161009 The Mystery of God’s Grace

Ephesians 3:1-6 For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles— ² assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for you, ³ how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly. ⁴ When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, ⁵ which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. ⁶ This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

Grace is defined by some as God’s Riches at Christ’s Expense! Certainly that is too narrow a definition for us to truly understand what grace is all about. Part of the mystery of God’s grace is the truth that He gives people innumerable blessings aside from salvation. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said about His Father, “For He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:45). The goodness of God is seen in His grace. That common grace for all people is different from “saving grace”. God’s saving grace brings about salvation for those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul wrote to the Ephesians about a “mystery” that God had revealed to him.

It is my hope and prayer that you will grasp the concept of grace that is shaped by God’s love for the people that He has called to Himself. For many generations the grace of God was kept from most people. During that time God developed His relationship to mankind step-by-step. I believe that there has never been a time that God was left without a witness on earth. During the days of Noah it seems that the lineage of belief was thinned to the point that only one man, and his family, were faithful to God. With the worldwide flood God gave mankind a new beginning. God did not spare the ancient world its punishment but he preserved Noah (2 Peter 2:5). Now let’s look at Paul’s testimony regarding the grace of God…

That grace was a stewardship given to Paul. Look with me to Colossians 1:24-27. Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, ²⁵ of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, ²⁶ the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. ²⁷ To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

About 700 years before Christ’s birth God revealed to Isaiah that He intended all nations to come to Him. In Isaiah 49:6 God said, “I will make you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” Later, in Isaiah 66:18 God said, “the time is coming to gather all nations and tongues. And they shall come and shall see my glory,”.

This truth of the grace of God was revealed by Jesus to the apostle Paul on the road to Damascus and in the days immediately after his vision. This truth was hidden away in the Old Testament waiting to be understood at the right time.

The very design of the Temple told of God’s coming grace. As a part of the teaching and worship around the temple there were different courtyards for different people. There was a women’s court, a men’s court and the court of the Gentiles. This latter court was put there so the nations could come to worship God. When Jesus came onto the scene He found that courtyard being used by the moneychangers and the con artists selling sheep, cattle and birds. Matthew tells us that Jesus said to them, “It is written, My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.” (Matthew 21:13)

In the process of God preparing people to hear the gospel…

This mystery was hidden for ages. Let’s look at Acts 17:30-31. The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, ³¹ because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”

The King James Version tells us that God winked at the ignorance of saving grace for many ages. I like the ESV’s translation that it was a time of ignorance that God allowed until he was ready to reveal the mystery. Paul would write to the Galatians telling them that God sent His Son at the right time (Galatians 4:4). Throughout all generations there were some — like Melchizedek (Genesis 14:18-20) — who knew God and worshiped Him. With the coming of Jesus into the world it was time for all people everywhere to repent of their sin and turn to the Christ as Lord and Savior. Jesus Himself will judge the world in righteousness at the end of the age.

At the right time…

This mystery was revealed by the Spirit. Let’s look at the words of Jesus found in John 16:12-14.  “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. ¹³ When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. ¹⁴ He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

The Holy Spirit has always been with the creation and mankind. In the very beginning “the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2). From that time forward even until today the Holy Spirit has been God with us! Jesus spoke of the situation when He said that the Father “will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, ¹⁷ even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” (John 14:16-17) During the ministry of Jesus on earth the Spirit of God was with Him because God cannot be divided into parts. The Holy Spirit conceived Christ in Mary’s womb and protected Him throughout His early years and came to visibly settle on Him at His baptism. The Holy Spirit was present wherever Jesus was. In the upper room, after His resurrection, Jesus breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:22). With this action Jesus protected them until the day of Pentecost when the Spirit was poured out on them — and in them! From that point forward the Holy Spirit has been the enlightener and interpreter concerning all the things Jesus’ disciples need to know.

A part of what the Holy Spirit revealed is the fact that…

This mystery relates to the Gentiles. Look at the record in Acts 13:46-47. And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. ⁴⁷ For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ”

Paul had been invited to speak to the synagogue at Antioch in Pisidia and had been allowed to present the gospel clearly to them. When they returned the next Saturday a huge crowd gathered. When the Jews saw the crowds they were filled with jealousy and begin to argue with Paul. With their rejection of the gospel Paul now announces, “we are turning to the Gentiles.” This was no surprise to Paul because he had been told at the very beginning of his ministry what to expect. Jesus told Ananias to go to Paul and pray for him to be healed because he had been blinded by the light that was Jesus on the road to Damascus. Part of the message Paul would have received from Ananias were the words of Jesus about Paul, “he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.” (Acts 9:15) So Paul knew that he would be going before the Gentiles with a message. But his habit had been to go to the Jews first and then, when rejected by them, to turn to the Gentiles.

The segregation that had been practiced by the Jews over the centuries since they received the Law from Moses and settled in Canaan was now to come to an end in the gospel of Jesus Christ. The mystery that God had held back for generations was…

They are fellow heirs. Look with me at Romans 8:16-17. The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

In writing to the mostly Gentile church in Rome Paul wanted the believers there to know that we are children of God! “We” represents all believers — Jew and Gentile — throughout history! Since we are all children of God we are also heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ. This truth brings about an equality in the church that had never been known in the synagogue. Having been born of God…

They are members of the same body. Let’s turn to 1 Corinthians 12:13.  For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

Whether Jews or Greeks? Slaves or free? Yes we are all baptized into one body! And we are all made to drink of one Spirit! This mystery, now unveiled, was amazing to Paul and should be breathtaking to us. Throughout history God has chosen people to represent Him on earth. With the ministry, execution and resurrection of Jesus and the beginning of the church the revealing of God’s mystery is that…

They are partakers of the promise. Look with me at Galatians 3:27-29. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. ²⁸ There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. ²⁹ And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.

Having been baptized into Christ by the Holy Spirit — symbolized in water baptism — believers are dressed up in Jesus! So far as spiritual life is concerned there is equality! Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, emphasizes the fact that there is no class of people or social standing that can claim any special status or privilege in the church. So far as relationship to God is concerned there are no inferior or superior people. We all have equal membership in Christ’s body for all eternity.

Let me quote from Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology, page 459. “This equality is an amazing and wonderful element of the Christian faith and sets Christianity apart from almost all religions and societies and cultures. The true dignity of godly manhood and womanhood can be fully realized only in obedience to God’s redeeming wisdom as found in Scripture.”

Spiritually we have equal standing with differences in roles. Just as God the Father speaks creation into being, God the Son carries out the work of creation and the creation is sustained by the presence of the Holy Spirit. In a similar manner the body of Christ has many members and the members do not all have the same function (Romans 12:4). For us today…

This promise was delivered through the gospel. Let’s look at Paul’s writing in Romans 1:16-17. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. ¹⁷ For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

God’s grace is delivered to all mankind through the gospel, the good news that Jesus took our sins to the cross. Everyone who confesses that Jesus is Lord and believes with all their being that God has raised Him from the dead will be saved. In the gospel Jesus becomes our peace who breaks down the dividing wall of prejudice and hostility.

God shows His righteousness in the gospel and gives that righteousness to us. The way it works is Jesus became our substitute. Since He had no sin of His own He could pay the price for our sin and we could become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). That is a wonderful exchange since we have no righteousness of our own we can become the righteousness of God.

We now see in the first few verses of Ephesians chapter 3 that God has released the mystery of His grace. I praise God that that mystery includes the possibility of my being saved and made a part of the family of God. Apart from God’s grace there would be no hope for us in this world or the world to come. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God! The wages of sin is death! But God demonstrates His love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us! And therefore, by God’s grace, we are privileged to be able to confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord, believing in our heart that God raised Him from the dead and therefore we are saved!

All scriptures quotes are from: The Holy Bible: English standard version. 2001. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.