Your Eternal Inheritance
Bob Yandian
Born into the Family of God
Have you ever heard of a child born into a wealthy family who had an inheritance? You may have thought, what would I need to do to get an inheritance like that? That child did not work for it. It was part of his birth. When you got born again, you became part of the wealthiest family in the entire universe, the family of God. It is not because you worked for it. It is because you were born into it.
The books of Ephesians and Colossians take us into our position in Christ. They show us who we are and what we have because we accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. One of those things is our inheritance. God did not only plan for your salvation. He planned for everything about eternal life that would surround you forever, and He has given it to you.
An Inheritance That Will Never Fade Away
First Peter 1:4 describes our inheritance as “incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you.” An inheritance is for children within a family. You do not work for an inheritance. You are born into it. Our spiritual, eternal inheritance was given to us the moment we received Jesus as our Savior. There is part of it we use here on earth, but the major part is yet to come in heaven.
First, our inheritance is incorruptible. It can never go away, and no one can steal it. There will be no theft in heaven, no one breaking in and taking what belongs to us. Money on earth can be corrupted. Its value can go up or down, and a financial system can be done away with and replaced. Our inheritance in heaven is secure forever.
Next, it is undefiled. There is no devaluation of it. Inflation cannot take over, and recession cannot rob us of what God has prepared. It will always be as highly valuable as it was in the beginning. It will not fade away, which means we cannot use it up. There will never be a time, even a million years into eternity, when we wonder what we are going to do because our inheritance is going down.
You have heard stories of young people who receive an inheritance from their family and spend it all. They buy one thing after another until, a few years later, nothing is left. That cannot happen with our eternal inheritance. We cannot use it up slowly or quickly. It will be usable throughout all of eternity, and it is reserved in heaven for us right now.
First Peter 1:5 goes on to describe us as those “who are kept by the power of God through faith.” Not only is our inheritance guarded by the power of God, but we are guarded by His power also. One day we will go to be with the Lord and see what He has prepared. Our inheritance is already there; being held until the day we stand in heaven and see it.
Qualified by the Father
What should our attitude be toward all of this? Colossians 1:12 says, “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light.” The Father has qualified us to receive an inheritance. That qualification came at salvation. Eternal life was given to us, the life of God was given to us, and we became part of His family through the new birth.
Think about someone loving us so much that He would send His Son to the cross to die for us. God not only gave us eternal life so we could go to heaven, but He also prepared an inheritance for us throughout all of eternity. That should leave us humbled and giving thanks to the Father. We did not qualify ourselves by our works. The Father qualified us the moment we accepted Jesus Christ.
Joint Heirs with Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ is the first heir of all things, and we are heirs because of Him. Hebrews 1:2 tells us that God has spoken to us by His Son, “whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds.” God made everything through Jesus Christ and appointed Him heir of all things. Because we are in Him, we share that inheritance.
Romans 8:16 and 17 says that the Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God, “and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ.” I am an heir of God and a joint heir with Jesus Christ. He is the One who joins me to God. Because He is an heir and I am in Him, I share His inheritance. I share His heirship.
Heirship is based on relationship. John 1:12 says, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” This includes sons and daughters, everyone born into the family of God. Galatians 3:26 says, “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.” We became heirs when we put our faith in Him.
Nobody is born into this earth a child of God. We become part of His family through the new birth. When I received Jesus as my Savior at five years old in Vacation Bible School, I was placed into the body of Christ. Water baptism symbolizes what happened at salvation. When we put someone under the water, we bring him back up. But when God put us into the body of Christ, He left us there. We are surrounded by His holiness, His righteousness, and His eternal reign. We are part of His family, and our inheritance belongs to us because we are in Christ.
An Inheritance by Grace
Titus 3:7 says, “That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” Verse after verse brings us back to the same thing. Our inheritance began with our personal faith in Jesus Christ. God knew through His foreknowledge that we would receive Him. He did not force us to get saved. He knew we would, and He prepared an inheritance for us.
Think about the thief on the cross. He was guilty, and he was facing death. Yet when he turned to Jesus, the Lord told him, “Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.” What a transition! We deserve judgment, but God gives us eternal life through Jesus Christ. In heaven, that is called grace. Our inheritance comes through what Jesus has done for us.
The Holy Spirit Is Our Guarantee
How do we know this inheritance is there? When you go to the bank, you can receive a deposit slip showing what you have. You can look at your account and see the balance, even though you are not holding the money. God has given us someone living inside us who is the guarantee of our inheritance. Ephesians 1:13 tells us that, having believed, we were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.
Verse 14 says the Holy Spirit is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession. That is when we receive a resurrection body. The Holy Spirit is both the beginning part of our inheritance and the guarantee of the remaining part. He guides us, leads us, and gives us assurance of our salvation. His presence in us is also our assurance of the blessings yet to come.
Living as Sons and Daughters of God
God has given us a relationship with Him and the power to live it. We should stop looking at ourselves and saying we are not worthy, and start living as sons and daughters of God. We are part of His royal family. Our inheritance is not only for heaven. There is part of it we can use here on earth as the Holy Spirit leads us and bears witness that we belong to God.
Revelation 21:7 says, “He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.” We are overcomers because we are in the Overcomer. Jesus won the victory and handed it to us. What an incredible thing God has planned and given to us! Our inheritance is incorruptible, undefiled, and will never fade away. The Holy Spirit is our guarantee, and our response should be thanksgiving to the Father who qualified us to receive it.
Previously published as: Ephesians Blueprint for Maturity
Although the city of Ephesus is famous for its reckless living and idol worship, the Ephesian church is deeply spiritual. And so Ephesians, unlike other epistles written to correct doctrinal error, reveals to mature believers the positional truth of who they are in Christ. It also expounds on practical applications of this positional revelation to marriage, family, and everyday life.
By tying together Greek word studies and outside scriptural references, Bob Yandian teaches, verse-by-verse, God’s empowering grace and the believer’s unprecedented authority. Like Paul, Yandian’s focus is not only the revelation, but the application of these amazing truths. Yandian exhorts believers not only to learn but to live as the body of Christ in the earth.
143 Pages
Epaphras, pastor of the church at Colosse, reported to imprisoned Paul that false teachers had infiltrated the Colossian church and were poisoning it with Gnostic doctrine. Paul’s response was the book of Colossians, a rich concentration of Pauline revelation concerning the supremacy of Christ and the way believers are to live because of it.
In this verse-by-verse commentary, Bob Yandian examines human philosophy, false religion, and God’s approach to eliminating them both from the church so believers can live in the freedom of true Christianity.
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Deepen Your Understanding of Scripture
Unlock fresh insight into God’s Word with the New Testament Commentary Bundle from Pastor Bob Yandian — a comprehensive collection of verse-by-verse commentaries on ten foundational New Testament books. Carefully crafted from years of pastoral teaching and study, this bundle equips believers, students, and church leaders with clear explanation, practical application, and spiritual depth.
Purchase this book bundle and save! This bundle includes one of each of Bob Yandian's New Testament Commentary books listed below.
Acts Commentary
Romans Commentary
Galatians Commentary
Ephesians Commentary
Philippians Commentary
Colossians Commentary
James Commentary
Hebrews Commentary
Epistles of John Commentary
New! Thessalonians Commentary