Ephesians 1: 1-14
Salvation in Christ Alone
Our lesson today will follow on from the lesson last week from Genesis 22 by Pastor Geoff. The Lord’s test of Abraham’s obedience by asking him to sacrifice his son Isaac, his only son whom he loves was seen as Type of our Heavenly Father sacrificing his only son, whom he loved (first mention). Like any Type it should not be pressed too far and Geoff pointed out Isaac was not required to die as a sin offering, since a sinner who dies, dies only for his own sin, whereas the Sinless Son of God did not have to die but chose to die for the sins of the world
Our Scripture text is from the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians first chapter which reveals God the father’s plans to sacrifice His only son as the Lamb of God who would take away the sin of the world, which answers the question, why did Jesus have to die? I think this question is very relevant at this time because we live in a liberal progressive society where Scripture is irrelevant and where liberal progressive churches teach false ideas on why Jesus died, even in in some evangelical churches
That Jesus died on a cross is not the question. No historian of the Roman Empire doubts that there was a man called Jesus of Nazareth in First Century Roman occupied Judea, Samaria and the Galilee; and that he ended his life on a Roman cross between two other condemned prisoners; however they view the reason why Jesus died as a tragic miscarriage of Roman justice. Even the Koran records the death of prophet Isa, but views the death of Jesus as martyrdom at the hands of evil Jews who plotted to be rid of him because of the kingdom message he proclaimed. All Orthodox Christian doctrine teaches that Jesus died for the sins of the world so sinners could be reconciled to God. However liberal churches falter on question, why did Jesus did have to die? The apostate churches teach the father did not plan to give his son to be tortured and the hands of evil men and killed, as that would make God the Father a wicked father, a child abuser. They therefore reason that Jesus died in our place as the first martyr of the kingdom massage he proclaimed, and that we symbolically identify with Jesus’ death. The Christians role in the earth then is to follow the example of Jesus and proclaim his message of social justice for the world.
Fortunately our text today will reveal the Father’s plan and why Jesus had to die
Paul’s Greeting to the Ephesians
Ephesians 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus
Paul defends his Apostleship at the start of the letter and states it is by the will of God. And since the Law of Moses requires two or three witness to confirm the truth, Paul needed two or three witnesses to establish his authority in the Ephesian church. He cites God the Father and God the Son who appeared at the Damascus Road and by implication Pauls speechless companions travelling with him who heard the voice from heaven, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting, but arise and enter the city and it shall be told you what you must do”
Paul Apostolic Authority includes more than the Ephesian believers who were faithful in Christ Jesus. It extends to all who are who are faithful in Christ Jesus, to the faithful in FBC today
The Final Authority of Scripture including the Apostolic teaching for all matters of faith and practice is a critical doctrine in the Church of Jesus Christ. Any church that does not accept Final Authority of Scripture are by definition not faithful in Christ Jesus and are on the road to apostasy
The common position held by all apostate church movements is that Jesus is not enough and the Scriptures are not sufficient for life on our modern progressive society. We need more and better truth. Whereas the Scriptures and the Revelation they contain are truer than any scientific statement or theological proposition ever can be
There is a small letter in our NT before the book of Revelation written by Jesus’s brother Jude. Jude writes, “I felt the necessity to write to you (believers in Messiah) appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once and for all delivered to the saints”
Once for all delivered to the saints, means any modern view about Scripture, or Jesus rediscovered, the inclusive Jesus, the universal Jesus, Jesus the social justice are too late. The Canon of Scripture was closed in the 4th Century AD. The Church bishops at that Council of Nicaea wisely decided that any writing to be included in the Canon of NT Scripture must be limited to eye witness records by the Apostles to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. No modern Christian writing can be added to the Canon of Scripture because they are not eye witnesses, they are too late. Why believe a modern Jesus when we have the eye witness records of his life and times recorded in our Bible?
2 Grace be to you, and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ
This blessing by the Apostle completes his salutation to those faithfull in Christ Jesus. The exclusive blessing is based on a truth of Scripture: you cannot bless what God has cursed and cannot curse what God has blessed. this is why same sex marriage in a Christian Church is futile
Spiritual Blessings in Christ
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ;
The apostle identifies the God we bless; he is the God the Father our Lord Jesus Christ, not universal a god or even a particular god such as Allah.
There is some confusion today whether Allah is just another name for God. However, the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem has written prominently on the inside walls ‘There is no God but Allah, and he has no son’ whereas the Scriptures reveal, ‘There is no God but Jehovah and he has Son’. Those two statements are mutually exclusive, Allah is not God
The Father has blessed us every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies which means the resources of heaven are available to us on the basis of What Christ achieved on the cross and by his subsequent resurrection
Chosen by the Father
4 according as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
Chosen in him before the world was created means God foreknew me and you before we were born, and for the purpose that we should be holy and blameless before Him
Predestined for Adoption
5 having predestined us to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
Having predestined us means he planned to save us before the foundation of the world, and this was according to the good pleasure of his will
Because God foreknew me and you and that we would sin and because He predestined us to his children meant his only son would have to die for you and me for the will of God to be achieved
Numbers 23:19 God is not a man that He should lie, neither the son of man that He should repent. Has He said, and shall He not do it? Or has He spoken, and shall He not make it good?
This is one part of the Apostles letter that is not accepted by the liberal progressive churches. They assert if God planned the torture and death of his own son at the hands of sinful men he would be a child abuser and an evil father. They therefore, teach Jesus did not have to die but that he chose to die like a martyr for the cause. This is a clear rejection of Apostolic Teaching
6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, in which He has made us accepted in the One having been loved.
No wonder the apostle bursts into praise of the glory of His grace and that it was for our sake that died and rose again to make us acceptable to His Father
Redeemed by the Son
7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace,
In Him we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins and only in Him. The Apostle Peter’s sermon in
Acts 4:12 And there is salvation in no other One; for there is no other name under Heaven given among men by which we must be saved
According to the riches of His grace, this means God’s grace is sufficient to forgive all your sins and mine. A common false teaching in the church and Christina Sects which denies the Apostle’s teaching is that salvation is by Jesus plus something: Jesus plus baptism, Jesus plus good works, Jesus plus penance, Jesus plus social action
8 which He caused to abound toward us in all wisdom and understanding;
This wisdom and understanding of plan and purpose of God and his nature and character forms the propositional truth upon which our faith is based
9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself,
10 for an administration of the fullness of times, to head up all things in Christ, both the things in Heaven, and the things on earth, even in Him,
The mystery of His will revealed to Paul is far reaching from and spans from before the world to the end of this World, to fullness of times and consummation of all things
Ephesians 1:22,23 And He has put all things under His feet and gave Him to be Head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
11 in whom also we have been chosen to an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His own will,
The death of Jesus and our salvation is according to the counsel of God’s own will.
The deeper meaning of the death and resurrection of the Messiah as God’s will was revealed to Paul by the Lord himself following Paul’s encounter with the Risen Lord on the road to Damascus
Those who reject the Apostles authority in the modern church neglect the fact that following Pauls conversion experience on the Damascus Road and subsequent meeting with the believer Ananias, he went out to the Arabian Desert for three years. During that time he restudied the Tanakh or OT Scriptures he had studied as a Pharisee at the feet of the learned teacher Gamaliel; but in the desert, Paul also came under the tutelage of another teacher, the Holy Spirit whom he had received when he was Born Again and baptised by the Spirit into the Body of Christ
it was during the three year desert seclusion that Paul was caught up to the Third Heaven in an in an experience of which he said he was unsure whether he remained in his body or went out of his body; either way he went to heaven and saw things he said were not lawful for a man to utter. However, there were some things he was allowed to utter and they were the ten Mysteries revealed to the Apostle by the Lord himself; eight divine mysteries and two satanic mysteries. In the NT letters Paul’s wrote during his missionary journeys he explains how he received revelation about ten mysteries and that eight are divine mysteries who will defeat the two satanic mysteries. In addition five of the eight divine mysteries concern the Church
12 for us to be to the praise of His glory, who previously had trusted in Christ; For us who were the first to trust in Christ
Sealed by the Holy Spirit
13 in whom also you, hearing the Word of Truth, the gospel of our salvation, in whom also believing, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,
14 who is the earnest of our inheritance, to the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory
And also all who hear and believe the in the Word of Truth will like Paul be sealed with the Holy Spirit, the earnest of our inheritance This sealing occurs when we are baptised by the Holy Spirit into the Body of Christ
1Corinthians 12:12-14 For as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body; so also is Christ. For also by one Spirit we are all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free, even all were made to drink into one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but many
The Holy Spirit remains living in us until we receive our eternal inheritance
Summary
In our text today from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians chapters 1: 1-14, the Apostle Paul reveals not only that Jesus had to die but that His Father in heaven planned it that way for our sakes.
The Father chose us for salvation and adoption as his sons and daughters
The Son has redeemed us on the basis of His death and resurrection
The Spirit sealed us by baptising us into the Body of Christ and is the assurance of our inheritance with Christ and all that God has planned.
In the Communion Service next when we can personally remember our Lord and his love and grace toward us