Join Dr. John Kyle as he takes us on a transformative journey through Ephesians 1:7-10, unfolding the profound mysteries of redemption and forgiveness. Delve deep into the incredible love story of how God, through His Son, redeems us from the bondage of sin, and the implications of this redemption in our everyday lives. Discover the abounding riches of God’s grace and His divine pleasure in our salvation.
Welcome to Expository Truths, where we exalt Christ by bringing clarity of truth through the scriptures with Dr. John Kyle, pastor of Faith Community Church in Vacaville. As Christians, we’re called to know the truth and be able to proclaim it. We can know truth when we know the Word of God, which is precise, without error, and powerful and effective for both salvation and spiritual growth. Enjoy digging deeply with Dr. Kyle as he takes us verse by verse through the powerful book of Ephesians, giving us a marvelous summary of the good news of Christ and its implications for our daily lives.
SPEAKER 02 :
Please turn with me in your Bibles to Ephesians chapter 1, verses 7 through 10. Ephesians 1, 7 through 10. The letter of Ephesians was written by the Apostle Paul to the faithful saints living in the city of Ephesus, which was the fourth largest city in the world at the time. Paul wrote this while he was under house arrest in Rome in about A.D. 62, and he wrote it to lay a proper doctrinal foundation for these believers so they could then live out those doctrines for the glory of God. See, he wants these Christians to be established and equipped more and more in their faith, thus this letter. It’s very interesting because this doctrinal section begins with one single sentence in the original language, the Greek. A sentence that consists of 202 words and a sentence that’s 12 verses long, verses 3 through 14. Some say that this is actually a song of praise to God, a hymn, which might have been the case. But more than anything else… This is an attempt to use a whole bunch of words to praise God for his divine plan. And it’s as if Paul can’t contain the love and the praise that he has for his good God, so he just rattles off these 202 inspired words that are filled with incredible truths about what God has done for the believer. And it’s only at the end of verse 14 that Paul takes a breath. But look, there’s more. In fact, there’s much more, verses 7 through 10. Let’s look. Verse 7. Here we see three more reasons that we, the chosen and redeemed ones, believers, can bless and praise our amazing God. Why? Because we have redemption. We have redemption. We’ve been redeemed. Redemption means to buy back, and it speaks of being set free by the payment of a price, a ransom. The picture here is this. When a prisoner has been taken captive, and he’s been made a slave by some wretched slave owner, look. Before that slave could be set free from that captivity, from the slave market, a ransom price would have to be paid. And only when the full price, the full ransom was paid, only then could the slave be set free. So redemption is a deliverance of someone or something through the payment of a ransom. And the good news is, that’s exactly what Jesus Christ has done for every Christian. Look, we’re all slaves to sin. Satan owned us, and he’s a wretched master. That’s true of every person, whether they realize that fact or not. Everybody in the world is held captive in their sin, sold under sin, in bondage to their sin, and the Bible is abundantly clear about that truth. So, how can I get out of bondage? Here’s how. You have to pay a price. What price? Death. Death. The price for sin, the wages of sin is death. So in order to purchase sinners from the grasp of sin and the wicked one forever, there must be death. That means that either you die and pay the price for your own sin for all eternity, since sin committed against a holy, eternal, and infinite God is worthy of eternal and infinite wages, or else someone who is truly worthy and able comes along and pays the incredibly high price for you. But who? Who can do it? Who is worthy? And then, who would be willing? Only one, right? Who? Jesus. Jesus. God the Son. Only Him. He alone could pay the asking price for your soul, and that’s exactly what He did. Here’s a question. Kind of a trick question. Who are you saved from? You’re saved from God. Namely, you’re saved from the wrath of God, right? Think about this. God saved you from God. Think about that. He is a just God and He must punish all sin for His justice to be satisfied. But look, He loved you so much. That Paul says he chose you and adopted you, but it wasn’t without a price. No. See, God, God the Father, sent God, God the Son, to become your sacrifice for sin as a believer and to die a brutal death on the cross. And look, to face God’s wrath against your sin in his own body. So God punished God, brutally and horribly, to redeem you and to rescue you. Does that blow your mind a little? Who killed Jesus? Well, the Romans did or the Jews did, but who really killed Jesus? God did. God the Father did. The Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all, Isaiah 53.6. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He, God the Father, has put him, God the Son, to grief, Isaiah 53.10. Why? Why would God do this? To redeem you. You think he loves you? I mean, look at what he did. So who then was a ransom for your soul paid to? One might expect that a ransom had to be paid to Satan since he’s the custodian of sin and death to which all men are enslaved. But God, the Son, isn’t beholden to Satan that he should make any kind of payment to him. Satan himself is God’s chief captive and thus he’s in no position to make any demands on God. No. Instead, the ransom of Christ’s blood was paid to God the Father whose holiness demanded a just payment for the penalty of sin. What extravagant love God has for us. Think about what he did to redeem us. He didn’t just snap his fingers and say, chosen, adopted, end of story, no. But he made sure that he redeemed us fully and completely from our old wretched owner’s hands, and that’s exactly what he did. And look, Jesus had to become a man, live a perfect life, die a brutal death on a cross as our substitute for sin, pay the wages in full for our sin, and then he died and rose from the dead to redeem us. Come on. Isn’t that a great reason to bless and praise God today? Look at what he’s done. Second, we can bless and praise God because we have the forgiveness of sins, and that’s a great result of our redemption, forgiveness. Is there a better word for guilty sinners like us? You’re forgiven. By God. You’re forgiven. The word forgive is from the Greek word ephemi. It means to literally send away, to let go, to remove, to cancel, to release, and to pardon. It means to once and for all take away the sin, and then to also… Listen, remove the guilt, the punishment, and the power of that sin. That’s the best news ever. Psalm 103.12, as far as the east is from the west, so far as he removed our transgressions from us, forgiveness is everything. Look, you may be a great big sinner. Do we have any great big sinners in the place today? Guess what? Jesus is great at forgiving the sin of those who surrender to him, of those who look to him, of those who seek his forgiveness and mercy. Don’t we know it every single day? But John, you don’t know what I’ve done. I’m glad I don’t. But God knows. And he says that he will forgive you if you flee to him in repentant faith. All your sin, every single one of them. See, Jesus obliterates the thing that condemns you, your sin, and he washes you clean by grace through faith because of what he did on the cross in your place. Clean, forgiven, pardoned forever. Do you understand how good this is? How does this ransom and forgiveness happen? Look. according to the riches of His grace, which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence. Now remember, grace is God’s unmerited favor toward sinners who don’t deserve it. One said grace is everything for nothing to those who don’t deserve anything. Grace is God’s generous favor to undeserving sinners and needy saints. Grace is all God’s power, all his love, all his beauty available to you. Christians are those who have been lavished with God’s amazing grace that saves them, us, and keeps us. Paul describes God’s grace as abounding riches, and that’s a truly amazing thought. It tells us that the one who possesses the riches of the universe doesn’t reach into his penny purse, as one said, to provide a little grace to cover my sin. No, his grace is in accord with his vast riches. That means that the abundance of His heavenly goodness is raining down on us, immersing us, washing over us, taking our sins away as far as the east is from the west, so that now, continually and forever, because we are united to Christ, because we’re clothed with the righteousness of God’s own Son, grace, like an ocean, washing over us. It’s abundant. It’s extravagant. It’s boundless. So here we see yet another great reason to bless our incredible God, but it doesn’t end there. No, for according to the riches of His grace, which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence. It’s a very interesting phrase that has left many commentators divided. Does God lavish us with wisdom and understanding, or does He lavish us with grace through His wisdom and understanding? Both are true, but what is He saying here? Some say that God lavishes us with grace through His wisdom and understanding, which means that He grants it despite His insight into us. Think about that. In his wisdom, he knows more about the nature and horror of my own sin than I do. And he is wise enough to know what will be needed to compensate for all my sin and for all my wrong. He understands that my wretched sins will require the blood of his own son to cancel all my debt. And look, he still redeems me. And he still remits my soul so that I stand justified in his sight by grace through faith. That’s an incredible truth. But it’s not what I believe Paul is saying in this passage. In context, I think Paul is telling us that now that we’ve been redeemed and forgiven by God, God gives us his divine wisdom and prudence or his wisdom and insight so that we can know him and his word and live the God-pleasing life more and more and more. And that’s true as believers. See, God’s grace, which provided redemption and the forgiveness of sin, also lavishes on us all insight and wisdom so that we can live for his glory. Not fully and completely. I mean, we’ve got to keep growing in that. But we now see things spiritually speaking. Because God’s enabled us to do that. Third reason to bless God. We know the mystery of His will. Verse 9. Verse 9. Let’s look, verses 9 and 10. Having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times, He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth in Him. So look, we know the mystery of His will. That’s pretty awesome to think about. That we, the redeemed, have been taken into the secret councils of the Lord God Almighty. See, he has unfolded to us what he plans to do and what he’s going to accomplish in the future. The word mystery describes a previously hidden truth that has now been revealed by God. So what is that mystery that Paul’s talking about? The divine plan of redemption as a whole. Also, the inclusion of the Gentiles into the church, which Paul will talk about later on. And then the final part of that mystery, which Paul mentioned in verse 10, that centers on God’s eternal plan of bringing all things together into the person of Jesus Christ. So, what was a mystery in the past has now been made known. 1 Peter 1, 10-12 says this, “…of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. To them it was revealed that not to themselves, but to us who are ministering the things which now have been reported to you.” through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things which angels desire to look into. Isn’t that interesting? So look, the whole plan of redemption, salvation, Christ on the cross as our substitute for sin, God’s amazing grace. From other passages, how the Gentiles would be included into the people of God, the church of God. All of these things were a mystery in the past, but now it’s been revealed. And not just what’s happened in Christ, but also what we have coming, which again is what Paul talks about in verse 10, in part. Note that the angels desire to look into this. Isn’t that interesting? Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be an angel? Well, angels are wondering what it would be like to be us. They’re saying, I wonder what it’s like to be saved. I wonder what it’s like to receive grace. I wonder what it’s like to be forgiven. The word for desire speaks of a strong desire and an overpowering impulse. The word look literally means to stretch forward your head and to bend down. And what we find is that the angels want to stoop down and look into this thing called salvation. Why? Why? because they’ll never experience it in the manner that we do and in the manner that we have. See, the holy angels never need to be saved, and the fallen angels can’t be saved. And they’re just utterly amazed about God’s grace and about God’s forgiveness and about God’s mercy and what it means to be truly saved from eternal wrath, something that we all graciously have been rescued from. And the angels really can’t understand this amazing reality the way we do as people who were heading for hell and who have now been saved by God’s grace through faith in Christ who died for us in our place. So it’s still a mystery to the angels, but not to us. No, it’s been revealed to us much more fully than it was to those before Christ and the cross. How God the Son left heaven and came here. How He faced the Father’s wrath for the believer’s sin. How He died and rose again. How He redeemed us and paid the price that was demanded of us. How the Gentiles could be saved by grace through faith and also everything that lies ahead. More on that in a second. Note that it was God’s good pleasure to reveal all these things to us. As one said… The delight which God has in blessing saints is found in the fact that what he does for them is dictated by what is good for them. That means that God’s good pleasure isn’t an arbitrary whim of a sovereign ruler, but it represents that which in the wisdom and love of God would contribute most to the well-being and blessing of us. He does what’s best for us out of his great love for us. Now, you might not always feel like that, It might not always seem like that as pain and trials abound, but this truth remains even still and we can trust Him with that. He knows what He’s doing with us as people that He chose in Him before the foundation of the world and that He died to redeem and it’s always best. Always, always. Will you trust Him when things seem otherwise? See? Think about this. God revealed salvation to His people through the blood of His Son because it brings Him pleasure. He delights to show mercy. And look, there’s no work or merit that’s a condition of His doing this. No, but He delights to show mercy on those who are undeserving. Why? Why? What in us makes us worthy in His sight to receive this revelation, this truth, this good news? What? Nothing. It’s His own good pleasure that does it. And so God says that despite knowing that sin makes you impure before Him, and that to cleanse you, He would have to sacrifice His Son, and to equip you, He would have to provide His Spirit to indwell you. Nonetheless, it gives Him pleasure to reveal to you the mystery of Jesus and everything that that entails. It’s amazing. Note also that he purposed to do all this in himself. The way this is worded seems to be saying that God the Father and God the Son agreed with this plan within the Godhead before time began, which is true. That this was all planned and it was his good pleasure to do it. Think about that. Purpose of the Father was to be affected in Christ and Christ was the basis and goal of that mystery and Christ would provide the sacrifice which would make it possible to culminate all things in Him. That’s the plan and it pleased the Lord to do it. I’m going to die for you. Great plan. Come on. How incredible is that? What love What love. What a God. He deserves blessing and praise for us because of all this. Look at the end result of the mystery that’s now been revealed. He will gather in one all things in Christ. Hey, the end is very good for us in Christ. A new order is coming and in the dispensation of the fullness of the times, in other words, at the appropriate time, God will unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. I can’t wait for that time. See, we know this to be true and therefore we don’t share the pessimism and despair of the world. No, we are filled with hope. What does all things in heaven and earth encompass? One, redeemed souls, not the unredeemed. And two, the created universe. Look, the work has begun with God’s children. Believers are presently united in the body of Christ over which he is the head, which includes believing Jews and believing Gentiles, true believers in Christ. Along with this, the cosmos which Christ created and sustained will be ordered under Christ. Paul says in Colossians 1.16 that all things were created through Him and for Him. He’s the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. All things came out of Him and all things will return to Him. Thus, all creation is moving toward its consummation in Him as described in Romans 8.19-21. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. The creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. Thus, all redeemed souls, all the universe, and all the faithful angelic hosts, literally everything in heaven and earth, everything material, spiritual, everything within, without, above, below, will be united in Christ. One said, history is written and directed by its creator. who will see it through to the fulfillment of his own ultimate purpose, the summing up of all things in Christ. He designed his great plan in the ages past. He now sovereignly works it out according to his divine will. And in the fullness of the times, he will complete and perfect it in his Son, in whom it will forever operate in righteous harmony and glorious newness, along with all things in the heavens and things on the earth. Here’s a key. The paradise lost in Adam is restored in Christ. It’s all good. It’s all good for us in Christ. Martin Lloyd-Jones said it like this. The perfect harmony that will be restored will be harmony in man and between men. Harmony on earth and in the creation. Harmony in heaven and all under this blessed Lord Jesus Christ who will be the head of all. Everything will again be united in him. And wonder of wonders, marvelous beyond compare. When all that happens, it will never be undone again. All will be reunited in Him to all eternity. That’s the message and that’s the plan and that is the mystery which has been revealed unto us. These things are so marvelous that you will never hear anything greater either in this world or in the world to come. Amen? I mean, again, the end is very, very, very good for us in Christ. The future is very bright for us, the redeemed ones. Glory. See, in eternity future, everything will be totally united in Christ. Not those, this is again important to understand, not those who reject him as Lord and Savior, no. They will be punished for eternity in hell because of their sin. Clearly Paul is speaking here only of believers and the whole context is about those who are chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world. And the phrase in Christ is never used in scripture of anything but believers. So this won’t be the case for non-believers. No, and that’s important to understand. They too will stand before God, but they will be judged and condemned to eternity in hell because of their sin and refusal to surrender to Christ in this life. But for those who love Him, the chosen ones, the redeemed, the ones who have surrendered to Him in repentant faith, a very bright future awaits us. So, if you’re redeemed, better get out and spread the good news to the lost around you. And you better pray much for them. So Paul blesses and praises God for the past, the present, and the future. Look, he celebrates blessing originated in the past in verses 4 through 6, election and adoption. In verses 7 and 8, he celebrates the present blessings, redemption, forgiveness, grace, and spiritual discernment. And finally, in verses 9 and 10, he celebrates the future as everything will be brought under Christ’s headship, which is exactly where we want it. And so these blessings are rooted in the past, being experienced in the present, and waiting in the future. And that gives us many great reasons to praise God, to rejoice in God, to sing from the heart to our God. So, I say, how about this? Bless Him, praise Him, and give Him the glory that’s due to Him as God over all who has done all these amazing things for undeserving sinners like us. Praise Him. Praise Him. Let’s pray. Heavenly Father, We do praise You, Lord. We thank You for who You are and we thank You for what You’ve done. You are so good and gracious and kind. The fact that You planned this from the beginning causes us to stand in awe. The price You paid for us. Thank You for Your love and grace and mercy. We love You. I pray that we would indeed stand in awe of You and praise You every day and with our lives. May you receive great glory in us as we contemplate these truths today. Bless us. We love you and we thank you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
SPEAKER 01 :
Thanks for joining us for today’s exposition from the book of Ephesians on expository truths with Dr. John Kyle. Continue on with us next week at this same time. And to find this sermon in its entirety as well as other sermons, visit vacavillefaith.org. Faith Community Church seeks to exalt Christ by bringing clarity of truth through the scriptures with a commitment to glorifying God through the pure, deep, and reaching message of the gospel through faithful exposition. Pastor John is the preaching pastor at Faith Community Church of Vacaville, a seminary professor and a trainer of preaching pastors overseas. Join Faith Community Church for worship Sundays at 9 and 1045 a.m. Located at 192 Bella Vista Road, Suite A in Vacaville. To learn more, visit vacavillefaith.org or call 707-451-2026. That’s vacavillefaith.org.
