Ephesians 2-3
Grace, Faith
and Works
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Psalm 146:1-10 Trusting and Praising the Eternal God
Praise the Lord, My Soul
1 Praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD, O my soul! 2 I will praise the LORD as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
3 Put not your trust in princes,
in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. 4 When his breath departs, he returns to the earth;
on that very day his plans perish.
5 Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD his God, 6 who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
who keeps faith forever; 7 who executes justice for the oppressed,
who gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets the prisoners free; 8 the LORD opens the eyes of the blind.
The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;
the LORD loves the righteous. 9 The LORD watches over the sojourners;
he upholds the widow and the fatherless,
but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
10 The LORD will reign forever,
your God, O Zion, to all generations.
Praise the LORD!
Application
Our righteous God will reign forever, therefore He is worthy of our trust as well as our praise.
Prayer
Eternal praiseworthy God, it's so obvious I should trust You, rather than any frail human, including myself; help me see that truth for the rest of my life, as I daily depend on You for my needs and desires. Amen.
TMS Hebrews 9:27 You and Christ Only Die Once
Observations
This is an important verse to memorize and understand because it teaches truth that refutes a handful of heresies. You should see the comments on Hebrews 9 for a fuller understanding of the verse in context, but here are a few points to observe. The author of Hebrews is writing the epistle to show the superiority of Christianity over Judaism, and here notes the superiority of Christ's sacrifice over the Levitical system, specifying that it is a one time only event (superior to something that had to be repeated every year in the Day of Atonement). Note that Christ sacrificed Himself (no one did nor does it for Him, nor again).
The timing indicates that Christ's death is at the culmination of the end of the previous ages (the Mosaic Legal system being one of them), initiating a new age.
Verse 27 parallels the one time death of Christ with the one time death of humans. We die once. This is a destiny “stored up”/appointed for us. After that we face judgment. No second chances, no reincarnation. Once, and that's it. In light of that judgment, Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many (Isa 53). The substitutionary atonement is in view, which is the basis of our justification (our present possession); Christ died in our place, so we wouldn't have to die for our sins.
To those who eagerly await Him (not those who just do their own thing), He will appear a second time (this is referred to as the Second Coming -2Cor 5:9-10). This return of Christ is not in reference to sin, but to bring salvation (glorification aspect) to them, when He sets up His kingdom.
Application
Prayer
Lord Jesus, I look forward to Your appearing and glory; please guide me to live so as to please You in all I aspire and do. Amen.
Ephesians 2-3 Grace, Faith and Works
Chapter 2 is another crucial chapter to understand the need for salvation, how God saves, and what to do once saved. As in most crucial things, Satan has counterfeited and distorted it over the centuries. Fortunately, the key distortions are easy to refute. The first half of the post (up to verse 2:8) might be difficult to follow since I had to get a little technical to refute some of the misinterpretations. So make sure you get to verses 8-10 which are great to know and memorize and pass on to others. Chapter 3 follows up on the rich inheritance God has planned for believers, and gives insight into the why and how of it.
Ephesians 2 Graciously Saved for Works
Alive with Christ
1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.One in Christ
11 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— 12 remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. 17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.Christ Our Cornerstone
19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.Application
If you've been trusting your works rather than God's grace to be saved, it's time to become Biblical and accept God's gift by exercising your faith in what He's done, rather than what you've done. If you've done that, it's time to be part of a Biblical Body so God is glorified.
Prayer
God, thanks for Your gift of Christ dying for my sin, so I could be forgiven; may I now live as you desire, learning and doing the good works You've planned for me. Amen.
Ephesians 3 Point of Creation
The Mystery of the Gospel
1 For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner of 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. 7 Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God's grace, which was given me by the working of his power. 8 To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things, 10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him. 13 So I ask you not to lose heart over what I am suffering for you, which is your glory.Paul’s Prayer for the Ephesians
14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.Application
If we are going to bring God glory in our churches/assemblies, we must learn to draw upon God's power to live in love under the Lordship of Christ. There is no short-cut.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for the rich inheritance You have planned for your faithful children; may I live for seeing Your glory displayed in both my present church life, as well as in my life in the Messiah's future kingdom. Amen.
Digging Deeper
God in a nutshell: God graciously saves (justifies/sanctifies/glorifies) those who exercise faith in His revelation, so they can do the works He has planned for them. He also has a plan to richly bless faithful believers in the future with His glory, and to display His glory to the world through the church, as He dwells in their midst.
Build-a-Jesus: Jesus reconciled Jews and Greeks to each other, and then both to God in one body, so they could be the NT temple, living under His control, by the power of His Spirit.
Us in a nutshell: We are graciously saved by faith, so we can do good works. We need to supernaturally draw on the Spirit's power/grace to love others as Christ desires, so that God's glory can be seen in our midst.
Where to go for more
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