Ephesians 3.8-21 (7)
Pray Psalm 132.13-18.
For the LORD has chosen Zion;
He has desired it for His dwelling place:
“This is My resting place forever;
Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
I will abundantly bless her provision;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
I will also clothe her priests with salvation,
And her saints shall shout aloud for joy.
There I will make the horn of David grow;
I will prepare a lamp for My Anointed.
His enemies I will clothe with shame,
But upon Himself His crown shall flourish.”
Sing Psalm 132.13-18.
(Finlandia: Be Still, My Soul)
God dwells among us, and He will forever,
to meet our needs and clothe us with His grace.
He has to us sent Jesus Christ, our Savior—
Beloved, eternal light and resting place.
His foes are banished from His Presence ever,
but we shall reign with Him before His face.
Read Ephesians 3.8-21; meditate on verse 21.
Contemplate the phrase “to all generations” and what it means for you and your church.
Preparation
1. What is the purpose of a church?
2. How can a church fulfill that purpose?
Meditation
The doctrinal section of the book of Ephesians begins with an acknowledgement of God’s grace, both in His having called the apostle Paul to his ministry and to the saints at Ephesus, who were the beneficiaries of God’s grace to Paul (1.1, 2). It ends at the place where all Christian doctrine and life must end, giving glory to God through our Lord Jesus Christ (3.21).
In between, Paul outlines a narrative of God’s grace at work, creating a people for Himself. We were set apart to God before the world began. His chosen ones become His saints by adoption into His household. God worked at the heady and mysterious level of spiritual blessings to bring us from death to life (1.1-14; 2.1-10), from blind to spiritual mysteries to seeing Jesus in His exaltation (1.15-23), from being at war with those who differ from us to sharing in the peace of Jesus with them (2.11-18), from having hearts of stone to being made bricks in God’s new temple, the Church (2.19-20). And all of this made known to us from the realm of mystery into that of reality by the gracious revelation and work of God through Jesus Christ in the Gospel (3.1-13).
And now God is working to strengthen us by the Holy Spirit within us, and His desire is to bring us into ever wider and higher, ever clearer and more comprehensive, ever more gladdening and satisfying, and ever more joyous and peaceful regions of our great salvation (3.1-21). But we will only realize this promise as we embrace our salvation and live it out together in daily obedience, which Paul will outline in detail in chapters 4-6.
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
“…to Him be glory
in the church
by Christ Jesus
to all generations,
forever and ever. Amen” (Eph. 3.21).
Our sovereign and majestic God and Father
deserves all the glory that the Church has to give
by the power and love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ
to all generations—past, present, future—
forever and ever—past, present, and future.
All the glory from all the people by Christ Jesus forever.
From all people, past, present, and future, saved by the work of Christ Jesus our Savior and Lord, we declare with Nebuchadnezzar, these words of repentance and praise:
“I…lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me; and
I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him Who lives forever:
For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, and
His Kingdom is from generation to generation.
All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing;
He does according to His will in the army of heaven and
among the inhabitants of the earth.
No one can restrain His hand or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’
Now I…praise and extol and honor the King of heaven,
all of Whose works are truth, and
His ways justice.
And those who walk in pride
He is able to put down” (Dan. 4.34, 35, 37).
He Who is also “able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think,
according to the power that works in us…” (Eph. 3.20).
“Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him,
since He always lives to make intercession for them” (Heb. 7.25).
Our great salvation has been on display throughout these first three chapter of Ephesians.
With this knowledge and understanding, these people should not have strayed away from God, nor become beastly, like Nebuchadnezzar, nor should they have ever “left [their] first love” (Rev. 2.4).
Had they only taken to heart God’s great love for them, and the means by which they were to live their Christian lives successfully, nothing would have caused them to stumble (Ps. 119.165).
We are privy to the same doctrine. We have the option to never leave our first love, cling to Him for sanctification, and do the work that we have been called to do—those works prepared for us beforehand— that we should walk in them. (Eph. 2.10).
Rooted and grounded in love with Christ dwelling in our hearts through faith.
“But we will only realize this promise as we embrace our salvation and live it out together in daily obedience.”
Reflection
1. Do you think you’re growing in the grace of our great salvation? In what ways?
2. Where in your life would you like to know more of the grace of the Lord? How should you seek it?
3. How would you help a new believer understand the workings of God’s grace in our lives?
It is proper always to end prayers with praises. Let us expect more, and ask for more, encouraged by what Christ has already done for our souls, being assured that the conversion of sinners, and the comfort of believers, will be to his glory, for ever and ever. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Ephesians 3.20, 21
Pray Psalm 132.8-10.
Pray for grace to comprehend the mystery of His salvation in all its fullness, to know His Presence with you in all things, and to live in His righteousness and joy always.
Sing Psalm 132.8-10.
(Finlandia: Be Still, My Soul)
Arise, O LORD, come to Your resting place;
Your holy Presence meet with us in might.
Clothe us with righteousness in Jesus’ grace,
and we will shout to Your divine delight!
For David’s sake, turn not away Your face,but look upon us in Your holy light.
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment to give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest this week: In our ReVision series on “The Kingdom Economy” we continue looking at ways the Law of God applies to our lives. This week in our Read Moore podcast we consider the question of what it means to know Jesus Christ. Our Crosfigell teaching letter continues our study of the life of Brigit, a contemporary of Brendan. Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you.
And please prayerfully consider supporting The Fellowship of Ailbe with your prayers and gifts. You can contribute online, via PayPal or Anedot, or by sending a gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.
Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
