Ephesians 1:7-12

7When Christ died as a sacrifice on the cross, he paid the price to make us free. Because of Christ's death on our behalf, God has forgiven our sins. God is so very kind that he has done all this for us!

8Even more than that, God has shown how wise he is. He understands what we need.

9He has let us know his great purpose, which had been a secret before. That plan would make him very happy. It would be possible because of Christ.

10God will make that plan happen when the time is completely right. At that time, he will bring everything together so that Christ rules all of them. That includes the things that are in heaven, and the things that are on earth.

11God is able to make all things happen just like he decides. He chose us to be his own people, because we are united with Christ. In the beginning, God had already decided that this was his purpose.

12We were the first people to trust in Christ, God's special Messiah. God wanted us to show how great he is. He wanted people to praise him because of us.