Mystery Revealed
Ephesians 3:1-3
Focus: Paul’s mission was to reveal the fact that God has broken down the walls which
divide and made all one in Christ; a mission which he also gives to the church.
Function: To challenge the church to take up Paul’s challenge to reveal the manifold
wisdom of God to the world!
I’ve always loved a good mystery, how about you? I bet, as a kid,
I read most all of the Sherlock Holmes stories and was always intrigued
how Holmes could pick apart a mystery and solve it from the obscurest &
smallest of clues! One of my favorites, too, was the Hardy Boys- two
teenage boys who always seemed to find themselves in the middle of
some dastardly mystery. I loved mysteries on t.v. I suppose I was
strange for my generation in that I loved the old Perry Mason shows. My
favorite part was always at the end when Mason would reveal the REAL
killer and it was never who you would have expected! What is it that
makes mysteries so intriguing to us? Even today, the most popular t.v.
show is C.S.I. (Which I’ve never seen) but which depicts a team of
criminal science experts unraveling the toughest & graphic of crimes.
Mysteries draw us in, don’t they? They challenge our thinking and arouse
our interests.
Did you know that in one sense the Bible tells of God’s Plan as
being a “mystery”? Now, its not the kind of mystery that you and I might
think of . . . a “whodunnit”-- and its not the kind of mystery that could have
been figured out by a Sherlock Holmes or Joe Friday. But in the very real
sense that what God was ultimately ‘up to’ had not been fully realized- it
was a mystery to many. What God was doing (& had been doing from the
very beginning) to reconcile his people to himself had not been completely
clear to the people. But now, Paul (in the great Sherlock Holmes tradition)
has the privilege of unveiling . . . of uncovering and revealing the greatest
of mysteries . . . for all time!
Let’s look again the text that _____ just read. Eph. 3 Remember Paul
has just pointed out that the dividing walls have been broken down- that
now we are all (Jew & Gentile) on the same team, so to speak! He’ll build
off of that theme and launch into a prayer, but something stops him short.
As he writes, he pauses to reflect upon the ministry that he has been
given.
1 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you
Gentiles-- 2 Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace
that was given to me for you, 3 that is, the mystery made known to me by
revelation, as I have already written briefly.
I. Paul says, “Let me tell you about My Ministry.”
Remember, Paul is in prison here. He’s been given this
wonderful ministry to take the good news to the Gentiles, but now that has
landed him in prison. But notice that not even chains will stop Paul from
proclaiming the message! Though he’s chained to a Roman guard . . . he
doesn’t say that he is a prisoner of Caesar! Paul knows that he is a
prisoner ‘of Christ;’ for the sake of Christ and so he’s going to continue
and even use his imprisonment for the Kingdom! While imprisoned he
writes some of the most profound texts in all of Scripture: Galatians,
Ephesians, Philippians & Colossians- all written during his time in prison,
which was considerable! And then its as if this thought reminds Paul of
something and causes him to stop short. My Bible has a dash at the end
of vs. 1. Its an indication of an abrupt change in thought . . . something
‘theater folks’ call an ‘aside’. He leaves his train of thought for a few
paragraphs, but he’ll return to it next week in vs. 14.
He’s not just aimlessly meandering, he pauses because he has
something important to say! He has been handed a mystery- ‘made
known to him by revelation’ for ‘YOU’, Gentile Christians in and around
Ephesus! This word ‘administration’ is the same word for ‘stewardship.’
Paul, by God’s grace, has been made a steward or manager of this
mystery. Well, what is this ‘mystery’ Paul speaks of?
4 In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the
mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to men in other
generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and
prophets. 6 This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs
together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the
promise in Christ Jesus.
This mystery - which those in generations past had not
known- has NOW been revealed: The Outsiders have been brought
IN! ‘that thru the good news, the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel,
members together of ONE BODY and share in the promise in Christ
Jesus!’
Imagine what a shock this must have been! Its hard for us because we’ve
grown up in a ‘post-gospel’ era hearing from birth this truth . . . but for
those in the 1st century, this was a radical statement! Jews had always
just assumed that they were going to be God’s chosen people and
Gentiles had just assumed that they would always be outsiders. But God
had a plan that was a mystery to everybody! Now, to be fair, there HAD
been clues along the way . . In commissioning Abraham & giving him the
promise, God told him in GN 12:2-3 "I will make you into a great nation and I
will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3
I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." Later the prophet Isaiah
prophesies concerning the ‘servant of the Lord’, "It is too small a thing for
you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I
have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my
salvation to the ends of the earth." (Isa 49:6) Jesus himself hinted at this in
Matt. 8:11, “I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will
take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of
heaven.” And again in John 10:16, Jesus makes the bold claim, “I have
other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will
listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.” So, there
had been clues . . . but the whole scope of God’s plan had not been fully
laid out, until NOW!
We may not share Paul’s concern that this be understood. We
live in a day & time where this fact is a given- we take it for granted. In
fact, Gentiles have taken over the church! There are relatively few truly
Jewish Christians today compared with Gentile Christians. But let’s
remember what Paul is stressing: the unity of the church in Christ! The
church is made up of all kinds of people! This is a theme he’ll come back
to in Chpt. 4, but for now let us just emphasize that the differences which
divided Jew & Gentile in the 1st century are FAR more significant than any
differences which divide Christians today! More than race; more than
politics; more than religion! To be in Christ is to be made ONE with all of
those who are also in Christ- like it or not! Whether you agree with them
or not; whether you have anything else in common or not; whether you
speak the same language or dress in the same styles or eat the same
food . . . you are ONE with all those who are in Christ! So, how do we
show that ‘one-ness’ that we share in Christ?
Well, with Paul languishing in prison, what motivates him to keep
going with this radical message?
7 I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me
through the working of his power. 8 Although I am less than the least of all God’s
people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable
riches of Christ, 9 and to make plain to everyone the administration of
this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things.
Paul’s is a “Grace-Motivated” Ministry! Its worth pointing out
that Paul very much saw this duty as ‘by God’s grace’ or out of his loving
kindness! He saw himself as nothing special- the ‘least of all God’s
people.’ Yet he recognized that God had given him a special grace to be
able to preach to the Gentiles this message of Christ . . . the
‘unsearchable riches of Christ’ . . . to make it known to everyone! This
wasn’t a chore that brought burden for Paul! It was a wonderful privilege
to be entrusted with this gospel message! And even though he was in
chains because of it- he still saw it as a grace! I believe here at
Washington St. God has given me a great grace to be your preacher. Its
not because I’m so good or qualified, but because God has given me this
privilege to proclaim his good news to you and those you bring with you.
It’s the message that’s important, not the messenger! Being involved in
Ministry is a GRACE! Keep that thought in mind as we move to Paul’s
next major point:
10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of
God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,
11 according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus
our Lord. 12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God with
freedom and confidence. 13 I ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged
because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory. (NIV)
II. Paul goes on to say, “Okay, let me tell you about YOUR
Ministry.”
Paul is in prison! While he’s doing a lot even in prison- he’s
also writing to encourage the church that his mission is their’s as
well! Paul was given this ministry to the intent that now the entire church
should make known the wisdom of God! His mission of proclaiming this
reconciliation in Christ is now the church’s mission . . . ministry! Its what
we’re supposed to be about! Ephesians tells us how to be the church!
Now let’s think about that mission for a moment...
Who is ‘the church?’ You know, preachers get into trouble
when they start to think a little too highly of themselves. But, it is also
easy for members to think too highly of the preacher, or youth minister, or
Family minister. Paul didn’t say, “His intent was that now through the
wonderful and talented ministers, the manifold wisdom of God should be
made known.” Or “Through the wise and prudent Elders, the wisdom
would be made known . .” NO! He said this is the church’s mission!
How can a church accomplish this? “We can’t tell anybody the good
news if they won’t come to church,” some might say. Ohhh.... how we’ve
misunderstood what church is! Folks, the church is YOU! That old hand
exercise we learned as kids . .. “Here’s the church, here’s the steeple,
open the door & see all the people” . . is WRONG! The church is the
people! For many of us, the church is a place that ‘puts on services.’
We’ve GOT to move beyond this understanding and rediscover God’s
intent for the church! The church is the body of saved individuals who
assemble together to lift Him up in praise, to embody the unity that God
models and to be His hands and feet in a lost and dying world! Grace
calls ALL OF US! Its not about hiring a preacher or evangelist to go out
and do this for you! If it’s the responsibility of the church, it’s the
responsibility of all of us!
Well, how do we do it? One method that we’ve tried for years
and know doesn’t work: wait for them to come to us. If we know it doesn’t
work, why is that typically how we do evangelism? I saw somewhere the
definition of ‘stupid’: doing the same thing over and over while expecting
different results. Is THIS what we’ve been doing? Paul certainly didn’t
wait on unbelievers to come to him! He didn’t learn the mystery of the
good news and then sit back to see who came for it. He want to them and
took the message to where they were! What are we doing to take the
message to the community? Now, part of that might be inviting them to
come to our services- but most won’t come unless invited. That’s just the
way many people are. Who have you invited? It’s up to us. We have a
job to do and it involves sharing the good news about the Jesus Christ
with others- your family, friends and neighbors. You are uniquely qualified
for the job, too, because there is no one else like you. You have
opportunities each week that I don’t have, that Bro. So-&-so doesn’t have,
that Sis. Whats-her-name will never have . . . opportunities that God has
uniquely given to you. What will you do about them?
Conclusion: Well, fortunately, the mission of the church is in God’s
hands. We do our part, but He’ll handle the details. We
sow and water, but God will bring the increase. This is
God’s church, not ours. Our confidence is in Him, not
ourselves! So, Paul says to the Ephesians, “don’t worry
about me. The mission of the church is bigger than any
one of us! The good news will be spread whether I’m in
prison or not!”
What are you doing to be a part of this mission? What is your
part in revealing this mystery to those around us? The wall which has
divided people from God has been broken down! And that is Good News!
When the Berlin Wall came down, CNN was right there to broadcast it to
the world! Where’s the CNN’s broadcasting THIS NEWS? What are you
doing to broadcast it? Who do YOU know needs to hear about that?
Have YOU heard it? Do YOU have a relationship with God? If not, did
you know that you could? That’s the mystery that Paul is talking about:
you can come to God, ‘freely & with confidence’, thru faith in Christ who
has taken down that wall! What’s your faith in this morning?
If you’re willing to turn from that old life of placing your confidence in
yourself . . . if you’re willing to place your confidence in Him . . . if you’re
willing to commit yourself to Him thru baptism . . . we’d love to accept you
into the great family of God this morning! He’s got a plan for you, a
mission, if you’ll just accept it!
