ACCEPTED IN THE BELOVED

In his letter to the Ephesians, the apostle Paul expresses an important principle about acceptance.  He tells us, "He [God] hath made us accepted in the Beloved [Jesus]." (Ephesians 1:6).

 

We all crave acceptance in our lives.  We want to be accepted by our parents, our boss, our co-workers, our friends, our classmates, our fellow church members, our spouses, or the world in general.  The approval that we seek, however, is all based on our own efforts and accomplishments; and the measure that we use is someone else's expectation of us, and not God's.  Instead of allowing ourselves to be transformed into the image of our Lord and Savior, we become conformed to what others (or the world in general) thinks we should be, and it is all based on our own merits and not Christ’s.  There are also those who, no matter how hard one tries, can never be pleased.

 

Later on in his letter, Paul makes a distinction between being men-pleasers and doing the will of God from the heart (v. 6:6).  He equates pleasing other people with doing eye service, or doing things that you think will please others only when they are watching you, but doing something altogether different when they are not.  We have been purchased by the blood of Jesus and are now become His servants.  It is Christ and Christ alone Whom we must please; and it is in Christ and Christ alone that we find acceptance with God.  Whether it is before man or before God, our own efforts to secure acceptance are feeble at best.  Like the apostle Paul, we must come to the realization that, "...in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not." (Romans 7:18).  We need to give up this quest to find something redeemable about ourselves and accept the fact that, as fallen beings, we often have the best intentions, but we lack the power in ourselves to perform what we know we ought to do.

 

The good news is that God has made us accepted in His Son Jesus Christ.  If Christ is in you, and you are in Christ, then you are accepted in the Father's eyes.  In Jesus we find the transformative power to be all that God intends for us to be.  "But of Him [according to God's purpose] are ye in Christ Jesus, Who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: that, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord." (1 Corinthians 1:30, 31).  In other words, as we trust in the saving, regenerative power that is in Christ, we find that the life of Jesus flows into us just as simply as fruit appears on the branches of a fruit tree just because it is attached to the trunk.  In the same way, we just naturally receive wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption from the Vine, Jesus Christ, as we learn to abide in Him and tap into His divine life.

 

We must understand that there is a beautiful balance between grace and works.  Scripture is very clear: our own works cannot save us.  Only by God's unmerited favor do we find redemption and salvation.  The result of such grace upon our lives is that we are transformed.  Our desires become different, and our pursuits become different.  Old things are passed away; behold, all things become new.  Good works follow our lives because of the faith that we have in Christ.  Paul says on one hand that, "...by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast," but in the very next verse he plainly states that, "...we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them."  (Ephesians 2:8-10)  Faith without works is dead, but when we believe God's Word and we act on it, then good works are the natural by-product of that faith.  David believed God, therefore he slew Goliath.  Noah believed God, therefore he built an ark.  Moses believed God, therefore he went before Pharaoh and demanded that he let God's people go.  It is the faith of the people of God that motivates them to do what God directs them to do through His Word, and through the Holy Spirit working in them.

 

It is essential, therefore, that we be found in Christ, abiding in the Vine, and enjoying this powerful resurrection life that is in Him.  If we are not bearing the fruit of the Spirit, and being changed into the likeness of our Lord, then we must beware.  Jesus said, "If a man abide not in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." (John 15:6).  Many start out well with the Lord, but find it difficult to continually abide in Him.  It is only "in the Beloved" that we find our acceptance - only "in the Beloved" that we can be saved.  There is a peace and a rest that we find in Christ Jesus as we realize that we can cease from our own works, and from our incessant "trying", and just trust His finished work.  God has accepted us in our beloved Savior, so why would we want to be found anywhere else but in Him?!