AM Bible Study Group; March 1, 2017 from Ephesians 2:1-10
Theme: Paul describes the wonderful news of our resurrection to newness of life in Jesus.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
This morning’s passage is about ‘resurrection. But not Jesus’ resurrection. It’s is yours and mine. Jesus spoke of this resurrection in John 5:24-27. The “dead” would hear His voice and live. And since He then goes on to speak of the resurrection from physical death as a completely distinct thing (vv. 28-29), it’s clear then that He speaks first of a spiritual resurrection from spiritual death into spiritual life. It is that ‘spiritual’ resurrection that Paul is speaking of in our passage.
In Ephesians 2:1-10, Paul describes this resurrection as a present reality for us in Christ through faith. It’s a passage that, when we as believers read, we ought to put our own names at the very beginning of it—and then rejoice in the description it gives us of our present position in Christ. When we do so—and truly let the truths of what Paul says take hold of our hearts—it completely changes our view of ourselves in Him, and completely transforms the way we live.
Note how this passage shows us …
I. WHAT OUR SPIRITUAL CONDITION WAS APART FROM JESUS (vv. 1-3).
After having spoken of the power of God in us that was demonstrated through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead (see 1:19-23), the apostle Paul then said, “And you He made alive …” (v. 1a). What he says about us after that, however, is the “bad news” every sinner must hear before they can receive the “good news”. First that we’re told that—apart from being united to Jesus Christ by faith—we were “dead in trespasses and sins” (v. 1b). “Trespasses” refers to the ways we have broken God’s rules, and stepped into His moral “no trespassing” zones; and “sins” speaks of how we have “missed the mark” of God’s holy standards. Judicially, this condemns us to death before a holy God (Romans 6:23); but more, it also renders us “dead”—inoperative and unresponsive to any kind of relationship with God.
And not only are we spiritually dead before God because of our sins, but we are what we might call “the walking dead”; because with respect to those trespasses and sins, the apostle Paul went on to say, “in which you once walked according to the course of this world …” (v. 2a). We show that we were dead to a life to God by the fact that we took all our cues and instructions in life from the values and priorities of a world system that is hostile to Him—further compounding our trespasses and sins before Him. And what’s more, we did this all by to the drumbeat of the devil—“according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience” (v. 2b). He holds the people of this world under his evil sway; “among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind …” (v. 3a). We walked with those who trod the paths of disobedience; making the lusts of our sinful flesh the guiding principle of our lives.
And it gets even worse. The most desperate aspect of our whole situation is that we were destined for the wrath of God—“and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others” (v. 3b). We were, you might say, like little children who were bound to grow up to a destiny; and that destiny was the wrath of God that all must receive to reject Him and persist in rebelling against His commandments.
We may be tempted to resist the way Paul’s words make us have to view ourselves. We may say, “But I felt alive and I did good!—and I was certainly better than some other folks I could name!” But it’s not our opinion that counts when it comes to our spiritual condition. The truest thing that can be said of us is what God says; and He says we were dead to any kind of life before Him. We were destined for judgment; and could do no more to save ourselves from that judgment than a dead body could make itself alive! One “dead, rotting corpse” is not “better” than another.
I. WHAT GOD DID FOR US IN JESUS (vv. 4-7).
The apostle Paul then goes on to utter two of the most important words put together in the Bible: “But God …” They show that God has done something about our condition. “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses …” (vv. 4-5a.). It isn’t because of anything of value in us; because we were nothing more than dead corpses in sin. It is all because of His mercy and love. While we were in that condition helpless condition, God “made us alive together with Christ” (v. 5b). No dead body can ever make itself alive; only God Himself can bring the dead to life. And that’s what He has done for us in Christ. In fact, He made us alive “together with Christ”. And that’s the key to it all. God, by His grace, places us in Christ; and because Jesus is alive, we are made alive too. The apostle Paul doesn’t simply use the word “made alive”; but in the original language, he uses an unusual word that means “made alive with”. This, as Paul stresses, was a gift of God’s unmerited grace—“(by grace you have been saved)” (v. 5b).
And more than just making us alive—as wonderful as that is; God has also “raised us up together” with Christ (v. 6a). God doesn’t, as it were, walk past our tombs and tell us, “Live!”—and then leave us stuck in our tombs trying to figure a way to crawl our way out. He raises us from the grave; so that we now stand before Him as brand new creatures (see 2 Corinthians 5:17). And more still; we now sit in a position of great honor and glory. Paul wrote that God has now “made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus …” (v. 6b). We are now positioned, in God’s sight, where Christ Himself sits; that is, at the place of greatest possible honor at the Father’s right hand in heavenly glory—a place reserved for His beloved Son.
And let’s pay special attention to what Paul then goes on to say about what the result of all this will be; “that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” (v. 7). God puts us on display—for all the angelic hosts to see throughout eternity—as a demonstration of how gracious He is (see Ephesians 3:10). We are eternal trophies of His grace—showing how gracious He is to save and glorify such formerly-dead transgressors and sinners as us!
III. HOW WE BECOME THUS UNITED TO JESUS (vv. 8-9).
We could never do anything to make ourselves worthy of such an honor. But the apostle Paul writes, “For by grace you have been saved through faith” (v. 8a; see also v. 5). It’s important to understand how it does not come about that we are united to Jesus Christ. It does not—and cannot—happen through our works. A dead body cannot work its way up the moral ladder and earn eternal life—or any kind of life, for that matter. The only way we receive eternal life is by grace; and “grace” means “an undeserved gift”. We take hold of this gift by faith (John 3:16).
And note that, because we are “dead” apart from God’s grace, we cannot even muster up the necessary “faith” for ourselves. Of faith, Paul writes, “and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast (vv. 8b-9). Not even the good “work” of having faith is possible to us to boast in apart from God’s grace. Even the faith to believe in His offer of grace is, itself, God’s gift of grace to us.
IV. WHAT WE NOW ARE BECAUSE OF JESUS (v. 10).
Good works are not completely out of the picture, however. They are the consequence of salvation—and not the cause of salvation. They characterize what we now are. In Christ, we have (1) a new identity as “His workmanship”; (2) a new origin, being “created in Christ Jesus”; (3) a new purpose to live for: “for good works”; (4) a new provision; those good works being that “which God prepared beforehand”; and (5) a new duty; that is to “walk in” those good works which He has prepared in advance for us!
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The whole key to the resurrected life is that—from beginning to end—it is a life “in Christ”. We are completely united by God to Him—having been given life by Him, raised with Him, seated in positions of heavenly honor in Him, and now made to live our day-to-day lives as new creatures for Him.
To God be the glory forever through Christ Jesus!