Worship X Day 5 The Unfailing One: Digging Deeper

1) How does Paul’s introduction provide a rich hint for the purpose of his letter? (verse 1)
We could spend much time just unpacking the first nine words of verse 1, but we will skip ahead to the latter part of the verse. Paul has addressed his letter to the “faithful saints in Christ Jesus at Ephesus”. These easily glossed over words pack a powerful punch for the student of Scripture willing to slowly study and learn the heart of the Father. Paul calls the believers “saints”. This title wasn’t reserved for a specific sect of Christians or an elite group of elders within the Ephesian church, but to all who had placed their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal rescuer from the depths of their eternally damning sin. Saints, called such and made holy not by any work of their own (Ephesians 2:8-9), but by the untarnished righteousness of Christ Jesus, their Savior who had purchased peace with God through the grace of God. (verse 2) Paul enhances the noun of saint with the adjective “faithful”, which, in Greek, is the combining thoughts of two thoughts meaning the singular act of having faith and the on-going, perpetual activity of faithfulness. True believers in Jesus not only have genuine saving faith, but display that faith by walking in the ways of God through the Spirit of God. Which leads perfectly into our next word, “in”. Though diminutive in size, its depths promise a wellspring of theological riches. All believers are held within Christ through faith, purposely designed by the Father to remain richly tied to Christ by the Spirit, for herein lies the fruitfulness and the assurance of growth into maturity. We were called as saints to grow in becoming faithful to Him, which can only be accomplished by remaining in Christ Jesus. “At Ephesus” calls out that these believers were known, seen, called, set apart, and predestined to be conformed to the image of the Son (Romans 8:29-30) right where they lived.

2) What actions are being taken in this passage and by whom? (verses 1-6)
The first word of the passage is Paul, but his actions of writing the letter and proclaiming the rich truths contained within it are a result from the Lord God who drew Paul to Himself and reconciled him into a relationship with Him through God the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. God sought him (John 15:16), Christ died for him (Romans 5:8), Paul surrendered through faith (Acts 9), and now by remaining in Christ (John 15:4), Paul was led by the Spirit of God to accomplish the will of God and proclaim Christ. Astounding and beautiful, isn’t it?! All this found in only the first few words of verse 1! In verse 2, Paul extends grace and peace, but back up further, these gifts don’t originate with Paul and he knows it full well. He cites their true origin, “God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul was the “canyon” through which the river of God’s grace and peace flowed freely. The more Paul leaned into surrendering to the work of the Spirit, the more freely grace and peace would flow to others through him. Paul begins verse 3 by worshipping God as Father and Son. There is no distinction of hierarchy or language to depict Jesus as “a kind” of God, but rather as the one and only God. The fullness of God is represented in Paul’s worship as the unique persons of Father, Son, and if we make it down to verses 13 and 14, the Spirit of God.

3) What is the ultimate purpose of God’s choosing? (verse 6)
It becomes easy for us, human as we are who want to attempt to understand the infinite God with our finite minds, to become tripped up on words of theology and what they might mean, or don’t mean. This can become the case as we encounter words like “predestined” and “chose”, but we must take care to fight against the urge to pull out these two words and radically magnify them outside of the whole context of the passage. Yes, the Lord God chooses us. Yes, the Lord God predestines us to be His adopted ones. What a loving Father to willingly choose us and have a thoughtful, laid out determination of what that choosing would entail. Let’s not forget two truths that are just as imperative to the understanding of these two words. 1) All of humanity is separated from God. (Romans 6:23) We have all turned away from Him. (Isaiah 53:6) In fact, His wrath remains on all unless we, with faith, turn toward the light of Christ and the forgiveness He offers. (John 3:36) 2) Christ died, not for the already justified, but for the unjust, sinners, and enemies of Him. (Romans 5:6) Christ died not for a select sinners, but for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2), and His heart desire is that none perish (2 Peter 3:9). Those are very all-inclusive, unequivocal statements of biblical fact that cannot be moved. We must hold these tightly while we also study the words of “chose” and “predestined”. However, Paul is not holding a magnifying glass up to these words, rather, his extreme emphasis returns again and again to blessing, praise, and adoration to the Father for His outrageously, extravagant love and mercy. Yes, the Father chose and predestined believers to be His adopted ones. (verse 5) Hallelujah! Praise God He loves us so! Which is exactly the passionate cry of Paul as he exudes the joy of worshipping the Lord who loves with such richness.