Sermon - Ephesians 3:1-13 - Littleby Baptist Church - October 7, 2018

When we last dug into Paul’s letter to the Ephesians we saw that he was challenging the status quo. He was telling everyone that it no longer mattered if you were a son of Abraham or a Gentile. It did not matter if you were rich, poor, male, female, or any other label that has been used to divide people.

Paul made it clear that the only thing that really matters is faith in Jesus Christ. If you have accepted that Jesus is the son of God, accepted that Jesus died as a sacrifice for your sins, and then rose from the dead showing that He has defeated death, the rest of the ‘stuff’ does not matter.

We have all fallen short of God’s standard, but Salvation is available to all who believe in Jesus. That belief makes us all part of God’s family. If you believe, you are His son or daughter. All of us are co-heirs with Jesus and have part of His inheritance which is eternity in Glory. As heirs we also have a duty to do our part to ensure the health and growth of our family. We need to Love others, be witnesses, and share the Gospel.

All who follow Jesus are united as one Church and one Family.

Ephesians 3:1-2

“3 For this reason, I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles—² you have heard, haven’t you, about the administration of God’s grace that he gave to me for you?”

This letter was written while Paul was a prisoner in Rome. He ended up in prison because he shared the Gospel with the Gentiles and said they were equal to the Jews. He also taught that things like circumcision, food restrictions, and other Old Testament Laws no longer mattered.

Paul had faithfully served for many years, sharing the Gospel with Jew and Gentile alike. He planted churches everywhere he went. And for all his effort the Jewish leadership worked to get him tossed in prison, which eventually lead to him being in prison in Rome where this letter was written.

Ephesians 3:3-5

“³ The mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have briefly written above. ⁴ By reading this you are able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ. ⁵ This was not made known to people in other generations as it is now revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit:”

The message on unity in Christ was made known to Paul by the Holy Spirit.

Galatians 1:15-18

“¹⁵ But when God, who from my mother’s womb set me apart and called me by his grace, was pleased ¹⁶ to reveal his Son in me, so that I could preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone. ¹⁷ I did not go up to Jerusalem to those who had become apostles before me; instead I went to Arabia and came back to Damascus. ¹⁸ Then after three years I did go up to Jerusalem to get to know Cephas, and I stayed with him fifteen days.”

After Paul’s Damascus road experience, he did not run to the other Apostles and spend time learning from them. Instead he went and spent time with the Holy Spirit and learned the true meaning of the scripture he knew so well.

Paul claimed to be ‘a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees’. This tells us that he knew the Old Testament scriptures better than the average Joe. He followed the letter of the Law to the best of his ability, but before His Damascus road experience he did not know who the Messiah was. His time with the Holy Spirit is what opened his eyes to the true message of Christ. It was during this time that Paul understood what the purpose of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection meant.

If Paul knew the scripture so well, shouldn’t he have known who Jesus was. Verse 5 points out that Jesus coming as the Lamb was not known to previous generations. It took the Holy Spirit, who came after Jesus’ ascension into heaven, to truly reveal the meaning. Even the Apostles who were with Jesus during His ministry did not truly understand what it all meant until Jesus and His Spirit opened their eyes after His resurrection.

We can have all the book knowledge possible, memorizing parts of the Bible, studying the Greek and Hebrew words and debate all of the different potential meanings for a phrase, but without the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives it is for nothing. Studying words printed on the pages of our Bible alone will not change our hearts. Memorizing verse after verse will not open our eyes to our need for a savior. It is the Holy Spirit who moves hearts, it is the Holy Spirit who opens eyes, it is the Holy Spirit who changes our lives and shows us that we NEED A SAVIOR.

In those 3 years Saul, one of the most zealous Pharisees persecuting the early Church became, Paul the Apostle to the Gentiles who tells us, without Love we gain nothing. The knowledge had been there for many years, the Holy Spirit made the true meaning known.

Ephesians 3:6

“⁶ The Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and partners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.”

If you were wondering what was the ‘mystery of Christ’ mentioned in verse 4, Paul answers it right here.

First as we have already seen the Gentiles are coheirs, we have the benefit of being the children of God in that as followers of Christ we to will be resurrected and spend eternity in Glory. Paul also states that the Gentiles will be members of the same body, which was the main point a couple of weeks ago when we focused on the unity in all believers. It did not matter if we are sons of Abraham or Gentiles. Does not matter if we are male, female, black, white, brown, yellow, or any other color. Does not matter if we are popular, shy, rich, poor, or anything else. All who believe in Jesus and follow Him are brothers and sisters in God’s family. One United Church following the one and Only Jesus Christ.

Paul points out that all who believe share in the messianic promise. This is a huge thing for all of us Gentiles. Before Jesus the Gentiles had no hope, no part of the Law, and no path to salvation. With Jesus that has all changed.

Galatians 3:29

“²⁹ And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, heirs according to the promise.”

Through our faith in Jesus we have been joined together with Abraham’s descendants. We have part in the promise given to Abraham, we have part in the Hope, we have part in an eternity in Glory. A covenant built on God’s love for us and our faith in Him.

Ephesians 3:7-9

“⁷ I was made a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by the working of his power. ⁸ This grace was given to me—the least of all the saints—to proclaim to the Gentiles the incalculable riches of Christ, ⁹ and to shed light for all about the administration of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things.”

We know Paul’s story, he was persecuting those who followed Jesus. He was present when Stephen was stoned and had letters authorizing him to have people thrown in jail. Then he had his Damascus road experience, Jesus appeared to Saul in a shining light, blinding him, and asking him why Saul was persecuting Him. In Damascus Ananias is told to go pray over Saul and was understandable reluctant.

Acts 9:15

“¹⁵ But the Lord said to him, “Go, for this man is my chosen instrument to take my name to Gentiles, kings, and Israelites.”

With it documented clearly in our Bible, there is no doubt that Paul was called to share God’s gift of grace. His ministry from that day forward shows that it was God’s power that allowed Paul to share God’s gift. Paul had a ‘thorn in the flesh’ that hindered him, the Bible shows us that he was thrown in jail, beaten, ship wrecked, bitten by a snake, and more. No man could have spread the Word of God as far as Paul did, enduring all that he did without the Power of God carrying him through it.

We do not have to do it on our own, probably would be better said as, we are not able to do it on our own. It is by the power of God that we are to carry the message of Grace to the ends of the earth. The Holy Spirit is at work in each one of us continuing to prepare us for the work that God has set aside for us to complete.

Ephesians 3:10-12

“¹⁰ This is so that God’s multi-faceted wisdom may now be made known through the church to the rulers and authorities in the heavens. ¹¹ This is according to his eternal purpose accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. ¹² In him we have boldness and confident access through faith in him.”

God’s gift of grace is to be made known through the church. That means all of us need to be sharing God’s message with everyone outside these 4 walls. In a way, it is Paul’s way of paraphrasing Jesus’ final commandment to the Church.

Acts 1:8

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witness in Jerusalem, in all Judea, and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Our job as Followers of Christ is to share the gospel message with everyone. Jesus’ whole purpose for coming down to earth and enduring what He did was for giving us the opportunity to spend eternity and if we are loving others, we need to be witnessing to them.

Ephesians 3:13

“¹³ So then I ask you not to be discouraged over my afflictions on your behalf, for they are your glory.”

Paul wraps up this section simply saying, do not worry about what is happening to me. None of that matters. What matters is that you have heard the message about the One True God and that you are sharing it with others. 

It does not matter who we are, what we have done, what books we have read, what pain we may have to endure, what ridicule we may face, or if the odds are overwhelmingly against us. What does matter is that Jesus paved the way for each of us to know Him and that He has sent the Holy Spirit to open our eyes, change our hearts, and to give us the strength to carry His gift of grace to all who will hear it.

I encourage you to pray for God to open your eyes so that you can know Him and His Word more today than you did yesterday. And pray for God to bring someone in your life that you are uniquely gifted to reach and share the gospel with. Start by reaching one, then another, and let it grow from there.

Remember it is the Church’s job to spread the message. If we don’t do it, who will?

God Bless,

Robert