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Learn from Paul as we minister to people— before we share the gospel, the good news, people need to hear the bad news first, or else they will not value the grace of Christ, the love of Christ, and the sacrifice of Christ.
Ephesians 3:6-13 - 6 This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
7 Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God's grace, which was given me by the working of his power. 8 To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things, 10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him. 13 So I ask you not to lose heart over what I am suffering for you, which is your glory.
What makes news, good news? The other day, I was talking to my wife about this and we thought that knowing the value of news and how it impacts us turns news into good news. Such is the case with the good news, the gospel, which was a mystery in the past.
The problem is that many Christians today share the good news, the gospel, without talking about sin, condemnation, and hell. They need to know that unless people are told the bad news first, they will not know that the gospel is the good news and the value of the grace of Christ, the love of Christ, and the sacrifice of Christ.
Ephesians 3:1-13 first shared the bad news that the mystery of Christ was hidden in the past and then shared the good news that this mystery has been revealed to the apostles and prophets in the New Testament for our sake.
The big idea is that the gospel is good news because there is bad news. Unless we share the bad news first, people will not value the grace of Christ, the love of Christ, and the sacrifice of Christ. In Ephesians 3:1-13, Paul demonstrates it for us as he explains three truths about the mystery of Christ: the problem, proclamation, and purpose of the mystery of Christ. Last time, we looked at the problem; now, let’s look at the proclamation and purpose of the mystery of Christ:
The Proclamation of the Mystery of Christ (Ephesians 3:6-9)
Ephesians 3:6 introduces us to the good news, the gospel. It says, “6 This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” The emphasis is on the gospel because the gospel is the means by which all people can be united, have access to God, and live in harmony.
Ephesians 3:6-13 text offers hope to all people everywhere because the gospel does not see a problem in diversity. It declares diversity is a gift and not a threat. We do not make a body of Christ diverse— it is diverse already. The question is, how we represent and celebrate this diversity in the unity of Christ? Paul is mentoring the Ephesians through his writing and in verse 6, he tells the readers that the mystery of Christ is that the gospel has given them a new identity, which is not in anything we do, but in what Christ has done for us.
The Possession
The phrase, “fellow heirs,” is translated from the Greek, sugkleronoma. It speaks of possessions that one receives in an inheritance. Abraham was given the promise of an inheritance, which was transferred to Issac and Israel. This inheritance was the Kingdom of God. Jesus preached the Kingdom of God. Now there are not two Kingdoms, one for Jews and one for Gentiles; there is only one Kingdom and Paul says that through the gospel, the Gentiles have equal access to God’s inheritance in heaven (Ephesians 1:11-14; Galatians 3:29; 4:7) because they are no longer strangers but members of God’s family and therefore co-heirs with Jews.
This is best illustrated in the soap operas where, right at the time when the inheritance is about to be divided, the family finds out that their father had a whole other family on the side that has the right to their father’s possessions.
This revelation was a shock to Jews that their inheritance was also the inheritance of those they despised because the Gentiles were considered impure, unclean, and unrighteous.
The Position
The phrase, “fellow members of the body,” is translated from the Greek, sussoma, which speaks of their position in the body of Christ. Through the gospel, the Gentiles are equal members of the same body, the body of Christ, in which Jews and Gentiles are incorporated. Therefore, all the members have the same position as far as their value and status goes. Just as the hand cannot tell the foot that it is better or superior, no one in the body of Christ can claim superiority.
This is shown in 1 Corinthians 12:13, which says, “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body— Jews or Greeks, slaves or free— and all were made to drink of one Spirit.”
The Partnership
The phrase, “fellow partakers of the promise” is translated from the Greek, summetocha which speaks of partnership. Through the gospel, the Gentiles have equal access to all the promises of God regarding life and salvation because they are equal partners and responsible participants in a community of believers in the church sharing in the blessing of joy and suffering, gains and losses.
This is seen in sports teams where the whole team loses or wins together. It is not dependent on one person’s performance. Last Sunday, my wife, Sarah, was upset with Patrick Mahomes because he led them to victory against the Bills, a team my wife supports. Patrick Mahomes cannot win on his own. He needs the team; his victory is the victory of the whole team and their loss is his loss. Such is the case with the church of Christ.
So, the mystery of Christ is the gospel that defines our identity, which is not in anything we do but in what Christ has done for us by granting us possession, position, and partnership. Paul, in writing Ephesians 3:7 says, “Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God's grace, which was given me by the working of his power.
Interestingly, Paul does not use the usual Greek word for pastor or minister; rather, he uses the word diakonos, from which we get the word, deacon. It means a servant of others, which Paul considers an unmerited, underserving gift from God. The word “power” indicates the gift of service, which is infused by the power of the Holy Spirit.
God gave us the gift of ministry to serve others and empowered it with the power of the Holy Spirit. Paul elevates the status of serving others and sets an example for all believers. Serving is not easy; servitude is a gift of God and we need the power of the Holy Spirit to serve. Serving produces humility in which we draw our confidence from our identity in Christ and not in what we do.
Note Paul’s confidence in Ephesians 3:8-9, “8 To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things…”
Application
We all are responsible for the proclamation of the mystery of Christ. We proclaim this by explaining the problem and sharing the good news and then serving. This is what Paul modeled for us in these few verses.
The Purpose of the Mystery of Christ (Ephesians 3:10-13)
Ephesians 3:10 starts, “so that” which indicates the purpose and outcome of knowing the mystery. Reading on, Paul writes, “so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.” Paul introduces a new height of the revelation of the mystery of Christ in which the Church’s witness is not limited to those on earth but also in heaven.
That means, along with the world, the whole host of heaven is watching what Christ does in and through the Church as every believer plays his role in kingdom building through the proclamation of the gospel. Verses 11-13 continue, “11 This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him. 13 So I ask you not to lose heart over what I am suffering for you, which is your glory.”
The interesting thing about Ephesians 3:1-13 is that it does not mention anything about the Gentiles turning to God. It assumes that they will because the salvation of the Gentiles was promised in the Old Testament at the coming of the Messiah, the hope of salvation and light to the Gentiles.
Therefore, the focus of the mystery of Christ was on the inclusion and unification of all God’s children, Jews and Gentiles, and this was to be done in and through the witness of the Church. This is something the world is watching, but also, the powerful forces in the heavenly places are watching.
The world is observing how we interact with each other and those outside the church but also the heavenly beings are observing that, also. When they see us individually or as our church, what do they see? Do they see servants serving in humility, love, boldness, and confidence of our faith?
About two months ago, Sarah and I picked up a TV from a house nearby. The family just moved to Metuchen. The woman we met at the house had a small child. So, I shared with her that I am a pastor at First Baptist Metuchen and our church has a special focus on families. We have a wonderful children’s ministry and we would love to have her. She said, but I am a lesbian, and I said so what?
Application
The outside world should not see us as an exclusive club closed to people who are not like us. They should not see us as hatemongering, a judgmental community of self-righteous, isolated people who think we are better and superior to the world. The world thinks we come together to conspire against them and that we seek the destruction of this world. We going to change their minds by stating the problem and sharing the gospel.
Imagine if this church was a hospital. Would you open this place only for those who are healthy or mildly sick? No, you will open it for all, right? The church is the body of believers that comes together to worship God and encourage each other through the Word of God and prayer. However, it is also a hospital for the spiritually ill and not exclusive to only a few.
Action Step
Without compromising the Word of God, we need to break down the walls of hostility, speak truth to power, and speak truth with love. The whole revelation of the mystery of Christ is based on Christ breaking the barriers between people, making them one in the church so that the church can show others the love, unity, mercy, and grace of Christ to the world and the heavenly beings.
Appeal
Learn from Paul as we minister to people. He stated the problem first— before he shared the good news, the gospel. This means that before we share the gospel, the good news, people need to hear the bad news first, or else they will not value the grace of Christ, the love of Christ, and the sacrifice of Christ.
The bad news is we all are born dead in our sins; we love sinning because sin satisfies our flesh, Without Christ, we will die in sin and face eternal damnation in hell, which was not created for us but for Satan and his demons. However, the good news is that God’s son, Jesus, came into this world and died on the cross for our salvation. He shed his blood for the forgiveness of our sins so that we can be reconciled to God. The good news is that Jesus paid the price we couldn’t pay and Jesus died in our place.
If you never invited Jesus into your life, invite Him today. If you are a believer already, then invite others to Jesus by proclaiming the mystery of Christ, the gospel.
Study Questions
1. How does Ephesians 3:6 describe the mystery of Christ?
2. In Ephesians 3:6, how did the Gentiles become “partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus?”
3. What does “minister” mean in Ephesians 3:7? How does it relate to the proclamation of the gospel?
Deeper Study Questions
1. Share how you understand the mystery of Christ.
2. Paul was excited to share God’s eternal plan and fulfill his role as a minister of the gospel regardless of what it cost him. Read Acts 20:22-24 and Philippians 3:7-10. How can we be more like him?
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