New Life: The First Step of
Salvation
Ephesians 2: 1 – 10.
Introduction.
Do
you think this is a true statement… “Most of the activities we perform on a
daily basis are motivated by our desire to be happy”?
We
pursue relationships (both friendship and romantic) to be happy. We go to work in order to earn money to buy
stuff that makes us happy. We travel and
see the world as an attempt to be happy.
We do
this to find happiness. However,
thousands of years of recorded history teaches us that none of our pursuits
will lead to a lasting sense of happiness.
There must be more to life.
One
of the basic theological beliefs of Christianity is…Yes, there is more to life
than pursuing temporary happiness. There
is a Greatest Good in life. There is a
purpose in life which gives meaning to everything else. For Christians, this Greatest Good is to
discover and experience the Love of God…to experience salvation…to be saved.
Salvation
is more than simply an option or a possibility for us. Salvation is what we were created for…And
anything less than the Love of God leaves us feeling unsatisfied.
There
are three ways we can talk about salvation: past, present and future. I have been saved. I am being saved. I will be saved. (Over the next three Sundays, I am going to
preach about these three different aspects of salvation. Today we focus on the first step of
salvation. I say it is the first step, because
salvation will not be complete until we are with Jesus, face-to-face in
Heaven.)
For
every Christian, there was a time in the past when we first became a
Christian. We were saved. We could also say we experienced “conversion.” A change happened in our lives. Sometimes that change takes place
dramatically and all at once. (Think of
the person who is in the midst of a crisis, watches Billy Graham on TV, and
gets down on their knees to commit their life to Christ. Think of the biblical story of Saul who was
on the road to Damascus when suddenly he encountered the Resurrected Jesus, and
his life was changed.) Other times,
conversion takes place over time. A person
grows closer and closer to God. They go
to church searching for answers, or they have numerous conversations with a
friend. But make no mistake, there is a
moment when their life is changed…they are saved…they experience “conversion.”
We
have a lot of different words for this moment of salvation. Born Again.
Resurrected. Redeemed. Justified.
Reconciled. Forgiven. We get all these terms from the Bible. They all describe the same thing, but they
approach salvation from different angles.
For example, if we understand “guilt and sin” to be our primary
problems, then we use a legal image to describe salvation—Justified. If we understand estrangement from God to be
our primary problem, then we use relational words—Reconciled, Forgiven. If we understand death to be our primary
problem, then we use words about life and death—Born Again, Resurrected.
Ephesians 2: 1 – 10.
Notice
the way Paul alternates the pronouns “you,” “we,” and “us” in this passage. This should probably remind us of Paul’s
intended audience, as he described them in Ephesians 1: 1—“the saints in
Ephesus” and “the faithful in Christ Jesus.”
Some scholars believe Paul is addressing two groups of people within the
churches of Ephesus. On one hand, he is
writing to the saints—possibly the Jewish people who became followers of
Jesus. On the other hand, he is writing
to the faithful in Christ Jesus—possibly the Gentile pagans who became
followers of Jesus.
Paul,
himself, is a Jew who became a follower of Jesus. Therefore, we ought to pay attention to his
use of personal pronouns. When he uses
the pronoun “you,” he is speaking to the Gentile Christians. When he uses the pronouns “we” or “us,” we
have to make a choice. Either he is
identifying himself with the Jewish Christians and thereby contributing to the
divisions in the church by maintaining a distinction between Jewish and Gentile
Christians; or he is using the first person pronoun to be inclusive and create
unity between the races. Given the tone
and theme of the rest of Ephesians, I believe Paul is being inclusive and
tearing down the racial barriers that could divide the church. But, we don’t have to worry about this in
verses 1 – 2. He doesn’t say “us” or
“we,” he says “you.”
Verses 1 – 2 … As for you, you were dead in your
transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways
of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now
at work in those who are disobedient.
According
to Paul, the Gentiles were dead in transgressions and sins. There are three significant words in this
phrase.
First,
what does it mean to say someone is dead?
Well, there is only one kind of dead.
There are not degrees of death.
One person cannot be more dead than another. You are either dead or you are not dead.
Second,
Paul uses two words that can be viewed as synonyms: transgressions and
sins. We can make a slight distinction
between the two. Transgression literally
means “to cross a known boundary.” A
boundary is set. You know the boundary
is there. You know you do not belong on
the other side of the boundary. But, you
willfully cross the boundary any way.
This is willful disobedience.
This is rebelling against God.
This is choosing to sin when you know it is sin. The word “sin” literally means “to miss the
mark.” It comes from the world of
archery. An archer shoots an arrow. He takes careful aim at the target but
misses. He tried to hit the target…He
tried to accomplish the goal…He tried to do the right thing…But, his best efforts
were not good enough.
These
are the ways of the Gentiles. Normal
life in the Gentile world includes willfully sinning against God’s Law and not
measuring up to God’s standards, even though we sometimes try…
These
are also the ways of Satan, whom Paul refers to as “the ruler of the kingdom of
the air.” In Paul’s understanding of the
world / cosmos, he believed there were at least two realms. There was a physical realm and a spiritual
realm. We live in the physical
realm. God, Satan, angels and demons
live in the spiritual realm. However,
the spiritual realm has influence over the physical realm.
In
fact, Paul even believes that Satan places his evil spirit in the lives of
those who do not follow Jesus. Just as
God places his Holy Spirit in us, Satan places his evil spirit in all
others. Paul is explicitly telling us
that Satan influences the ways of the world.
Paul is implicitly telling us that God influences the ways of
Christians. Christians do not have to be
controlled by transgressions and sins.
We can be controlled by God’s Holy Spirit. We can break free from slavery to sin. That is remarkable! That is a radical thought. No one is to be blamed for your transgressions
and sins…No one but you! We are
accountable, responsible and competent before God.
Verses 3 – 5 … All of us also lived among them at one
time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires
and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God,
who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in
transgressions-- it is by grace you have been saved.
Now,
notice that Paul has shifted his pronouns from second person to first
person. Now, he is talking to and about
all Christians. He is inclusive in the
way he includes himself alongside the Gentile Christians. AND he is inclusive in the way he says all
humanity struggles with transgressions, sins and the influence of Satan. But, notice that he says this happened “at
one time.” This is no longer the case
for followers of Jesus. We do not have
to give in to sin and Satanic influence.
Again,
Paul uses inclusive language to talk about the wrath of God. God did not reserve his wrath for the
Gentiles alone. Both Jews and Gentiles
were objects of God’s wrath.
You
might not be very comfortable thinking about God as an angry God, but that is a
biblical idea. Without God’s wrath, there
would be no need for salvation. After
all, we have to be saved from something.
Also, without God’s wrath, we could not affirm God’s holiness. If God is accepting and tolerant of all sins,
then his holiness is compromised. God
cannot be holy and tolerate sin. God
cannot be holy and live in the presence of sin or sinners.
Verse
4 indicates that wrath is not God’s only side.
In addition to God’s angry side, there is also God’s loving side. God’s love is demonstrated by his mercy. The best way I know how to describe mercy is
to say it is to withhold giving someone the punishment they deserve. God is so “rich in mercy” that he has chosen
not to give us the punishment we deserve.
We deserve death, hell and eternal separation from God.
Instead
of killing us, God has made us alive in Christ.
In Paul’s theology the resurrection of Jesus is God’s perfect
demonstration of his power. There is
only One who can raise the dead. Only
God is powerful enough to bring Jesus to life.
But, Jesus is not the only one God brought to life. God raised us “with Christ.”
Think
about some of the non-Christians you know.
I’m not going to call names, but our world is filled with people who
seem to be very alive. Professional
athletes have the strongest bodies we can imagine. Academic scholars have the brightest minds on
earth. Movie stars have the most
interesting personalities. But, Paul is
not talking about the death of the body, death of the mind, or the death of the
personality. Paul is writing about
having a dead spirit, or soul. It is
possible to be alive physically, mentally and emotionally while being dead
spiritually.
If
your body is healthy but you don’t know God…You are dead spiritually. If your mind is sharp and vibrant but you
can’t figure out God’s purpose for your life…You are dead spiritually. If you have the most winsome personality but
you live a life focused on yourself…You are dead spiritually.
Now
Paul shifts from talking about mercy to talking about grace. Mercy is withholding the punishment we
deserve. Grace is giving us a free gift
that we do not deserve. Mercy is passive. Grace is active.
What
kind of free gift(s) has God given us?
Forgiveness of transgressions and sins.
Freedom from the influence of Satan.
Life that has purpose and meaning and direction. Life that goes beyond the grave to eternal
life in Heaven.
Verses 6 – 10 … And God
raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in
Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable
riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved,
through faith-- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by
works, so that no one can boast. For we
are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God
prepared in advance for us to do.
Just
as Jesus reigns in the spiritual realm, so those who are saved can have
victory, through Christ, over the principalities and powers of Satan.
“In
the coming ages” suggests that our salvation is not yet complete. This is a significant theme in Paul’s
writings. Salvation is past, present and
future. Salvation happens at one moment
in time—the moment of conversion, the moment we profess Christ as Lord. Salvation happens over a period of time—the
indwelling of the Holy Spirit, who shapes us into the image of Jesus. Salvation happens in the future—the moment of
death or the moment of the Second Coming of Jesus. Yes, we have been saved in the past. Yes, God is still saving us everyday. BUT, our salvation will not be complete as
long as we live a physical, earthly life.
Verse
8 shows us two sides of the salvation experience. On one hand, salvation is grace that comes
from God. We were dead, but God has made
us alive. Dead people cannot raise
themselves. On the other hand, salvation
comes “through faith.” Faith is an
entirely human exercise. No one gets
saved against their will. That would be
salvation by Grace WITHOUT Faith! God
does not drag us into his Kingdom. God
does not force us into Heaven. God does
not force his Love on us.
This
raises an interesting question. How can
salvation be a gift (Grace) if there is something we are required to do
(Faith)?
There
are two ways I reconcile this in my understanding. First, there is the common illustration of
receiving a gift. Offering a gift and
receiving a gift are two separate things.
It is possible to refuse a gift.
God offers us salvation as a free gift which we must receive by
faith. Second, I think of faith as
yielding to God’s Love. God offers us
his Love, but Love can be resisted.
Forced Love is not Love at all.
Forced Love is assault. As human
beings, you have the freedom to say “Yes” or “No” to God’s Love. Faith is saying “Yes” to God’s Love.
Since
salvation is a gift from God, we should not boast about our status. We should not even boast about our
faith. There are two good lessons in
this for Christians. First, we should
never feel pride about salvation. We did
not save ourselves. We COULD not save
ourselves. Second, we should never look
down upon people who are not Christians.
This seems to be a bigger problem for Christians today than thinking we
saved ourselves. We are some of the most
judgmental people in the world.
Non-Christians do not want to be around us.
The
verb in verse 8 that is translated “you have been saved” is a Greek Perfect
tense. The Perfect tense suggests a
completed action in the past, which has ongoing implications for the
future. In other words, to be saved is
to be changed. Salvation is a one time
event in the past with results that take place in the present and the
future. God has changed our status. God has changed the way we live our lives.
Even
though we didn’t DO anything to save ourselves, our salvation ought to lead us
to DO something. What are we supposed to
do? Good works. Of course, we could easily misinterpret Paul
here and claim that he is laying down a new Law code for Christians. We could say that Christians are to perform
works of Law. That is inconsistent with
Paul’s life and teaching. Paul does not
give us a new Law, just as Jesus did not give us a new Law. The good works God expects of us are very
simply to follow the example of Jesus.
Jesus preached about the Kingdom
of God
You
were not saved to sit and enjoy the benefits God gives his children. You were saved to do something…You were saved
to serve God. This was God’s plan for
your life from the very beginning. He
prepared a work for you to complete.
Conclusion.
There
are two important concepts throughout this passage: resurrection and
creation. Only God can give life to the
dead. Only God can create something out
of nothing. And that is what we
were. We were dead. We were nothing. Until God gave us life…Until God saved us…and
created something out of nothing.
1 comment:
Thanks Andy
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