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Lesson Eight

Ephesians 3:1-5

Ephesians 3:1-51 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;

Ephesians 3:6-8

Ephesians 3:6-86 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power.8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;

Ephesians 3:9-12

Ephesians 3:9-129 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:12 In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.

Focus Verse

Colossians 1:26Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made

manifest to his saints.

Focus Thought

From the beginning of time, all creation has centered around God’s ultimate

purpose—to prepare a bride to inhabit eternity with Him.

IntroductionIntroductionThe King James translators chose the word church, which first appeared in the Geneva Bible of 1560, to represent the Greek word ekklesia in the New Testament. However, for King James’ own personal reasons, he chose not to do the same in the Old Testament. Before that time, ekklesia had always been translated into English as “congregation” or “assembly.”

IntroductionThe word ekklesia is an interesting word. Much like the word baptism, the word church is an ecclesiastical word with a religious meaning. When the apostle Paul traveled from city to city preaching about Jesus and His church during the first century, the word had a very different meaning from what we often think of today. It was a common word that everyone in the Greek-speaking world knew and used regularly. Rather than using it in a religious sense, people commonly used it as a secular word, mostly in political and governmental settings. It described the regularly called assembly of all the citizens of a democratic Greek city-state to conduct the affairs of government.

IntroductionForty times a year, approximately every nine days, a herald traveled the streets of the city crying, “Ekklesia, ekklesia.” Upon hearing this, all businesses closed and all work ceased as all free citizens of the city gathered at the meeting place. Under Greek democracy, this assembly of all the people had the final say on all proposed legislation and judicial appeals, especially the banishing of someone from the city. The assembly conducted the affairs of government and elected major officials and leaders.

IntroductionEkklesia is the word that the apostle Paul used to designate the assembly of the people of God—the church. The Pauline epistles mention the church sixty-three times; in the Book of Acts, Luke wrote of the church in twenty-five verses; and John’s epistles and the Book of Revelation use the word church in twenty-three verses. The Greek Old Testament, the Septuagint, used the same word eighty-six times, where translators usually employed the words congregation or assembly. In the four Gospels, the word ekklesia appears in only two passages of the Greek editions of Matthew. (See Matthew 16:18; 18:17.)

IntroductionToday, we want to understand the word church in the same way the people of the first century would have understood the apostle Paul’s use of the word ekklesia. The audiences that heard Paul preach would think of the church as the Greek ekklesia, an assembly of all the people. To them, this word conveyed three things in its commonly understood meaning.

Introduction

1. Assembly. Ekklesia always meant people assembled in a meeting. Therefore, a church could only be called a church scripturally when it met together.

2. Unity. Ekklesia encompassed the entire city and could never be divided in any way. There could be no separate congregations, no ethnic or social divisions, and no groups meeting in or representing just a part of the city. Thus, if the church is going to be the church, everyone in the whole city must work together in unity.

3. Equality. Everyone came to the assembly as an equal. Rich or poor, great or small, general or private, leader or servant, manager or worker, clergy or laity—everyone had an equal voice and vote.

I. Plan of the Ages (A-B)Plan of the AgesThe church did not just evolve unplanned and unanticipated. It is not here by accident, but it is the masterpiece of God’s divine plan.

I. Plan of the Ages (A-B)A. Predestined from

the BeginningBefore God formed the universe and created mankind, He planned the whole course of time. With an ultimate goal, God decided what He would accomplish and how He would do it. God thus predestinated the church. (See Romans 8:28-30; Ephesians 1:4-12.)

I. Plan of the Ages (A-B)From before the foundation of the world, God ordained that there would be a church and that He would call, justify, and glorify His chosen. Since God destined the church to be victorious and ultimately redeemed, we should not be insecure regarding our salvation. No one—not even the devil or all of hell—can destroy the church or divert its destiny. The song “The Church Triumphant” had it right: “It’s a-been thru the storm, but the wind couldn’t turn it. It’s a-been in the fire, but the fire couldn’t burn it” (Dottie Rambo, 1966). When the stars fall from the sky, the heavens roll back as a scroll, and time is no more, the church will remain.

I. Plan of the Ages (A-B)Predestination in the Scriptures involves only the church, not individuals apart from the church. Individuals enjoy predestination only to the extent that they have the opportunity to become part of the body of Christ, the church, which is predestinated. Were individuals predestinated apart from the body of Christ, nothing about church, the Word of God, or a person’s life would matter at all; there would be nothing that a person could do to alter his predetermined destiny. However, students of Scripture clearly understand that all those things do matter! In fact, they have eternal significance, for they involve the person’s freewill and choice in becoming a part of the predestined church. Moreover, only as a member of the body of Christ does one have any hope of salvation and hence a secure, eternal destiny.

I. Plan of the Ages (A-B)B. The Eternal Purpose

For centuries, the church was an unknown mystery. Even Satan could not figure out God’s plan (I Corinthians 2:7-8). Only the experience of receiving the Holy Ghost and the Spirit’s revelation to the apostles have allowed us to see the “fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God” (Ephesians 3:9).

I. Plan of the Ages (A-B)God’s goal was to create someone to inhabit eternity with Him, someone with whom He could share fellowship and love. He desired a bride, one who would sit on the throne and rule and reign with Him eternally. This is the ultimate goal of the whole creation. Believers have been “predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will” (Ephesians 1:11). Therefore, the glorious conclusion of this present age will be the grand marriage supper of the Lamb in eternity.

II. Household of God (A)Household of GodNumerous Scriptures compare the people of God to a house or temple of God.

II. Household of God (A)A. The Foundation

Any building, institution, family, or individual is only as good as the foundation upon which it rests. Jesus declared to Peter and the other disciples, “Upon this rock I will build my church” (Matthew 16:18). That rock is the answer to the question asked in the same passage, “Whom say ye that I am?” (Matthew 16:15). Thus, the foundation of the church is the identity of Jesus Christ.

II. Household of God (A)The wise builder takes time to prepare a solid foundation, while the foolish person builds his house on the sand (Matthew 7:24-27). When the storms of life come, the house built on the rock stands, but the other collapses. In the parable, Jesus identified the wise builder as one who hears the Word and obeys it, but He described the foolish builder as also hearing but doing nothing about it.

II. Household of God (A)The church rests upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, of which Jesus Christ is the chief cornerstone (Ephesians 2:19-22). (See also Psalm 118:22; Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10; Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11; I Peter 2:7.)

II. Household of God (B)B. The Building

I Corinthians 3:10-13

“According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I

have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take

heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid,

which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver,

precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the

day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every

man’s work of what sort it is” (I Corinthians 3:10-13).

II. Household of God (B)What part of the building are believers? a door? a window? a pillar? Each believer, though varied and different, finds his place and fits together in harmony into one building—the church. We are a “building fitly framed together,” which is growing into “an holy temple in the Lord” (Ephesians 2:21). Indeed, we are Christ’s house (Hebrews 3:6). Furthermore, Peter declared that we are “lively stones,” or living stones, “built up a spiritual house” (I Peter 2:5).

II. Household of God (B)Stones are different from bricks or blocks. The mason can build a wall of brick or block easily and swiftly because all the bricks are identical. However, raw stones are all different in shape and size. A stonemason must choose each stone individually, study it to see how and where it will fit in, and maybe even chip or shape it to fit. His work actually becomes a work of art.

II. Household of God (B)God never calls His children bricks or blocks, but He refers to us as stones. As individuals, we are all different from each other with diverse talents, abilities, personalities, and opportunities. Therefore, we should not compare ourselves with each other. (See II Corinthians 10:12.) As in the parable of the talents, some of us may possess five talents, some two, and others only one. (See Matthew 25:14-30.) At the time of accounting in Jesus’ story, the one who had received five talents and the one who had received two talents both received identical rewards.

II. Household of God (B)Although one of the men had accomplished more than twice as much as the other one, both were equally faithful and fruitful with the talents they had received. The lesson for us in this parable is that if we will do what we can with what we have, God will judge us by our faithfulness without comparing us to others.

II. Household of God (B)Paul reminded the Corinthians, “Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost?” (I Corinthians 6:19). (See also I Corinthians 3:16; 6:18; 10:14; II Corinthians 6:16.) As the church collectively forms a temple—a house for God in this world—we should remember that we are also individual temples of the Holy Ghost. The Spirit of God lives within us, and we take Him with us wherever we go in this world. Moreover, the holiness of God within us demands that we guard our behavior and activities. As the passages in Corinthians tell us, we flee fornication and avoid sin and idolatry because of our respect for the temple of God.

III. Christ’s Body (A-B)Christ’s BodyThe church is the body of Christ, and “we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones” (Ephesians 5:30).

III. Christ’s Body (A-B)A. Jesus Christ, the Head

Three times in the Book of Ephesians, Paul reminded us that Christ is the head of the body, the church. (See Ephesians 1:22-23; 4:15-16; 5:23.) Of course, the head and the body are inseparably united. Not only does the church—the body—stand in need of Him, but Christ—the head—also needs the church for His completeness.

III. Christ’s Body (A-B)Since any living creature with two heads is a freak, there can be only one head. The church does not need another head, be it man or institution, for Jesus Christ leads, controls, and directs us as the Chief Shepherd of the flock. Ministers, pastors, and elders who oversee and rule the church are only under shepherds who lead under the mandate of, and point us to, our Chief Shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is not only the Good Shepherd, but He is also the door to the sheepfold.

III. Christ’s Body (A-B)We, as His “sheep,” should know His voice and follow only Him. (See John 10:1-16.) Furthermore, we should submit to Him, not only as our Savior, but also as our Lord and our head. Paul stated that even our hair length reflects the headship of Christ and the divine order. (See I Corinthians 11:1-16.) That men have short hair and women have uncut hair gives proper honor to our head, Jesus Christ.

III. Christ’s Body (A-B)B. Unified Members of the Body

It is a fact that God in Christ walked the earth in a body of flesh. Now that He has ascended to heaven, the church is His body in this world. We are His hands and feet. Whatever the Lord would do on this earth today, He does it through His church—His body. It is our responsibility to take seriously the work of God in today’s world, for He has commissioned us to go unto the whole world—to preach, to evangelize, to teach, and to baptize. (See Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15-20.) Furthermore, the Scripture states that sinners are saved through the preaching of the gospel (I Corinthians 1:21). (See Romans 10:13-15.)

John 14:12

“He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because

I go unto my Father” (John 14:12).

III. Christ’s Body (A-B)To do the work of the body of Christ, the church must remain unified. (See I Corinthians 12:12-13.) Whether we are a hand, a foot, an eye, an ear, or a nose, we all have our place and are all members of the body. (See I Corinthians 12:14-21.) Someone may consider himself one of the “less honorable,” “more feeble,” or “uncomely parts” of the body of Christ.

III. Christ’s Body (A-B)Certainly, parts of our body are not lovely to look at (e.g., the gall bladder, the liver, the intestines, the stomach). However unpleasant their display to the public may be, these hidden parts of the body are extremely important and necessary. For the body to live and develop, these parts must function well and continue their work. (See I Corinthians 12:22-24.) “Tempered together,” all parts of the body must work together as a single unit.

III. Christ’s Body (A-B)Just as the human body with its many members must maintain unity, so must the church work in harmony and unity as the body of Christ. We could not sever an arm from the rest of the body and expect that arm to live and remain healthy. Likewise, we could never separate ourselves from the church—the body of Christ—and remain spiritually healthy.

III. Christ’s Body (A-B)Jesus’ discourse on the vine and the branches further illustrates unity of the body. (See John 15:1-8.) As individuals, we are branches attached to the one Vine. As the branch must stay attached to the vine or trunk for its very life and survival, we also must stay attached to the body of Jesus Christ—the Vine.

I Corinthians 12:25

“That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another” (I

Corinthians 12:25).

III. Christ’s Body (A-B)Divisions and church splits are not the will of God. Discord, factions, and parties should not divide the church, but church members should aspire “to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3). Paul declared that there is one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God, who is Father of us all and in us all (Ephesians 4:3-6). Diversity should exist in the church, but division should never be present. Indeed, we should work together “till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13).

Ephesians 4:16“From whom the whole body fitly

joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth,

according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh

increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:16).

III. Christ’s Body (A-B)Certainly, any church that meets together with “one accord” experiences another Pentecost. (See Acts 2:1.) The psalmist declared, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” (Psalm 133:1). Our song and prayer should be, “Lord, bind us together with love.”

IV. The Family of God (A)The Family of GodThe church is a spiritual family and every congregation is a family. We are all children of God, an eternal family where our brothers and sisters in the Lord often become closer to us than natural flesh and blood relatives. (See Romans 8:14; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 2:19; 3:14-15; I John 3:1-2.)

IV. The Family of God (A)A. Born and Adopted

into the FamilyWe become part of the family through the new birth of the water and the Spirit. The Holy Ghost comes into us; thus a new Spirit abides within us. No longer dead in sin and trespasses, the Spirit quickens us into the divine nature and life of Christ. We cannot just join the family or even reform the old nature, but we must be born again. (See John 3:7.) Thus, by the Spirit, we are born into the family of God.The first step in the birth process is conception, which occurs in us spiritually by the preaching of the Word.

I Peter 1:23

“Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever” (I Peter 1:23).

IV. The Family of God (A)Then comes the travail. The Scriptures declare that children are born into the family when the church travails in prayer. (See Isaiah 66:8; Galatians 4:19.) After the Comforter came on the Day of Pentecost, Peter presented the plan of salvation, the pattern for being born again. (See Acts 2:38.) Not only are we born into the family, but we also are adopted. Paul spoke of our adoption as children of God (Galatians 4:5; Ephesians 5:4-6).

IV. The Family of God (A)The word adoption refers to our sanctification, justification, and redemption. Adoption is that act by which God makes those who were alienated from Him to become His sons and heirs of His eternal glory. We can now approach God not as servants but as children in His family.

IV. The Family of God (A)Paul observed that we “have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father” (Romans 8:15). The Spirit witnesses with our spirit that because we are children, we are heirs and joint-heirs with Jesus Christ (Romans 8:16-17). Although we are still bound in our fleshly body of bondage and suffering, “the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God” (Romans 8:19).

IV. The Family of God (A)We, with the whole creation, groan in travail awaiting deliverance, “waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:23). Only in the Rapture or the resurrection, when our bodies will be changed, will we fully receive our adoption. (See Romans 8:14-23; I Corinthians 15:35-54.)

I John 3:2

“Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him;

for we shall see him as he is” (I John 3:2).

IV. The Family of God (B)B. Illustrated by an Allegory

The apostle Paul allegorically illustrated this truth regarding the family of God with a brief summary of the story of the two sons of Abraham. (See Galatians 4:22-31.) The maid Hagar gave birth to the first son, Ishmael. In her old age, Sarah—the wife or “freewoman”—gave birth to Isaac, the second son, who was the son of promise. The contentions and family problems eventually caused Abraham to cast out the bondwoman and her son and send them away. The story illustrates the two covenants, the old law from Mount Sinai and the new covenant of the church. It also illustrates the situation of the child of God who is born into the family, the church.

IV. The Family of God (B)Everyone who experiences the new birth through baptism in Jesus’ name and receiving the Holy Ghost becomes a child of God. We all have one father—God. However, who is our mother? The apostle stated, “Jerusalem which is above is . . . the mother of us all” (Galatians 4:26). This is the church. (See Hebrews 12:22-23; Revelation 19:7-8; 21:2, 9-10.) Therefore, God is our father and the church is our mother. There is only one way into the family of God: through the new-birth experience in the church, the body of Christ.

IV. The Family of God (B)Perhaps we should note the applications that the apostle Paul makes in the allegory:

IV. The Family of God (B)1. “The desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband” (Galatians 4:27). In other words, those outside the church claiming to be born again will outnumber those who are actually in the church.

IV. The Family of God (B)2. “But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now” (Galatians 4:29). Those who are not in the church persecute those who are true believers.

IV. The Family of God (B)3. “Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman” (Galatians 4:30). Those not in the church will not receive the rewards and inheritance that those born in the church enjoy.

Galatians 4:31

“So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of

the free” (Galatians 4:31).

V. The Bride of Christ (A-B)The Bride of ChristAs the church today, we need to consider ourselves as a chosen bride espoused to Jesus Christ our bridegroom. As such, we are eagerly anticipating the marriage supper in heaven.

V. The Bride of Christ (A-B)A. Is Espoused unto

Jesus ChristApostle Paul penned these words: “For I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ” (II Corinthians 11:2). This espousal takes place through water baptism in Jesus’ name and receiving the Holy Ghost. Through the new birth, we take on His name. As the bride of Christ, we look for the appearance of our Bridegroom: “Behold, the bridegroom cometh” (Matthew 25:6).

V. The Bride of Christ (A-B)The marriage relationship between husband and wife is typical of the relationship that Christ has with His church. In his letter to the Ephesians, it may seem to the reader that Paul was giving a marriage seminar to help husbands and wives. However, his central focus was the relationship between Christ and the church. As wives submit to their husbands, so should the church submit unto the Lord. Furthermore, husbands should love their wives as Christ loved the church and gave Himself for it.

V. The Bride of Christ (A-B)The Lord is sanctifying His church so “that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5:27).

V. The Bride of Christ (A-B)B. Will Live with the

Lord ForeverThe ultimate destiny of the church is to be with God in heaven as His bride beside Him on His throne. (See Revelation 3:21.) From that throne, we will rule and reign with Him as the “queen” of heaven. Other passages of Scripture speak of the church not only as the bride, but also as kings and priests that reign, rule, and judge with Him. (See II Timothy 2:12; Revelation 5:10; 20:6.)

ReflectionsThe final invitation in the Bible appears in Revelation 22:17: “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” Too many people wander aimlessly through life, never knowing why they are here or where they are going. They have never discovered the purpose of life and know nothing of God’s eternal purpose. We need to discover the revelation of the mystery of the ages—the church. Indeed, no greater calling or mission in life exists than to be born into the family of God and to become a part of His church.