"THE EPISTLE TO THE EPHESIANS" Blessings Involving The Son (1:7-12) INTRODUCTION 1. We saw in the previous lesson that Paul starts his epistle to the Ephesians with praising God for the spiritual riches (blessings) that we have in Christ - Ep 1:3 2. Throughout Ep 1:4-14 Paul lists some of these wonderful blessings that are ours, and in verses 4-6 we saw those blessings which center around the Father, how that we who are in Christ are: a. "Chosen by God", to be holy and without blame before Him in love (1:4) b. "Predestined by God", to receive the adoption as sons of God (1:5-6a) c. "Accepted by God", that is, to be highly favored by Him (1:6b) 3. How is it that we who are sinners are so blessed by God? a. The answer is hinted at in verses 4-6 by the repeated reference to Christ: 1) "chose us IN HIM" 2) "adoption as sons BY JESUS CHRIST" 3) "made us accepted IN THE BELOVED" b. Thus it is only in and through Jesus Christ that we can receive these wonderful blessings! (remember 1:3) 4. This becomes even clearer as we now consider verses 7-12, as Paul expands upon "Blessings Involving The Son"... a. Please note that the distinction being made between blessings involving the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is a narrow one b. For truly each of the blessings described usually involve two or more Persons in the Godhead c. But for memorization purposes it can be helpful to divide up the blessings in the way we have done [The first blessing we notice in this section is that through His Son...] I. GOD HAS REDEEMED US (7a) A. DEFINING "REDEMPTION"... 1. The Greek word is apolutrosis {ap-ol-oo'-tro-sis} 2. It means "a releasing effected by payment of ransom" 3. As Hendriksen defines it, "deliverance as a result of the payment of a ransom" 4. Hendriksen goes on to suggest that this "redemption" implies: a. "emancipation...from the guilt, punishment, and power of sin" - cf. Jn 8:34; Ro 7:14; Ga 3:13 b. "restoration to true liberty" - cf. Jn 8:36 B. OUR REDEMPTION IS "THROUGH HIS (CHRIST'S) BLOOD"... 1. The purchase price paid in order to redeem us was the blood of Jesus - cf. 1Pe 1:18-19 2. By His death on the cross, Jesus has paid the price to deliver us from the bondage of sin, for which He deserves our highest praise! - cf. Re 5:9, 12 [We now see how God could carry out His choice to have a people who are holy and without blame, adopted as sons unto Him, when all He had to work with were "sinners". Through the death of Jesus and the shedding of His blood, God was just to "redeem" or "deliver" sinners from the bondage of sin! There is another way to express what God has done to make it possible for us to be "holy and without blame before Him in love", and that is, through His Son...] II. GOD HAS FORGIVEN US (7b-8) A. DEFINING "FORGIVENESS"... 1. The Greek word is aphesis {af'-es-is}, and it's shades of meaning include: a. "release from bondage or imprisonment" b. "forgiveness or pardon, of sins (letting them go as if they had never been committed), remission of the penalty" 2. With the shedding of Jesus' blood, it is now possible to be "forgiven", that is, "pardoned" so that we are no longer guilty of or imprisoned by sin B. WHAT HAS BEEN FORGIVEN ARE OUR "SINS" (TRESPASSES)... 1. The Greek word here is paraptoma, {par-ap'-to-mah} a. Lit., it means "a side-slip (lapse or deviation)" b. Thus it refers to (unintentional) error or (willful) transgression 2. The very sort of things (faults, offenses, sins, trespasses) that would keep us from being "holy and without blame" 3. Through Jesus' blood, we can obtain "pardon" from such things, and be "holy and without blame"! C. THE BASIS FOR BOTH "REDEMPTION" AND "FORGIVENESS" IS GOD'S GRACE... 1. "according to the riches of His grace" - 7c 2. "which He made to abound toward us" - 8a 3. As Paul told Titus, it is by God's mercy and grace we are justified - Tit 3:3-7 4. This wonderful grace is manifested by God in all... a. "wisdom" - from the Greek word sophia, {sof-ee'-ah} 1) Defined by Hendriksen as "that ability to apply knowledge to the best advantage, enabling a person to use the most effective means for the attainment of the highest goal" 2) In God's case, His wisdom is often beyond the capability of man to find out on his own - cf. Ro 11:33 b. "prudence" - from the Greek word phronesis {fron'-ay-sis} 1) Meaning "mental action or activity, i.e. intellectual or moral insight: prudence, wisdom." 2) With much thought God has chosen to show His grace toward us! [According to His wisdom, prudence, and grace, God has provided "redemption" and "forgiveness" through the blood of His dear Son! But there is more! While God's wisdom is often beyond the ability of man to find out on his own, through His Son...] III. GOD HAS REVEALED HIS WILL TO US (9-10) A. "HE HAS MADE KNOWN TO THE MYSTERY OF HIS WILL"... 1. As explained by Paul later in this epistle (cf. Ep 3:3-5), this "mystery"... a. Was not made known to mankind in other ages - 3:5a b. But has now been revealed by the Spirit to the apostles and prophets - 3:5b; Ro 16:25-27 2. Making known the "mystery of His will" is due to "His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself" a. It pleased God in planning to reveal His will to us b. Just as it please God in predetermining to adopt us as sons through Jesus Christ - 1:5 B. THE "WILL OF GOD" THAT IS NOW REVEALED PERTAINS TO WHAT GOD HAD PLANNED TO ACCOMPLISH IN JESUS CHRIST... 1. God's "plan" was to be carried out "in the dispensation of the fullness of the times" a. I.e., in the period of time when everything is right and ready - cf. Ga 4:4-5 b. Hendriksen suggests that the reference is to the entire New Testament era... 1) Particularly to the period which began with Christ's resurrection and coronation 2) But not ending until the Lord, upon His glorious return, pronounces and executes judgment (New Testament Commentary, Exposition of Ephesians, pp. 85-86) 2. God's "plan" was to "gather together in one all things in Christ..." a. B. W. Johnson comments: "He might gather in one all things in Christ. That the scattered families and tribes of men, both Jews and Gentiles, should all be gathered and united under one head, Christ. Nay, not only men, but angels..." b. Paul elaborates upon this thought in Ep 2:16, and in Col 1:19-22 1) By the death of Christ, Jew and Gentile can become one body 2) By the blood of the cross, God is able to reconcile all things to Himself 3) The ultimate consequence of this "reconciliation" is that we might be presented "holy, and blameless, and irreproachable in His sight" - Col 1:22; cf. Ep 1:4 [Finally, we also learn that through the Son....] IV. GOD HAS GIVEN US AN INHERITANCE (11-12) A. "OBTAINED AN INHERITANCE" OR "MADE A HERITAGE"? 1. Some translations and scholars understand that verse 11 should read "we were made a heritage", speaking of God's inheritance, with an appeal to: a. Ep 1:14b - where Paul speaks of "the redemption of the purchased possession" b. Ep 1:18c - where Paul speaks of "His inheritance" 2. Reasons for accepting the rendering found in the KJV and NKJV are offered by Hendriksen: a. The immediate context speaks of "our inheritance" - Ep 1:14a b. In the NT "the inheritance" is ever said to be "ours" or "intended for us" - Ac 20:32; Ga 3:18; Col 3:24; He 9:15; 1Pe 1:4 (including Ep 1:18c, where "His inheritance" can mean that which God is giving to us) c. Ep 1:5 speaks of "adoption as sons", and in Ro 8:15-17 Paul connects the idea of adoption with that of being heirs d. In an epistle with many similarities to Ephesians, Paul certainly speaks of how we are "heirs" - Col 1:12 B. THIS INHERITANCE IS PART OF GOD'S "PREDESTINATION"... 1. Just as God "predetermined" that those in Christ would receive "adoption as sons" (Ep 1:5), so He "predetermined" that His "sons" would receive an "inheritance"! 2. This is in accordance with God's grand "purpose", who has the power to "work all things according to the counsel of His will" C. THE FINAL RESULT IN RECEIVING THIS INHERITANCE... 1. "that we...should be to the praise of His glory" a. That "those in Christ" (and what God has made them) will be a reason to give God glory b. As Paul wrote the Thessalonians: "that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you..." - 2Th 1:12 2. Some understand that Paul is now beginning to distinguish between those like himself (Jewish believers) and those like his readers (Gentile believers), for a reason that will become clear later (cf. Ep 2:11-22) a. For Paul speaks of "we who first trusted" in verse 12... b. ...and then says "you also trusted" in verse 13 3. Even if so, one cannot make too much of this distinction... a. Because all that is said in verses 3-11 (where "we" is found) applies to Gentile believers b. And all that is said in verses 13-14 (where "you" is found) applies to Jewish believers also CONCLUSION 1. In Christ, then, we have every reason to praise God, knowing that... a. God has redeemed us (7a) b. God has forgiven us (7b-8) c. God has revealed His Will to us (9-10) d. God has given us an inheritance (11-12) 2. But there is even more! And in the next lesson we shall examine what that is, as we consider "Blessings Involving The Holy Spirit" For the time being, have you experienced that wonderful redemption, the forgiveness of sins, through the blood of Jesus? The apostle Peter tells how we can in Ac 2:36-41...<< Previous | Index | Next >>
