Gtcotr/ss502018
The
New Testament Book of Ephesians was written as a letter around AD62 or AD63
from Rome by the Apostle Paul to the Church at Ephesus.
Paul
wrote several letters while he was being held as a prisoner in Rome. I suppose
prison gives a person some time to reflect and consider what’s important.
If
late in life you found yourself in prison, through no fault of your own,
accused by false witnesses of crimes you did not commit. Perhaps in a foreign
prison for being a Believer in Jesus. What would you do? What do you imagine
would become most important to you? If you knew you were going to be unjustly
sentenced to be executed and you had the opportunity to write a letter to your
family and friends, knowing that they may be arrested and imprisoned themselves
any day, what would you tell them?
Let’s
read what Paul wanted his friends in Ephesus to know.
Ephesians 2
4 ¶ But God, who is rich in
mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,
Paul
wanted people to understand that God is rich in mercy.
He
also told them that God loves us with “Great Love”. What does that mean? It means that:
·
God’s
love is first Original
·
Next,
God’s love is Abundant
·
And
finally, God’s love is Eternal … So that …
5 even when we were dead in
trespasses, God made us alive
together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
The
Work of Salvation is a work of God’s grace, not of man’s doing.
·
We are saved not because of what we do but because of what He did.
·
Grace
means we did not deserve it but that it was an underserved gift of love. God’s
grace is given to everyone who believes in His Son Jesus and receives Him as
the underserved gift God intended.
6 and God raised us up together, and made us sit together
in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
From
God’s eternal perspective, all of His children are already seated with Jesus at
the table of the Lord in our heavenly home.
·
God
is dreaming of the day when we will all be feasting together with Him in
eternal realms.
·
And,
God’s dreams always come true; watch and see; it will happen.
7 that in the ages to come He
might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us
in Christ Jesus.
Paul
wanted his friends to know that God has a plan for us for all eternity
·
He
plans to show us just how rich He is …
·
He
plans to show us how He spent His wealth preparing for our eternal comfort,
·
And,
God wants us to experience His Kindness forever and ever because we have
believed in and accepted His Son in our lives.
Paul
concludes this thought by telling his friends:
8 For by grace you have been
saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone
should boast.
The
Child of God has a great future because of God’s great love.
The
Apostle Paul’s Roman prison experience no doubt gave him several years to
reflect and to consider those things that are really important in life, and in
eternal life. Paul’s letter to his friends in the Ephesian Church revealed how
much The Apostle
Paul appreciated God for His:
1.
Boundless Mercy
2.
Great Love
3.
Matchless Grace
4.
Abundant Kindness
5.
Eternal Perspective
What
do you appreciate about God? Have you considered telling your family and friends
what you believe before you die? If I’m not mistaken, it’s called Your Last Will and
Testament. Why not go ahead and write it down. You may be eternally
surprised at the number of people that read it.
