Sunday, August 22, 2010

Death, Salvation, Destiny

Ephesians 2:1-10

We are about to embark on my favorite passage in Scripture.  Now, I am not saying it is the best, because all Scripture is God-breathed and share the same status.  I am just saying it is my favorite, so bear with me as we begin to study this passage.

Verses 1-10 can broken into three main points: 1) our dead condition (1-3); 2) our salvation (4-6); 3) our destiny (7-10).

Death

1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.     ESV

1 και υμας οντας νεκρους τοις παραπτωμασιν και ταις αμαρτιαις υμων 2 εν αις ποτε περιεπατησατε κατα τον αιωνα του κοσμου τουτου κατα τον αρχοντα της εξουσιας του αερος του πνευματος του νυν ενεργουντος εν τοις υιοις της απειθειας 3 εν οις και ημεις παντες ανεστραφημεν ποτε εν ταις επιθυμιαις της σαρκος ημων ποιουντες τα θεληματα της σαρκος και των διανοιων και ημεθα τεκνα φυσει οργης ως και οι λοιποι

He/she/it is dead.  We use that phrase to describe the condition of a lot of things: the radio is dead; the battery is dead; the car is dead; the computer is dead.  What do we mean?  It means those objects are not responding to our stimulation.  They need to be restored to their original responsiveness and capabilities.  This requires intervention; they cannot resuscitate themselves, nor restore life to themselves.

Moving on to animated things: the bug is dead; the bird is dead; the dog is dead.  What do we mean?  These creatures have no life in them any longer.  Life is absent from their beings.  It cannot be brought back.  I held my first border collie in my arms as the vet tearfully injected the "pink juice" to put him down, as he was suffering from an aggressive lymphoma sarcoma strain.  We were weeping as well, and had been for days as we knew this moment was approaching.  Dillon (Faithful and True) fell against my chest as the barbiturates did their deed.  Oh, such a beautiful, intelligent, and loving creature!  Even now it pains me.  The vet listened for a heartbeat.  He heard nothing.  There was one last test, a test of the involuntary nervous system activity: the cornea test.  The cornea test is simple.  Touch the cornea.  If there is any nervous system response remaining, there would be a reaction to touch.  There was none.  Dillon was dead.  Life had left him.  Dead. Incapable of response to anything.

Paul could have used a variety of words to describe the former spiritual condition of the Ephesians: θανατος, which means killed or destroyed; πτωμα, which means corpse; νεκρος, which means lifeless.  He chose to use the word  νεκρος to emphasize the exhaustion of any presence of life:  "You, being dead/lifeless in your trespasses and sins..."  The Ephesians (and us by later assimilation) had no spiritual life within them, and was incapable of any auto-response of the same.  The ESV speaks of "trespasses and sins", and indeed, they represent two different words in the Greek: τοις παραπτωμασιν (locative form) means "the acts of falling along corruption", deliberate misdeeds; while ταις αμαρτιαις means "the acts of you falling short as a part of your nature".  So while some may claim it is unfair that those who have not heard the Gospel should die and spend eternity in Hell, it is just since, as Paul points out, our sinning is deliberate.  Both "types" of sins have them same force: they condemn and take life away.

As there was no life so far as heaven was concerned, Paul reminds the Ephesians of their previous life, "...walking after the age of this world, according to the prince of authority of the air..."  Paul cites that they did whatever this world offered them, but that it was not merely them acting, they were also subjected to Satan.  Sometimes I hear well-meaning people say, "...cast your vote, are you going to got with Jesus or the devil?"  There is no vote!  Until one is redeemed, that one already belongs to the Enemy.  Moreover, until one is redeemed, they are lifeless to do anything to help themselves...

Continuing, "...the spirit now working in the sons of disobedience..."  Paul points the Ephesians to "the world and age not seen with human eye" as he speaks of their former condition.  He is bringing forth a reality perhaps they had not considered: their sins were also the result of a condition in the spiritual realm from which they had to be delivered.  Paul does not point the finger at them for judgement, instead, he then includes himself and his band with them: "...we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind...like the rest..."  There are no exceptions to this condition of lifelessness toward God.  Nothing in our innate affections, our mind, our blood, our heritage that creates an exception.  Everyone is incapable of any auto-response to God, the same being true of the Body, the Elect, the Possession before God...

Grace et la paix,

Mark

Sunday, August 15, 2010

A Model Prayer by Paul

Ephesians 1:15-23

15 Wherefore *I* also, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which is in you, and the love which ye have towards all the saints, 16 do not cease giving thanks for you, making mention of you at my prayers, 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, would give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of him, 18 being enlightened in the eyes of your heart, so that ye should know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, 19 and what the surpassing greatness of his power towards us who believe, according to the working of the might of his strength, 20 in which he wrought in the Christ in raising him from among the dead, and he set him down at his right hand in the heavenlies, 21 above every principality, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name named, not only in this age, but also in that to come; 22 and has put all things under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the assembly, 23 which is his body, the fulness of him who fills all in all: (Darby)

 15 δια τουτο καγω ακουσας την καθ υμας πιστιν εν τω κυριω ιησου και την εις παντας τους αγιους 16 ου παυομαι ευχαριστων υπερ υμων μνειαν ποιουμενος επι των προσευχων μου 17 ινα ο θεος του κυριου ημων ιησου χριστου ο πατηρ της δοξης δωη υμιν πνευμα σοφιας και αποκαλυψεως εν επιγνωσει αυτου 18 πεφωτισμενους τους οφθαλμους της καρδιας [υμων] εις το ειδεναι υμας τις εστιν η ελπις της κλησεως αυτου τις ο πλουτος της δοξης της κληρονομιας αυτου εν τοις αγιοις 19 και τι το υπερβαλλον μεγεθος της δυναμεως αυτου εις ημας τους πιστευοντας κατα την ενεργειαν του κρατους της ισχυος αυτου 20 ην ενηργηκεν εν τω χριστω εγειρας αυτον εκ νεκρων και καθισας εν δεξια αυτου εν τοις επουρανιοις 21 υπερανω πασης αρχης και εξουσιας και δυναμεως και κυριοτητος και παντος ονοματος ονομαζομενου ου μονον εν τω αιωνι τουτω αλλα και εν τω μελλοντι 22 και παντα υπεταξεν υπο τους ποδας αυτου και αυτον εδωκεν κεφαλην υπερ παντα τη εκκλησια 23 ητις εστιν το σωμα αυτου το πληρωμα του τα παντα εν πασιν πληρουμενου

In Ephesians chapter 1, beginning in verse 15 and following to the end of the chapter, we have Paul's prayer for the Ephesians. It is interesting that we take note of this prayer, and how different it is to the prayers we usually hear among ourselves as a community of believers, that we hear corporately, and even some of the naysaying about such prayers that we encounter among ourselves.

Paul opens this section by commending the Ephesians for their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and the faith they have demonstrated toward all the saints.

15 Wherefore *I* also, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which is in you, and the love which ye have towards all the saints, 16 do not cease giving thanks for you, making mention of you at my prayers

15 δια τουτο καγω ακουσας την καθ υμας πιστιν εν τω κυριω ιησου και την εις παντας τους αγιους 16 ου παυομαι ευχαριστων υπερ υμων μνειαν ποιουμενος επι των προσευχων μου

Darby translates "faith in the Lord Jesus", and adds his own interpretation with "and the LOVE which ye have..." (the all caps are mine).  In fact, in the Greek text there is no noun to go with the article την in the oldest manuscripts (but there were in later ones, which Darby referenced), which means the noun is implied by a grammatical tool called "ellipsis", a Greek word for 'omission' and representing in our language by three dots: '... '  To illustrate with a quote that will be familiar to some, "We hold these truths to be self-evident...life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."  The ellipsis means something has been omitted.  In composition as we have here, the article typically references the most recent befitting noun, in this case, 'faith'.  'Faith' is the same noun gender as the the article requires, and it is closest to the obvious ellipsis.  Paul is citing the faithfulness of the Ephesians toward all believers.

He says that because of their faith, he is motivated to give thanks without ceasing in always making mention of them in his prayers. It is not as though he would not pray for them had they not demonstrated such faithfulness, but that he is encouraged all the more to pray for them because he sees the Lord's fruit bearing out in their lives. Our human side wants to neglect or put away negativity in our lives, even the negativity of those close to us will lead us to push them away, to distance ourselves from them. But when there is positive workings in our relationship with others, our concern for them is heightened and energizes us. It does impact our motivation, and to work with them is restorative to us. So do not find Paul's words to be cause and effect, that the Ephesians had earned his constant vigil of prayer on their behalf, but rather, in seeing the Lord's work among them, Paul was reminded and energized all the more to pray for them. It was the Lord's way of encouraging is faith, by him seeing the faith of the Ephesians (remember, this epistle was written from a Roman prison).  We should of course pray for all our brothers and sisters, those who are flourishing in the faith, and those who are struggling in the faith.

We must keep in mind that these people experienced the same maladies that we experience. I know this because my travels to Third World countries, I see a common thread among the people I meet. They are concerned for their families, that the children will have a better future; they're concerned about jobs, crops, provisions. They are concerned for their health, and the wellness of those they love, and they deal with injuries, some of which are debilitating. It is doubtful that the pressures of life were any different in the day of Paul's writings. Yes, they have different manifestations in many places of the world, such as the United States and Europe, but the same source of these pressures remain the same. Yet, as we are about to discover, Paul's prayer for the Ephesians covers none of these topics.

17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, would give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of him

17 ινα ο θεος του κυριου ημων ιησου χριστου ο πατηρ της δοξης δωη υμιν πνευμα σοφιας και αποκαλυψεως εν επιγνωσει αυτου

Paul writes that the first thing for which he prays for them is that God of our Lord Jesus Christ. the Father of glory give to them spiritual wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. The word for knowledge is επιγνωσει (dative form), meaning, due to the compounding with the preposition επι, to "move toward deeper knowledge" of God.  When was the last time we heard such a prayer offered on our behalf, or that we offered such a prayer on behalf of someone else? Yet, Paul considers this prayer for them to be preeminent. One could argue that offering such a prayer ignores the realities of the conditions these people were facing; that Paul is being so heavenly minded he is of no earthly good. I have encountered such challenges even from within the body of believers. I was told that I should not be teaching so much on spiritual things, like the spiritual nature of our relationship to God, and His to us, that I needed to be more practical in my teaching. I guess this means that I should have been teaching more topically than exegetically. The problem with such limited focus is that our study of the Word becomes a how-to session, a group therapy session, rather than a session where we open the word of God and find Him in it. It is impossible for us to know the wide variety of topics we might encounter in our day-to-day lives, but to grow in our knowledge and understanding of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, enables us to face anything that this life throws at us. Therefore, having spiritual wisdom in the revelation of the knowledge of God, our Christ, should be preeminent in our study of the Word, in our time in prayer, and in the execution of our ministry.

18 being enlightened in the eyes of your heart, so that ye should know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, 19 and what the surpassing greatness of his power towards us who believe, according to the working of the might of his strength, 

18 πεφωτισμενους τους οφθαλμους της καρδιας [υμων] εις το ειδεναι υμας τις εστιν η ελπις της κλησεως αυτου τις ο πλουτος της δοξης της κληρονομιας αυτου εν τοις αγιοις 19 και τι το υπερβαλλον μεγεθος της δυναμεως αυτου εις ημας τους πιστευοντας κατα την ενεργειαν του κρατους της ισχυος αυτου

Continuing in verse 18, now my brothers and sisters, I ask you, what is practical about the purpose and Paul's prayers for them? The "hope of his calling", what is the practical about this? And what is the practical about knowing "the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints"? And how useful is it, day to day, to know "the surpassing greatness of his power towards us who believe"? Is not Paul ignoring the humanity of the Ephesians, and their obvious day-to-day sufferings? Is Paul being "so very heavenly minded, that he is of no earthly good at all"? We know that we can bring any concern or need to the throne of grace in which Jesus Christ Himself sits. Yet, if we treat this as a model prayer, and pray daily for these things that Paul desires for the Ephesians, would we find it to be enough? Have we become so "practical" in our Christianity that we are of no heavenly good? That we are so focused on what is happening to us, around us, and among us, that we no longer see the practicality of seeking spiritual wisdom and revelation?

20 in which he wrought in the Christ in raising him from among the dead, and he set him down at his right hand in the heavenlies, 

20 ην ενηργηκεν εν τω χριστω εγειρας αυτον εκ νεκρων και καθισας εν δεξια αυτου εν τοις επουρανιοις

In verse 20, Paul's referencing the power that is working within all believers, saying that this is the same power, the exact same power, that was at work in raising Jesus from the dead and seating Him (Jesus) at His (God's) right hand in the heavenly realms. In the Greek, this verb is ενεργω, the noun form being from which we get our word "energy".  The verb means to be "in-working, operative from within".  We see this verb at the end of verse 19 and referenced again in verse 20.  We see the Koine advancement of reinforcing the effect of a word by using its compounding preposition: ην ενηργηκεν εν τω χριστω εγειρας αυτον εκ νεκρων, "...which He inwardly worked in Christ Jesus when raising Him out of a dead (state)..." We marvel at the resurrection, we are amazed by the resurrection, we understand it's significance for the Christian, but do we also appreciate that the power, the exact same power that raised Jesus from the dead, is at work within us as believers? It is the same power. It is a power to be marveled, in which to be amazed, and a power for us to exhibit confidence in God and His plan, His path for our lives (more on this in chapter 2).

21 above every principality, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name named, not only in this age, but also in that to come; 22 and has put all things under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the assembly, 23 which is his body, the fulness of him who fills all in all: 

21 υπερανω πασης αρχης και εξουσιας και δυναμεως και κυριοτητος και παντος ονοματος ονομαζομενου ου μονον εν τω αιωνι τουτω αλλα και εν τω μελλοντι 22 και παντα υπεταξεν υπο τους ποδας αυτου και αυτον εδωκεν κεφαλην υπερ παντα τη εκκλησια 23 ητις εστιν το σωμα αυτου το πληρωμα του τα παντα εν πασιν πληρουμενου

Continuing, Paul writes that this power also gave Jesus all authority over every authority in every realm, and over all names, but also that this power is transcendent, not for a temporal season nor a spatial domain, but  ου μονον εν τω αιωνι τουτω αλλα και εν τω μελλοντι ",,,not only in this age, but also in the one about to come..."  This power is already given to Jesus, and all domains are subject to Him.  In verse 22, και παντα υπεταξεν υπο τους ποδας αυτου "...and all things He subjected (be under the command of) under His feet...", again seeing the reinforced preposition υπο in υπεταξεν (1st aorist of υποτασσω), adding greater emphasis to the depth of Jesus' authority.  Further, God made Jesus the head of the "called out ones", αυτον εδωκεν κεφαλην υπερ παντα τη εκκλησια.  We, those who have been born-again into the New Life, are collectively referred to as η εκκλησια, which means "the ones assembled, the called out ones".  It is always singular, just like the word "the possession" from verse 14, and refers to all believers throughout all time.  It never references an organization, but each of us as a part of His Body.  The power that did all these things for Christ is also at work within us as we are part of Him, the Body of Christ.

In this prayer, Paul does not address any physical needs whatsoever the Ephesians were experiencing. He does not even mention their daily bread. But what he did desire for them, was for them to understand who they are in Jesus Christ, and who He is in them and in relation to them. Armed with such understanding and intimate knowledge, Paul knew that whatever this fallen world, whatever Satan and his enemies, whatever God had in mind for their lives, all of these things could best be handled with spiritual wisdom and the revelation of intimate, growing knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Our (un)Common Salvation

Ephesians 1:13-14

13 in whom ye also, having heard the word of the truth, the [1] gospel of your salvation,—in whom, having also believed, ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,
14 which is an earnest of our inheritance, unto the redemption of God’s own possession, unto the praise of his glory. (ASV)

εν ω και υμεις ακουσαντες τον λογον της αληθειας το ευαγγελιον της σωτηριας υμων εν ω και πιστευσαντες εσφραγισθητε τω πνευματι της επαγγελιας τω αγιω, ο εστιν αρραβων της κληρονομιας ημων εις απολυτρωσιν της περιποιησεως εις επαινον της δοξης αυτου

In these last two verses of Paul's opening herald, he brings the believers back to the one thing that binds us together -- our salvation; a salvation without which all words are merely words and offer no hope, only platitudes.

"In whom" refers back to the prepositional phrase which concluded verse 12: "to the end that we should be unto the praise of his glory, we who had before hoped in Christ", therefore referencing Christ. In actuality, that which is translated in the ASV "in whom" twice in verse 13 could also be translated "in which", as the Greek for both "in whom" and "in which" are exactly the same: "εν ω". If the opening preposition in verse 13 is "in which", then it is referencing "the end" of verse 12. Both interpretations work effectively in transitioning from 12 to 13, in my humble opinion. The second "εν ω" of verse 13, however, I think is more accurately translated "in which", as it points to "the word of truth" (τον λογον της αληθειας), which is neutral in gender per the English language. The translators of this passage may have interpreted this phrase as a reference to Jesus, and thus the "in whom", but as the object of a participial phrase linked to the believers in Ephesus, I think "in which" is more appropriate. While Jesus calls Himself "The Truth", the title "word of truth" is never applied to Him. I have found many places in the NT where the phrase "the word of God" (ο λογος του θεου, τον λογον του θεου) is used, and one could very easily replace that phrase with "Jesus" or "Christ" and the verse would still work, but I do not think this is the case here.

Moving on, we find two participles referencing the activities of the recipients of this letter (and us, as well). "having heard/after hearing" (ακουσαντες), and "having believed/after believing" (πιστευσαντες). Paul wrote in Romans 10:17 "So belief cometh of hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ". The believer becomes so because the message is heard, and then believed. This is God's chosen process, and we as believers must grasp it and be responsible for it. Peter says we (all of us) are a nation of priests -- those who stand between God and man. We have Him in our hearts, His message for all men on our tongues, and we must declare with our lips. Paul writes that we are ambassadors for Christ, His representatives to all men, and we are therefore the communicators of His will and intent, that people everywhere repent and believe the Gospel. It is not the job of some overworked, highly schooled, professional clergyman -- such a thing did not exist in the first 200 years of the Body's presence -- the proclamation of the Gospel, God's chosen plan whereby people everywhere might be saved, is the responsibility of those who have been born-again -- redeemed persons.

After hearing and believing, Paul declares "(you) have been sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise". The pronoun is implied in the verb construction (εσφραγισθητε), and Paul has made it sufficiently clear who the implied "you" is by context. Besides, adding the pronoun directly would have brought inappropriate emphasis to something that is clearly the work of someone else, that "someone" being the Holy Spirit. You see, we are not partners with God in achieving this seal -- it is something He has done for us through the agency of the Holy Spirit, the One which had been promised from the days of old. This sealing happens after hearing, after believing, but not after testing and evaluation. It is an act of grace, unmerited in any way. It is God's chosen way, His selected means.

Paul then describes the significance of this sealing, drawing himself and his band back into the company of the believers in Ephesus:

which is an earnest of our inheritance, unto the redemption of God’s own possession, unto the praise of his glory

ο εστιν αρραβων της κληρονομιας ημων εις απολυτρωσιν της περιποιησεως εις επαινον της δοξης αυτου

The word αρραβων can be translated as "earnest, guarantee, pledge", and all three meanings are co-joined in its use in verse 14. The Holy Spirit's presence in us is the earnest, the down payment of something greater to come; it is our guarantee, for the Holy Spirit's work cannot be undone, which includes our being sealed in salvation; it is our pledge from God, that we are His own and He will be ever present with us.

Paul states the purpose of these amazing acts of grace: "unto the redemption of God's own possession..." That we might be found fully redeemed. The Greek word translated "God's own possession", περιποιησεως, is an interesting one. The verb root is ποιεω, or "I make/do", so in the noun form used here means "a making, a doing, a performance", but not "that which is made", which would have the form ποιημα. In the feminine gender it refers to the process. The beauty of Koine Greek is its compounding of words to bring stronger, more explicit meanings to root words. Whether it is compounding nouns, or of greater importance in the Greek NT, the combining of prepositions with nouns to bring emphasis: "out-rigger" is descriptive of the substantive phrase "rigged on the outside", and when we want to strengthen the noun further, we might precede it with the same preposition which forms the word itself, "in the inside", as an example. The Koine Greek introduced such tools to the Greek language, and one of the reasons the Koine is the most expressive of all forms of the Greek language. In the word under discussion, περιποιησεως, it is the combination of περι and ποιησεως (in this case I am maintaining the genitive form for the reader's sake). The preposition περι means "about, around, concerning, etc." depending on the voice of the noun with which it is being used, and in composition, such as we have here, it means "all around, round about, surround, beyond, through". So how do we go from a word referencing the "process of making" to "God's own possession"? We first visit the verb companion, περιποιεω, and see its meaning as "I make to reserve/to keep safe (the around about or surrounding meaning of the preposition)/to lay by". The general idea of the verb is to make a surrounding/a protection/a reservation for something or someone. It is not unlike the idea of οριζω, which means "I draw a border around/apply a limit in extent", a verb which, when combined with the Greek preposition προ (before, in time or space), we get προοριζω, which is translated in Romans 8:29 as "predestined, foreordained".

The noun form we have in verse 14, περιποιησεως, therefore is rightly interpreted as "the possession, with the ASV adding implication. Literally, "the redemption of the possession". "The possession" reference to the Body of Christ, all those who were bought with His blood, the elect of God. The Possession, The Body, The Elect all refer to all believers at once, transcendent of time. The redemption of the possession, once again as we have already seen, brings praise and glory to God and our Lord Jesus. Everything God has done for our salvation and in saving us individually brings Him and Him alone glory and praise. May it ever be, Amen.