Eph.1:5,6 – he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
Eph.1:5,6 – TPT – For it was always in his perfect plan to adopt us as his delightful children, through our union with Jesus, the Anointed One, so that his tremendous love that cascades over us would glorify his grace —for the same love he has for his Beloved One, Jesus, he has for us. And this unfolding plan brings him great pleasure!
For many years I never really imagined the Lord having pleasure or joy in His own experience. It was as if He was an impersonal God orchestrating the universe according to His best calculations as to how everything that is should function. I also saw Him as an umpire calling balls and strikes on how we should live and what justice really looks like. Experiencing supernatural joy or you could say, “the joy of the Lord” radically changed all of that in my world. I began to wonder what “the joy of the Lord” really was. I came to the conclusion that this joy was supernatural and was the very joy that the Father and Son experience in their eternal relationship. In today’s verse we see Paul connecting the grace that God gives to His children with His will. So what exactly is a good description of God’s will? Here is the definition of the word ‘will’ from the CWSB dictionary.
“Will (thelema) – not to be conceived as a demand, but as an expression or inclination of pleasure towards that which is liked, that which pleases and creates joy. When it denotes God’s will, it signifies His gracious disposition toward something. Used to designate what God Himself does of His own good pleasure.”
So what is the point in this verse? Basically it says that God does what He wants, in this case pouring grace on His elect. He pours out His grace because it pleases Him or gives Him great joy. If you are called to be one of His children He is pouring out His grace, as John said “grace upon grace” upon your life. The Lord is pleased to pour His grace upon you, the result is that you too are filled with the joy of the Lord.