Ephesians

Part 4

Pastor Gordon Crook

First, an apology for last month’s article that had Ephesians 1:7-10 which should have been Ephesians 1:7-12.

“In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.” Ephesians 1:13-14

So, verse 12 tells us that God’s purpose in our life is that we might be to the praise of His Glory. All of this is His purpose for those that put their trust in Jesus. It is the Gospel that brings us directly to Jesus. When we hear and understand the Gospel, we realize that the only way to salvation is to put our trust in Jesus, and that brings us directly into God’s eternal purpose.

He has given us the Holy Spirit as the earnest of our inheritance. An earnest is something valuable given as a pledge to some future value that will be given. While we are in this world, awaiting our final inheritance, we have God’s Holy Spirit. More than just something to show God’s promise, the Holy Spirit also works in us to make us into those that will certainly bring praise and glory to Him.

Verses 15 and 16 lead us into one of Paul’s prayers for the saints. I have always loved studying these prayers. It helps us understand what Paul thought was important for the saints, and since the Holy Spirit inspired him to write these down, they have important instruction for us.

First, note in  verse 16 that Paul starts by giving thanks for all the saints. “ALL” the saints. And he is praying for all saints. 

“That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,” Ephesians 1:15-18. 

Praying for wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Jesus Christ. I want to point out that none of this prayer is for worldly anything. Not even for healing (which Paul could use). It reminds us that what matters most is the spiritual. We often get too focused on the things in this life that bother us or that we think we need 

Paul’s desire for the saints was that they would have a deeper knowledge of God. Nothing is more important or more valuable than knowing God. So many Christians have a very shallow knowledge of their Lord. The enemy can get us so focused on the world and our place in it and the things we think we need, that we fail to take the time to truly spend in fellowship with our Lord. 

Many do not have any understanding of the hope that is in our calling. That is that God, in His amazing grace, has given us something that should make the things of this world pale by comparison. Our hope is that we will spend eternity in His presence, reigning with Jesus, which is also His inheritance. He considers us (His children) to be of extreme value to Himself. We have in us the life of His Son.

And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. Ephesians 1:19-23

The next part of Paul’s prayer is for the saints to have a deep knowledge of God’s power. As a reminder of how great this power is, he tells us that it is the power that raised Christ from the dead. We probably have a good idea about power. We might know that there are powerful machines that can do serious work and it might impress us. However, we do not know of anyone that has power to raise the dead, except our God. 

I realize that this kind of power is difficult for us to comprehend. This is why we live by faith. I believe that God raised Christ from the dead. However, do I really have a deep understanding of that power and it’s impact on me? Do I want to truly know God in that way? Paul prays for us that we would.

Something the Holy Spirit reveals here through Paul, is that Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father, and has been given dominion over all things. This is part of God’s eternal purpose that will gather all things in Christ Jesus. The fulness of this purpose will come when God brings an end to the time of the Gentiles and Jesus returns to take His place as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

In the meantime, we, the church, all believers are already under His headship and He is Lord over His church. Not all “churches” acknowledge this as they attempt to put a man as head of the “church,” but that does not change God’s purpose in any way. It is our privilege today to acknowledge and yield to the headship of Christ in our lives and in our churches. We are privileged to realize that we, as His church, are the fulness of Him that fills all in all. I think we should be amazed and excited by all of this.

We have come to understand that God has a purpose for us, and that it is in His Son Jesus Christ. We now know that it is all of Him; all His work, and all for His Glory. Paul’s prayer reminds us of how we should pray for each other, and even for ourselves. Asking God to reveal more of Himself to us, and to increase our knowledge of Him and of His power to work in our lives. This is a great request for us today.

Continued