|
In this world, who doesn’t have problems? If you were to ask a random person what problems they have, some would cite financial problems, some would cite health problems, some would cite marital problems, or children problems, or manager / co-worker problems.
Think for a moment about what your problems are.
Many problems are small, but some are very big. If you were to ask a random person what their biggest problem is, chances are it would still be one of the ones mentioned above.
Wouldn’t it be great if your biggest problem was taken care of just like that? I know it would make me very happy if my biggest problem was taken away.
Well, the good news is that our biggest problem is taken care of. Let me explain…
You see, God is the most powerful person, the most holy person, the most benevolent person ever. Therefore, for a person who is accountable to God, to hurt God (i.e. to sin against God) is the most unrighteous thing in the universe. For this reason, it comes with a big penalty – eternal separation from God.
Since we have all sinned against God, we are all doomed to pay the penalty for our sin.
Paying the penalty for our sin is our biggest problem. It is our biggest problem because we cannot solve it ourselves, and its consequences are eternal in amount and time – we suffer unimaginable pain (total separation from God is unimaginably painful because our well-being is so very dependent on God), and that too, forever.
But, in Christ, God took care of that! For those who don’t want to sin anymore, there is no more need for us to pay that penalty – if we choose God’s way out.
But then, you may say, “That’s not good enough; I don’t merely want to stop sinning, but I want to actually stop sinning now. Did God take care of that too?”
Yes indeed! To enable us to stop sinning, God put His Holy Spirit in us, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, we can stop sinning now, if we are willing to let the Holy Spirit help us bear the pain we must endure to overcome sin. This too is because of Christ.
“Okay, that’s cool too,” you may say, “but am I going to have to bear that pain for all eternity? That doesn’t sound like fun at all!”
Quite correct! Suffering pain for all eternity to overcome temptation is no fun at all. Does God have a solution for that?
Yes, He does! When we are raised from the dead, we will be raised in a body that cannot be tempted. Therefore, we will be able no sin anymore, and we won’t have to suffer any pain to keep from sinning. As you may have guessed by now, this too is because of Christ.
All of the above is what Paul tells us in Ephesians Chapter 1.
“But wait,” you say, “All this is only for the Jews – the chosen people of God – right? I’m not a Jew.”
That’s right. All this is only for the Jews. If you’re not a Jew, too bad for you.
Okay, okay, just kidding. You’re included too – that’s what Paul says in Ephesians Chapter 2. That chapter was written just for you.
“Very nice,” you say, “but what now? I’ve still got a few years to live while I wait to get that new body. What do I do until then? Twiddle my thumbs? God’s doing all wonderful stuff building His kingdom. Can I get a piece of that action? That would be so cool, wouldn’t it?”
Once again, in Christ, the answer is, “Yes.” You can get a piece of that action. That’s the point of Ephesians Chapter 3.
“Okay, great. Now I’m excited! Please tell me how to become part of the action.” Paul wrote Ephesians Chapter four to six for that very reason.
With that context, let us now study the book of Ephesians in more detail.
Please select a chapter from the menu on the left to view content on that chapter.
|