As we begin our consideration of the Apostle Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, let us do so with our heart’s desire after becoming a complete avenue of true worship unto God. The Apostle has infused this Letter with the full glory of God vested in Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Savior. 
To be truly pleasing unto God requires that we give our full attention unto Him. It means that our every concentration and our every earnest desire is to be unto Him in full consideration of the glory of God set in Christ. This will take much more effort than some of us have yet given. It means that our entire focus is on Him Alone. This is a most important aspect of the sacrifice of worship that we offer up to God. Any expression of true worship will be centered in His name and none other. As we consider Him, let our hearts be filled with awe for all that God has done in Jesus Christ. Our heart’s desire is to bring a more perfect service of worship unto God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We are seeking the greater depths of Christ with a heart of fellowship that desires to bless God with all the true adoration of our hearts. This is worshipping Him in Spirit and in Truth.
Lord willing, this morning’s overview will serve as a general introduction of this first chapter. This will be a little different in the sense that as I was reading it, I was led to a large number of other passages in scripture that deal with Jesus Christ, Our Lord. Some of the Old Testament passages do not specifically use the name of Jesus, but they do refer to the Holy One of God who is Christ. As well, my prayer is that the incorporation of the gloriousness of Christ, described in these passages, will show forth some aspects of the superlatives of Christ that are contained in this letter. The prayer of our heart is that the exceeding magnitude of Christ will serve as a catalyst to our reflection of the power and the richness and the fullness of Christ. 
This Epistle is the tremendous acknowledgement of the complete work of God in His Only Begotten Son. Follow along with me in your Bibles as we begin our trek into the excellence of the Apostle Paul’s proclamation of the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Let us do so with our hearts set on giving expression to the life and the love that is Christ Jesus our Lord.
	Eph 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are also faithful in Christ Jesus: 
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 
3 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, 
4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. 
5 He destined us in love to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 
6 to the praise of his glorious grace which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 
7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace 
8 which he lavished upon us. 
9 For he has made known to us in all wisdom and insight the mystery of his will, according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ 
10 as a plan for the fulness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. 
11 In him, according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to the counsel of his will, 
12 we who first hoped in Christ have been destined and appointed to live for the praise of his glory. 
13 In him you also, who have heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 
14 which is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory. 
15 For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, 
16 I do not cease to give 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 of revelation in the knowledge of him, 
18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 
19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power in us who believe, according to the working of his great might 
20 which he accomplished in Christ when he raised him from the dead and made him sit at his right hand in the heavenly places, 
21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come; 
22 and he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, 
23 which is his body, the fulness of him who fills all in all. 
The Father foreordained our salvation and inclusion into the Beloved in Jesus Christ. He is blessed as we consider Jesus. Peter preached of this spectacular truth as recorded in Acts 2:22-24 "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs which God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know -  this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.  But God raised him up, having loosed the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. 
	Jesus Christ is the Holy One of God. There is no other. Throughout the plan and purpose of God, Jesus has always been the focus. Jesus Christ, The Holy One of God is the only means by which we are brought into the very presence of God. 
Ps 89:15-18 Blessed are the people who know the festal shout, who walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance, who exult in thy name all the day, and extol thy righteousness. For thou art the glory of their strength; by thy favor our horn is exalted. For our shield belongs to the Lord, our king to the Holy One of Israel. 
Our hearts ascribe praise to the Lord for the Holy One of God. Isa 12:4-6 And you will say in that day: "Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name; make known his deeds among the nations, proclaim that his name is exalted. “Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; let this be known in all the earth. Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel." 
There is joy and redemption in the name of Jesus Christ, God’s Holy One.  Isa 29:19 The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the Lord, and the poor among men shall exult in the Holy One of Israel. 
Isa 47:4 Our Redeemer - the Lord of hosts is his name - is the Holy One of Israel. 
Isa 49:7-10 Thus says the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One, to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nations, the servant of rulers: "Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of the Lord, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you." Thus says the Lord: "In a time of favor I have answered you, in a day of salvation I have helped you; I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people, to establish the land, to apportion the desolate heritages; saying to the prisoners, 'Come forth,' to those who are in darkness, 'Appear.' They shall feed along the ways, on all bare heights shall be their pasture; they shall not hunger or thirst, neither scorching wind nor sun shall smite them, for he who has pity on them will lead them, and by springs of water will guide them. 
Jesus Christ, God’s Holy One is the glory of God in our lives. Isa 55:4-8 Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. Behold, you shall call nations that you know not, and nations that knew you not shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you. "Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, says the Lord. 
Peter, when questioned by Christ, came face-to-face with the fact that it is only in Christ, the Holy One of God, that we have any source of truth, life, and hope. John 6:65-69 And he said, "This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father." After this many of his disciples drew back and no longer went about with him. Jesus said to the twelve, "Do you also wish to go away?" Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life; and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God." 
Even the powers of this age recognized the Holy One of God and proclaimed His place and obeyed His commands in fear and trembling. Mark 1:21-24 And they went into Caper'na-um; and immediately on the sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught. And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God." 
Matt 8:28+29 And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demoniacs met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way. And behold, they cried out, "What have you to do with us, O Son of God? 
The Father has invested Himself wholly in the Son. They are One with each other and the Holy Spirit. The scriptures proclaim the Eternal Father in Christ, our redeemer. Isa 63:16 For thou art our Father, though Abraham does not know us and Israel does not acknowledge us; thou, O Lord, art our Father, our Redeemer from of old is thy name. 
Isa 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder, and his name will be called "Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." 
And, that oneness of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is now made known and opened to us in Jesus Christ. He included you and me, everyone who has, does, and will call upon His name, to be brought into the eternal oneness, joined together in Christ, His Body, the Beloved of God. John 17:21-23 that they may all be one; even as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. The glory which thou hast given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and thou in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that thou hast sent me and hast loved them even as thou hast loved me. 
Jesus is the only source of eternal salvation. There is no other way to come into the presence of God and to partake of His eternal life other than through the Son, Jesus Christ.  Heb 5:8-10 Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and being made perfect he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchiz'edek. 
Jesus Christ is the Beginning of the creation of God. It is in Him Alone that we are made the absolutely new creation of God. 
Rev 3:14 "And to the angel of the church in La-odice'a write: 'The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation. 
Isa 41:4 Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, the first, and with the last; I am He.
The Apostle John, in his many writings puts the vastness of Jesus Christ as the beginning of true life so eloquently and succinctly and wonderfully. Everything has its beginning, its life, and its eternal purpose set in Jesus Christ Alone. John 1:1-5 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 
John 1:14  And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father. 
Rev 1:8 "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. 
Rev 21:6+7 And he said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the fountain of the water of life without payment. He who conquers shall have this heritage, and I will be his God and he shall be my son. 
The Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is God’s beloved Son, the only begotten Son of God. He is the Son of the Living God, the Son of the Highest. The Father cannot be other than fully and eternally blessed in what Christ, His Son, has done in His Love for the Father and for us. It is here that the opening verses of Ephesians chapter one is so fully expressive of the heart of God being so wonderfully and gloriously blessed by the work and obedience of His Son, Jesus Christ. Eph 1:3-6 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. He destined us in love to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 
The angel proclaimed the incarnation of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, in Luke 1:30-35 And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there will be no end." And Mary said to the angel, "How shall this be, since I have no husband?" And the angel said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. 
Many of the Lord’s contemporaries recognized Him as God’s Son, including John the Baptist, Nathanael, Simon Peter, the woman at the well and even the Roman Centurion on the day of Christ’s crucifixion.
 John 1:32-34 And John bore witness, "I saw the Spirit descend as a dove from heaven, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him; but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.'  And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God." 
John 1:49 Nathan'a-el answered him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!" 
Matt 14:29-33 He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus; but when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me." Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, "O man of little faith, why did you doubt?" And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God." 
John 11:25-27 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, he who is coming into the world." 
Matt 27:54 When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe, and said, "Truly this was the Son of God!" 
In all these accounts, the Sonship of Jesus Christ has been proclaimed and the heart of God has been fully blessed. Some of the greatest passages of our faith declare Jesus Christ, the Son of God, our only hope of redemption and life. John 3:16-18 For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. He who believes in him is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 
Rom 1:1-6 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures, the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and designated Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including yourselves who are called to belong to Jesus Christ; 
1 John 4:14+15 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.
1 John 5:10-13 He who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. He who does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne to his Son. And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who has not the Son of God has not life. I write this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. 
And 1 John 5:20 And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, to know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. 
The Son, Jesus Christ did only that which pleased the Father. He took nothing for Himself, but only sought after the glory of His Heavenly Father to reign forth in the life that He lived on this earth. In that obedience He honored the Father and the Father honored Him and called Him the Beloved. Listen once again to the Apostle John as he declares the Honor of God accomplished in the life, death, and resurrection of Our Lord.
John 1:18 No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known. 
John 5:19-27 Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever he does, that the Son does likewise. For the Father loves the Son, and shows him all that he himself is doing; and greater works than these will he show him, that you may marvel. For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me, has eternal life; he does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. "Truly, truly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself, and has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of man. 
Peter describes the glory of God in Jesus Christ at the transfiguration. 2 Peter 1:17+18 For when he received honor and glory from God the Father and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased," we heard this voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. 
Look how the Apostle Matthew proclaims the fact that God, the Father, was fully blessed in His Son, Jesus Christ. Matt 3:16+17 And when Jesus was baptized, he went up immediately from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and alighting on him; and lo, a voice from heaven, saying, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased." 
Matt 17:5 He was still speaking, when lo, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him." 
Matt 16:15-17 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 
The Lord Jesus Christ is our salvation. There is no other name by which we must be saved. The world offers so many false hopes and lies in its deceitful façade of nothingness. God, on the other hand, has dealt with us in truth and faithfulness. He has given us His Son, His Beloved. In the only begotten of the Father, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, we are lavished with ...love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control;… as recorded in Gal 5:22+23.  In Jesus Christ we have life, we have everything.
1 John 4:9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 
Acts 3:6-9 But Peter said, "I have no silver and gold, but I give you what I have; in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." And he took him by the right hand and raised him up; and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. And leaping up he stood and walked and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God, 
Acts 4:8-12 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a cripple, by what means this man has been healed, be it known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by him this man is standing before you well. This is the stone which was rejected by you builders, but which has become the head of the corner. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." 
1 Cor 1:2-9 To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I give thanks to God always for you because of the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in him with all speech and all knowledge - even as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you - so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ; who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 
Phil 2:5-11 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Amen.
The Old Testament law is fulfilled in Christ. He is the perfect Lamb of God, whose sacrifice has forever paid our debts and opened up life for eternity and beyond. This is the great mystery that has always been the plan and purpose of God on High. He chose to Love us unto Himself by Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. John 1:29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 
John 1:35+36 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples; and he looked at Jesus as he walked, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God!" 
And Paul declares Christ, the Lamb of God, as the mystery that once was hidden, but is now revealed to those who will receive Him. Col 1:24-28 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the divine office which was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now made manifest to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man mature in Christ. 
Col 2:2+3 that their hearts may be encouraged as they are knit together in love, to have all the riches of assured understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, of Christ, in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 
	We conclude this morning with the last verses of this first chapter in Ephesians. It is the concise summary of all that God has given us in His Son, Jesus Christ. There is nothing else of value, nothing else worthy of our time, energy, focus, and lives. Let us seek to become an eternal sacrifice of worship unto God because of all that He has done in Christ. It is worth repeating that as we consider the Letter to the Ephesians, we do so with hearts seeking to be truly pleasing unto God. It means that our every concentration and our every earnest desire is the absolute glory of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Again, this will require that we are a living sacrifice unto God with our entire focus on Him Alone. True worship is centered in Christ, living forth from His nature of Love, desiring only to bless God with all the true adoration of our hearts. Jesus Christ is the Son of God in whom we and God, the Father, are forever blessed. 
Eph 1:16-23 I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power in us who believe, according to the working of his great might which he accomplished in Christ when he raised him from the dead and made him sit at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come; and he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church,which is his body, the fulness of him who fills all in all. Amen.

Our benediction is from Ps 118:22-26 The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner. This is the Lord's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day which the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Save us, we beseech thee, O Lord! O Lord, we beseech thee, give us success! Blessed be he who enters in the name of the Lord. Amen