In Touch Ministries

Dr. Charles Stanley: Through the shedding of the blood of Jesus Christ on the cross and your response to accept Him as your Savior, the Holy Spirit came into your life. Now, He says we have open, unhindered access to God the Father. He leads us into the very presence of Almighty God the Father. In the presence of Almighty God the Father who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing. The presence of Almighty God the Father who has written our names on the great title deed to eternity.

Guest (Male): Many Christians who deeply love the Lord are still enslaved to damaging emotions or guilt from the past. Does that describe you? If so, that can change. Today on In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley, you'll hear how to draw on God's power and allow Him to transform your life. Our series, How the Truth Can Set You Free, continues.

Dr. Charles Stanley: We have been in a series on how the truth can set you free. If you will turn in your Bible to Ephesians chapter 1, and if you look in that chapter, there are several things here, but beginning if you will in chapter 1 and verse 7. In Him, present tense, we have redemption. That is, He paid the price at the cross to redeem us, to buy us out of a life of sin and set us on a new road, giving us a new life.

Redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our sins. That is, all of our sins have been atoned for, sacrificed for, paid for 2,000 years ago. So all of our forgiveness is past tense. He settled the issue 2,000 years ago about your forgiveness. All of your confession may be present tense. All of your forgiveness was already provided 2,000 years ago at the cross. When you take one step away from the cross, you're in trouble. Everything is centered around the cross. Everything is attached to it. All of our hope and all of our help comes at the cross.

So He says we are the living possessors of redemption and forgiveness. So I want you to move to verse 3 of chapter 1 of Ephesians and let's begin with our possessions in Christ. You have to relate this to what we are talking about. The feelings, the battle we have with insecurity, inferiority, and inadequacy to meet life's situations. Listen to what He says in Ephesians chapter 1, verse 3. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ."

Look at that word blessed. That word in the Greek is made up of two words which means to speak good about something. But here's an interesting note I want you to notice about that. Every time we are doing the blessing in our relationship to God, it is the blessing of our lips. We bless the Lord. It is the expression of our heart. In the Bible, every time God is the blesser, He is committing an action. That is, He is doing something specific in our life. God isn't just talking about it. God does something when He blesses us.

And in this one verse, there is a blesser, the blessed, and the blessing. Look at this. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." That is our praise to Him who, listen, now watch this, has blessed. That is the same word, but in the aorist tense, which means in the past, God did something for you and me. Listen, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus."

Now what does He mean by that? We are talking about our possessions based on our relationship to Jesus Christ, which He enacted at the cross, which became a living reality in your life the moment you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior. What does He mean when He says He has blessed us? Blessed us in the past tense one time, blessed us in the Lord Jesus Christ. It means simply this, that before you were ever born, God Almighty deposited to your account in heaven every single blessing that love will allow and that God's omnipotence can provide.

Did you get that? Here's what God is saying to you and to me about us. That God Almighty in His love, because of the price Jesus Christ paid on the cross which was His life, on the basis of that, not on the basis of how good you are, not on the basis of how good you promise to be, not on the basis of what you've done, not on any basis of anything within you. Within me there is no good thing. On the basis of the shed blood of Jesus Christ, God Almighty could do this and still be God, still be just, still be righteous, deposit to the account of those who came into this world as sinners bent away from God, deposit to your account and my account every single thing we would ever need as long as we live on the face of this earth. Every single thing that love will allow and His omnipotence will provide.

And if that be true, and it is true, tell me my dear friend, can you name one single legitimate reason for ever feeling inadequate, for ever feeling incapable of facing any situation in life with that promise dedicated and committed to you as a child of God? Because you see, my friend, there is not one single thing that you could possibly think of. Our feelings of inadequacy are straight from the devil. We are inadequate within ourselves, but we are not inadequate in Him.

How could you ever feel worthless when God Almighty loved you enough before you were ever born to deposit to your account every single thing you will ever need as long as you live on the face of this earth? There are no legitimate reasons, and every time that feeling comes to your mind and your heart, that is Satan's lie straight out of hell. When He says every spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ, somebody says, "Well, wait a minute. Why am I having such a hard time?"

Listen, the Bible says that He provides all of our need. Sometime you and I need to get in the valley. Sometime God needs to do what? Prune us and sand us and sift us and cut us back. Why? Because every good orchard grower, every grove man knows that if he wants the best fruit for next year, he's got to prune the dead limbs, those little sprouts that began to soak up the sap. And so he must prune the branches. When God begins to prune your life, you say, "Well, where's God's blessing now? What's God doing in my life? I thought I had every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus."

You do. But remember this, that He who is your keeper, He who is your God, He whose love has allowed and He whose power has provided knows exactly what you and I need, exactly when we need it. It is all spiritual blessings in heavenlies in Christ Jesus, and God is the one who gives the blessing. He says you and I, listen, we're not going to possess it. He says we already have every single need we will ever experience in life already met in the heavenlies in Christ.

I've been saying some things over and over and over and over again, and I'm saying to you again, the biggest battle of your life is the battle to believe what God says versus what the devil says. So He says, here's what we have. Now think about this. Think of you creeping and crawling up to God and saying, "Oh Lord, Oh dear Lord," and you moan and you groan and you gripe and you complain. Listen, why go to a loving heavenly Father who says in His word that all His love will provide, He's provided? All His supernatural unlimited omnipotence will create for you, He has already done that, willing to give to you what you need when you need it.

And you come creeping up and crawling up and crying to God as a beggar when He says come as a child of God, believing and expecting and anticipating and receiving the blessings of God. There's no room for the feelings, the scathing, binding feelings of inadequacy and inferiority and insecurity when we have a God who has so committed Himself as He has in chapter 1, verse 3. That's only part of it. If you look in the same chapter and go down, if you will, to verse 11.

He says in verse 11, "In Christ Jesus, we have obtained," listen, past tense, "we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestinated according to the purpose, His purpose, who works all things after the counsel of whose will." His will. We are talking about what God has willed, not what we deserve. And you see, here's what we'll do. We will say it with our lips. We will think it with our mind. But underlying that, Satan throws in his little static, "But that's not meant for you. That's not what that means. That's not what that says." And that is Satan.

He says that what God has done, He has done according to the counsel of His own will. Now He says that you and I have, past tense, obtained an inheritance. Look if you will in Romans chapter 8 for just a moment, and look in verse 16 and 17. You know verse 16, He says, "The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God." Now listen. "And if, condition, that is, if we're children, having been saved by the grace of God through faith, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him."

Now listen. He says that you and I have become inheritors. Now if you look that up in the Greek, what that means, what He's saying, the word means one who has been given, has been deeded a land grant. That's what that means. What He's saying in this passage is that God has deeded you and me something. But He says likewise that you and I have become joint heirs with the person of Jesus Christ. That is, all that God the Father has given His Son, He says He's put your name and my name on the title deed to the inheritance of all that God owns, all that Jesus Christ has. He says we've become joint heirs.

You say, "Now wait a minute. There's no way for me ever to deserve that." And I want to tell you, my friend, that's the whole issue. It is the cross and not your desert. You see, that's after the counsel of His will. That has nothing to do with how good or how bad you are. It is on the basis of what Jesus Christ did at the cross. He made it possible. Now watch this. A will is not executed until after the death. And when Jesus Christ went to the cross, you'll recall the night before in the upper room with His apostles, He said, "This is a new covenant, a new will, this is a new contract between the Father and you."

And when Jesus Christ went to the cross, He died. The Holy Spirit came into your life and my life to do what? Making it possible for us to enjoy here and now the inheritance which we have. Now on the one hand, we are part of Jesus Christ's inheritance. God the Father has given us to Him. On the other hand, He says that you and I have become joint heirs with Jesus Christ of all that God the Father has provided and all that Jesus Christ is providing even now. We are joint heirs, that is, we are participators.

He says, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has deposited to our account." That's our inheritance. He says it's already there. Our inheritance has already been deeded and it is already being deeded out to us. We are already being able to share and to participate in that inheritance, if of course we meet His condition. He says, "We have obtained," past tense, an inheritance. We've already obtained it, and we are now in the process of being able to enjoy and share it.

We are the present-day recipients and you see, He says, "My God shall supply all of your needs." Is God going to chinch with us on this earth for 30, 40, 50, 60, 75, 100 years? Is He going to be chinchy down here and then one of these days dump it all on us when we get to heaven? That's not God the Father. He is a loving Father who has already provided, and He says you are a joint heir with Jesus. Now look back if you will in Ephesians for a moment. Look if you will in verse 14.

He says the Holy Spirit has been given to us as a pledge of that inheritance. Now you see, God doesn't miss anything. It isn't just that He said, "Well, one of these days you're going to inherit something." The Bible says at Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came, He says in the same chapter, to seal us. It was God's pledge that the inheritance that He has provided for us, that every single person who has that pledge, the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit sealed by the Spirit of God, that person has the right in this present day here and now to participate in, get involved in, and become the recipient of part of that inheritance that God has provided for us because the inheritance will never be exhausted for all eternity.

But now watch this next verse. Let's move down to chapter 2 of Ephesians, verse 18. Let's start with verse 17. He says, "And He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near, for through Him," that is through Christ, "we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father." Now turn if you will back over to Romans chapter 5 and let me show you something interesting here about this word access. In chapter 5 of Romans beginning in verse 1.

He says, "Therefore, having been justified," declared righteous, "we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through whom also," perfect tense, now watch this. Listen. "Through whom also we have obtained in the past, and in the present tense, what we obtained in the past is going on in full action and full speed ahead." Because He says, listen, "through whom also we have obtained our access or introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand."

All of us know that we're living in grace. The cross has made it possible for us to live in grace. That's all we have is the grace of God. He says there's not anything within your old self that's of any value. It is Christ within us, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, living in grace, standing upon grace, walking in grace, living in grace, dying in grace. Now He says not only has there been that deposit, He says but our name's on the title deed which says we have a right to it. Thirdly, He says not only that, He says we have access to it.

It is one thing for God Almighty in all of His omnipotence and love and generosity to make this provision for us of every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus. That's one thing. But how do I get what God has down here in my life to meet my needs on a daily basis? Listen to what He says. He says, "Through whom also we have obtained," once and for all, "and we have that in our possession, our access by faith into this grace." Because you see, His resources is a result of His grace. That is the grace of God in living color. Every single thing we need God has provided.

Now back to verse 18 in chapter 2 of Ephesians. "For through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father." Let me show you how that word access is used in the Greek. Now watch this. It is used to refer to a channel. Here is a ship out at sea, and the ship comes through the channel into the safety of the harbor. The channel is the way of access into the safety of the harbor. The word was also used to describe one who had the privilege of coming and having a conversation with a sovereign, with a king.

That is, the king made himself accessible. That is, the way was opened. What He's saying in this passage is this, now watch this. That through the shedding of the blood of Jesus Christ on the cross and your response to accept Him as your Savior, the Holy Spirit came into your life. Now He says we have open, unhindered access to God the Father. We don't have to pray to any man on the face of this earth. We go straight to God the Father through the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Holy Spirit leads us, He says He makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. He leads us into the very presence of Almighty God the Father. In the presence of Almighty God the Father who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing. The presence of Almighty God the Father who has written our names on the great title deed to eternity. On the great title deed to eternity God the Father has written our names in the title deed. That's why in the book of Hebrews He says we can come bold, listen, reverently but boldly.

We can come to the throne room of our loving heavenly Father who is there sitting already waiting to bless His children, waiting to give them their needs, waiting to glorify Himself within every single one of them. God is looking for people who are willing to risk their faith in Almighty God. Listen to me, my friend. Listen to me carefully. Almighty God wants to bless you but He will not force His blessing upon you. You're listening to the wrong voices. You're listening to your feelings. You're taking account of that which you should not take account of.

Get your faith centered in God. God wants to bless you. God wants to build you. God wants to strengthen you and not have you fumbling through life with a settled-for life. There is no glory to God in a settled-for life. None whatsoever. I just want to ask you one simple question. According to this book, He says through Jesus Christ we have access by one Spirit into this grace wherein we stand. Access to God the Father. Let me ask you this. Is it not true that the loving heavenly Father whom you and I profess to believe, is it not true that every single second of your life God your Father is available to you at that moment?

Then my friend, let's stop doubting Him, crawling around in a settled-for life, and let's stand up like godly men and women and claim by faith what is ours and be freed, liberated from these feelings of insecurity, inferiority, and inadequacy and claim our rightful possession in Jesus Christ by faith.

Guest (Male): Followers of Jesus Christ who exercise trust in God can experience all that He has provided. Dr. Stanley's message today on In Touch encouraged you to reach out and by faith take hold of God's promises and enjoy your possessions in Christ. What else is yours in Christ? You can do some research on your own at our website and head over to the Today on Radio page to hear this message again. Go to intouch.org.

And if you'd like to have the entire set of Dr. Stanley's 10 messages on How the Truth Can Set You Free, you can place your order there on our store page. Our web address again is intouch.org. Call or text us at 1-800-IN-TOUCH. If you prefer, you can write to us at In Touch, Post Office Box 7900, Atlanta, Georgia 30357. Today's Moment with Charles Stanley reminds us that no believer need to drag through life with inadequacy and inferiority weighing them down. That's just ahead.

In Touch Plus is streaming on Local Now, featuring all the best of Dr. Charles Stanley. We need to have strong convictions based on the word of God. He's working out things that you and I would never know about in our future. In Touch Plus, your streaming network for quality Christian programming 24/7. Now watch this. In Touch Plus streaming free on Local Now.

You're listening to In Touch. God has given us everything we need to thrive through His Son Jesus Christ. With a reason for the believer's confidence, here's a moment with Charles Stanley.

Dr. Charles Stanley: Now let me ask you a question. How can we feel so inadequate, so insecure, and so inferior when your name is on the greatest title deed ever written by anyone, and God Almighty wrote it and God Almighty signed it in the blood of Jesus Christ and sealed you with the Holy Spirit? Why duck your head, my dear brother? Why bend your neck? Why bow your back before wealth and before prominence and prestige when listen, there is anybody in the world who can stand up any taller than a child of God who understands what their possessions are in Christ Jesus?

And I meet so many people who are down in the dumps and they say, "Well you know I just don't have enough, I don't know why God doesn't do this." I'm telling you why He doesn't, because your attitude toward God is off-balance and because you do not understand what God sees when He looks at you and what He has provided for you because He loves you with a love that is absolutely boundless in every single direction. He says He has provided that for you and me.

Guest (Male): Visit us at intouch.org to learn more about God's indescribable love for you. Have you been encouraged by what you heard today? Take some time to let us know. When In Touch returns, continue learning how to take advantage of God's inexhaustible provision. You can hear that when we return on In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley. This program is a presentation of In Touch Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia, and remains on this station through the grace of God and your faithful prayers and gifts.