Transcript
Greetings in Jesus’ name,
It’s time to begin the service, and I’m glad you’ve joined us. We are in the book of Ephesians this evening, continuing our series. The title of this message is “The Working of His Great Might,” and we are still in the first chapter. I encourage you to open your Bibles and follow along if you can. Our focus is on verses 18 to the end of the chapter. Paul writes:
18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might, 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Let us pray:
Lord God, as we approach these scriptures, we pray for understanding through the spirit of wisdom and revelation. Help us to know You better. May we be humble before You, learning as dear children. Grant us this, we pray, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Well, we are revisiting the same passage we looked at in our previous lesson, but we are focusing on a different part. To provide context, in the earlier part of this chapter, Paul highlighted that the Ephesians were sealed by the Holy Spirit and guaranteed an inheritance in the world to come. Beginning in verse 15, Paul offered a prayer for the Ephesians, and he mentioned that this prayer is also for all saints, including us.
In this prayer, Paul’s primary request is for God to grant the Ephesians a personal revelation of the knowledge of God by the Holy Spirit. Starting in verse 18, Paul breaks down the different aspects of this revelation and what it would do for the Ephesians. To summarize, he prays for them to comprehend the hope to which they were called, understand the nature of their glorious inheritance in the world to come, and grasp the immeasurable greatness of God’s power towards believers. This revelation would help them understand that God can and will fulfill His promises, increasing their confidence and certainty.
A true revelation should deepen your personal understanding of God’s nature, power, and character and boost your confidence in God’s redemption promises. It should also provide a glimpse of what awaits in the hereafter. If a revelation does not advance these aspects, it may not be a genuine revelation. Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians exemplifies the kind of revelation that truly matters in the Kingdom of God.
Let’s take a closer look at verses 18 and 19 to understand what Paul is asking God to reveal to the Ephesians more clearly.
The hope to which he has called you
Paul’s first request in his prayer is for the Ephesians to understand the hope to which they are called. In this passage, Paul doesn’t elaborate on what the hope of their calling is, as he had already preached about such matters in person when he was with the Ephesians. To understand this hope, one must turn to Paul’s other letters, particularly Romans and Colossians.
The hope of our calling is that, over time, God will complete the work He initiated in our lives. This work involves molding us into the image of Jesus Christ, healing our broken spirits, and making us partakers of the divine nature. Ultimately, when we meet the Lord face to face, we shall be like Him. This is the ultimate hope, summed up as “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Glory is not a place we go to; it is a state of being, a state resembling God, where we share in His perfection and possess perfect love, joy, understanding, holiness, and more.
The hope of our calling is the assurance that, in the end, when the resurrection is complete and the second coming has occurred, we will be fully redeemed. This fulfills the scriptural promise that we are predestined to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ and be partakers of God’s glory.
When Paul prays for the Ephesians to gain a revelation of the hope of their calling through knowing God, he is asking them to envision the perfect character, nature, and glory of Almighty God. This revelation helps us grasp what we are destined to become when we inherit a portion of that glory in our future.
Riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints
Paul’s second request in his prayer is for the Ephesians to understand the riches of His glorious inheritance. As children of God, we possess a rich inheritance of eternal treasures that will not fade away. It is not about material wealth but about the everlasting treasures that never diminish.
The treasure that lasts forever is primarily described as love in 1 Corinthians 13. Paul explains that love never fails, and it is a treasure that will endure for eternity. Love is the fruit of the Spirit, which aligns with God’s divine nature and attributes, such as love, joy, peace, kindness, and self-control.
This fruit of the Spirit is the same holy and perfect character as God, and it is what the saints will share in fully. Today, we experience it in part, but when Christ appears, we will be transformed into His likeness and share in His glory.
Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians and all believers is to understand the treasures of God’s glorious inheritance in the saints. This inheritance is the final glorification of the saints, the completion of redemption, and the ultimate transformation where we share in God’s own glory. It is a process the Holy Spirit is currently working within us, as Paul describes in verse 18.
His Immeasurable Greatness of Power
18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might
And that brings us the third item that Paul is praying for the Ephesians will receive through the revelation of the knowledge of God. Through a direct encounter with God, he wants the Ephesians to understand the immeasurable greatness of God’s power towards those who believe.
Paul wants his readers to grasp the omnipotence of God. And as we read on down to verse 23, it is clear the reason Paul wants the Ephesians to understand this great power of God. So it will strengthen their confidence and assurance in the guarantee of their inheritance. So they will be able to be confident that, whatever they are facing that day, whatever may come between that hour in which they were reading this letter, and the end, God is going to achieve his purposes, and nothing can stop God. And God’s unstoppable purpose is to give the Ephesians, and you and I, this glorious inheritance that comes with the completion of redemption.
And God’s power is infinite. It is immeasurable because it is without limit. And he is using that power towards us who believe on Christ as our savior.
And, make sure you catch that. Catch how Paul speaks of this power. He speaking of this power is in terms of redemption and in terms of salvation. And when he says you who believe, he is talking about people who believe in Christ as savior. That is how a believer is defined here. A believer here is someone who believes in Christ as savior and one who believes that this great power is working to bring them to total redemption.
What Paul says about this power here is not an open blanket statement that God will use his power to give you whatsoever you believe in. But specifically, this means that people who come to saving faith and believe in Christ as savior will with total certainty obtain the glorious inheritance that is promised to them.
19 … the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might
The working of his great might.
And this last part of verse 19 is where I take the title for this lesson, “The working of his great might.” Paul is next going to describe to us how this power works, how it was wrought.
This immeasurable power, that has been used towards us who believe. What is the nature of that power, when did God use it? And what did he use it for? Well, he used it in the past in order to purchase our salvation. And he is using it in the present in order to guarantee our inheritance of glory.
So it is a power that was used in the past, and is also being used in the present.
And in the past, that power was already put to use by God in order to set the plan of redemption into motion. And in verse 20, Paul is going to describe how this great immeasurable power of God has been exercised in the past and how it is still being exercised today. And verse 20 says that this immeasurable power was worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places.
20 [was] … worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,
Paul here is telling us that, in that event of the resurrection and glorification of Jesus Christ, God demonstrated this great power. In the act of raising Christ from the dead and glorifying him, God showed exactly what he is going to do to everyone he saves. He is going to raise them from the dead, and glorify them. And in Jesus Christ, he proved that was not just a happy thought, or wishful thinking. God proved that was a reality, and that he truly does possess that power. He showed exactly that he has the power to raise the dead and to glorify.
And that is what we are looking forward to. We are looking towards the resurrection. We are looking towards glorification. And God has already proven he is able to do that, in the person of Jesus Christ.
He already worked that power in Jesus Christ. That is one aspect of what Paul is drawing our attention to here. But it’s deeper than that. The resurrection and ascension of Christ was more than a demonstration of God’s power. It was indeed a demonstration, but it was more than a demonstration.
It was also the event which made redemption for you and I possible. It took that event, in order for you and I to be redeemed from sin. It took that event, to set in motion the plan of redemption, that will ultimately lead to our total glorification. And so, the resurrection of Jesus was not simply a display of the power of God. But it was an act performed by God, for our benefit. It was the opening act to set in motion the plan of redemption.
In Jesus Christ, God atoned for the sins of the world, for whosoever will. And that opened the door for lost mankind to be redeemed. And God performed that work, in Jesus Christ, for the sake of those of us who believe.
19 … the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,
What a gift. What a wonderful God. What a wonderful savior. What a blessing toward us, for him to use his great immeasurable power, so that we might be redeemed.
And, as Paul says in Romans, whom he justified, them he also glorified. If you are justified by the blood of Jesus, you will indeed be glorified. You will indeed receive an inheritance of the glory of God in the world to come.
And as God raised Jesus from the dead, to complete our justification in the past, God is also working through Jesus Christ for our glorification right now in the present, for the ultimate completion of redemption in the future. And Paul goes on to explain that as we read on.
19 … the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,
Christ is seated at the right hand of God in the heavenly places today. And he is not just sitting there looking at a watch, and tapping his foot, being bored, and doing nothing. He is seated at the right hand in the heavenly places. And he is still today the conduit through which this great power is being worked, he is the lynchpin in the plan of redemption. He is the one by which all this great power is being worked.
21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Jesus Christ is endowed with all power, with all rule, and all dominion. All things are under the feet of Christ. That is exactly what Paul is telling us.
And as we go over into chapter 2, which I believe we will in our next lesson, Paul begins to explain what God is doing through Jesus Christ with this great immeasurable power. And in a summary, it is redeeming us. But not just. He is also redeeming all of creation. He is defeating the powers of darkness. And he is moving us and all creation towards the brighter tomorrow.
You see Paul mentions that in verse 21, “The age to come.” Today we are living in an age when redemption is a work in progress. But there will come an age when redemption is completed. There will be a brighter tomorrow. There will be a day when there is no more war, and no more sorrow, and no more pain, no more suffering, no more loss. There will be a day when there is no evil left in the world. And because there will be no more evil, there will be no more heartaches or sorrows, because such things only exist because of evil. All those sorts of things will cease. All will be peace and happiness forevermore on that happy golden shore.
And today, as we wait for that, Jesus Christ is seated at the right hand of power. God is working through the person of Jesus Christ to move all things towards that day. Amen.
Head Of All Things To The Church
21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Amen.
As I bring this lesson to a close, let me make one last point by drawing your attention to verse 22 and verse 23. Jesus Christ is the head of everything, and that includes the church.
Your head is Jesus Christ, as a member of the church, as a part of the body of Christ. Your head is Jesus Christ, and it is only your faith and obedience towards him that counts for anything.
Headship is not a preacher, headship is not a so-called five-fold ministry, headship is not anything that is part of the church. Headship is Jesus Christ.
The church is not what saves you, the church is not what guides you, the church is not what rules you. The church is saved by Jesus, guided by the Holy Spirit, and the Lord Jesus rules you, not a church, not a preacher. And anyone who puts themselves into that role is someone who is usurping the role of savior, the role of the Holy Spirit, and the role of God.
The church has a role to perform here on earth, and the ministry has a role to perform here on earth, but it is not ruling, it is not saving, and it is not leading and guiding your lives. Those things are not the role of the church or the ministry. Those things are the role of God, and people who take those roles to themselves are people who are presenting themselves as false Gods, and systems of religion built around those sorts of ideas are false systems of religion.
As natural people, you and I have a head in the natural, and my head tells my hand what to do, and my head tells my foot what to do, and my head tells my knee what to do. The head controls every part directly, there is no middle man. My head doesn’t tell my hand to tell my foot to tell my ear to tell my mouth to speak. No, the head controls every part directly.
Jesus Christ is the head of the church, and every member of the body, if it actually functions properly, takes direction directly from the head. And anyone who gets in the way, and tries to break your direct connection to the head, and tries to get you to obey them, rather than the head, that is someone to beware of.
We will talk about this more as we come to chapter 4. But I want you to make sure you catch here in these last two verses, Jesus is the head over ALL things in the church. Catch that: all things.
There is no middle man, people who appoint themselves as the voice of God to you, for personal direction of your life, and try to convince you that you can’t make it to heaven, or in a rapture, or be saved without them, they are usurping the role of Jesus Christ, they’re putting themselves in Christ’s seat, and they are not Christ, they are antichrist.
You have no obligation to respect something like that, and if you do, if you do let someone else take over the role of savior, and lord, and guide, in your life, it is going to cause you great turmoil, great heartache, and it will stunt your growth as a Christian.
You and I do not simply have a right to hear directly from Christ, but we have an obligation to hear directly from Christ. If you are living your life at the direction of someone besides Jesus Christ, you are a failed Christian, you are not following Christ, you are following some man.
That is not to say there is no place for teachers and ministers of the gospel, of course there is. And a true servant of the Lord will point you to Jesus, they will teach you what this Bible says, and they will tell you to let the Holy Spirit guide your life. But when those types of people take control of your life, they have exceeded the bounds of their gift.
They are not your savior, they are not your head, they are not the Holy Spirit, and they are certainly not God. And if you are depending on a man for the things that you should be depending on the savior for, or the Holy Spirit, you are in big trouble.
You need to know God yourself, because that is life eternal, to know God, to know Jesus Christ whom he sent.
It is not the preacher working by his great might that is going to redeem you, it’s not the church working by its great might that is going to save you, it’s not you working by your great might that is going to save you. It is God, working by his great might, through Jesus Christ, who has saved you and will glorify you. That is who you need working in your life, and you cannot outsource that to anyone else. God does not outsource that to anyone else. There is one mediator between man and God, that is Jesus Christ, and he is more than just a mediator for forgiveness of your sins. He is a mediator in all things, in direction, in guidance, in teaching, and instruction.
Which again, is not to say there is no place for teachers and mentors, of course there is. But the objective of those teachers and mentors and ministers, if they are truly working the will of God, will be to see you grow in maturity so that you are leaning on Christ and not on them.
You give a man a fish, you feed him for a day, but you teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime. A true servant of God is going to teach you how to fish. They are going to point you to Jesus and a walk with him. They are not going to seek to keep themselves as some sort of a middleman between you and Christ. And that is exactly what the Bible says a good minister does, and it says it right here in the book of Ephesians.
But for now, let’s just end with our emphasis on what we have read here. Christ is the head of every part of the body of Christ, and God is working his great power through Christ. He is the one with power over all things, not a middle man.
Christ is the one who needs to work in your life directly for redemption. A preacher cannot perfect you, a five-fold ministry cannot perfect you, only Jesus Christ working in your life can perfect you, redeem you, and glorify you. And if you think otherwise, you are reading your Bible wrong.
Amen.
So if you find yourself today in a system of religion that has denied you a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, I want to let you know that Jesus will not be offended if you jump ship and come follow him instead.
In fact, he has a lifeboat all ready for you. Just hop in and start rowing, and I promise you, if you put your faith in Jesus, he will lead you right.
It can be hard to throw away your faith in men. It can be hard to abandon your dependence on men or a lifestyle or habit of life you have held a long time. It can seem like a really big leap to actually accept Jesus as your savior, to actually say you believe he is enough to save you without adding anything to it, especially when all the people around you don’t believe that.
It can seem scary to step out on that kind of faith where it seems like you only have Jesus to lean on.
But I want you to know, he has all power, and there is nothing too big for him. And if your faith slips a bit and you start to sink beneath the waves, he will be there to pull you back up, just like he pulled up Peter.
Jesus loves you, and as we will find out when we get into chapter 2, there are a lot of wonderful things he wants to do in your life. But it takes putting him in his rightful place as Lord of your life and head of your body, believing in him as your one and only savior, and trusting in him to lead and guide you. It takes that for you to move forward with him.
And maybe, like the Ephesian church, you don’t fully understand these things, but that is why Paul is praying for them here. Don’t forget, we are reading Paul’s prayer for them.
Paul is praying for these realities of who God is and how he works through Jesus Christ. He is praying for those things to be fully revealed to the Ephesians in a personal and direct way. And that is my prayer for everyone listening today as well.
Prayer
Let me close here in prayer.
Lord God, you see each heart that is listening. I know how much you care for them. I know that everyone who has believed in Christ as their savior, you have sealed them with your Holy Spirit. You have guaranteed them an inheritance in the world to come. And Lord, I pray, between now and then, be ever more real to them. Grant them, by the spirit of revelation, a knowledge of you, a personal, direct knowledge of you, so they may become mature, fully equipped, no longer stunted in their growth, like a baby in need of someone to give them a bottle, but mature believers who walk hand in hand with you, who truly know you. Grant this to each one, I pray, in Jesus’ name. Amen.