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LESSON 1, INTRODUCTION:
Undoubtedly the fundamental
consensus is that Ephesians is one of the greatest letters ever
written!
In it Paul, under
divine inspiration, soars to the very heights of Heaven!
Especially
powerful is the Epistle's opening chapter.
There, at least
in the first fourteen verses, Paul lists a series of "spiritual
blessings" that belong to the Believer in Christ!
They are amazing!
Blessed be the Lord, who
daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our
salvation. Selah." So says Psalm 68:19.
Well, Ephesians 1
details those benefits!
Generally
speaking, here's how Paul outlines the vast number of "spiritual
blessings" that we who are born-again now enjoy.
First of all ...
the Apostle lists the blessings Christians have because of God
the Father!
Secondly ... the
blessings we have through God the Son!
Then thirdly,
just as one would suspect, the benefits we possess through God
the Holy Spirit!
Then, as if to
"mark" the end of each powerful section, there are placed three
lovely "benedictions" of praise to our great God Himself!
To God as Father
... "To the praise of the glory of his
grace." Ephesians 1:6a
To God as Son ...
"That we should be to the praise of his
glory." Ephesians 1:12a
Then to God as
Holy Spirit too ... "Unto the praise of
his glory." Ephesians 1:14c
What a view of
the Trinity!
What a view of
the essence of the genuine Christian life!
And what a view
of salvation!
Maybe we had all
today best say ...
"Praise the Name of the Lord!" I mean those who have
been saved by His marvelous Grace.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 2 ... VERSE 3:
Paul the Apostle writes these words:
"Blessed be the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ."
Ephesians 1:3
The opening word,
"blessed," is an adjective. It describes "the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ." In Greek "eulogetos" basically means
"good words."
It has become our
English word "eulogy." My dictionary defines eulogy as "high
praise or commendation." Again, "good words!"
Paul, under Holy
Spirit inspiration, is here worshipping our great Blessed God!
Just think of the "good things" that have been said about Him
through all eternity! And yet remain to be said as well!
Also notice that
Paul could have called God simply "the Lord," or as Jesus did,
"our Father." But the Apostle specifically is led to use a
fuller Name for the Almighty. He is "God and the Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ." Paul insists on a wording that reveals the
Deity of Jesus! He is The Son of God!
Now, watch what
this great God has done!
To each of us who
is saved, "blessings" have been given. Abundantly so!
He "hath blessed
us" says the Scripture.
Again we have the
word "eulogeo," now expressed as a verb. To "say good things"
about something or someone! And do remember, when God "says"
something, "things" happen! In John 18:6, when Jesus "spoke,"
over 600 men fell backwards on the ground!
"As soon then as He had said unto them, I
am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground."
Also God created
the worlds by the sheer power of His Word! Hebrews 11:3 tells
us more: "Through faith we understand
that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things
which are seen were not made of things which do appear."
Therefore, when
God speaks "blessings" upon His children ... powerful things are
accomplished in their lives!
Amen!
What has God
pronounced upon us?
"All spiritual
blessings."
The adjective
"spiritual" means that which pertains to the soulish or
spiritual aspect of life.
We are here not
being told that God has given us all a million dollars or a new
car or a lovely house somewhere!
But He has poured
upon us "spiritual" blessings!
Things like
eternal life! And Heaven! And constant Comfort!
In fact, Paul is
teaching us that God has already bestowed upon us ALL spiritual
blessings! The verb "blessed" is an aorist, indicating that
these blessings have already been given! Action completed!
Where are these
blessings reserved?
"In heavenly
places!"
The Greek phrase
"en ho epouranios" means "in the heavenlies!"
Of course Paul
will later in Ephesians teach us that, in God's Eyes, we are
already living in heavenly places because of the Blood of Jesus
and the Grace of God! That is, we who have believed in Jesus!
See Ephesians 2:6.
But, how have we
received such "blessings?"
We are all just
old sinners ... saved by the Grace of God!
We enjoy these
benefits "in Christ!"
In Greek the
dative case is used here, "Christo."
If Christ Jesus
could somehow be pictured as a big Sphere, a gigantic Circle,
then we as Believers have been placed right in the middle of
Jesus. He's now the Center of our being! The Focus of our
lives! We are IN Him!
And that's where
these blessings are found!
"In Christ
Jesus!"
Christian friend,
today think about it!
"All spiritual
blessings!"
"In Christ!"
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 3 ... VERSE 4:
Christian friend, God determined
before He saved you that you would some day become "holy and
without blame before Him in love."
I base this
conclusion on Ephesians 1:4. "According
as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love."
That makes a
total of three things God has specifically done "before the
foundation of the world!"
God loved His Son
before the world was made! "Father, I
will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I
am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for
thou lovedst me before
the foundation of the world." John 17:4
God devised the
glorious Plan of Salvation then too! We are redeemed ...
"with
the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and
without spot: Who verily was foreordained
before the foundation of
the world, but was manifest in these last times for you."
1st Peter 1:19-20
Then our verse
today concludes this trio: "He
hath chosen us in Him
before the foundation of the world, that we should be
holy and without blame before Him in love."
These three Texts
provide us a view of the PERSON Who saved us, the PRIORITY given
our salvation and the PURPOSE of our being saved as well!
All "before the
foundation of the world!"
Now, it is true
that the verb "hath chosen" (in Greek = "eklego") means "to pick
out" something or someone, but we need to view the context in
which the Holy Spirit uses it here in Ephesians 1:4.
The verse is NOT
saying that God chose some to go to Heaven and others to go to
Hell!
It IS saying that
those who will be saved ... those who will fall under Holy Ghost
conviction, repenting of their sin, and trusting Jesus as their
only Saviour ... will some day be "holy and without blame before
Him in love."
God has long ago
made the choice! Those whom He saves ... WILL ultimately be
"conformed to the image of His Son!" Romans 8:29
Why did God
"choose" to provide a Bride for His Son, a body of redeemed
people?
For the purpose
of holiness and godliness!
Read it yet again
... "He
hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy
and without blame before Him in love."
The Greek
sentence structure here is dramatic!
God here has
chosen that whosoever is really saved ... WILL ultimately end
their spiritual journey "holy and without blame!"
Talk about
success!
This sounds like
a truly saved man or woman cannot fail!
In fact, in God's
eyes, if you are saved, you are already in Heaven!
"Even when we were dead in sins, (God)
hath quickened us together with Christ, by grace ye are saved;
and hath raised us up together,
and made us sit together
in heavenly places in Christ Jesus."
Ephesians 2:5-6
"That we should
be," the clause "einai hemas" in Greek, is both very specific
and very dramatic! Even the pronoun, which can be supplied by
the verb structure alone, is inserted to make things clear! WE
some day assuredly WILL BE just like Jesus, holy and undefiled!
Not because of our works, but because of the Grace of God and
the power of the Blood of Jesus! The verb "should be" is a
present infinitive. We, once Jesus comes again and we are "made
like Him," will continue to be that way for evermore! 1st John
3:2 states: "We know that, when He
(Jesus) shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him
as he is." And He is, among many other lovely things,
"holy and without blame!"
That adjective
"holy" (in Greek = "hagios") is the same word used for the HOLY
Spirit! It means separated from sin! Sanctified and
consecrated to God!
And "without
blame" translates "anomos" and means with "no flaw!" With "no
blot!" Nothing exists against your good record ... in Christ
Jesus!
In review, Paul
is not telling us
here that God picked one man to go to Heaven and picked his
neighbor to go to Hell!
He is telling us
here that God has picked all saved folks to successfully be
mature in Jesus some day ... holy and without blemish!
Ephesians chapter
five words it another way. There we are told Jesus' goal for
His Church: "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
Or read
Philippians 1:6. "Being confident of this
very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will
perform it until the day of Jesus Christ."
God started a
Work in you when He saved you!
He will finish
it!
And you will be
"perfect" in Christ when He's done!
Amen!
What a blessing
... just knowing my eternal destiny!
It's like a chunk
of old dirty coal being some day transformed into a precious
sparkling diamond!
Our verse one
last time:
"According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of
the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him
in love."
Yes!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 4 ... VERSE 5:
One of the blessings God has
bestowed upon His children is that of "adoption."
Paul the Apostle,
in Ephesians 1:5, said that God ...
"predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ
to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will."
"The adoption of
Children!" translates one word in the Greek Text. It's a
compound word though, "huiosthesia." The first syllable "huios"
means son, an adult son! Then an extension of the verb "tithemi"
is used. It means "to place or to put" someone in a particular
position.
Christian friend,
not only have we been "born again" into the family of God! That
puts us into the family as babes, infants! It's like Peter
said, "As newborn babes, desire the
sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby." 1st
Peter 2:2
But "adoption" is
the act of God whereby He saves us and puts us into the family
with full adult status and full legal
rights! He immediately makes us "heirs," placing us in His
Will! Oh, what we have inherited ... because of the shed Blood
of Calvary!
IF you are saved
... you have been adopted!
Now, Preacher
Bagwell, how can you be so sure about that?
Because of our
verse again!
"Having predestinated us unto the adoption
of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good
pleasure of his will." Ephesians 1:5
The verb
"predestinated" must now be studied.
Don't be afraid
of it.
Paul here is NOT
saying that God has foreordained you to go to Heaven and your
Brother to go to Hell! Or predetermined that whole nations are
lost and cannot be saved! Or that you, a convicted sinner, are
"outside" of His saving Plan! "The Lord
is ... not willing that any should perish, but that all should
come to repentance." 2nd Peter 3:9
Paul IS saying
here that all who are saved WILL BE ADOPTED into the family of
God!
The Lord HAS
predetermined that!
Whosoever truly
believes, by grace through faith, in Jesus ... undoubtedly and
with God's predetermination will be "adopted," placed as adult
children, in the collective Body of Christ!
The verb "having
predestinated" is in Greek a participle, "proorizo." The prefix
"pro" means before or in front of! And the verb "horizo" means
to mark out a line or a boundary somewhere ahead. "Horizo" has
become our word "horizon," that visible line where the sky meets
the ground. This participle is "aorist" in nature. God has
done this predetermining long ago. He willed that "whosoever"
was saved ... WOULD be adopted into His family! Here are two of
the definitions I've gleaned for our word, using various
lexicons: "To decide from the beginning!" Or "to determine
beforehand!"
Some scholars say
that "adoption" nearly carries the idea of "favorite son"
status! Romans 9:4 teaches us that God "adopted" Israel,
nationally speaking, out of all the nations on earth! And
Israel IS His favorite nation! She's the "apple of His Eye!"
See Deuteronomy 32:10, Lamentations 2:18 and Zechariah 2:8. Her
land is the "Holy" Land! The Jews are His "chosen" people!
Dear believing
friend, dear saved sinner, you just may be among God's
"favorite" people, part of His Bride, the New Testament Church!
And HOW did that
happen?
He saved you and
adopted you into the family!
But HOW did God
so adopt us?
"By Jesus
Christ!"
The preposition
"by" is "dia" and means "by means of" or "through!" Jesus is
The Channel through which the blessings of adoption flow!
Glory to God!
But watch another
little phrase: God has adopted us by Jesus Christ TO HIMSELF!
"Eis Auton" literally means "into" ... wow ... "into" Himself!
We have been placed "in" God the Father as well as "in" Christ
Jesus!
And WHY did God
do such great things for old filthy sinners?
WHY did He save
us and cleanse us and "adopt" us?
Purely "for the
good pleasure of His Will!"
The term "good
pleasure" (in Greek = "eudokia") means delight! Sheer joy!
Satisfaction!
And His "will?"
"Thelema" means
"that which one wishes or desires!"
God "adopted" us
because He wanted to do so!
He needs no other
reason!
Every saved
person reading these lines today ought to slip out of your chair
and onto your knees and thank Him and worship Him for loving you
so ... and "adopting" you into His great family!
Praise His dear
Name!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 5 ... VERSE 6:
There’s a paragraph of Scripture
that basically lists for us the "blessings" we enjoy due to our
salvation!
These are
subdivided into three sections: Blessings from God the father,
Blessings from God the Son and Blessings from God the Holy
Spirit!
One way to tell
how these blessings are partitioned is to just notice the
"praise statements" strategically placed in three locations in
the Text!
Blessings from God the Father:
Ephesians 1:3-5
Praise: Verse 6!
Blessings from
God the Son: Ephesians 1:7-11
Praise: Verse 12!
Blessings from
God the Holy Spirit: Ephesians 1:13-14a
Praise: Verse
14b!
Today we study
Verse 6, the first of this great Praise Trilogy!
"To the praise of the glory of his grace,
wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved."
Ephesians 1:6
God so far has
blessed us with "all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in
Christ!" That's found in verse 3.
Then God has
chosen us Believers to be "holy and without blame" before Him in
love! He has blessed us with a predisposition to pure living! He
has already determined that we shall for eternity be like Jesus,
"conformed" to His very image! That's verse 4.
Then God
"adopted" us into His family! Verse 4, at the beginning.
Next God
"delights" in us! We are somehow in "the good pleasure" of the
Almighty ... because we are saved! See Verse 4 ... at the end!
And, due to these
four monumental blessings from God the Father, Paul immediately
bursts into a song of Praise!
Here it is again:
"To the praise of the glory of his grace,
wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved."
Ephesians 1:6
Of course even
this "benediction" contains one more blessing!
We are accepted
"in the Beloved!"
That's Jesus,
God's "beloved Son!" Remember what God said at the Baptism of
Christ: "And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved
Son, in whom I am well pleased." Matthew 3:17
To be "accepted"
(in Greek = "charitoo") literally means to be "graced" by our
great God above! God has made us old rotten sinners into "lovely
charming agreeable" people! He has "graced" us ... because of
Jesus!
We are in fact
"in" Jesus!
"En," the exact
preposition means within the sphere of something or someone! I
now live "in" the very Life of Jesus, God the Son! By the way,
that's called "eternal life!"
Maybe the best
blessing was saved until the last!
"Accepted in the
Beloved!"
Therefore ...
what should I do? Or say? How should I respond to such great
truth?
By praise!
Just praise the
Lord!
Say, with
meaning, along with Paul: "To the praise
of the glory of His grace!"
"Praise" (Greek =
"epainos") means commendation, approval, approbation!
"Glory" ("doxa")
means the sum total of all God is, all His Essence, all His
attributes!
And "grace" ("charis")
is simply God's unmerited favor to the likes of you and me!
Sinners ... but now washed in the Blood of the Lamb, saved by
the Mercy of God!
"To" that grace
we are to bring praise! Now the little preposition "to"
translates "eis" in Greek, meaning "into, at, upon, by, near or
among!"
Christian friend,
just jump right into the middle of this praise of the glorious
Grace of God!
They did this in
Old Testament days too! They praised God's Grace!
Zechariah 4:7
tells us of a day when a Headstone (a Name for Jesus, the Chief
Cornerstone) will be praised: "Who art
thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt
become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone
thereof with shoutings, crying,
Grace, grace unto
it."
Shouting Grace,
Grace, Grace ... to the Lord God Almighty!
"To the praise of the glory of His grace!"
Amen!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 6 ...
VERSE 7:
Our Subject today is Jesus!
Christians are
the recipients of such great blessings from His mighty hand!
For example,
Ephesians 1:7 tells us about our Lord:
"In Whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness
of sins, according to the riches of His grace."
Two great
benefits!
Redemption ...
and forgiveness of sins!
When a sinner is
saved, he is translated from the spiritual state of "darkness"
and placed "in" Christ Jesus, Who is Light! Paul elsewhere
words it this way: " Who
hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath
translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son."
Colossians 1:13
So, our verse
today lets us know right up front that redemption and
forgiveness are only available IN HIM, IN JESUS!
"If any man be IN CHRIST, He is a new
creature!" 2nd Corinthians 5:17
Have you been
saved?
The verbal
emphasis in Ephesians 1:7 is dramatic!
"We have" redemption and forgiveness! "Echo" in Greek
means "to have" or "to hold in one's hand" or "to possess"
something. As an indicative present active verb the action
depicted here is ongoing! Continual! Durative! One is not
redeemed one day and unredeemed the next! Our verb here is
Scripturally used in such contexts as "marriage" and "wearing of
clothes," both being permanent conditions!
Now let's study
the word "redemption." It, "apolutrosis,"
means a price that is paid to set someone free from bondage! "Apo,"
the prefix, just means "from" or "away from." And "luo" means
"to loosen" something! Here it is in a few words: "To release
someone upon the payment of a ransom!"
I as a sinner was
in the prison house of iniquity! Jesus, by His shed Blood, paid
the price to satisfy the Righteousness of a Holy God ... thereby
setting me free!
Notice carefully
that such Redemption is "through"
His Blood! The preposition "dia" carries the idea: "by means
of." The Blood of Christ Jesus is the Means of my salvation,
the Price paid for my ransom! In Acts 20:28 Paul specifically
mentions "the
church of God, which He hath purchased with His own blood."
Jesus' Blood is
sinless Blood! And it's incorruptible Blood too! It's the
cleansing Agent for our sins! "And the
blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin."
1st John 1:7
And now
"forgiveness."
"Aphesis" means
"to send" ("hiemi") "away" ("apo")! That LOAD of sin I'd been
carrying everywhere is suddenly, by the Grace of God, lifted off
me and carried away, far away, far far away!
I've been
forgiven!
And here the noun
for "sins" is a little different even! "Paraptoma" means a
"falling" ("pipto") down "alongside" ("para") something. To slip
and fall! To fail! A lapse from faithfulness! To fall away!
To fall aside!
To the Christian
"sins" are not planned escapades or affairs! They are momentary
"slips," unexpected failures along the Way!
And both great
blessings of Verse 7, "redemption through His Blood" and "the
forgiveness of sins," are granted
"according to the riches of His Grace!"
"According to"
(in Greek = "kata") means "down from." All our blessings in
Christ Jesus flow down from the Fountain of the
Good Grace of God!
"Riches" ("ploutos")
as a noun means wealth. It is derived from a verb, "pletho,"
that means "to fill completely." When one is rich, he or she
has lots of money or whatever!
But, in this
Ephesians 1:7 context, it is God's Grace that is wealthy, filled
completely, plenteous, inexhaustible!
And Grace ("charis")
is simply God's undeserved favor and love and mercy ...
abundantly poured forth on old sinners! That is ... old
ex-sinners who have been saved by the Lord Jesus Christ!
In the Bible
"Grace" is certainly described in many wonderful ways. I am so
glad "rich" is one of them!
To all you
magnificently blessed folks today, who have been both "redeemed"
and "forgiven," I send my prayers and love in Christ Jesus!
Amen!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 7 ... VERSE 8:
The Lord has done so much for us who
are saved!
Our Saviour,
according to Ephesians 1:8, "hath abounded
toward us in all wisdom and prudence."
There's more to
this divinely inspired clause than first meets the eye!
What's involved
in Jesus "abounding" toward us with these blessings?
The verb "perisseuo"
means "to be more than enough!"
It is ultimately
built upon the Greek preposition that means "around." It is
spelled "peri." The "perimeter" around a city completely
encircles it!
This word was
often used by the ancient Greeks to indicate a river that was
overflowing its banks, spreading superabundant quantities of
life giving water. The Nile River in Egypt was the very source
of agriculture and food for that nation, largely due to its
seasons of overflowing!
The Lord, when He
saved us, "overflowed" us with many blessings! The verb is an
aorist, telling us that the action described is now complete!
Not that the Lord isn't still blessing us! He surely is! But
that He has already equipped us with massive supplies of certain
godly traits. If we Believers would only avail ourselves of
them!
Even the
preposition "toward" is critical here. "Eis" literally means
"into" something or someone! The Lord Jesus has placed "within"
us wisdom and prudence! And, with the Holy Spirit indwelling
every saint of God, who can deny the fact of such wisdom being
present?
"Us," the pronoun
Paul uses here, is plural. This state of blessedness is NOT
just for the Preacher or the Teacher or the Evangelist or that
older Christian, but for "us" all who have been saved!
Now, note with me
something about the noun "wisdom." In Greek "sophia" is derived
from the word "stem" which means "clear" ("sophos," from "saphes")!
I really believe the implication is that Godly Wisdom is first a
moral thing, long before being just an intellectual thing.
Listen to James define this wisdom: "But
the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable,
gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good
fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy."
See! It's first "pure!" Clear! That's James 3:17.
Someone said that
wisdom was "seeing life from God's point of view!" Probably we
should add to that "and responding to life from God's point of
view too!" This wisdom is active, not lazily passive!
The qualifying
adjective "all" that here describes wisdom is amazing! "Pas"
means just what it says, "every bit" or "the whole thing!" All
wisdom? This just has to be a description of Deity in some
manner! Only God, the Triune God, is all-wise ... or
omniscient!
Don't
misunderstand me. I am NOT saying that a saint becomes God!
No, certainly not! I am saying that God, via His Holy Spirit,
moves into a new Believer, the very moment he or she is born
again! Hence that new little babe in Christ is already wisdom
filled! Listen to Paul in 1st Corinthians 6:19.
"What? know ye not that your body is the
temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have
of God ...." That's pretty plain teaching.
God the Son has
blessed us with the indwelling Presence of the Holy Spirit!
Plus ... not only
are we overflowed with all "wisdom" ... but with "prudence" too!
Our verse again,
Ephesians 1:8, "Wherein he hath abounded
toward us in all wisdom and prudence."
"Prudence," in
Greek "phronesis," means right "thinking." In Greek "phren" is
one's "mind." And "phroneo" is "to think or exercise the
mind." And all these words appear to be from the verb "phrasso"
that means "to fence in" or "to enclose" something! This
implies controlled thinking! Limited thoughts. Not allowing
oneself to fantasize or imagine wicked things! Forbidding worry
and fretfulness! That's disciplining one's mind, it now being
renewed in Christ Jesus! Don't you see the word "disciple" in
that participle "disciplining?"
The Holy Spirit
is our "thought" Controller too!
And what a
"thought" that is!
And, Preacher
Bagwell, these things are blessings?
YES!
No wonder
Christians are "different!"
We, having been
saved, are transformed into "new creatures," even to the very
fine points of life such as our worldview and our thinking and
hourly manner of behavior!
Thank you, Lord
Jesus, for "abounding toward us in all
wisdom and prudence!"
How blessed!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 8 ... VERSE 9:
We must realize that the Christian
life is not just about God doing things for us!
Things like
saving us and equipping us and empowering us to live the
victorious spiritual life!
Although indeed
He has heaped upon us blessing after blessing!
Yet ... We
are to serve Him too!
We are His
people, His sheep!
We are stewards
in His house!
We are subjects
in His kingdom!
We are servants
in His vineyard!
We are disciples
in His school!
We are children
in His family!
Yet even these
"positions" are blessings in Christ Jesus our Lord!
Paul the Apostle,
in Ephesians 1:3-14, lists for us multiple "blessings" God has
sent our way ... consequent to our salvation!
Paul generally
subdivides his sermon in this manner:
1. Blessings
from God the Father!
2. Blessings
from God the Son!
3. Blessings
from God the Holy Spirit!
For example, in
Ephesians 1:9, it is written: "Having
made known unto us the mystery of His will, according to His
good pleasure which He hath purposed in Himself."
The opening
participle here, "gnorizo" in Greek, means that God has taught
us some things about His vast comprehensive Plan for time and
eternity!
The noun "will"
is "thelema" and means "that which one desires" or even "that
which one determines!" You see, God "desires" for the Rapture
to occur one of these days ... but He has
also
"determined" and "promised" that it
will transpire too! It is His Will!
If you want to
read the chronological declaration of God's Will or Plan ...
digest the Book of Revelation, especially chapters 4 through 22.
If you want to
read the spiritual declaration of God's Will or Plan ... study
the Epistle of Ephesians, verse by verse!
If you want to
read the scope of God's Will or Plan regarding Israel, read
Romans chapters 9-11.
If you want to
read the essence of God's Will for sinners, ingest 2nd Peter
3:9. "The Lord is not slack concerning his
promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to
us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should
come to repentance."
The point is ...
God "has made known" to us the mystery of His Will!
This verb, being
an aorist participle, teaches us that God's Will has already
been revealed in time past. This suggests that God's Will is
contained within God's Word, God's completed Word!
But Paul here
calls God's Will a "mystery!"
"Musterion" can
mean a "secret!"
In New Testament
days a "mystery" consisted of private information shared with a
few "initiated" people in certain ancient religious systems!
Now, I am NOT
comparing Christianity to a wicked cult somewhere!
I AM saying that
to know God's Will, one must be "enlightened" or "illuminated"
by the Holy Spirit Himself ... through saving trust in Jesus'
work on the Cross of Calvary!
If you are a
student of Scripture and know at least the general outline of
God's Plan ... you have been "taught" of God!
But ... WHY would
the Lord impart to us, old ex-sinners, "the mystery of His
Will?"
Because ... He
wanted to do so! It was His desire! It brought Him pleasure!
That's reason
enough!
Again, today's
verse, Ephesians 1:9. Notice the capitalized phrase.
"Having made known unto us the mystery of
his will, according to
his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself."
The Lord does
some things because of His "eudokia," good pleasure!
"Dokeo" in Greek
means "to think" or "to seem so." It actually reveals one's
estimation or evaluation of a person or an object. It therefore
naturally unveils one's desires and pleasures!
The Lord derives
great delight in revealing to His children His precious Will!
It brings Him
enjoyment to do so!
Just think about
it: The likes of me (and you) knowing some of the deep truths
of God's Will!
And God's Mind is
already "made up!"
He has already
determined what His Will involves!
He is NOT going
to change His Plan!
He will not
recant on the Rapture of the Church or the Revelation of Jesus
Christ or the salvation of sinners by grace or the judgment of
the wicked!
God "hath
purposed in Himself" what He's going to do about these matters!
The devil is not
big enough to alter God's Will!
Neither are the
politicians!
Or preachers!
Or anyone else!
God has decided!
That verb
"purposed" translates "protithemai" in Greek. It means "to
place" ("tithemai") something "before" ("pro") its expected
time! It can even mean "to exhibit" a thing! God has
"prewritten" history! Folks, that's what Bible prophecy really
is, "history written in advance!"
God has in
advance pre-planned His program, especially in our context
today, His Program for the end of the age!
Studying such a
Plan is called the pursuit of Bible "prophecy" or eschatology. "Eschatos"
just means "last things."
Of course God has
printed His Plan ... in His Book!
And just what is
the essence of that Plan?
Why, the next
verse in Ephesians 1 tells us: "That in
the dispensation of the fulness of times He might gather
together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven,
and which are on earth; even in Him."
God's Plan
involves Jesus, His Son!
God's ultimate
pure Will: "that Jesus might be glorified!"
Some day ...
"at the name of Jesus every knee should
bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and
things under the earth; and that every tongue
should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of
God the Father." Philippians 2:10-11
And we Believers,
of all people, know this "secret" Truth of God!
Glory!
"Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to
his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself."
Some things we
KNOW!
Such "knowing" is
just another of God's blessings poured upon us ... purely
because of saving Grace!
Yesterday I ended our study by proclaiming
"How blessed!"
Well, today I
say: How "very" blessed!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 9 ... VERSE 10:
Ephesians 1:9 mentions the Will of
God.
He has a Plan, a
Purpose for all He does!
And the ultimate
goal for His Will is ... according to Ephesians 1:10 ... to
glorify the Lord Jesus Christ!
Read it with me.
"That in the dispensation of the fulness
of times He might gather together in one all things in Christ,
both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in
Him."
That's right!
God the Father,
at the end of the ages, is going to "gather together" all things
under the headship of Christ!
Truly "in all
things" Jesus is yet going to have preeminence!
Colossians 1:18
teaches us exactly that about our Lord Jesus:
"And He is the Head of the body, the church: Who is the
Beginning, the Firstborn from the dead; that in all things
He might have the preeminence."
The noun
"dispensation" in our verse for today translates the Greek word
"oikonomia" which means the ruler or lawgiver ("nomos") of a
house ("oikos"). It gives us our English word "economy."
God deals with
time in "units" of activity. These are commonly called
"dispensations." Now here's a Latin word. It means "to pay
out." "Dis" in Latin means "out" and "pendere" means "to
weigh!" Hence: to be a good steward for the Master! Think
"economy" again now!
The "dispensation
of the fulness of time" is that future period when Jesus will
have returned and God's total Program for the ages will have
been completed ... and Jesus will have been acknowledged as King
of Kings and Lord of Lords!
God then is going
to do something astounding!
He will "gather
together in one" all things in Christ! What a verb!
"Anakephalaiomai" gives us that complete clause "He might gather
together in one!" The Greek prefix "ana" means "up" and
"kephale" means "head!" God the Father will place all things
under the Headship of the Lord Jesus Christ! Our Saviour will
"head up" everything!
And our sentence
structure here is emphatic too!
More than once we
are told that "in Him," in Jesus, will all things
be gathered!
What things?
One must include
all those who've previously gone to Heaven! Notice the words
"which are in heaven!"
And folks on
earth must all stand before Him too! "Which are on earth" wrote
Paul!
Old Testament
saints and New Testament ones as well ... all "one" under Jesus!
Believers we once
called "dead" and folks who will obviously still be "alive" ...
all in Him together! And alive forevermore too!
Saved Jews and
born-again Gentiles ... living in harmony under the authority of
Jesus Christ, Messiah God!
I believe
even all creation will be "one"
under Him! Animals again at peace! And trees, stars, and wind
too! Even all the elements ... "one" under His Command!
No more Satan!
No more
confusion!
No more
rebellion!
One "Ruler!"
One "Lord!"
Jesus ... Jesus
Christ ... God the Son!
Now this verse is
NOT teaching some kind of "universalism" wherein all, including
the saved and the lost, are finally justified at the end of
time! Sinners still spend eternity in torment, the penalty for
rejecting Christ Jesus. Sin's "wages" must be paid! Part of
Jesus' very Headship involves judging the wicked!
"For the Father judgeth no man, but hath
committed all judgment unto the Son. That all men should
honour the Son, even as they honour the Father." John
5:22
But, Brother
Bagwell, you're supposed to be writing this week about our "blessings"
in Christ. Have you forgotten?
"Blessings?"
Did you say
"Blessings?"
Just think of
being in that Body ... that Body unified under Jesus' Head!
Is that not the
"Blessing of Blessings?"
Then perhaps we
all shall burst into praise, saying something like:
"Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to
receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour,
and glory, and blessing."
Or ...
"Blessing, and honour, and glory, and
power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto
the Lamb for ever and ever."
Or yet again
maybe: "Amen: Blessing, and glory, and
wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might,
be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen."
These praise
"ideas" come from John the Apostle who wrote them long ago on an
island called Patmos! See Revelation 5:12 and 13 and then
Revelation 7:12 for the exact words!
Yes, it will be a
blessing to be made "one" with Him ... for all eternity!
All this we can
anticipate because we, by God's Grace and through Jesus' Blood,
have been placed "in" Christ Jesus!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 10 ... VERSE 11:
We who have been saved by the Grace
of God are "heirs!" In Jesus Christ our Saviour we have been
bequeathed a mighty "inheritance!"
According to Paul
the Apostle in Romans 8:17 we have been made
"children, then heirs; heirs of God, and
joint-heirs with Christ."
God has placed us
in His "Will!"
Today our verse
for study is found in Ephesians 1:11. "In
whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated
according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the
counsel of his own will."
The "whom" of
this verse is None Other than Jesus!
And the verb here
rendered "have obtained an inheritance" is spelled "kleroo" in
Greek and is used only here in all the New Testament. However,
it's noun form is found a number of times. It means "to cast
lots." Then it comes to mean "to receive a possession!" It is
framed as an aorist passive. This tells us that the giving of
that inheritance is a totally complete transaction! It is not
an on-going process. And the passive voice means we had nothing
to do with earning such a blessing! It was given to us
by Another, the Lord Himself!
It seems that
God's giving us such an inheritance is not an afterthought on
His part either! He had determined to do so a long time ago!
We were
"predestinated" to receive such a blessing! That verb, "proorizo,"
means it was drawn out in advance, ahead of time! Ordained of
old!
Watch this now.
I see no indication here that God is telling us He's pre-decided
to send one group of folks to Hell and another group to Heaven.
I do see where
our kind Father in Heaven has pre-determined that whosoever
believed in Jesus Christ His only begotten Son would be ...
assuredly would be ... having been ordained of old ... would be
placed in that great Family, that Body of Christ, the New
Testament Church. These are they whom He has written into His
Will, "heirs" according to promise!
In Jesus I am an
"heir!"
An "heir" to
what?
Eternal Life!
The indwelling
Holy Spirit!
Answers to
prayer!
Love and joy and
peace and meekness and faith and a million other good things
too!
And I have not
even listed a home in Heaven!
This is all
according to God's "purpose" for those who believe in Jesus,
those who are saved!
Here it is again:
"In Whom also we have obtained an
inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him
who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will."
Ephesians 1:11
"Purpose," the
noun "prothesis," means a thing that has been "set forth" or
"placed on view!" "Tithemi" means to place something somewhere
and the prefix and preposition "pro" means "in front of"
everyone!
It sounds like
God saved His people ... to put them on some kind of holy
"display!"
Let's read how
Paul formulates this "on display" picture again in Ephesians
2:6-7. "And (God) hath raised us
up together, and made us sit together in heavenly
places in Christ Jesus: that in the ages to come
he might shew the
exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through
Christ Jesus."
God saved us to
"show" through us the riches of His Grace! That Greek verb "shew"
or "show" means "to put on display, to publicly manifest!"
On display ...
eternally ... for all to see?
Angels, seraphim,
cherubim, maybe even the hordes of hell too, look!
Look at what God
has done!
Behold the fruit
of His Grace!
Long ago Isaiah
said of Jesus that ... "He shall
see his seed, he
shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD
shall prosper in his hand." Isaiah 53:10
On display, the
Church, for evermore!
But, Preacher
Bagwell, how is thing going to happen?
God is going to
MAKE it happen, friend!
He "worketh" all
things after the counsel of His Own Will!
That verb "worketh"
translates "energeo," which means to energize or to empower or
to accomplish! And this time our verb is in the present tense!
God is to this day, to this hour, to this minute, to this very
second ... working all things in heaven and earth to conform to
this Plan of His!
Church of Jesus
Christ, we are going Home some day ... to be displayed as
"trophies" of the good Grace of God!
Praise His Name!
The noun
"counsel" means one's intention or disposition or volition! God
has decided that all will end well for the Church ... very well!
And the word
"will" or "thelema" means one's desire! But it means one's
strong desire! One determined desire!
God wants His
redeemed cleansed glorious unwrinkled Church to be eternally
displayed ... as the ultimate example of what His marvelous Love
and Grace and Mercy can do!
How very
"blessed" we are today IN Christ Jesus!
In our Lord Jesus
... we are "in" the very Will of God!
You "heirs" of
God today must live like children of the King!
After all, each
of you who is saved is destined for eternity where you will be
treated like someone special! Really ... like a King's son or
daughter!
Like royalty!
All because of
Jesus!
Oh, worship Him
today!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 11 ... VERSE 12:
The
Lord has blessed us so!
I mean those who
have been saved by His marvelous Grace.
But, why?
Why has He done
so much on our behalf?
Paul, in
Ephesians 1:12, answers that critical question.
Here's "why!"
"That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted
in Christ."
Notice that Paul
includes himself in this group of Believers!
He catalogues the
first century Christians as those who "first trusted" in Christ!
That verb, "proelpizo,"
designates the saints of God who "first" ("pro") "hoped" ("elpizo")
in Christ Jesus, who first trusted Him for their eternal
salvation!
They, having been
saved near the very beginning of the Church Age, are among the "firstfruits"
of Jesus' shed Blood!
Paul liked to use
that term. He called Epaenetus, one of the initial believers in
northern Greece, one of the "firstfruits" of that whole area.
In Romans 16:5 the Apostle says:
"Likewise greet the church that is in their house. Salute
my wellbeloved Epaenetus, who is the firstfruits of Achaia unto
Christ."
He said the same
thing again about a different man in 1st Corinthians 16:15.
"I beseech you, brethren, ye know the
house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and
that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the
saints."
Those who first
were saved ... were to be special tokens of praise to God, "to
the praise of His Glory!"
God, you may
remember, set apart the "firstfruits" of Israel ... whether
fruit from the field or animals from the flock ... as the Lord's
Own personal possession! He yet today wants our tithes and
offering to be set aside on the "first" day of the week ... to
His Glory! (See Exodus 23:10 for an example of "firstfruits"
and 1st Corinthians 16:2 for an example of the "first" day of
the week.)
These early
Believers were to be part of the New Testament Church, which is
designed to bring both temporal and eternal praise to our
Almighty God and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
"Should be," our
verbal expression here, is not in the subjunctive mood. That
would have indicated the expression of a wish or desire! No,
this is a statement of fact. It's an infinitive in the present
tense! These new Believers for sure will be participants in the
great activity of praise, praise to God! Praise to His saving
Grace! According to the precise rules of grammar ... they
already were praising the glory of God! God's Glory is His very
Being, His Essence, what God is and who God is!
"Praise," the
noun, is in Greek "epainos." It means approbation, approval,
and commendation ... as well as praise! We are all going to
affirm God's Grace for evermore! Each of the 11 times it's used
in the King James New Testament, it's translated "praise."
And the "glory"
of God ("doxa" as written by Paul) here means the worth, value,
estimate, opinion, judgment or view we attach to His Person! In
the New Testament "doxa," when used of God, is always a good
opinion ... resulting in the worship of the Lord Himself!
We enjoy God's
manifold blessings ... so that we can praise Him and His Grace
and His Glory for all time and eternity!
Amen!
By the way, if
the "first-fruits" of Christianity are special instruments of
His praise, might not the "last-fruits" be too?
By that coined
term "last-fruits" I mean those who are saved near the end of
the age!
And that group
just might include you and me!
Either way, we
both (early and late believers) have "trusted" in Jesus for our
salvation, for eternal life. That verb "trusted," while in
compound form, is in reality "elpizo" and literally means "to
hope!"
But this is a
strong hope!
It's not a
"cross-your-fingers" kind of hope!
It's not simply
an emotional thing!
It's a hope
that's based upon the Word of God!
And upon absolute
Truth!
And upon a God
Who cannot lie! Both Titus 1:2 and Hebrews 6:18 tell us of
God's veracity. It is impossible for God to lie!
It's a Hope that
is steadfast and sure!
"Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and
stedfast!'
Amen!
I must close for
today.
Why has God been
so good to us?
"That we should be to the praise of his glory!"
Folks, let's get
busy ... "praising Him!"
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 12 ... VERSE 13:
Paul clearly says that "saved"
people, trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ and His shed Blood,
are "sealed" by Almighty God!
Sealed!
But, what does
that mean?
Perhaps we had
best notice one of the "key" verses on such "sealing" of
Believers:
"In Whom (Christ) ye also trusted,
after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your
salvation: in Whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed
with that Holy Spirit of promise." Ephesians 1:13
Now let's look at
the "order" of this verse.
Firstly, when we
were sinners, we "heard" the Word of Truth!
"Faith cometh by hearing, and
hearing by the word of God" says Romans 10:17. Of course
that's speaking of "hearing" once it's been sensitized by the
Holy Spirit! Many today have ears ... but don't hear.
What is "the Word
of Truth?" Paul here equates it with the "Gospel!"
Interestingly,
Paul classifies this great "salvation" as belonging to the
Believer himself! He calls it "your salvation!" But ... Jonah
says, "Salvation is of the LORD."
Well, then, the Lord must have given it to that soul who trusts,
who believes in Jesus!
Secondly, we
"trusted" or "believed" unto salvation! Once under Holy Spirit
conviction and having clearly heard God's Word ... a lost soul
is "born-again" into the family of God!
Next, after
believing ... we were "sealed" with the dear Holy Spirit.
In this opening
paragraph of Ephesians, Paul has recounted for us the Blessings
a Christian enjoys from the Hand of God the Father! Then the
Blessings we've inherited from God the Son! And now in this 13th
verse ... Blessings from God the Holy Spirit!
There are some
"implied" blessings here.
Being able to
"hear" God's Word ... to really hear it by faith ... is a Spirit
induced ability.
And certainly
real trust or belief in Jesus Christ is not possible without the
Spirit's aid!
But not just
"implied" here is something else the Holy Spirit does for the
new Believer in Christ. He clearly "seals" him or her in some
special way!
But, back to my
opening question, what does that mean?
To be sealed?
The word "sphragizo"
means to "set a mark" upon something or someone! To indicate
ownership or protection or privacy!
This verb is
framed as an "aorist," distinctly telling us that this "sealing"
is in the past tense. It's a completed act! It is done! It is
finished!
Using the New
Testament as our commentary, let's analyze this word for "seal"
or "sealing." It's found in 14 verses in Scripture, being used
17 times in all.
Here's its first
mention: Jesus had been crucified and buried. In order to make
His tomb more secure ... "So they went,
and made the sepulchre sure,
sealing the
stone, and setting a watch." Matthew 27:66
Sealed to never
be violated! Not to be "tampered with!" Not to be spoiled or
robbed!
How secure that
ought to make every Christian feel!
Then another
Verse: God the Son, our Lord Jesus, is also sealed ... by His
very Father! He said so in John 6:27 ---
"Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat
which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall
give unto you: for him hath God the Father
sealed."
The Holy Spirit
has done for us what God the Father did for Jesus ... "sealed"
us!
Paul, in Romans
15:18 uses this verb to indicate the "safe delivery" of a love
offering to its proper destination! "When
therefore I have performed this, and have sealed to them this
fruit, I will come by you into Spain." Wow!
The Holy Spirit's
sealing each Believer in this Age of Grace also guarantees our
safe future delivery ... to Heaven!
2nd Corinthians
1:22 favorably compares this "sealing" of the Spirit to a down
payment or an earnest deposit on a future transaction ...
thereby indicating the seriousness of its author! A "foretaste"
of things to come! "Who (God) hath also
sealed us, and
given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts."
Christian, there
are good things to come!
Also ... this
"sealing" of ours brings along with it some responsibilities.
We must live with the Holy Spirit in such a compatible way that
we do not hurt or grieve Him! He is a Person of the Godhead!
"And grieve not the holy Spirit of God,
whereby ye are sealed
unto the day of redemption." Ephesians 4:30
Be careful,
friends!
Again ... this
"sealing" can also indicate the restraint of certain things!
For example, "And when the seven thunders
had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a
voice from heaven saying unto me,
Seal up those
things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not."
Revelation 10:4
When we were
"sealed" by that Holy Spirit certain unholy activities
were forbidden us too! Wicked behavior is not allowed!
And, lastly for
us today, not only can something be sealed "in" one's life ...
but at times an undesired thing can be sealed "out!" The devil
will be sealed "out" of the world for 1,000 years during Jesus'
Reign. "And cast him (Satan) into the
bottomless pit, and shut him up, and
set a seal upon
him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the
thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be
loosed a little season." Revelation 20:3
In like manner
the devil is sealed "out" of the lives of God's saints yet
today! He can still attack and harass or hinder ... but he can
not move "in!"
Saved folks ...
there you have them! A half dozen "word pictures" to augment
your understanding of the Holy Spirit's "sealing" in our lives!
What blessings
... generated by the Holy Spirit of God!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 13 ... VERSE 14:
Today we have a short lesson
concerning the Holy Spirit of God.
While confining
our remarks to Ephesians 1:14, we still learn several great
facts.
Having just
mentioned "that Holy Spirit of promise"
in Ephesians 1:13, Paul continues: "Which
is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the
purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory."
The Holy Spirit
is the "earnest" of our inheritance.
What a word!
"Arrabon" means
"that money in any purchase which is paid in advance to assure
that the full amount will follow!"
Our word here is
only used 3 times in the Bible.
Back in 2nd
Corinthians 1:22 Paul writes about God ...
"Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in
our hearts."
Then again in 2nd
Corinthians 5:5 ... "God, who also hath
given unto us the earnest of the Spirit."
And of course its
third use is in our text verse for today. The Holy Spirit ...
"Which is the earnest of our inheritance
until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the
praise of his glory." Ephesians 1:14
The precious Holy
Spirit, living within each born-again child of God, is the
Lord's Proof ... the Lord's Down Payment ... the Lord's
Guarantee ... the Lord's Foretaste ... of good things to come!
Christian, you
have a little bit of Heaven living in your soul right now! A
foretaste of Glory! I'm speaking of the Holy Spirit Himself!
The noun
"inheritance" is a word that means "that which is to be received
because one has been placed in someone's will." In Greek "kleronomia"
means "to parcel out" ("nemo") a "portion" ("kleros").
Think about
this. Of all the "joy" of an eternity in Heaven ... you have a
genuine "Sample" of it in your heart right now! Of all the
"peace" God has awaiting us ... we can already now begin
savoring it ... through the Holy Spirit! He introduces into our
lives: heavenly love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness,
goodness, faith, meekness and temperance!
Praise God today
for our Earnest!
Yet ... how long
will the Holy Spirit be with us, in His capacity as the
"Earnest?"
Paul answers:
"until the redemption of the purchased
possession." Ephesians 1:14b
The apparent
adverb "until" here is actually the word "eis" which means
"into!" The Holy Spirit is the One Who stays with us, indwelling
us and filling us, then leading us right "into" those
eternal realities and blessings God has promised to those who
are saved!
The Holy Spirit
is The Divine "Usher" who accompanies you right "into" all the
promises of God!
He's the Executer
of God's Will!
The term
"purchased possession" ("peripoiesis") is startling! "Peri"
means "all around." Then "poieo" means "to make." This
"purchased possession" of each saved individual means that which
God has "made all around" (custom made) for just you or your
born-again wife or husband and every other saint of God through
the ages!
If this word is
used in a more active sense, as several of the lexicons suggest,
the "purchased possession" is that which you have made by your
faithful service since you were saved by God's Grace. This line
of thought would "hint" at such things as crowns of reward for
diligent Christian labor to the Glory of God!
"Redemption" here
means a "setting at liberty" or a "release from bondage!" It's a
"deliverance!" All hindrances will be removed!
And just "why"
does the Holy Spirit effect all these blessings on our behalf?
"Unto the Praise of His Glory!"
To God's Glory!
The Holy Spirit
of "promise" does these things!
That noun
"promise" which is spelled "epaggelia" properly means "an
announcement" or "a message," obviously here from God.
But this term
carries the implication of a future blessing, a word of
"promise." It has this shade of meaning so predominately that
in 52 of its 53 New Testament occurrences our King James Bible
translates it "promise!"
The Holy Spirit
is such a Pledge, such a Foretaste, such a Down Payment of God's
future blessings ... that He is named the Holy Spirit of
Promise!
Talk about the
concept of "Earnest!"
He is named so!
And if these
facts today do not make us praise God genuinely ... I don't know
what it will take!
After all, this
whole Ephesians 1 paragraph has been written ...
"to the praise of the glory of His
grace!" Ephesians 1:6
Yet again ...
just "to the praise of His glory!"
Ephesians 1:12
And finally ...
"unto the
praise of His Glory!"
Ephesians 1:14
Amen!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 14 ...
CONCLUSION:
One of the great summary verses of
all Scripture is found in the first chapter of Paul's tremendous
letter to the Ephesians.
In Ephesians 1:10
Scripture reveals to us one of God's grand and eternal goals
for all creation!
In part it says:
"That in the dispensation of the fulness
of times He might gather together in one all things in Christ."
This is God the
Father in action!
He fully intends,
at just the right time, to "gather all things together" in one
in Christ.
That verb thrills
my soul!
"Anakephalaioo"
is a compound verb that literally fuses "kephale" which means
"head" and "ana" which means "up."
Some day ...
Jesus will "head up" all things!
Now, is this view
in harmony with the rest of the Word of God?
Yes, it is.
Listen to this
verse about Jesus: "That in all things He
might have the preeminence." Colossians 1:18
Then add
Philippians 2:10-11. "That at the name of
Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and
things in earth, and things under the earth; and
that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
And even ...
"For the Father judgeth no man, but hath
committed all judgment unto the Son: that all men should
honour the Son, even as they honour the Father." John
5:22-23
Even in Heaven
right now there may be heard ... "the
voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and
the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten
thousand, and thousands of thousands;
saying with a loud
voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and
riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and
blessing." Revelation 5:11-12
It sure sounds to
me like Jesus is, by the Father's executive command, going to
"head up" all things some great day!
Then last week I
leaned something else about this verb we are now studying.
It was used as an
accountant's term in the ancient world. When adding up the sum
of a column of numbers ... the total would be called "the
head!" The process of "adding" those digits was called "anakephalaioo!"
That means this:
Jesus is the "Sum Total" of all God's doing in the universe
today!
All God's Will
ultimately surrounds His well-beloved Son!
In Jesus all
things "add up!"
He is the Reason
for our being, for our very existence!
He is God!
In fact, Paul
goes so far as to say: "He
is before all things, and by Him all things consist."
That little verb
"consist" (in Greek = "sunistao") really means "to stand
together!" Jesus "holds together" all things!
Join me today
folks in sincerely saying ... HE IS LORD!
Oh, one more
thing really needs to be mentioned.
Our key
expression here, "gather together in one," being derived from "kephale"
meaning "head" ... is even more deeply derived from the verb "kapto."
The "root" verb "kapto"
means "to seize" or take hold of!"
Sounds sort of
aggressive, doesn't it?
Look at our verse
for today again: "That in the
dispensation of the fulness of times He might gather together in
one all things in Christ."
Did you see the
words "all things?"
Then Paul adds
this descriptive phrase to "all things" ...
"both which are in heaven, and which are
on earth."
That's right!
Some day in God's
perfect time Jesus will be the Head of ALL THINGS!
ALL THINGS ON
EARTH AS WELL AS IN HEAVEN!
All created life!
And some of those
things ... or some of those people ... just may not be as
willing as others to "confess that Jesus
Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
Those who are
hesitant will be made willing though!
Remember, "kapto"
means "to seize" or "to take hold of!" By the time God the
Father is through with that crowd of rebels and reprobates ...
even they will have to submit to Him as Lord of all!
Yes, every knee
will bow!
Of course, only
born-again Blood-washed children of God are saved and going to
spend eternity in Heaven.
But all ...
everyone ... will at least acknowledge Jesus as Lord and God!
Again ... God the
Father fully plans to "gather together in
one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which
are on earth; even in Him."
Knowing this
alone makes all I hear on the "News" or read in the "Paper"
add up!
In Jesus ...
things make sense!
Hallelujah!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
THIS
HAS BECOME ONE OF MY FAVORITE
PARAGRAPHS OF ALL SCRIPTURE. WHAT AN ENCOURAGEMENT IT IS!
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