In Christ, We Are God’s Workmanship (Eph.2:8-10)

We were not  saved   on our  won  merit. We  did to deserve  mercy, rather we deserved  judgment.  Salvation  is  entirely  by  grace, although we  must  appropriate  that grace  by  obedience to the  commands of God.  But we must  realize that  we  can  never  earn our  salvation.  We can  never be saved  by  law keeping.  this  does  not  mean that we  do  not obey  His  commands.  We can  never  put our trust  in anything that  man can accomplish on his own.

Verse  9  back ups that  fact  we cannot earn our salvation.  To say  we  can  earn it smacks of arrogance.  Grace  eliminates all such  arrogance. There is only One who should be exalted in salvation, and that is God.  Our  only  boasting must  be in the Lord.

Paul says it well when he writes, “What do you have that  you  didn’t receive? If, in fact you did receive it?” (1 Cor. 4:7) And since we have received this  salvation, “The one who boasts must boast in the Lord.” (1 Cor. 1:31).

We can never  work our way  to heaven but once  we are Christians we  ned to be the  best  workers He  has.  Works  are not the root of our salvation, rather, they are  the fruit of salvation. We must have a  living faith, a  functioning  faith. Because we are God’s workmanship in Christ Jesus, people should  see our  good works.  Jesus said, “In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see you  good works and  give  glory to your Father in Heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)

So let us live out  our faith daily and  walk in the Lord. Once we were in darkness, being controlled  by the world, the  flesh, and the Devil. But God made us alive through an obedient faith  in Christ, and now we are walking in Christ  doing  good works.

Larry Miles, May 1, 2015 in Mangum, OK

Apart From Christ, We Were Spiritually Dead (Eph. 2:1-3)

In Ephesians 2:1-10  we have  a kind of “before” and “after” picture painted for us.  The   first three verse who us  why  we needed the  change.

In verse one the  word  “and”  connects the  preceding  paragraph.  appeal refers to both  Gentile and  Jew in  verse1.  He also has the   word “were.” It  denotes our spiritual condition when God  made us  alive. “Dead” means  spiritual  separation  from God  The  word  “sins”  means “missing the mark,” as in shooting an  arrow.

Verse 2  tells us how we  lived  prior to  our conversion to  Christ.  Guy Orbison, Jr writes the  following, “the phrase  “you walked,” images life as a  journey, implying, going  in a certain direction.”

Prior  to our coming to  Christ all of us in the  control, whether we  knew it or  not  of “prince of the power of the  air,” a name for Satan. We  blindly  followed the direction of the “world.”  Our life was a  life of  disobedience.

Verse  3 tells us that because of our  condition of  disobedience   that we are by nature  children of wrath, thus being  doomed  to Hell.  Praise  God that the  story did not  end with this  verse.  The good news  for  Christians is that God’s wrath has been fired out not on us but  on the  Savior.  In our next study,we have two of the sweetest  words in Scipture: “But God.”  As Paul harvey said, “Now you know the rest of the  story.”

-Larry Miles, May 1, 2015 in Mangum, OK

Praising God For His Exaltation of Christ (Eph. 1:20-23)

When God  raised Jesus  from the  dead  it proved   His power.  he  further  showed His power  when  He seated  the Lord Jesus at  His right  hand. This  terminology refers  to Jesus receiving a position  of high  authority and power.

Eph. 1:20 refers that  this  took place  “in the heavenly  places.”  Denny Petrillo writes, “This phraseology means that  Jesus was  exalted above  all other authorities, including those in the  demonic  realm. This is illustrated by  his  far above statement, where jesus  is  above: (a) every  authority and (b) every name–either past, present or  future.”

In  verse 22 Paul has  one  more aspect that  he wants to  elaborate on. It is one that he will focus on in the remainder of the  epistle. The  Father  gave  Jesus a  high  position in regard to the  church.  To be  head of  something means  He  is the sole  authority.  God’s people are the  church.  The  church is made up of  believers.  We are the  ones  who have  received all the spiritual  blessings that are only  found in Christ (Eph. 1:3-14).

In verse 23 the  church  is called  His body. This term is one  of  Paul’s favorite descriptions on the church. Denny Petrillo writes these  words, “The body indicates  closeness…”  Paul is  saying that Jesus, as head over the  church, is filling [the church] in a  special way with His Spirit, grab and  gifts; it is His  fulness. As a  church we are  entirely dependent on Christ. The church is full, complete, lacking nothing.  As the  hymn writer says, “The Church’s one foundation is  Jesus  Christ her  Lord…”

-Larry Miles, April 30, 2015 in Mangum, OK,