From the time of the fall, as Adam and Eve were learning of their punishment from God, there was also a promise of hope set forth by the Word of the Lord. Of course, this is no new exegesis of Genesis 3. God, in speaking to Eve, told her that he would set enmity between her seed and that of the serpent, and that her seed would crush the head of the serpent and the serpent would bruise his heal. This first promise set forth all the expectations that built throughout Scripture for a messiah, an anointed one who would crush Satan under his heel. But, this promise also became an inheritance, because Eve did not bear the anointed child, instead the promise would be passed on, so that Mary would be the one to actually give birth to the Messiah, fulfilling the promise of God.
Likewise, with every promise of the Old Testament, Christ was the one to which they were pointing. The promise of land, the promise of peace, the promise of fellowship with God, and every other promise that God made was fulfilled in Christ. Not only were the promises fulfilled, they continue to be fulfilled in Christ. This is the beauty of the inheritance that God has provided for us in Christ. God has not only given us a promise of inheritance, he himself has perfected that inheritance by doing in Christ what we had no hope of doing for ourselves.
I'm getting a little ahead of myself, but this is the premise for why I call what we have in Christ our perfect inheritance. It is the basis of our praise for God, the reason for why we bless God and proclaim his glory. Some note that even if we did not have this inheritance, God's glory would not be diminished and we should still give him all the praise we do now, but that isn't a question Scripture addresses. As C.S. Lewis notes so often in the Narnia series, no one is ever told "What if?" what we have is what is, and that is what God has spoken to us about. So, instead of deliberating on theological "What ifs?" let us praise God for what he has done, let us always be reminded of our perfect inheritance.
This is where Paul begins in Ephesians. Ephesians 1:3-10 reads, " 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. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth."
Notice the consistent present and past tense terms used by Paul here. God has blessed us, he chose us, he predestined us, he blessed us. We have redemption and forgiveness. He lavished his grace upon us. He has made known his will to us. Even the plans for the uniting all things in Christ happened in the past tense, so that while all things are not yet joined together, the process has begun, and the fulfillment is guaranteed.
God deserves all praise, and he is worth of our blessings, because he has done great and wondrous things on our behalf. Consider what it means that we have been predestined us for adoption, and that he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world. God knew us before the world was formed. The same God who loved Christ before the foundation of the world, according to what John quotes from Jesus' own lips, loved us in Christ. God's love for us is not bound with time and space, but before there was time, as God exists (existed?) outside of time itself, God already (whatever that means in non-temporal conception) loved us in Christ, for his love for Christ is the limit of his love for us.
But, since the creation of the world, God has continued to love us. Even when we were at war with him, God knew there would be a time where we would be in Christ. Somehow, in a way we cannot comprehend, God loved us even while he was at war with us and his wrath remained on us because we had not yet accepted the love and sacrifice of his Son for us. God's amazing choice, his making us holy and blameless is not dependent on present, past, or future actions we have taken, but it is according to his wisdom and insight, for his will. Yes, when we come to Christ we choose God, but it is a choice that was predestined, it was a faith given to us, it was a gift that we might come to Christ and love him as he chose us and loved us while we were yet sinners.
And yet, the love of God goes one step further to really leave us wondering at his grace. Consider this: God chose you in Christ (if you are in Christ) before the foundation of the world. That means that before creation began, God had already willed to save you. But think of what that really means! God created the world and organized all of history so that you would be born, you would live the life you have lived, and you would hear the gospel of Christ. This is perhaps one of the most amazing things to me about the whole matter: God not only balanced all of the world and the whole of creation in his mind, he also arranged all of history so that he could save us who were his enemies!
What are we left to do with this then? Praise God. Live a life that praises God. Worship the God of creation, the God who knows all things and ordained all things according to his will and for his glory. Be found in Christ so that all the blessings that Paul discusses in Ephesians, "every spiritual blessing" can be yours. Long to know God more completely so that you can know the vast and amazing reach of his love, so it can transform your life as you worship him who is worthy of all blessing and gives all blessing.
Your inheritance is perfect. It is completed, not wanting. Be found in Christ so that every promise declared as yours can be enjoyed by you both now and eternally in the future. You know that God has given Christ for us, you know the work that God has done. Why now, with all that God has done on your behalf, would you remain unchanged and unaffected by the glory of him who loves you, and have loved you, since before the world was formed?
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