1 00:00:00,680 --> 00:00:05,200 Secular historians tend to concentrate as they look 2 00:00:05,200 --> 00:00:09,960 backwards on history, on the rulers, on the powerful, on the 3 00:00:09,960 --> 00:00:13,800 wealthy, on kings and statesman and Queens and presidents and 4 00:00:13,960 --> 00:00:17,840 politicians in generals and all the mucky muck and all the VIP. 5 00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:20,840 That's how we look back on history. 6 00:00:20,840 --> 00:00:22,160 It's called several different names. 7 00:00:22,160 --> 00:00:25,880 We call this heroic history, we call it top down history. 8 00:00:26,480 --> 00:00:31,200 We call it, according to Thomas Carlisle, Great Man history, 9 00:00:31,200 --> 00:00:33,920 where we look through history as it shaped through a few elite 10 00:00:33,920 --> 00:00:37,640 and powerful individuals. When you come to Scripture, it 11 00:00:37,640 --> 00:00:40,720 has a different perspective. As I was preparing this, I was 12 00:00:40,720 --> 00:00:43,800 reading Acts 4 this week. I want you to see the 13 00:00:43,800 --> 00:00:45,640 perspective that Scripture brings. 14 00:00:46,960 --> 00:00:49,240 We could call it providential history all the way back in Acts 15 00:00:49,240 --> 00:00:50,880 4. The church has just been born 16 00:00:51,680 --> 00:00:55,560 and you have Peter and John healing a lame beggar outside of 17 00:00:55,560 --> 00:00:57,680 the temple. And this beggar begins to make a 18 00:00:57,680 --> 00:01:01,080 scene glorifying God and pouring out praises and Thanksgiving on 19 00:01:01,080 --> 00:01:04,160 the apostles who have just healed him, showering gratitude 20 00:01:04,160 --> 00:01:06,440 on them. And then it records of the 21 00:01:06,440 --> 00:01:08,240 people who are witnessing the event. 22 00:01:08,960 --> 00:01:12,600 They were utterly astounded, is what it says. 23 00:01:12,600 --> 00:01:14,600 And Peter says, men of Israel, why do you wonder at this? 24 00:01:14,600 --> 00:01:18,000 Or why do you stare at us as though by our own power or piety 25 00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:22,560 we have made him walk by our own power or holiness and devotion? 26 00:01:23,040 --> 00:01:25,680 God has made this man strong whom you see and know. 27 00:01:25,840 --> 00:01:28,800 And the faith that is through Jesus has given this man perfect 28 00:01:28,800 --> 00:01:30,960 health in the presence of you all. 29 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:34,680 And as Peter and John are healing this man, I want you to 30 00:01:34,680 --> 00:01:37,000 see who takes notice of their ministry. 31 00:01:37,720 --> 00:01:41,000 It goes down not only all of the people, but it says the priests 32 00:01:41,160 --> 00:01:44,480 and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came among 33 00:01:44,480 --> 00:01:46,440 them, and they arrest them and they put them in custody. 34 00:01:46,760 --> 00:01:49,160 And it keeps categorizing all of the people who are witnessing. 35 00:01:49,160 --> 00:01:53,600 And Luke makes this list of who else takes notice, The rulers, 36 00:01:54,120 --> 00:01:58,800 the elders, the scribes, Anas, the high priest and Caiaphas and 37 00:01:58,800 --> 00:02:02,760 John and Alexander and all who were of the high priestly 38 00:02:02,760 --> 00:02:05,840 family, They're all watching this ministry. 39 00:02:05,840 --> 00:02:08,280 And then it was in that moment that Peter stands up and 40 00:02:08,280 --> 00:02:10,759 confesses the famous words of Acts 412. 41 00:02:10,759 --> 00:02:12,920 By the name of Jesus Christ, there is salvation and no one 42 00:02:12,920 --> 00:02:14,800 else. But there's no other name given 43 00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:17,440 among men by which we must be saved. 44 00:02:17,440 --> 00:02:20,760 That's the context of those words, verse 13, they saw the 45 00:02:20,760 --> 00:02:24,480 boldness of Peter and John and they said these are uneducated 46 00:02:24,600 --> 00:02:27,960 common men and they were astounded. 47 00:02:28,320 --> 00:02:31,880 They were astonished. And so Scripture, when you read 48 00:02:31,880 --> 00:02:35,400 it, it gives a measure of focus to rulers and authorities and 49 00:02:35,400 --> 00:02:38,520 powers. It does give some focus to them 50 00:02:38,520 --> 00:02:42,680 and it gives some focus to the apostles. 51 00:02:43,200 --> 00:02:47,400 But even these, these cosmic authorities, these, these 52 00:02:47,400 --> 00:02:50,720 powerhouses, they're a, they're a contrastive backdrop. 53 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:53,280 They're the foil of the story. There's some measure of 54 00:02:53,280 --> 00:02:55,000 authority that's given to Peter and John. 55 00:02:55,000 --> 00:02:57,240 They're important characters, but they are passive 56 00:02:57,240 --> 00:02:59,320 instruments. Listen to the language. 57 00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:03,200 Many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles, 58 00:03:04,280 --> 00:03:06,280 goes on to Acts 312. Why do you stare at us? 59 00:03:06,280 --> 00:03:10,400 He said As though by our power or by our power, piety, anything 60 00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:14,080 is coming to place. Acts 410 by the name of Jesus, 61 00:03:14,240 --> 00:03:17,360 this man is standing before you well, and he says they were 62 00:03:17,360 --> 00:03:21,120 filled with the Holy Spirit. It's a passive verb, a matter of 63 00:03:21,120 --> 00:03:22,600 fact. We're commanded to be being 64 00:03:22,600 --> 00:03:26,280 filled by the Spirit. Just to show you can't do this. 65 00:03:26,440 --> 00:03:29,360 This is not in your own power. So wordly kings and rulers are 66 00:03:29,360 --> 00:03:31,560 not the focus. Peter and John are not the 67 00:03:31,560 --> 00:03:34,280 focus. God is the focus. 68 00:03:34,280 --> 00:03:38,960 Acts 433, specifically His eternal plan, His grace and His 69 00:03:38,960 --> 00:03:41,680 power. That's what he wants to 70 00:03:41,680 --> 00:03:43,800 highlight and the rich and the influential of the world where 71 00:03:43,800 --> 00:03:47,800 the foil, the backdrop that highlights this truth that God 72 00:03:47,800 --> 00:03:52,080 works his grace and power through ordinary spirit filled 73 00:03:52,120 --> 00:03:55,640 believers. And that's the perspective of 74 00:03:55,640 --> 00:03:57,200 Scripture. We could call it providential 75 00:03:57,200 --> 00:04:00,760 history, God moving in and through the instrumentation of 76 00:04:01,160 --> 00:04:02,840 individual Saints and his church. 77 00:04:02,840 --> 00:04:06,120 We could call it history from the margins because God is 78 00:04:06,120 --> 00:04:11,240 pleased to use the lowly and the uneducated and the common men, 79 00:04:11,240 --> 00:04:15,720 the vulnerable and the weak, and God used these men and women to 80 00:04:15,720 --> 00:04:20,240 turn the world upside down. He takes this perspective and 81 00:04:20,240 --> 00:04:21,920 applies it to you as the individual Christian. 82 00:04:21,920 --> 00:04:25,600 In First Corinthians 1, he says, consider your own calling, 83 00:04:25,720 --> 00:04:28,400 brothers and sisters. Not many of you were wise 84 00:04:28,400 --> 00:04:31,560 according to worldly standards. Not many of you were powerful. 85 00:04:32,120 --> 00:04:35,520 Not many were of noble birth, but God chose what is foolish in 86 00:04:35,520 --> 00:04:38,360 the world to shame the wise. God chose what is weak in the 87 00:04:38,360 --> 00:04:41,000 world to shame the strong. God chose what is low and 88 00:04:41,000 --> 00:04:43,760 despised in the world, even things that are not to bring to 89 00:04:43,760 --> 00:04:47,320 nothing, things that are, so that no human being might boast 90 00:04:47,320 --> 00:04:49,800 in the presence of God. And because of Him you are in 91 00:04:49,800 --> 00:04:53,440 Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom and righteousness and 92 00:04:53,440 --> 00:04:56,600 sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, let 93 00:04:56,600 --> 00:04:59,040 the one who boasts boast in the Lord. 94 00:04:59,680 --> 00:05:04,920 Having this perspective, turn in your Bibles to Ephesians 3 with 95 00:05:04,920 --> 00:05:09,000 this in your mind. And in Ephesians 3 you've got 96 00:05:09,000 --> 00:05:12,400 the VIPs, the cosmic authorities in the heavenly places, the 97 00:05:12,400 --> 00:05:14,440 kings and the rulers. They are not the focus. 98 00:05:15,080 --> 00:05:20,640 God is the focus of Ephesians 3, and Paul calls himself here the 99 00:05:20,640 --> 00:05:25,200 least of all the Saints. He is a channel of God's grace 100 00:05:25,320 --> 00:05:27,680 and power, and the rulers are the foil. 101 00:05:27,680 --> 00:05:29,800 Cosmically, they are the backdrop. 102 00:05:29,800 --> 00:05:32,320 They are the audience. They are not the workers. 103 00:05:33,000 --> 00:05:35,600 They think that they possess grand power and grand authority 104 00:05:35,600 --> 00:05:38,880 until they have to deal with this reality of the power of the 105 00:05:38,880 --> 00:05:41,840 church. And they think that they are 106 00:05:41,840 --> 00:05:43,960 strong until they're forced to come to grips with their own 107 00:05:43,960 --> 00:05:49,280 weakness and powerlessness in the face of God's ministers and 108 00:05:49,280 --> 00:05:50,640 God's church. And so here's the point. 109 00:05:50,640 --> 00:05:53,280 Paul says that in his personal ministry, this is true for him. 110 00:05:53,280 --> 00:05:55,240 It's true for you and your personal ministry. 111 00:05:55,240 --> 00:05:59,200 And in your participation in this church, you become a 112 00:05:59,200 --> 00:06:02,360 theater for the cosmic authorities and rulers and 113 00:06:02,360 --> 00:06:05,120 principalities of this world. And in the heavenly realm. 114 00:06:05,480 --> 00:06:07,560 You are a theater. And we are a theater. 115 00:06:07,560 --> 00:06:11,280 And this is what we're showcasing, God's grace, God's 116 00:06:11,280 --> 00:06:14,560 power, God's riches, and God's wisdom. 117 00:06:15,360 --> 00:06:19,040 This is the cosmic significance of your personal ministry. 118 00:06:19,040 --> 00:06:23,800 Read with me Ephesians 3. We are in verse 7 this morning. 119 00:06:23,800 --> 00:06:29,000 Paul says this of this gospel. I was made a minister according 120 00:06:29,000 --> 00:06:31,880 to the gift of God's grace, which was given me by the 121 00:06:31,880 --> 00:06:35,280 working of his power to me, though I'm the very least of all 122 00:06:35,280 --> 00:06:37,400 the Saints. This grace was given to preach 123 00:06:37,400 --> 00:06:40,600 to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ and to bring to 124 00:06:40,600 --> 00:06:43,160 light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for 125 00:06:43,160 --> 00:06:46,760 ages in God who created all things, so that through the 126 00:06:46,760 --> 00:06:50,320 church the manifold wisdom of God might be made known to the 127 00:06:50,320 --> 00:06:52,400 rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 128 00:06:52,800 --> 00:06:55,240 This was according to the eternal purpose that he realized 129 00:06:55,240 --> 00:06:59,200 in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access 130 00:06:59,400 --> 00:07:01,200 with confidence through our faith in Him. 131 00:07:01,480 --> 00:07:04,280 So I ask you not to lose heart over what I'm suffering for you, 132 00:07:04,520 --> 00:07:10,320 which is your glory. So in Ephesians from verse 1 of 133 00:07:10,320 --> 00:07:13,680 chapter 1 until now, Paul has been working out your identity. 134 00:07:14,400 --> 00:07:16,720 Remember where you were. He said chapter 2, verse 11 and 135 00:07:16,720 --> 00:07:17,600 12. Remember where you were. 136 00:07:17,600 --> 00:07:22,080 Remember who you were. He says you were now chosen in 137 00:07:22,080 --> 00:07:24,200 Christ. You were chosen in Christ before 138 00:07:24,200 --> 00:07:28,040 the foundation of the world. You are predestined for adoption 139 00:07:28,280 --> 00:07:31,000 in Him. You're redeemed through His 140 00:07:31,000 --> 00:07:33,640 blood. You've been given an inheritance 141 00:07:33,720 --> 00:07:37,520 in glory, and the Holy Spirit has been given as a promise or a 142 00:07:37,520 --> 00:07:40,160 guarantee of the inheritance until you acquire possession of 143 00:07:40,160 --> 00:07:42,200 it to the praise of His glorious grace. 144 00:07:42,520 --> 00:07:45,880 You were dead in your trespasses and sins, but you have been made 145 00:07:45,880 --> 00:07:49,440 alive with Christ. You are members of the body. 146 00:07:49,440 --> 00:07:52,800 You are partakers in the promise in Christ through the gospel. 147 00:07:53,160 --> 00:07:55,200 This is unchanging. This is eternal. 148 00:07:55,280 --> 00:07:58,600 This is who you are. This is your identity and 149 00:07:58,600 --> 00:08:01,760 building on that foundation as you come into chapters 2 and 150 00:08:01,760 --> 00:08:06,440 three and four, he says part of your identity are the spiritual 151 00:08:06,440 --> 00:08:11,040 gifts that God has given you. This these gifts match the 152 00:08:11,040 --> 00:08:14,080 calling and election that came in chapter 1. 153 00:08:15,400 --> 00:08:17,560 And so he's given you these giftings and your personal 154 00:08:17,560 --> 00:08:20,720 ministry and what God has equipped you to do is of 155 00:08:20,920 --> 00:08:23,480 monumental and cosmic importance. 156 00:08:24,280 --> 00:08:27,680 Paul called it last week. This is a stewardship of grace. 157 00:08:27,680 --> 00:08:31,160 We call it sometimes spiritual gift gift is implied in the 158 00:08:31,160 --> 00:08:32,200 Bible. It's you've been given 159 00:08:32,200 --> 00:08:35,159 spirituals, you've been given a stewardship of grace and 160 00:08:35,159 --> 00:08:38,880 responsibility. Remembering you're not saved by 161 00:08:38,880 --> 00:08:42,240 good works, You're saved for good works which the Lord has 162 00:08:42,240 --> 00:08:44,880 promised and prepared beforehand that you should walk in them. 163 00:08:45,360 --> 00:08:49,000 And so as you come into this, he shows the cosmic significance of 164 00:08:49,320 --> 00:08:54,520 your ministry of those works. And he first he says that when 165 00:08:54,520 --> 00:08:57,480 you're serving according to the grace he given you, you can take 166 00:08:57,480 --> 00:08:58,800 notes here. Number 1. 167 00:08:58,800 --> 00:09:03,080 He says you are a theatre of God's grace and power. 168 00:09:03,920 --> 00:09:06,120 You are a theatre of God's grace and power. 169 00:09:06,120 --> 00:09:08,920 He begins in verse 7. You can read again with me of 170 00:09:08,920 --> 00:09:11,440 this gospel. Actually, gospel is the that 171 00:09:11,440 --> 00:09:13,080 word is going to be grammatically. 172 00:09:13,080 --> 00:09:14,880 Everything else in the passage is going to be grammatically 173 00:09:14,880 --> 00:09:16,640 tied to that. This is what we're talking about 174 00:09:16,800 --> 00:09:20,680 of this gospel. I was made a minister according 175 00:09:20,680 --> 00:09:22,840 to the gift of God's grace, which was given me by the 176 00:09:22,840 --> 00:09:25,400 working of his power. That can be your mantra that you 177 00:09:25,400 --> 00:09:28,480 repeat to yourself again and again and again of this gospel. 178 00:09:28,560 --> 00:09:30,880 I was made a minister of this gospel. 179 00:09:30,880 --> 00:09:36,080 I was made a servant, and it says it was according to God's 180 00:09:36,160 --> 00:09:39,840 gift of grace. It was given to me, a passive 181 00:09:39,840 --> 00:09:41,480 participle. You didn't earn this. 182 00:09:41,760 --> 00:09:43,920 You didn't choose this. You weren't expecting this. 183 00:09:44,160 --> 00:09:47,280 This happened to you. God poured out His grace, His 184 00:09:47,280 --> 00:09:50,600 stewardship of grace, and it it shows that you and Paul are 185 00:09:50,600 --> 00:09:54,520 passive recipients of God's enabling power. 186 00:09:55,800 --> 00:09:57,960 So he's not ministering according to his own power and 187 00:09:57,960 --> 00:10:01,080 glory like the other apostles. It was God's grace given him. 188 00:10:01,080 --> 00:10:04,120 And we even know the moment this that this happened for you. 189 00:10:04,120 --> 00:10:05,360 We know it's the moment that you're saved. 190 00:10:05,360 --> 00:10:07,520 But for Paul, it's on the Damascus Rd. 191 00:10:07,520 --> 00:10:09,200 Was he expecting what happened to him? 192 00:10:10,160 --> 00:10:12,000 Did he earn it? Did he deserve it? 193 00:10:12,040 --> 00:10:15,600 Was he anticipating it? No, it's instantaneous. 194 00:10:15,600 --> 00:10:18,320 It's miraculous as he's converted in a in a moment, he 195 00:10:18,320 --> 00:10:24,240 goes from breathing threats and murder to being a preacher of 196 00:10:24,240 --> 00:10:27,360 the Kingdom of God. And so on the road, it said that 197 00:10:27,360 --> 00:10:31,640 Paul was traveling to Damascus and a light shone from heaven. 198 00:10:31,640 --> 00:10:34,440 It was brighter than the sun, and he fell to the ground. 199 00:10:34,440 --> 00:10:36,400 And a very dramatic moment. All the other people are on the 200 00:10:36,400 --> 00:10:38,200 ground and they, they can't see what's happening. 201 00:10:38,200 --> 00:10:39,160 They can't hear what's happening. 202 00:10:39,160 --> 00:10:42,400 And Paul is surrounded by this light, and God enables him to 203 00:10:42,400 --> 00:10:47,640 stand up and to receive his calling, and he appoints him, 204 00:10:47,640 --> 00:10:52,360 that passage says, as a servant. That is the same language that's 205 00:10:52,360 --> 00:10:55,520 used in Ephesians 37. He says of this gospel, I was 206 00:10:55,520 --> 00:10:59,320 made a minister. It's the word diakonos, a 207 00:10:59,360 --> 00:11:04,720 servant of this gospel. I was made a minister to preach 208 00:11:04,720 --> 00:11:09,240 the gospel for him to Gentiles and Jews and kings and rulers. 209 00:11:10,520 --> 00:11:12,400 And this is what I want you to see about his ministry. 210 00:11:12,400 --> 00:11:16,760 It says he was made a minister according to the gift of God's 211 00:11:16,840 --> 00:11:19,200 grace. So you are a theater for his 212 00:11:19,200 --> 00:11:21,800 grace and power. I want you to see first that you 213 00:11:21,800 --> 00:11:25,600 are a theater of His grace. Your ministry is a testimony to 214 00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:28,840 the grace of God. And I want to go back and just 215 00:11:28,840 --> 00:11:31,120 remind you, if you were here, there's a recap. 216 00:11:31,120 --> 00:11:33,920 If you weren't, last week was all about grace. 217 00:11:34,560 --> 00:11:37,360 And he says that you received this grace. 218 00:11:37,360 --> 00:11:40,560 It begins for you as a believer in Ephesians 28 and 9. 219 00:11:41,160 --> 00:11:44,640 For by grace you have been saved through what faith? 220 00:11:44,640 --> 00:11:46,920 This is not your own doing. It's the gift of God, not of 221 00:11:46,920 --> 00:11:51,440 work, so that no one can boast. You are his masterpiece, created 222 00:11:51,440 --> 00:11:54,960 in Christ Jesus for good works. And at the moment that you're 223 00:11:54,960 --> 00:11:59,120 saved by grace, you are entrusted with grace. 224 00:12:00,000 --> 00:12:03,120 You become a conduit of grace. You're given gifts according to 225 00:12:03,120 --> 00:12:04,920 God's grace. Like Paul, you're given 226 00:12:04,920 --> 00:12:08,840 stewardship and responsibility to serve with urgency. 227 00:12:10,520 --> 00:12:15,040 And the call is to steward that grace, to engage, engage in 228 00:12:15,040 --> 00:12:17,400 ministry, to love on the church and the world. 229 00:12:17,400 --> 00:12:20,760 It's grace received, grace entrusted, and then grace 230 00:12:20,760 --> 00:12:22,880 stewarded. You are responsible to steward 231 00:12:22,880 --> 00:12:25,320 that grace. And when you minister according 232 00:12:25,600 --> 00:12:28,440 to your purpose, you demonstrate God's grace to the world. 233 00:12:28,440 --> 00:12:32,520 They can see it in you. And this word grace as used in 234 00:12:32,520 --> 00:12:35,240 Ephesians 3, when you look it up in the Greek lexicon, it's 235 00:12:35,240 --> 00:12:38,040 really interesting. He says that it takes on a very 236 00:12:38,040 --> 00:12:40,640 concrete and tangible definition here. 237 00:12:41,160 --> 00:12:45,360 It means an acceptable and exceptional effect produced by 238 00:12:45,360 --> 00:12:48,080 divine generosity. That's what grace is, an 239 00:12:48,080 --> 00:12:51,280 exceptional effect produced by divine generosity. 240 00:12:51,280 --> 00:12:53,920 It's the effect of God acting graciously, producing what it 241 00:12:53,920 --> 00:12:59,160 says is real, tangible outcomes. If you want to see it today, if 242 00:12:59,160 --> 00:13:02,000 you want to see it in action, I think of Tarinda Lester who came 243 00:13:02,000 --> 00:13:06,280 to this church with an urgency. She came here burdened to 244 00:13:06,280 --> 00:13:09,760 counsel individuals and she came into this church and she she 245 00:13:09,760 --> 00:13:11,560 began to counsel here. I see people come through every 246 00:13:11,560 --> 00:13:14,200 Thursday coming up to her. She transitioned the rooms to 247 00:13:14,200 --> 00:13:16,840 transform the rooms behind Houghton Sunday School into 248 00:13:16,840 --> 00:13:20,320 counseling rooms. And she's got by her energy and 249 00:13:20,320 --> 00:13:24,040 through her passion, we now have the combined efforts of 14 250 00:13:24,040 --> 00:13:27,000 individuals who are going through multi year biblical 251 00:13:27,000 --> 00:13:29,200 counseling training in this church. 252 00:13:29,200 --> 00:13:31,360 Again, it's her passion, her conviction. 253 00:13:31,360 --> 00:13:35,160 That's grace. And it produces real tangible 254 00:13:35,360 --> 00:13:37,440 outcomes for people in our community outside of these 255 00:13:37,440 --> 00:13:38,880 walls. What does that mean when her 256 00:13:38,880 --> 00:13:41,520 grace is displayed? It means that there are people 257 00:13:41,520 --> 00:13:43,920 who are calling this church saying, is there a counselor 258 00:13:43,920 --> 00:13:47,160 here who can help me with the abuse that I've survived? 259 00:13:47,640 --> 00:13:49,440 Are there people in your church that can help me in the 260 00:13:49,440 --> 00:13:52,680 difficulties in my marriage? And the answer is yes. 261 00:13:53,000 --> 00:13:55,400 And I get to say, not only do we have counselors, we have 262 00:13:55,560 --> 00:13:57,880 multiple counselors. And let me see if I can. 263 00:13:58,040 --> 00:14:00,440 Let me see who's best to put you in contact with. 264 00:14:00,800 --> 00:14:04,240 That's God's grace, and it's transforming real people in and 265 00:14:04,240 --> 00:14:06,560 out of this church. It's incredible. 266 00:14:06,560 --> 00:14:09,800 That's God's grace displayed. And this lexicon goes on to show 267 00:14:09,800 --> 00:14:13,920 this word Grace, when it's used, is emphasized in the Bible as 268 00:14:13,920 --> 00:14:17,480 gifts being given to a Christian that's beyond their status. 269 00:14:18,680 --> 00:14:21,640 It's gifts given to Christians that they don't deserve and that 270 00:14:21,640 --> 00:14:26,480 they don't expect. A good model is David, King 271 00:14:26,480 --> 00:14:30,440 David, the youngest son of a shepherd and a farmer who was 272 00:14:30,440 --> 00:14:33,280 expecting nothing. And God used him to establish 273 00:14:33,280 --> 00:14:36,360 the bloodline and the throne of Jesus Christ. 274 00:14:36,840 --> 00:14:41,360 So we say by grace, this young shepherd boy was anointed king 275 00:14:42,200 --> 00:14:44,360 by grace. Paul, the least of all the 276 00:14:44,360 --> 00:14:47,560 Saints and the greatest of all the sinners, is given a mission 277 00:14:47,560 --> 00:14:50,920 of cosmic significance, and by grace it is. 278 00:14:50,920 --> 00:14:54,320 You have been saved through faith, and this is not your own 279 00:14:54,320 --> 00:14:55,840 doing. It's the gift of works. 280 00:14:56,000 --> 00:14:59,480 You were given a new set of gifts matching your new identity 281 00:14:59,800 --> 00:15:02,400 in Christ. So God has given you 282 00:15:02,760 --> 00:15:07,360 extraordinary divine favors, remarkable gifts with 283 00:15:07,360 --> 00:15:09,560 exceptional effects in the world. 284 00:15:09,560 --> 00:15:12,160 And this demonstrates to the watching church what are the 285 00:15:12,160 --> 00:15:14,840 grace and power of God. And most importantly, as 286 00:15:14,840 --> 00:15:18,200 emphasized here, you're showing the world the grace and the 287 00:15:18,200 --> 00:15:21,760 power of God. And this is beyond what a person 288 00:15:21,760 --> 00:15:25,120 deserves or expects. If you look in on to verse 8, 289 00:15:25,120 --> 00:15:26,760 this is obviously what Paul is saying. 290 00:15:26,760 --> 00:15:30,600 He's he says though to me though I'm the least of all the Saints, 291 00:15:30,600 --> 00:15:32,480 though I'm the very least of all the Saints. 292 00:15:32,720 --> 00:15:36,360 This grace is given. He he feels worthless, unworthy 293 00:15:37,600 --> 00:15:41,360 in the original language. He he says it literally and with 294 00:15:41,360 --> 00:15:44,040 incorrect grammar. I am the Lister of all the 295 00:15:44,040 --> 00:15:46,800 Saints. And so people speculate on why 296 00:15:46,800 --> 00:15:49,600 he uses this. It's for emphasis, but some say 297 00:15:49,600 --> 00:15:52,120 it's because he it's a superlative. 298 00:15:52,120 --> 00:15:55,040 He's saying I am the least of the least and I'm the bottom of 299 00:15:55,040 --> 00:15:57,560 the barrel when it comes to Christians. 300 00:15:58,040 --> 00:16:00,000 And other people are saying he's playing on his own name. 301 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:02,960 Remember his his word. The word Paul now means small or 302 00:16:02,960 --> 00:16:08,880 humble as opposed to Saul which meant desired, the desired 1 And 303 00:16:08,880 --> 00:16:10,840 so his name means little. And if you read the history 304 00:16:10,840 --> 00:16:14,600 books, it says that Paul was bowlegged, short, covered in 305 00:16:14,600 --> 00:16:18,520 scars, ugly. And So what he may be saying is 306 00:16:18,520 --> 00:16:21,400 I'm small by name. I'm small in stature, I'm small 307 00:16:21,400 --> 00:16:23,480 in faith, the littlest of all the Christians. 308 00:16:23,480 --> 00:16:25,720 And now look at God's grace as it's displayed in me. 309 00:16:27,560 --> 00:16:30,080 And so Paul speaks of his own personal testimony of 310 00:16:30,080 --> 00:16:34,320 unworthiness in verse 7. And so I'll share some of my own 311 00:16:34,320 --> 00:16:36,160 personal testimony of of unworthiness. 312 00:16:36,160 --> 00:16:39,400 When I was in college at OSU, we had to take a speech class. 313 00:16:39,760 --> 00:16:41,440 Anybody else have to go through that misery? 314 00:16:42,120 --> 00:16:44,880 It was in speech class and I had to give a public speech in front 315 00:16:44,880 --> 00:16:49,120 of 3035 people. And I remember being so 316 00:16:49,120 --> 00:16:52,320 terrified that when it was my turn to stand up, my legs were 317 00:16:52,320 --> 00:16:54,400 shaking uncontrollably. My knees were literally 318 00:16:54,400 --> 00:16:56,800 knocking. And I knew it because no one in 319 00:16:56,800 --> 00:16:58,560 the classroom was looking at me in the eye. 320 00:16:58,760 --> 00:17:02,320 They were all looking at my knees, at my legs and laughing. 321 00:17:02,320 --> 00:17:06,760 And I remember reading even as a kid, going back reading Exodus 322 00:17:06,760 --> 00:17:10,560 where it says consecrate unto me, the first born, all those 323 00:17:10,560 --> 00:17:12,160 that open the womb are holy to me. 324 00:17:12,160 --> 00:17:14,280 And I thought that meant that the first born had to be a 325 00:17:14,599 --> 00:17:16,880 preacher. And so I begged with God my 326 00:17:16,880 --> 00:17:20,599 whole life, like, please Lord, help me not to do anything but 327 00:17:20,599 --> 00:17:22,520 this. Lord, I will do anything but be 328 00:17:22,520 --> 00:17:27,000 a pastor. And so again, we don't expect 329 00:17:27,000 --> 00:17:28,720 it. We don't want it. 330 00:17:28,880 --> 00:17:31,760 It's above our station. Who is sufficient for these 331 00:17:31,760 --> 00:17:34,160 things? God calls you. 332 00:17:34,760 --> 00:17:37,400 And I could say now on the other side of it, when he gave me a 333 00:17:37,400 --> 00:17:39,520 new nature, He gave me a new set of spiritual gifts. 334 00:17:39,520 --> 00:17:42,640 He made me desire this, and so there's nothing more than I 335 00:17:42,640 --> 00:17:45,400 desire now than to be a pastor and to try and steward these 336 00:17:45,400 --> 00:17:49,600 gifts well. And you can apply this to your 337 00:17:49,600 --> 00:17:53,840 own life and ministry because grace here by definition exceeds 338 00:17:53,840 --> 00:17:57,680 what you expect and it far exceeds what you deserve. 339 00:17:58,200 --> 00:18:02,480 It's an extraordinary divine favor and you believe are given 340 00:18:02,480 --> 00:18:05,600 gifts that are remarkable in their effect. 341 00:18:05,600 --> 00:18:08,520 And this is to glorify God in heaven and to showcase his grace 342 00:18:08,720 --> 00:18:11,320 to the world. The lexicon goes on and says, 343 00:18:11,320 --> 00:18:15,480 for this reason, it's it's difficult to to contrast grace 344 00:18:15,480 --> 00:18:17,680 and power. There's so much overlap. 345 00:18:18,040 --> 00:18:20,120 And so I want you to see the second aspect of your personal 346 00:18:20,120 --> 00:18:22,600 ministry because they go together, you're manifesting his 347 00:18:22,600 --> 00:18:26,200 grace, but you are also a theater for the power of God. 348 00:18:27,840 --> 00:18:29,760 And that word power also comes in verse 7. 349 00:18:29,760 --> 00:18:33,080 Power is has been all through Ephesians 1, the Ephesians 2, 350 00:18:33,080 --> 00:18:36,160 it's been the, the theme, the thread connecting Ephesians 1/15 351 00:18:36,160 --> 00:18:39,000 to 3/9. It was in verse 19 of chapter 352 00:18:39,000 --> 00:18:41,120 one, verse 21. It's the word dunamis. 353 00:18:41,320 --> 00:18:44,920 It means power or capacity, the ability to act. 354 00:18:45,560 --> 00:18:48,080 And so we confess that our God does not just wield authority. 355 00:18:48,080 --> 00:18:50,960 He does not just possess authority, He uses it. 356 00:18:51,320 --> 00:18:53,040 He enacts that authority in the world. 357 00:18:53,040 --> 00:18:55,200 We call it Providence is his power. 358 00:18:55,520 --> 00:18:57,840 And this divine power we've seen so far in the book. 359 00:18:57,840 --> 00:19:00,080 It raised Christ Jesus from the dead. 360 00:19:00,800 --> 00:19:05,600 It saves sinners by grace. It stitches together Jews and 361 00:19:05,600 --> 00:19:09,320 Gentiles. And now in our chapter, it's 362 00:19:09,320 --> 00:19:13,160 calling Saints and empowering them for fruitful and faithful 363 00:19:13,160 --> 00:19:15,880 Christian service. According to verse 7, this was 364 00:19:16,000 --> 00:19:18,880 grace given to Paul by the working of God's power. 365 00:19:18,880 --> 00:19:22,840 He takes you the sinful and selfish one, and now He makes 366 00:19:22,840 --> 00:19:25,200 you the fruitful and faithful one. 367 00:19:25,960 --> 00:19:29,560 Why? To showcase His grace and power 368 00:19:29,920 --> 00:19:31,440 by stewarding your gifts of grace. 369 00:19:31,440 --> 00:19:33,080 God has given you a measure of time. 370 00:19:33,320 --> 00:19:35,680 He's given you a measure of treasure, and He's given you 371 00:19:35,840 --> 00:19:37,960 talents. And with it comes all the 372 00:19:37,960 --> 00:19:40,640 responsibility. You look through history of all 373 00:19:40,640 --> 00:19:41,680 these people we've been studying. 374 00:19:41,680 --> 00:19:45,280 His power was made known through John Knox as he won Scotland for 375 00:19:45,280 --> 00:19:47,360 Christ. His power was made known in 376 00:19:47,360 --> 00:19:50,920 George Mueller as he took over 10,000 orphans off the streets 377 00:19:50,920 --> 00:19:52,840 of Bristol and put them into a home. 378 00:19:53,360 --> 00:19:55,400 And the world looks at that. They don't even, they don't have 379 00:19:55,400 --> 00:19:58,440 a category for that. This is power, this is grace. 380 00:19:58,680 --> 00:20:02,320 He took William Tyndale who gave his life so that we, the English 381 00:20:02,320 --> 00:20:04,800 speaking world could have a Bible in our own language. 382 00:20:05,280 --> 00:20:08,560 This is God's power and grace. What does it look like today? 383 00:20:09,040 --> 00:20:11,880 Another servant of our church. If you want to see power and 384 00:20:11,880 --> 00:20:13,880 grace, look at the ministry of Nick Dingus. 385 00:20:14,840 --> 00:20:18,200 Who even now is serving in the back of the room if if you've 386 00:20:18,200 --> 00:20:21,680 looked, God gave him a heart and a unique ability to surf through 387 00:20:21,680 --> 00:20:25,240 technology platforms. And so if you've ever been on 388 00:20:25,240 --> 00:20:28,000 our beautiful and functional church app, that's the work of 389 00:20:28,400 --> 00:20:31,480 Premier Li one person. If you've seen the the church 390 00:20:31,480 --> 00:20:35,760 website, if you've seen the integrations between our 391 00:20:35,760 --> 00:20:38,360 technology platforms, it's because of the hundreds and 392 00:20:38,360 --> 00:20:42,160 thousands of hours put forth by one faithful individual, the 393 00:20:42,160 --> 00:20:45,760 servant, he goes into the homes of our shut insurance and make 394 00:20:45,760 --> 00:20:47,960 sure that their streams are working so they can watch Sunday 395 00:20:47,960 --> 00:20:50,120 service. He uses his knowledge as a 396 00:20:50,120 --> 00:20:52,280 resource for our local association and for other 397 00:20:52,280 --> 00:20:55,720 churches outside of this one. And by the way, he has a full 398 00:20:55,720 --> 00:20:59,520 time job and a family. He does the work of 10 men. 399 00:21:00,560 --> 00:21:03,400 This is a manifestation of the grace and power of God. 400 00:21:03,400 --> 00:21:05,800 If you want to see his grace and power, you can look to the 401 00:21:05,800 --> 00:21:09,000 ministry, the music ministry of Conchita Hansford and Doctor 402 00:21:09,000 --> 00:21:12,760 Bell, who have been ministering in this church for a generation 403 00:21:13,080 --> 00:21:15,760 or more. And you look at him and you see 404 00:21:15,760 --> 00:21:18,320 staying power. It's kind of an emotional time 405 00:21:18,320 --> 00:21:21,800 for me because Conchita taught me my first Bible verse in choir 406 00:21:22,160 --> 00:21:24,680 in Ephesians, and now in three weeks I will preach that verse 407 00:21:24,680 --> 00:21:28,000 to her 30 years later. That's power. 408 00:21:28,080 --> 00:21:31,320 That's grace, a testimony to God's grace. 409 00:21:31,320 --> 00:21:35,520 This is energy and faithfulness. And it comes from this mindset 410 00:21:35,520 --> 00:21:38,920 that we see the Apostle Paul and his mantra and verse 7 that you 411 00:21:38,920 --> 00:21:40,520 can repeat to yourself again and again. 412 00:21:40,520 --> 00:21:44,840 I was made a minister of this gospel according to the gift of 413 00:21:44,840 --> 00:21:47,200 God's grace. You are a theatre of his grace 414 00:21:47,200 --> 00:21:50,120 and power. And if Britain were here today 415 00:21:50,120 --> 00:21:53,000 and he was standing up here, he would remind you of something 416 00:21:53,000 --> 00:21:56,000 that he reminds our elders over and over again. 417 00:21:56,680 --> 00:22:01,320 He says that our culture carries an incorrect mindset that we 418 00:22:01,320 --> 00:22:04,040 have our giftings and our strengths and we're supposed to 419 00:22:04,040 --> 00:22:09,000 be competent and well-rounded. And so we want to to bolster our 420 00:22:09,000 --> 00:22:11,160 weaknesses so that they actually become strengths. 421 00:22:11,360 --> 00:22:14,080 And we need to focus our time on our weaknesses so that we can be 422 00:22:14,240 --> 00:22:16,440 competent and independent and well-rounded. 423 00:22:17,560 --> 00:22:20,960 And this is the idea that a person needs to be one stop shop 424 00:22:20,960 --> 00:22:23,760 and capable of everything. That's not how the pastors here 425 00:22:23,880 --> 00:22:26,640 would encourage you to to minister your spiritual gifts. 426 00:22:27,760 --> 00:22:32,000 When Dale Brown and Phil Jackson and Pat Riley were coaching 427 00:22:32,000 --> 00:22:34,440 Shaquille O'Neal, they didn't look at his free throw 428 00:22:34,440 --> 00:22:37,040 percentages and say, you know what, you're 20% below the 429 00:22:37,040 --> 00:22:39,360 average. We're going to work on that. 430 00:22:39,840 --> 00:22:41,720 They said, no, we want to shepherd your gifts. 431 00:22:41,720 --> 00:22:44,320 We want you to be the most dominant Sinner in the history 432 00:22:44,320 --> 00:22:47,680 of the game. And that's how your pastors want 433 00:22:47,680 --> 00:22:50,000 to equip you for the work of the ministry. 434 00:22:50,240 --> 00:22:53,160 We want you to serve according to the measure of grace that God 435 00:22:53,160 --> 00:22:55,920 has given you. So you come to this church. 436 00:22:55,920 --> 00:22:58,440 There is a breadth of wisdom and knowledge and spiritual gifts, 437 00:22:58,440 --> 00:23:01,600 which means you're free to minister according to your 438 00:23:01,600 --> 00:23:03,720 gifts. You don't have to try and be 439 00:23:03,840 --> 00:23:05,360 everyone. You don't have to try to be the 440 00:23:05,360 --> 00:23:09,480 ear and the nose and the feet. So we say if hospitality is your 441 00:23:09,480 --> 00:23:13,560 gift, then be hospitable and be overly hospitable. 442 00:23:13,920 --> 00:23:16,280 And your role is maybe not to be a teacher and to take teaching 443 00:23:16,280 --> 00:23:18,400 classes and to learn how to be an administrator and to get a 444 00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:21,160 side job to try to make some extra money to squeeze into the 445 00:23:21,160 --> 00:23:22,440 church. That's not your role. 446 00:23:22,960 --> 00:23:28,560 We can lean on the church, go and be hospitable and don't look 447 00:23:28,560 --> 00:23:31,520 around at the people that are around you and use them as the 448 00:23:31,520 --> 00:23:34,280 measure of hospitality and to say, well, this is how 449 00:23:34,280 --> 00:23:36,600 hospitable everybody else is. So I'm going to rise to that. 450 00:23:36,680 --> 00:23:39,680 No, this is your gift. You show us how to do this. 451 00:23:39,960 --> 00:23:42,880 You go and you be hospitable with the energy of 10 people. 452 00:23:44,160 --> 00:23:47,680 And if you're given to speak, Paul will say, speak as one 453 00:23:47,680 --> 00:23:49,760 who's speaking the very oracles of God. 454 00:23:50,280 --> 00:23:52,960 So he says, speak with passion, speak with conviction 455 00:23:52,960 --> 00:23:55,840 commensurate with one who's been endowed with a divine ability to 456 00:23:55,840 --> 00:23:58,680 speak and to teach. And he says if the other people 457 00:23:58,680 --> 00:24:01,560 around you aren't passionate in their speech, you be passionate 458 00:24:01,960 --> 00:24:05,240 because this is your gift. Speak as if you're speaking for 459 00:24:05,240 --> 00:24:08,200 God, because you are. It's your gift. 460 00:24:08,680 --> 00:24:12,320 If you're given to serve, Paul says, then serve according to 461 00:24:12,320 --> 00:24:18,840 the strength of God who has given you power and energy, and 462 00:24:18,840 --> 00:24:20,480 serve with the strength of 10 men. 463 00:24:21,080 --> 00:24:22,920 You need to serve in such a way that the world looks at you and 464 00:24:22,920 --> 00:24:25,960 there's no other explanation. Then you have the grace and the 465 00:24:25,960 --> 00:24:29,240 power of God. If you've been given the gift of 466 00:24:29,240 --> 00:24:33,080 giving, then let the grace and power of God be manifested in 467 00:24:33,080 --> 00:24:34,920 you. Give with the grace and the 468 00:24:34,920 --> 00:24:38,360 charity of 10 families and show the world and the church 469 00:24:38,360 --> 00:24:40,040 something of the generosity of God. 470 00:24:40,760 --> 00:24:44,400 If you've been given the gift of mercy, then go and care for 471 00:24:44,400 --> 00:24:48,000 those who are hurting with the work and the energy of 10 men so 472 00:24:48,000 --> 00:24:50,680 that you can show the world something of the compassion of 473 00:24:50,680 --> 00:24:53,960 God. Whatever you're made to do, do 474 00:24:53,960 --> 00:24:56,840 it. Paul says in Romans 12/6, having 475 00:24:56,840 --> 00:24:59,000 gifts that differ according to the grace given to us. 476 00:24:59,160 --> 00:25:02,840 Let us use them each according to the measure of grace that was 477 00:25:02,840 --> 00:25:05,720 given to him. Church, you are a theater. 478 00:25:05,720 --> 00:25:09,680 You as an individual are a theater for God's grace and His 479 00:25:09,680 --> 00:25:12,040 power. And as you continue through the 480 00:25:12,040 --> 00:25:14,280 end of verse 8 and on, it gets deeper than that. 481 00:25:15,280 --> 00:25:17,480 Paul continues in verses 8 to 13, right? 482 00:25:17,480 --> 00:25:20,320 You were a theatre of his power and grace. 483 00:25:20,320 --> 00:25:24,680 But we are a theatre of his riches and his wisdom. 484 00:25:25,480 --> 00:25:27,720 We are a theatre of God's riches and wisdom. 485 00:25:28,800 --> 00:25:32,360 So there are things that about God that we don't just display 486 00:25:32,360 --> 00:25:35,480 individually, we display corporately as the body of 487 00:25:35,480 --> 00:25:38,480 Christ, or if we go back to chapter 2, as the building, God 488 00:25:38,480 --> 00:25:40,600 is building this building and we are here, we are the house 489 00:25:40,600 --> 00:25:43,280 managers. So individually we display his 490 00:25:43,280 --> 00:25:46,480 grace and power, corporately we display his riches and wisdom. 491 00:25:46,480 --> 00:25:50,000 Look at verses 8 and on as he shows the unique ministry of the 492 00:25:50,000 --> 00:25:52,280 church or Paul's unique ministry to the Gentiles. 493 00:25:52,280 --> 00:25:55,440 He says I was called to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable 494 00:25:55,520 --> 00:25:59,160 riches of Christ and to bring delight for everyone. 495 00:25:59,160 --> 00:26:01,640 What is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who 496 00:26:01,640 --> 00:26:05,840 created all things, so that through the church the manifold 497 00:26:05,840 --> 00:26:08,240 wisdom of God might be made known to rulers and authorities 498 00:26:08,440 --> 00:26:10,320 in the heavenly places? So what are we supposed to be 499 00:26:10,320 --> 00:26:14,080 doing as a church corporately? According to this verse, there's 500 00:26:14,080 --> 00:26:17,680 two things. We have two roles #1 we preach 501 00:26:17,680 --> 00:26:21,160 to the Gentiles the riches of Christ, bringing to light for 502 00:26:21,160 --> 00:26:23,040 everyone. What is the plan of salvation? 503 00:26:23,040 --> 00:26:26,240 That's number one. Number two, so that through the 504 00:26:26,240 --> 00:26:29,920 church the manifold wisdom of God might be made known. 505 00:26:29,920 --> 00:26:32,520 We're showing his riches, we're showing his wisdom. 506 00:26:32,720 --> 00:26:36,760 God's wisdom is seen in our unity, in our cooperation that 507 00:26:36,760 --> 00:26:41,560 is supernatural, unexplainable. God's riches are seen through 508 00:26:41,560 --> 00:26:45,480 our proclamation of the gospel. So the church is called to 509 00:26:45,480 --> 00:26:48,480 preach to the Gentiles that the riches of Christ, and you get to 510 00:26:48,480 --> 00:26:52,040 see his riches and wisdom in a in a really ironic way and a 511 00:26:52,040 --> 00:26:55,720 really beautiful way in the context of this book. 512 00:26:55,720 --> 00:26:59,400 So Paul writes this to the Ephesian churches from prison. 513 00:26:59,400 --> 00:27:01,160 This is one of the four prison epistles. 514 00:27:01,400 --> 00:27:03,640 Does anybody remember why Paul's in prison? 515 00:27:05,280 --> 00:27:06,600 Anybody remember how he got there? 516 00:27:08,040 --> 00:27:11,720 He's in prison for the accusation that he took a man 517 00:27:11,720 --> 00:27:15,760 named Trophimus into the temple and he took him beyond where it 518 00:27:15,760 --> 00:27:21,600 was allowed for Gentiles to go. And so Paul's accused of this, 519 00:27:21,960 --> 00:27:26,120 and the cosmic powers try to stop Paul's mission by false 520 00:27:26,120 --> 00:27:31,440 accusations and by mob violence and by political injustice and 521 00:27:31,440 --> 00:27:35,240 by imprisonment, to which we say some things never change. 522 00:27:36,160 --> 00:27:39,040 And the Providence and the wisdom of, of God is seen in the 523 00:27:39,040 --> 00:27:42,800 fact, or are seen in the fact that Trophemus was an Ephesian 524 00:27:42,840 --> 00:27:45,880 Gentile. And so he, he was accused of 525 00:27:45,880 --> 00:27:48,320 bringing an Ephesian into the place in the temple where he 526 00:27:48,320 --> 00:27:50,320 didn't belong. And so you see what the cosmic 527 00:27:50,320 --> 00:27:52,160 powers are trying to do. They're trying to keep the 528 00:27:52,160 --> 00:27:54,240 distinctions between Jew and Gentile. 529 00:27:54,240 --> 00:27:57,040 There's no power of God as long as the church is separated and 530 00:27:57,040 --> 00:27:58,920 divided. And they're trying to keep the 531 00:27:58,920 --> 00:28:01,240 Gentiles excluded from access to God. 532 00:28:01,240 --> 00:28:03,600 And they're trying to keep distance between the Jews and 533 00:28:03,600 --> 00:28:06,640 other believers. And so by arresting Paul and 534 00:28:06,640 --> 00:28:09,560 putting him in prison, Paul takes out a pen and God makes it 535 00:28:09,560 --> 00:28:12,960 into a microphone as he writes this letter that gets sent to 536 00:28:12,960 --> 00:28:16,080 all the churches in the region, to Ephesus, and to the untold 537 00:28:16,080 --> 00:28:18,400 billions of people that have read it since then. 538 00:28:18,840 --> 00:28:24,720 And in that context of taking a Gentile into where the Jews go, 539 00:28:25,320 --> 00:28:28,280 Ephesians 214 to 16, he says Christ has broken down the 540 00:28:28,280 --> 00:28:31,400 dividing wall of hostility, creating one man and place of 541 00:28:31,400 --> 00:28:34,360 the two. And he says Ephesians 219 to 22, 542 00:28:34,360 --> 00:28:37,200 not only do Gentiles have access to the temple of God. 543 00:28:37,200 --> 00:28:39,400 Remember what happened when Christ died. 544 00:28:39,560 --> 00:28:42,640 That thick 9 inch purple veil was torn. 545 00:28:42,960 --> 00:28:47,120 It was rent in two and then the temple was leveled because those 546 00:28:47,120 --> 00:28:49,720 distinctions are no more. And so not only do Gentiles have 547 00:28:49,720 --> 00:28:51,920 access, they are the temple of God. 548 00:28:52,520 --> 00:28:55,160 He writes this to them. He says, I, I didn't take a 549 00:28:55,160 --> 00:28:57,200 Gentile, but they are the temple. 550 00:28:57,200 --> 00:28:59,120 Not only do they have access, it is them. 551 00:28:59,120 --> 00:29:02,200 Ephesians 36 Gentiles, our fellow heirs, members of the 552 00:29:02,200 --> 00:29:05,080 same body, partakers of the same promise. 553 00:29:05,520 --> 00:29:08,400 And So what the the forces of evil have tried to suppress, God 554 00:29:08,400 --> 00:29:12,240 is amplifying, showing His power, His grace, His riches, 555 00:29:12,360 --> 00:29:14,480 his wisdom. Ephesians 310. 556 00:29:14,480 --> 00:29:17,160 So that through the church, the manifold wisdom of God might now 557 00:29:17,160 --> 00:29:20,800 be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly 558 00:29:20,800 --> 00:29:23,400 places. So the very city that produced 559 00:29:23,400 --> 00:29:27,240 the riot now gets a letter explaining how all of this is 560 00:29:27,400 --> 00:29:32,360 fitting into God's plan. And so through the church, 561 00:29:32,440 --> 00:29:35,960 that's all of us together we preach this gospel and so 562 00:29:35,960 --> 00:29:38,960 manifest to everyone. What are the riches of Christ? 563 00:29:38,960 --> 00:29:42,800 Riches is unqualified, a generic word saying all the benefits 564 00:29:43,000 --> 00:29:46,040 that the church receives in Jesus, all the benefits that God 565 00:29:46,040 --> 00:29:47,920 gives his Saints and all the privileges. 566 00:29:48,680 --> 00:29:51,960 And through the church. Verse 10 The manifold wisdom of 567 00:29:51,960 --> 00:29:55,880 God is proclaimed. Richard Cokin says the manifold 568 00:29:55,880 --> 00:29:59,040 wisdom is the complex brilliance of his salvation plan. 569 00:29:59,960 --> 00:30:04,040 Nobody could have come up with this plan that God would become 570 00:30:04,040 --> 00:30:06,760 a man, and this God man would die for the sins of the world. 571 00:30:06,760 --> 00:30:10,280 And he would choose Israel to be by their holiness and by their 572 00:30:10,280 --> 00:30:13,160 proclamation the the vehicle of salvation to the world. 573 00:30:13,160 --> 00:30:16,800 But to show human sinfulness and failure, he would take salvation 574 00:30:16,800 --> 00:30:20,200 away from them and by their failure give salvation to the 575 00:30:20,200 --> 00:30:23,680 Gentiles so that Gentile missionaries would win the Jews 576 00:30:23,680 --> 00:30:27,800 back by jealousy. What is this plan? 577 00:30:29,040 --> 00:30:31,360 This is what he's saying. No human could have come up with 578 00:30:31,360 --> 00:30:32,040 this. We are. 579 00:30:32,200 --> 00:30:35,360 He didn't write this plan in a playbook that He gives to angels 580 00:30:35,360 --> 00:30:37,400 and authorities and spiritual authorities. 581 00:30:37,400 --> 00:30:39,000 He didn't give it to kings and to Queens. 582 00:30:39,080 --> 00:30:42,960 He makes His plan known through us, His church, which is why 583 00:30:42,960 --> 00:30:46,160 it's so important that we serve according to our gifts, that 584 00:30:46,160 --> 00:30:49,840 we're unified because we are a theater of all of these things. 585 00:30:52,200 --> 00:30:55,200 The word manifold in the manifold wisdom of God, it means 586 00:30:55,200 --> 00:31:00,440 many or various rich colors, and this is the in the Old Testament 587 00:31:00,960 --> 00:31:05,240 they use the in the Septuagint, the Greek word is what's used in 588 00:31:05,240 --> 00:31:07,920 Joseph's coat of many colors. It's the same word. 589 00:31:07,920 --> 00:31:13,080 This manifold wisdom, multifaceted, many sided, varied 590 00:31:13,280 --> 00:31:16,760 wisdom. And again, the complexity and 591 00:31:16,760 --> 00:31:20,000 beauty of God's eternal plan is known through us. 592 00:31:20,680 --> 00:31:22,840 The working out of this in his church. 593 00:31:22,840 --> 00:31:25,760 It's pictured in our unity and our ministry and our gospel 594 00:31:25,760 --> 00:31:31,240 urgency and our responsibility. And our passage ends in a very 595 00:31:31,240 --> 00:31:35,240 interesting place. If you look to verse 13, he 596 00:31:35,240 --> 00:31:38,000 says, so I ask you not to lose heart over what I'm suffering 597 00:31:38,000 --> 00:31:41,480 for you, which is your glory. It's just good for you. 598 00:31:41,480 --> 00:31:43,680 When you're trying to understand what someone's saying to you or 599 00:31:43,680 --> 00:31:46,200 if you're reading Scripture, whatever it is, what, what is 600 00:31:46,200 --> 00:31:48,120 somebody doing with the words that they're saying? 601 00:31:48,920 --> 00:31:50,880 Somebody's speaking to you when you're reading the words of 602 00:31:50,880 --> 00:31:52,720 Scripture. They're saying something and 603 00:31:52,720 --> 00:31:55,000 there's meaning to it, but what are they doing with those words? 604 00:31:55,560 --> 00:31:57,120 Sometimes Scripture just just tells us. 605 00:31:57,120 --> 00:32:00,360 We don't even have to guess. First John 513 I've written 606 00:32:00,360 --> 00:32:02,520 these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so 607 00:32:02,520 --> 00:32:04,680 that you may know that you have eternal life. 608 00:32:05,280 --> 00:32:08,360 All of the words of first John are are being marshaled toward 609 00:32:08,360 --> 00:32:11,120 that end. Well, Paul tells us in in verse 610 00:32:11,120 --> 00:32:13,720 13 why he's written verses 7 to 13. 611 00:32:14,160 --> 00:32:15,760 This is the pragmatics what he's doing. 612 00:32:15,760 --> 00:32:19,520 He says, I ask you not to lose heart over what I'm suffering 613 00:32:19,520 --> 00:32:23,000 for you, which is your glory. She says, I'm actually, I'm 614 00:32:23,000 --> 00:32:24,880 writing all this. This is great theology. 615 00:32:25,080 --> 00:32:27,320 This is a great reminder of our urgency. 616 00:32:27,320 --> 00:32:30,680 But it's in the original context to to comfort these Saints 617 00:32:31,200 --> 00:32:34,040 because Paul is their champion. And now he's in prison. 618 00:32:34,640 --> 00:32:37,880 And there's probably feelings of responsibility for what happened 619 00:32:37,880 --> 00:32:40,040 with Trophimus that have now landed him in prison. 620 00:32:40,040 --> 00:32:41,960 And so all of this is in his words. 621 00:32:42,360 --> 00:32:45,920 And he says to them, in fact, God's grace is being known 622 00:32:46,040 --> 00:32:49,400 through my ministry. God's power is being made known 623 00:32:49,400 --> 00:32:51,960 through my ministry. God's riches and God's wisdom 624 00:32:51,960 --> 00:32:54,440 are being proclaimed throughout the world to all the cosmic 625 00:32:54,440 --> 00:32:57,680 powers and authorities. This is not sorrow inducing 626 00:32:57,680 --> 00:33:00,200 work, right? This is your glory. 627 00:33:01,000 --> 00:33:03,520 And he goes on say he's, he's fulfilling his calling, he's 628 00:33:03,520 --> 00:33:05,280 glorifying God. What does it matter if he's in 629 00:33:05,280 --> 00:33:08,720 prison when these are happening, when he's making known God's 630 00:33:08,720 --> 00:33:12,160 plan and bringing to light the eternal plan of God for the 631 00:33:12,160 --> 00:33:15,520 Gentiles? So they feel that Paul as their 632 00:33:15,520 --> 00:33:16,840 church planner is their champion. 633 00:33:16,840 --> 00:33:20,040 He says I'm not your champion, I'm your servant and I'm serving 634 00:33:20,040 --> 00:33:23,200 you and this is your glory. And he says, oh, and by the way, 635 00:33:23,200 --> 00:33:26,320 I'm not apprentice, I'm not a prisoner, I'm a minister, I'm 636 00:33:26,320 --> 00:33:28,080 not a prisoner, I'm a servant of God. 637 00:33:28,560 --> 00:33:31,560 I'm suffering for you. And that's OK because this is 638 00:33:31,560 --> 00:33:34,480 what I was made for. I'm suffering for you, but I'm 639 00:33:34,480 --> 00:33:36,680 your servant. This is how it must be. 640 00:33:36,680 --> 00:33:40,760 This is for your glory. So for you, you too need to 641 00:33:40,760 --> 00:33:44,720 remember that you have received a stewardship of grace. 642 00:33:45,320 --> 00:33:47,520 You have been given physical affinities, you have been given 643 00:33:47,520 --> 00:33:51,000 spiritual affinities that allow you to become the servant of 644 00:33:51,000 --> 00:33:55,360 other people, that allow you to become the servant of God for 645 00:33:55,360 --> 00:33:57,360 their benefit and for their glory. 646 00:33:57,360 --> 00:33:59,760 And by serving the church and the world, you are a theatre of 647 00:33:59,760 --> 00:34:02,320 the grace of God. And by serving the church and 648 00:34:02,320 --> 00:34:04,960 serving the world, you are a theatre of the power of God. 649 00:34:05,920 --> 00:34:08,400 That's the cosmic significance of your personal ministry. 650 00:34:08,800 --> 00:34:12,159 And then you think God didn't. God saved you into a church, and 651 00:34:12,159 --> 00:34:13,719 he puts you in membership in a church. 652 00:34:13,719 --> 00:34:17,400 And so when we cooperate together, we are a theater for 653 00:34:17,400 --> 00:34:21,480 the riches of God, and we are a theater for the wisdom of God 654 00:34:21,679 --> 00:34:24,040 telling a story to the cosmic authorities in the heavenly 655 00:34:24,040 --> 00:34:26,400 realm. This is the cosmic significance 656 00:34:26,400 --> 00:34:30,719 of our corporate ministry. And of course, to this we cry 657 00:34:30,719 --> 00:34:34,320 out who's sufficient for these things to be a minister of God, 658 00:34:34,400 --> 00:34:37,280 for his church, to tell the story to the heavenly realms. 659 00:34:38,159 --> 00:34:40,960 And remember, you didn't deserve your gifts, you didn't deserve 660 00:34:40,960 --> 00:34:43,120 your salvation or your service. You didn't expect them. 661 00:34:43,120 --> 00:34:47,040 You certainly didn't earn them. But now you must Marshall them 662 00:34:47,239 --> 00:34:51,199 in service to the world. Paul says in Romans 12/6, having 663 00:34:51,199 --> 00:34:53,800 gifts that differ according to the grace given to us. 664 00:34:53,960 --> 00:34:58,320 Let us use them each according to the measure of grace that was 665 00:34:58,320 --> 00:35:02,680 given to him. Church, pray with me, God, who 666 00:35:02,680 --> 00:35:07,000 is sufficient for these things. You have given us 667 00:35:07,640 --> 00:35:12,160 responsibilities, God, that are so beyond who we are and who we 668 00:35:12,160 --> 00:35:15,280 were and what we deserve. And so, Lord, we ask, simply 669 00:35:15,960 --> 00:35:19,960 help us to be faithful stewards of this calling you've given us 670 00:35:20,640 --> 00:35:24,960 for this gospel, of this gospel. You have made us ministers for 671 00:35:24,960 --> 00:35:26,240 your glory. And we see that there are 672 00:35:26,240 --> 00:35:29,360 things, God, that we forget. There's so much going on even 673 00:35:29,360 --> 00:35:32,120 when we gather together. There's so much going on when we 674 00:35:32,120 --> 00:35:35,880 do something as simple as serving the hungry, serving the 675 00:35:35,880 --> 00:35:39,200 vulnerable, giving to our church, showing hospitality to 676 00:35:39,200 --> 00:35:42,640 the to the least of these. So God help us give us the 677 00:35:42,640 --> 00:35:45,200 energy to serve according to our gifts with the strength and the 678 00:35:45,200 --> 00:35:48,400 energy of 10 people. God, we love you. 679 00:35:48,400 --> 00:35:51,840 We want to do this not about our own strength, but as a as 680 00:35:51,840 --> 00:35:53,720 vessels and channels of your grace. 681 00:35:54,040 --> 00:35:56,640 May the world see something of you through us. 682 00:35:56,640 --> 00:35:58,400 In Christ's name we pray. Amen. 683 00:36:00,440 --> 00:36:02,600 Thanks for listening. To learn more about Heritage 684 00:36:02,600 --> 00:36:05,600 Church or if you'd like to respond to this sermon, visit 685 00:36:05,600 --> 00:36:09,400 our website at www.heritageshawnee. 686 00:36:09,600 --> 00:36:10,080 Dot org.