Ephesians
Ephesians Highlights
Ephesians 2: 1-10
1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Man’s state of being without Christ.
1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
Philips Translation: To you, who were spiritually dead all the time that you drifted along the stream of this worlds’ ideas of living, and obeyed its unseen ruler (who is still operating in those who do not respond to the truth of God), to you Christ has given life!
In verse one, the Holy Spirit through Paul informs us just exactly what our spiritual state of being is without Jesus Christ. Spiritually, when we are born into this world, we are still born – dead on arrival (DOA). We grow and develop as the walking dead. Our inherited sin nature (1 Cor. 15:22) is the controlling force in our lives which means we live for ourselves fulfilling our own desires and natural inclinations. We learn and follow the world’s knowledge and philosophies. We follow the council of the ungodly, stand in the path of sinners, and sit in the seat of the scornful (Ps. 1:1). Also, we are trapped and enslaved by the devices and enticements of Satan, the prince of the power of the air. With his deep influence over many organizations and industries, he leads this world in the ways of disobedience and down the path to destruction.
These three verses describe what has been termed as the Total Depravity of Man. Total depravity is that as a consequence of the fall of man, every person born into this world is by nature a sinner only capable of committing acts of sin and is not able to save himself by any ways or means. Man is incapable of saving himself no matter how good his works, religion, or intentions. All men commit evil and are condemned already (Rom. 3: 10-19,23) (John 3: 18-21). Some acts of evil are evident because they are recognized as a violation of God’s Law, i.e., adultery, murder, violence, and wickedness. But, evil is really anything that is contrary to the law, nature, and will of God, i.e., disobedience, lack of faith, works in place of faith, faith plus works. Romans 14: 23 “…whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” James 4: 17 “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” 1 John 3: 4 ”Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.” Isaiah 64: 6 “But we are like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags.” Anyone not placing their faith and trust in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and His atoning death as the only way of salvation is doing evil.
If your heart stops and you stop breathing, there is nothing you can do about it. Dead people cannot give themselves life. You cannot perform CPR on yourself. Someone else has to try to bring you back to life. So it is with salvation. You cannot give yourself life. Another dead person cannot give you life. Only the Spirit of God can give you life through Christ. (Rom. 8: 10,11 & 2 Cor. 3:6).
So what is man’s condition? – Hopelessly Dead!
God’s Solution – the big BUT.
Ephesians 2: 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
If a doctor tells you, you have a seriously hopeless disease, BUT … Would not your ears, mind, and all of your attention be focused on his next words? Verses one to three have given man’s diagnosis and prognosis –spiritual death. Now, the Spirit writes the word BUT! Time to listen up people! But GOD! God Who is rich in mercy. Mercy is not giving us what we really deserve, but in this case God’s mercy does not want us to stay in our present condition, which is dead in our trespasses and sins. His compassion and love for us tremendously outweighs the offensiveness of our condition and our enmity towards Him. Romans 5:6-10 tells us that while we were in our dead state and enemies of God He loved us and had Christ die for us. John 3:16&17 and 1 John 4:9&10 inform us that God so loved us He sent His Son into the world so that we might have life only through Him. God has the cure to man’s condition! – Life Through Jesus Christ!
Ephesians 2:6 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.
For those who have the cure, God has not only given them life, but He has given them gifts to serve on earth and a position in the kingdom of heaven. We have a place prepared for us and a seat in His presence. It is as if we are there already. It is like a congressman or senator. They have a seat in their respective houses of congress even though they are not physically present. Also, the wonderful things that the Lord has prepared to give us in His presence are beyond comprehension or imagination. As Paul states in 1 Cor. 2:9 “…eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.”
Are You Sure There is Nothing a Man Can Do?
Ephesians 2: 8 & 9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
God is making it very clear here that our salvation is an act of His grace completely and totally performed by God alone. Salvation is God’s grace plus NOTHING! This grace has been looked upon in two ways – Irresistible Grace (efficacious grace) and Prevenial Grace (preceding grace). Irresistible grace teaches that the saving grace of God overcomes the resistance to obeying the call of the gospel for those God has chosen to save. In short, regeneration must take place before faith. Prevenial grace teaches that God’s grace precedes human decision. It allows persons their free will choice to choose or reject the salvation offered by God. In either case, the Holy Spirit of God impresses on the person the realization that they are a sinner condemned to hell, there is nothing they can do to save their self, and God has provided a way for them to be saved. (Sin, Judgment, and Righteousness) God’s grace is that prompting of the Spirit to believe the message of the gospel and to act personally upon it by placing our faith in Jesus Christ and Him alone. John 1:12 & 13 teaches we become children of God by receiving Christ, by believing on Him; we are not physically born saved, not something we earn(will of the flesh), not something any other man can give us (will of man), but only God can save us.
Charles Spurgeon put it this way:
“And let me now ask you this question, have you ever proved by experience the truth of this great negative fact, that there is no salvation in any other? I can speak what I do know, and testify what I have seen, when I solemnly declare in the presence of this congregation, that it is even so. Once I thought there was salvation in good works, and I labored hard, and strove diligently to preserve a character for integrity and uprightness; but when the Spirit of God came into my heart, “sin revived and I died,” that which I thought had been good proved to be evil; wherein I thought I had been holy I found myself to be unholy. I discovered that my very best actions were sinful. that my tears needed to be wept over, and that my very prayers needed God’s forgiveness. I discovered that I was seeking after salvation by the works of the law, that I was doing all my good works from a selfish motive, namely to save myself, and therefore they could not be acceptable to God. I found out that I could not be saved by good works for two very good reasons: first, I had not got any and secondly, if I had any, they could not save me. After that I thought, surely salvation might be obtained, partly by reformation, and partly by trusting in Christ; so I labored hard again, and thought if I added a few prayers here and there, a few tears of penitence, and a few vows of improvement, all would be well. But after forging on for many a weary day, like a poor blind horse toiling round the mill, I found I had got no farther, for there was still the curse of God hanging over me: “Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the law to do them;” and there was still an aching void in my heart the world could never fill—a void of distress and care, for I was sorely troubled because I could not attain unto the rest which my soul desired. Have you tried those two ways of getting to heaven? If you have, I trust the Lord, the Holy Spirit, has made you heartily sick of them, for you shall never enter the kingdom of heaven by the right door, until you have first of all been led to confess that all the other doors are barred in your teeth. No man ever will come to God through the straight and narrow way until he had tried all the other ways; and when we find ourselves beaten, and foiled, and defeated, then it is, that pressed by sore necessity, we betake ourselves to the one open fountain, and there wash ourselves, and are made clean.
Perhaps I have in my presence this morning some who are trying to gain salvation by ceremonies. You have been baptized in your infancy; you regularly take the Lord’s Supper; you attend your church or chapel; and if you knew any other ceremonies you would attend to them. Ah! my dear friends, all these things are as the chaff before the wind in the matter of salvation; they cannot help you one step towards acceptance in the person of Christ. As well might you labor to build your house with water, as to build salvation with such poor things as these. These are good enough for you when you are saved, but if you seek salvation in them, they shall be to your soul as wells without water, clouds without rain, and withered trees, twice dead, plucked up by the roots. Whatever is your way of salvation—for there are a thousand different inventions of men whereby they seek to save themselves—whatever it may be, hear thou its death. knell tolled from this verse: “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
What about Works?
Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Good works do not in any way proceed salvation as we have seen above. Good works are the result of a changed or new life in Christ brought about at our rebirth by the Holy Spirit. Good works are the witness and fruit of our salvation. God makes us new creatures in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17) and the Holy Spirit transforms us into the image of Jesus Christ. As Paul states in Gal. 2:20 it is no longer he who lives but Christ lives through him. The works that we do were planned by God before we were saved, even before the foundation of the world. The Spirit produces the fruit of the Spirit in us and gives us our spiritual gift(s) according to what He, the Spirit, wills 1 Cor. 12:11. We are instructed to walk by the Spirit and to walk by faith. This Spirit-faith walk produces the works in us that James says is a testimony to one’s faith. James writes, “But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered up Isaac his son upon the alter? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?” (James 2:20-22 but read 17-26) This is why we should develop a close walk with God so that we will know what HE wants us to do.
