How can one bring into words the vast blessing of belonging to Christ? No blessing
can compare with the blessing of belonging to Christ, because it is far more than a
blessing – it is an amazing privilege!
Sometimes I spend time just sitting in the presence of the Lord, and in my
imagination I gaze at the cross where Jesus poured out His life for me, where He
took upon Himself all my sin and all my infirmities and He clothed me with His
righteousness. In my imagination I see His redeeming grace flowing down from
Calvary, and I realize how blessed I am. That leaves me in a condition of deep
gratitude and love and a sense of belonging and I cannot but worship my Jesus!
Such undeserved love makes me sing with the hymn writer:
“I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene,
And wonder how He could love me, a sinner condemned, unclean.
He took my sins and my sorrows – He made them His very own;
He bore the burden to Calv’ry, and suffered, and died alone.
When with the ransomed in glory – His face I at last shall see,
’Twill be my joy through the ages to sing of His love for me.
Refrain: – How marvellous! How wonderful – is my Saviour’s love for me!”
In Ephesians 3:8–9 we find Paul speaking of the unsearchable riches of Christ –
“To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to
the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to bring to light for everyone
what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things”.
The word “unsearchable” describes something that cannot be fully comprehended or
explored. In other words, there is no limit to the riches of Christ! They are past
finding out.
Try as we might, we can never plumb the depths of Christ’s worth.
Oh Glory Hallelujah – the unsearchable riches of Christ – and we are privileged to be
baptised into it!
Paul brings to light some of these riches in Eph. 1:7–14.
1) Redemption through His blood. Few understand the worth of this precious
Blood. Only through His blood can we receive the forgiveness of sins, where
we are declared righteous before our Holy Father. Through this blood we can
enter into the Holy place where even the mercy seat is sprinkled with the
Blood of Jesus. God sees us through the Blood of Jesus and we are declared
righteous.
2) The sealing of the Holy Spirit, who also is the guarantee of our inheritance –
we are co-heirs with Christ! We can say with Paul – ‘I am the very least of all
saints…’ How can it be that I should share in such an inheritance!
3) Spiritual blessings. According to Eph. 1:3, in Christ, God “has blessed us in
the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing”. In Christ are hidden “all the
treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2:3). In Christ, God “has given us
everything we need for a godly life” (2 Peter 1:3). He called us to his own
glory and excellence.
The unsearchable riches of Christ are like a treasure hidden in a field. When a man
discovers it, he joyfully sells all he has and buy that whole field. (Matthew 13:44–46).
I want to “sell” everything for this great Treasure! Nothing compares to Him. He is
the pearl of great wealth for which one will sell everything to obtain – He is of
incalculable worth! Only He can grant us admission to the kingdom of God.
The riches of Christ include all that God is. “In Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives
in bodily form” (Colossians 2:9) It includes the Truth of God, the Wisdom of God, the
Life of God, and the Love of God. In Ephesians 3:8 Paul describes himself as the
lowest of believers while lifting Jesus up as the greatest of all.
The treasures of Christ are inexhaustible, they are unsearchable, and they are
forever, not like king Solomon, whose riches were temporal. The unsearchable
riches of Christ provide salvation to everyone who believes. (John 3:16; Rom. 1:16).
We may be the worst of sinners, yet Jesus can forgive us and transform our lives
(Rom. 12:1–2). It is the gift that truly keeps on giving, as we are changed, by God’s
Spirit, into “loving, happy, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-
controlled” people (Gal. 5:22–23, CEV).
F.B. Meyer wrote that we should not rest until we see what a Saviour Jesus is,
and how rich a soul may be that UNDERSTANDS AND USES HIS
UNSEARCHABLE WEALTH.
What a blessing to belong to Christ! We should lift Him up as the greatest of all.
Let us rejoice and be glad in Him! Let us proclaim His Name everywhere!
Andra Botha