Short Summaries of

Sermons on Ephesians

by Rev. Ralph Allan Smith

The Mystery of His Will

(Eph. 1:8-10)

Paul describes Christians as having been blessed with those supreme blessings that all religions promise, that all philosophers seek. We have been granted the blessings that Adam and Eve lost when they were expelled from the Garden of Eden. God has given us eternal life, true knowledge, and unlimited riches. Paul's reference to the "mystery" in Ephesians 1:9 must be understood through the Biblical history of redemption. It also helps to compare Biblical religion to the religions of the ancient world in order to have a concrete understanding of what Paul is teaching and how Christian teaching differs from non-Christian thought.

Non-Christian Religions

Though he does not have a Christian understanding of what he reports, Mircea Eliade shows that there are many ancient religions that share elements of the Biblical story of creation and the fall. God created man and placed him in a Garden paradise. The Garden of Eden had walls and a gate and some kind of organization of the plant life. Two trees, the tree of knowledge and the tree of life, were in the midst of the Garden. In the land near the Garden of Eden, and presumably in the garden also, there was gold, onyx and bdellium (cf. Gen 2:10-12). Man was in a paradise with abundant food, the gifts of knowledge and life, and a rich treasure of jewels.

When man fell, he was cast out of the Garden of Eden. The secrets of life and knowledge, as well as the treasures of the Garden are out of man's reach. Cherubim, strange looking creatures that are a mixture of man and animal in appearance, were set to guard the Garden. Man was condemned to hard labor, suffering, and death outside the Garden. The race got a new start with Noah, a second Adam, but man the sinner turned away from God. After the flood, when the race fell away from God again, the descendents of Noah perverted the true religion and constructed their own.

Among the Greeks the story of Hercules, for example, reflects this distortion of the Bible. The hero was told by the oracle that he must offer himself as a slave to king Eurystheus. The King appointed twelve impossible tasks for Hercules. If he could do them all, he would get rid of his guilt--for killing his wife and children in his madness--and attain eternal life--in Greek terms, become an Immortal. By killing the Nemean lion and the nine-headed Lernaean Hydra along with other great feats of strength and wisdom, Heracles won, though he was later deceived by the beautiful, but cruel goddess, Hera, and killed. Another Greek story, that of Theseus and the Minotaur, illustrates the same ideas. With the help of Ariadne, the king's daughter who had fallen in love with him, Theseus is able to find his way to the center of the labyrinth to confront the half-bull, half-man monster called a Minotaur. Theseus defeated his enemy and saved the young Athenians condemned to be lunch for the monster.

Similar examples, some closer to the Bible, can be given. Suffice it to say that it was common among many peoples of the ancient world to have stories of a dragon, or some other kind of monster, who guards the way to the tree or fountain of life, or some hidden secret knowledge, or some fabulous treasure. These are all perversions of the Bible. The greatest perversion in the stories come when it is seen that man can only be saved by fighting the Cherubim who guard the Garden and forcing his way in to take of the tree of life. The trees of life and knowledge are regarded as working by magic. If one simply eats the fruit, he is immortal, or wise. Magic and salvation by works lie at the heart of almost all non-Christian religions.

The Mystery

When Paul says the mystery of God's will has been revealed to us, he is telling us that we have access to the Garden of Eden again, so to speak. Christ has opened the way. Jesus is our Savior-hero who has defeated the Dragon and delivered us from slavery. Because of what Christ has done, we now have knowledge of good and evil, the gift of eternal life, and infinite treasures. The mystery of God's will that was hidden in the old covenant era is the mystery of the incarnation and the cross which mystery is now revealed in fullness for all the world to see.

God has given us the key to all knowledge and understanding in the Person of Christ Himself. God has poured out His gracious riches upon us in all wisdom and prudence manifesting the truth that was hidden from the foundation of the world, truth that men sought but could not find until Christ came to reveal it. Christians have the "secret" knowledge of the truth that the whole world around us is still seeking.

Non-Christian Knowledge

Non-Christian philosophers devote themselves to the same quest that the ancient heros did, they seek to know the secrets of the world. To take just one example, Bertrand Russell was famous for his popular writings and his political activism as much as he was for his philosophy, but he was earnest in his search for the truth. Of his attitude as a young man, he said, "I wanted certainty in the kind of way in which people want religious faith." But Russell never found that certainty. In fact, W. T. Jones says, "Russell really did not get beyond Hume." In other words, Russell's philosophy ended in scepticism. Russell himself near the end of his philosophical development appealed to irrational belief as his ultimate basis for knowledge:

"In ontology, I start by accepting the truth of physics. . . . Philosophers may say: What justification have you for accepting the truth of physics? I reply: merely a common-sense basis. . . .

I believe (though without good grounds) in the world of physics as well as in the world of psychology. . . .

If we are to hold that we know anything of the external world, we must accept the canons of scientific knowledge. Whether . . . an individual decides to accept or reject these canons, is a purely personal affair, not susceptible to argument."

Although he rejected the truth of Christianity, Russell offered in its place an irrational faith in science. Russell, like all men who seek truth by means of challenging the Cherubim, ended in despair. The truth cannot be taken by force, it must be given by God. The secret to the gift of truth is not found in magic or human strength or wisdom, it is found in the riches of His grace.

All In Christ

God is working in history now to "gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him." With this mystery-knowledge of the true direction of the universe, we know how to live. As we keep God's commandments in our daily lives, He directs us and blesses us. Our lives are "in tune" with the ultimate truth and plan for history. We bear fruit that remains for all eternity.

Paul is giving thanks in Ephesians for the great blessings God has bestowed upon us in Christ. Cognitive rest is not a minor gift. We know the truth and cannot be deceived by Satan or the world. It is, rather, our task to enlighten the world around us by following the truth we know. Thanksgiving and joy in God for His goodness in revealing that truth to us is one of the most profound aspects of our Christian testimony. I cannot think of anyone who has found out some great secret or made some wonderful new discovery who is not excited about it. We should never cease to be overwhelmed at the glorious truth that God loves us and has given His Son for us to save us from sin and make us His own dear children. As we labor that all things may be brought together in unity under the dominion of Christ, we show our love and gratitude to Him.