Ephesians 2:4-7 Podcast
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4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:4-7)
Our text today begins with perhaps the best word in the English language ... But! The next phrase reveals the importance of that one word. Because of God's great love for us. His love has several expressions, but the one the Apostle highlights here is His mercy. His mercy is to show pity to us who were in serious need.
Given the hopelessness of man, this idea offers us tremendous hope. We were damned, BUT GOD rescued us who were willing. He did this through the willingness and the obedience of His Son. And, as a result, our hearts have been captured by this love that laid down His life for us.
Mankind was separated from God. This is what drove God to intervene by His grace. Our fallen condition drew forth God's compassion, expressed in His mercy. Even though we deserve His wrath, God found a way to solve the penalty which hung over our heads. When we were dead, when we were absolutely hopeless, God took action. Through the richness of His mercy, God made us alive with Christ.
Paul uses the prepositional phrase "with Christ" three times in our text. God made us alive with Christ. He also raised us up with Christ. Then, God seated us with Christ in the heavenly realms. All of these verbs are all in the past tense. This is something which has happened, not something which is going to happen. It has already occurred when we believed. We do not have to work for it. It is not something we merit after years of effort. It is something which is already true, and every Christian has this experience. We were made alive with Jesus Christ.
These three phrases, "made us alive together with", "raised us up with Christ" and seated us with Christ" are all a form of the Greek word for our English word "synergy." Synergy literally means working together. We went from being dead to God to being alive to God. This happened the moment we believed the gospel of Jesus Christ. This aliveness toward God is the product of God's synergistic work in our lives.
The point of this work that He has miraculously performed in our eternity is our connection to Him and others. We should never question our connection with God through His Son. We are secured in the palm of His hands. This is crucial that we find our greatest sense of security in what Christ has done because when we do this, we will be freed from self. We will not be worrying about self which is the ploy of the enemy, to get your eyes off of the Lord and the desperate needs of others.
Finally, the purpose behind all of this is given in v.7: "in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus." When God blesses us, He always blesses us with others in mind. You and I are engaged in a cosmic battle, whereby God wants to use us, in tandem, with others to point others to the Lord Jesus. When God showed Abraham the stars of the heavens to give him the idea that he was going to be the father of many, one of those stars represented you and me. We are a part of a grand plan. One way or the other, we factor in on what will happen for eternity. Will you work together with God and His people?
