers by Paul. Paul was writing to shape their identities in the gospel. He was so excited about writing to them about Jesus that he started his letter with a single, huge, sentence that contains seven verbs: blessed,chose, destined, bestowed, lavished, made known, and gather up.
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… (Ephesians 1:7-8 ESV)
The grace that frees us in Christ also redeems us. God doesn’t go half way. He lavishes grace on us “in all wisdom and insight.” What does “lavished” mean? To lavish is to “bestow extravagant quantities.”
When we say that God lavishes grace upon us it is more than simply a quantitative concept. It is also qualitative. His grace is inexhaustible. This means that there is no end to it. He will never come to the end of his rope. We are completely free from shame and guilt.
The forgiveness of our sin knows no bound.
If you believed and knew that God’s grace is without end how would that free you to live and love?
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