Ephesians 3

Saturday, 20 August 2016

…according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, Ephesians 3:11

The verses of this paragraph are a continuous thought and should be kept in that context. To fully grasp what is said here, uniting it with the previous verse will help –

“…to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, ¹¹ according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

The “wisdom of God” is made known to the “principalities and powers in the heavenly places” by what is occurring in the building of the church. Paul now states that this “wisdom of God” is “according to the eternal purpose” of God. The idea is that from the eternal state itself, God had a plan to reconcile all things to Himself. That plan is being worked out in the stream of time which He created.

What we see as random and often even chaotic, is completely known to God. It is further not out of control at all. An example of this is Joseph being sold by his brothers. They intended evil, and Joseph certainly did not understand his plight, but God had already figured it into the plan. Each step is a part of “the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Jesus is the focal point between the eternal state and what occurs in the stream of time. This is why Paul could say in 1 Corinthians 10 that the Rock which followed Israel was Christ. He has always been there, working out His plan. However, the word for “which He accomplished” carries a sense of ambiguity. It could mean either being “ordained” or being “worked out.”

In other words, Scholars debate whether this is saying that God’s eternal purpose was “ordained” in Christ Jesus or whether it is “being worked out” in Christ Jesus. The latter is probably the true sense. God’s purpose was ordained from the eternal state. However, Christ is the means by which all was created and by which all is being worked out.

This seems the most likely because the word for “purpose” is prosthesis. It means “a setting forth.” It is the word used to indicate the show-bread (the consecrated bread) of the temple in Jerusalem, such as in Matthew 12:4. What is occurring is according to God’s presentation of His eternal purpose as if the setting of the showbread; Christ Jesus the Lord (who is God) is the One to work out that purpose within the stream of time.

Life application: There may seem to be random, and even chaotic, events in the world around us, but God has it all under control. Don’t lose heart if the world continues to come against You. God’s plan includes your eternal security if you are in Christ Jesus the Lord.

Lord God, Your word tells us that You have an eternal plan which is being worked out in the stream of time. All things are known to You and nothing is either random or chaotic. Instead, each thing that occurs is being directed by You and is completely under control. Help us to remember this when things appear otherwise. You are God and You are to be trusted. Grant us peace to accept this as we face the uncertainties of life. You have our eternal destiny completely under control. Thank You for this reassurance. Amen.

Friday, 19 August 2016

…to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, Ephesians 3:10

The words “to the intent” explain the thoughts of verses 8 & 9 concerning the grace given to Paul in relation to the sharing of the gospel to the Gentiles. It also refers to their being gathered together with the Jews to form a single, united, and whole church. It was for this “intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church.”

The word for “manifold” is found only here in the New Testament. It is polupoikilos. It comes from two words, polus, meaning “much in number,” or “many” (think of the word “poly”); and poikilos, meaning “multi-colored,” or “variegated.” It was used in the Greek Old Testament when referring to Joseph’s multi-colored robe.

The intent of this then is that many aspects of God’s wisdom are revealed in the forming of the church. There is wisdom in how it began, there is wisdom in the selection of the people, there is wisdom in how the message is conveyed, etc. Each aspect of the construction of this heavenly temple, made of individual people, displays the wisdom of God in Christ the Lord. It is as if a heavenly tapestry of colors is slowly being formed into a grand and beautiful painting where all the details come into the clearest focus.

It is through this organism that His manifold wisdom is displayed “to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places.” This is now the fourth of five times that Paul has mentioned the epouraniois, or “heavenly realms.” Within the sphere of these heavenly realms, there are “principalities and powers.” Which are viewing what goes on in the material creation. But in particular, their attention is directed to God’s working in the redemption of man.

God had selected a group of people from the beginning by which He would reveal Himself to the world. There was one select line of chosen people and all others were left unattended to as far as special revelation is concerned. The principalities and powers in the heavenly realms (certainly this is referring to both good and bad entities as can be seen from many passages of Scripture, but Job 1:6 is sufficient to demonstrate this) viewed what God was doing. They were aware of the writings of the prophets, and knew that God was doing something, but they could not deduce what it was. This is seen for example in 1 Peter 1:12 –

“To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which angels desire to look into.”

In 1 Corinthians 4:9, Paul continues with this thought by saying that he and the other apostles “have been made a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men.” The heavenly beings watched the apostles, curiously studying what they were doing in order to see how God’s wisdom would be revealed through them. A heavenly theater has been set to view this worldly spectacle. Now, in this new dispensation known as the church age, the absolute marvel and majesty of the wisdom of God was put on full display.

So the question to be asked is, “What is it about the church that demonstrates this manifold wisdom of God?” The answer is that when all of heaven thought God was doing a single thing through a single group of people, and which would have a very limited effect on humanity, it turned out that what He had done was of unlimited scope in regards to the people of the earth.

The single selected line was set apart unto God while all the other people of the world went about making up their own religions and falling further and further away from God. And yet, through Jesus Christ, all of these who were far away have been brought near through His blood. The fact that both Jew and Gentile are reconciled to God in exactly the same way is the most astonishing thing of all. None of those in the heavenly realms could ever have guessed it, and yet it was promised in the very writings of God through the Jewish people.

Life application: The Bible gave all the necessary information for those who read it to know what was promised, but it didn’t give the specifics of how it would come about. Only in Christ do the Scriptures make any sense. We should now cherish those words even more. When we see what was once concealed, but now revealed through Christ, we should be more and more astonished at the marvelous workings of God in human history.

Lord God, the plan that You had set, even from the very beginning of creation, was slowly laid out in human history. And as the years passed, You revealed a bit more of it with each new story and each new prophecy. And yet, even the angels who looked into what You were doing could not figure out what was coming. Now, through Jesus, Your manifold wisdom is revealed to the world. How marvelous is Your plan! How great is Your hand upon us! How splendid is the church which You are building! Thank You for Christ Jesus, our hope of glory. Amen.

Thursday, 18 August 2016

…and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; Ephesians 3:9

In this verse are a few words which differ in ancient manuscripts. The first notable one is “fellowship.” In Greek, it is the word koinonia. However, other manuscripts say, “dispensation.” The word is very similar, oikonomia. The mistake in translation would be easy to make. The second major difference is that the words “through Jesus Christ” are not in some manuscripts. Neither of these changes the doctrine of Scripture. For the sake of consistency in analysis, the evaluation will assume that the NKJV is correct. However, this doesn’t mean it is. It is simply the NKJV which is being used for the study.

Paul says first, “… and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery.” The word “see” properly means “to illuminate” or “to enlighten.” He is saying that the grace bestowed upon him was that he would be used as the means of making all see this fellowship of the mystery of the Gentiles being brought into the New Covenant through the work of Christ. This word “all” is used, as it often is, in the superlative sense. Not all in his time, nor all in the ages since his time, have had this mystery illuminated to them. Further, for those who have had it explained, it doesn’t mean that they believe it. The word of Christ tells of what He has done, but that word is often misunderstood or rejected. Therefore, even those who have had the truths of Christ illuminated to them, don’t really see them as they truly are.

However, it was Paul’s task to share this mystery in both his life and actions and in his writings. They open up to the world this “mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God.” As previously explained, a mystery is something which was hidden and has now been revealed. It could not otherwise have been known without God directly revealing it to the world. From the beginning of the ages, it was hidden. Only a select line of people were considered “the sons of God.” The rest of the world were considered in the broader sense of being “sons of men.” One line was destined for God’s favor; the other was destined for destruction. It is through Paul that the mystery is made known that the Gentile people of the world would now have access to, and be participants in, the workings of God concerning their redemption and salvation.

He finishes up with the note that it is God “who created all things through Jesus Christ.” Jesus, the Word of God, created all things. This is reflected in John 1:1-3 –

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God. ³ All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.”

What Paul is doing with the addition of these words, is showing that the same member of the Godhead, Christ Jesus, is also the one who is the Establisher of this new outcropping of His redemptive plans. Everything dealing with the creation is done through Jesus Christ, including the creation of one new man out of the two – both Jew and Gentile. This is the mystery of the fellowship which had been hidden for so very long. This is what Paul now reveals to the world through His writings.

Life application: If you want to understand the church age and the doctrine by which it is governed, you need to understand Paul’s letters. To reject Paul is to reject the church of this dispensation. To reject the church during this dispensation is to reject what Jesus Christ is doing in the world for humanity. Stay away from anyone who would twist or diminish the words of Paul as given by the Holy Spirit through him.

Lord God Almighty, surely we must stand amazed at the marvel and the wonder of what You have done through Jesus. He came to His own in order to reconcile them to You. At the same time, You opened a door through Him for all of the people of the world to also have that same reconciliation. Now, people of every tribe, tongue, and culture – without regard to color, lineage, or location, have the same access to You. Your eternal temple is being built out of precious stones of every variety. Thank You for including any and all who come to You through Christ by a mere act of faith! Amen.

Wednesday, 17 August 2016

To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,  Ephesians 3:8

In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul called himself “the least of the apostles.” Here he takes the thought further and says that “the gift of the grace of God” of the previous verse was given to him who is “less than the least of all the saints.” Here he uses a word found nowhere else in Scripture, elachistoteros. It is a “comparative formed from a superlative.’ The comparative refers to himself, “less.” The superlative is the one who even stands above him, “the least.”

Paul looked into himself and saw the depth of the consciousness of sin that dwelt in him and he reasoned that what he saw was certainly less worthy of God’s favor than any other other saint. To him, the makeup of who he was demonstrated the highest grace that could be given.

But he notes that “this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ.” In these words, he contrasts the “saints” with the “Gentiles.” This is evident from his words of the previous chapter –

“Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God…” (2:19)

The “saints” refer to those in Christ. Until the Gentiles came to Christ, they were not saints. Therefore, he is making a contrast between them. The idea of “Gentiles” being brought into the household of God would have been unheard of, and thus the term is almost used in a derogatory sense. Because of this, it shows the level of grace that was bestowed upon Paul once again. Despite being the least of the saints, he was given the great honor of taking this once “unclean” group of people and preaching the message of Christ to them.

But more than just a simple message of their acceptance, he was given the honor of conveying to them “the unsearchable riches of Christ.” The word he uses for “unsearchable,” anexichniastos, is found only here and in Romans 11:33. It conveys the idea of the inability to comprehend. The riches are beyond finding out. It is an implicit note of the deity of Christ which will be expanded on in the verses ahead. As only God is unsearchable, then the unsearchable riches of Christ demonstrate the divine nature of Christ.

It is these marvelous wonders which Paul, the least of all the saints, was given the grace to share with the Gentiles. He was chosen to bring them from their lowly state to a position on the same level as the saints of God who were drawn out of the chosen nation of Israel.

Life application: Those who understand the depth of sin which dwells in their soul will more fully appreciate the magnificence of the grace which is bestowed upon them through Jesus Christ.

Lord God, when we start thinking highly of ourselves, all we need to do is to consider what being saved by Christ means. Only a sinner needs a Savior. And if we were sinners, then the grace of the Savior must have been great. More than that, we continue to be saved by this same great Savior. Each misstep and each wayward deed is covered by the immeasurable grace of Christ. Understanding this, we can stop thinking so highly of ourselves and go about our lives fully appreciating that we stand solely on the merits of the Lord. Thank You for such marvelous grace. Amen.

Tuesday, 16 August 2016

…of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power. Ephesians 3:7

The words “of which” are referring to “the gospel” of the previous verse. Paul acknowledges that he “became a minister” of this gospel “according to the gift of the grace of God.” He was a persecutor of the church. His rightful due was to be punished for his actions. He in no way merited God’s favor, and yet the Lord appeared to him on the road to Damascus and called him to his apostleship. This is grace; undeserved favor. It was the “grace of God” alone and without it, he would have continued down his wayward path.

However, a different end came about in him because this marvelous grace which was given “to  him by the effective working of His power.” The words here should rather be translated as “according to the effective working of His power.” This is because, “The gift was bestowed in accordance with that efficiency which could transform Saul the persecutor into Paul the apostle to the Gentiles” (Vincent’s Word Studies).

It was an active, not a latent power which transformed him. Grace was bestowed, and that grace actively and sufficiently transformed him from who he was, to the person he came to be. The entire verse speaks completely and solely of the power of God and the grace of God to effect His purposes in Paul, and thus to carry through with His redemptive purposes in the stream of time.

Life application: In our salvation, and in our continued walk with Christ, it is the power of God which changes us, and it is the power of God which works in us for His sovereign purposes. Let us allow God to use us without striving against Him. Rather, let each of us be an open and receptive vehicle for His workings in the circumstances in which He has placed us.

Heavenly Father, everything about us came from You. Our time, place, position, and abilities all came from You. The salvation in which we stand was an act of grace from You as well. As You have determined all of these things, then we must be in the perfect place that we should be. We are exactly where You want us. Help us to see this and to work effectively in this moment in time in Your service. Let us not squander this marvelous moment in which we live. Amen!