Lead Me To The Cross
Psalm 123
1 I lift my eyes to you, O God, enthroned in heaven. 2 We keep looking to the LORD our God for his mercy, just as servants keep their eyes on their master, as a slave girl watches her mistress for the slightest signal. 3 Have mercy on us, LORD, have mercy, for we have had our fill of contempt. 4 We have had more than our fill of the scoffing of the proud and the contempt of the arrogant.
a. Adopted
Ephesians 3:1-13
1 When I think of all this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus for the benefit
of you Gentiles . . . 2 assuming, by the way, that you know God gave me the
special responsibility of extending his grace to you Gentiles. 3 As I briefly
wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me. 4 As you read
what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan regarding
Christ. 5 God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his
Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets. 6 And this is
God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share
equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the
same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong
to Christ Jesus. 7 By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the
privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News..
b. Privileged
8 Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave
me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures
available to them in Christ. 9 I was chosen to explain to everyone this
mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from
the beginning.
c. Church
10 God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in
its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly
places. 11 This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ
Jesus our Lord. 12 Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come
boldly and confidently into God’s presence. 13 So please don’t lose heart
because of my trials here. I am suffering for you, so you should feel
honored.
