1As for you, you were dead in your
transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you
followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the
spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3All of us
also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature
and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature
objects of wrath. 4But because of his great love for us, God, who is
rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in
transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6And God raised
us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ
Jesus, 7in order that in the coming ages he might show the
incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ
Jesus. 8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and
this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9not by works, so
that no one can boast. 10For we are God's workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
There are many people walking around who are dead and are too numb to know it! They walk. They talk. They breathe, wheeze and sneeze. They are under the false illusion that they are alive, yet the Bible says that they are dead… spiritually, that is. The Bible describes such ones as being dead in transgressions and sins. Many have willfully denied Christ. They’re dead and too numb to know it…. Blinded in sinful living. Can they be salvaged? Can they be genuinely saved and brought to eternal life in the Lord? Yes, they can. Yet, tragically enough, many choose not to. Many reject the gospel. It’s an individual choice. It is the most important decision that anyone can make, as it deals with our eternal destiny. And it is a choice in which anyone who chooses wrong will pay a severe penalty, which is eternal damnation in hell. As I so often say, “Eternity is too long to be wrong!”
Paul points out to the Ephesians, as well as to you and me,
today, that many of us were in the same circumstances, being dead in personal
transgressions and sins. We, too,
followed the slippery slope of the world, being influenced by the devil and his
dark angels. Many of us were
rebellious, self-serving individuals, blinded by our sinful desires and
actions. If we were to have died in
such a sorry state, we would have done so as objects of the wrath of God, due to
willful disobedience and rebellious lifestyles.
We love the Lord because He loved us first. The Bible says that “because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made
us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace
you have been saved.”
So, we see that it is God Who took the original initiative to seek out those of
us who would come to Him! Fortunately
for us, He is “rich in mercy.” We can’t
take Him for granted. Yet we can be
extremely thankful that God is so loving and merciful. He always does the right thing! As we yield to Him, we can rest assured that
He will deal lovingly and forthrightly with each of us!
We
were dead! We were blinded by our
sinful lifestyles and evil desires, just like so many all around us,
today! But we didn’t stay that way,
praise God! As we’ve accepted Jesus
Christ, Who willingly shed His life’s blood on Calvary’s Cross for all who
choose to accept so great a salvation, we’re saved! We’re no longer driven by evil spirits, blinded by sin.
In
2 Corinthians 5:17, the Bible says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old
has gone, the new has come!” We are no longer the same! In reply to Nicodemus, in John, chapter 3, Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can
see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."
Nicodemus wanted to know how this could be and Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, no one can
enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6Flesh
gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7You
should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again'” [verses 5-7].
God
has such a deep, ever-abiding love for each of us that He has constantly been
willing to give His very best for us, as we are His kids. And any loving dad will do the best to
nurture and guide his kids, guiding and directing them toward the best possible
things. The Bible is clear that He
loves us deeply. In fact, in John
3:16-21, we read, 16"For God so loved the world that he
gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but
have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to
condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever
believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned
already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. 19This
is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead
of light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil
hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will
be exposed. 21But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light,
so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through
God."
So,
live in the light and we see what we need to do to yield to His saving and
sanctifying love and grace at work in our hearts and lives. To live in darkness is to be blinded by
sinful desires and evil deeds. It’s a
no-brainer. Those who remain in
darkness are in deep, deep trouble.
Those who walk in the light see clearly, resulting in eternal life in
Jesus, by the power of the Spirit, empowering for life and service in this life
and on into eternity!
In
Ephesians 2:8-9, the Bible says, . “For it is by grace you have been saved, through
faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9not by
works, so that no one can boast.”
We
are saved through the love and grace of God, in Christ, as we yield to the
Spirit’s guidance. All too many people
get the idea that they have to be good; - that they have to earn their
salvation by doing good deeds. At our
very best of intentions, we can never earn or deserve salvation. We do serve the Lord. But we do so out of “an attitude of
gratitude!” As for our salvation,
it is a free gift. If we had to
work for it, it would not be a gift. It
is a free gift. So, as
such, we have nothing to boast about.
It is not accomplished by one bit of works on our part. So we have nothing to brag about. It’s a precious, free gift, through faith,
not of our own works, giving us nothing to boast about having
accomplished.
As
we pray today:
1.
What
truths really speak to your own heart, personally, today?
2.
How do
you plan to apply these truths to your heart and life?
3.
What do
you see as the most effective way to share this with others in your circle of
influence?
For the entire message, go to: http://www.angelire.com/nm2/don/Ephesians2vss1thru10.html
Please note:
You are welcome to share this devotional in your local churches, but I suggest that you personalize it. You do not have permission to publicize it or to make money from it in any form. May God richly bless you as you minister for Him with rich spiritual rewards of seeing many souls saved and sanctified for all eternity! Please let me know whatever helpful results you may get from this!
With Warm Sincerity in Jesus’ Love,
Rev. Don Schink, Pastor-Evangelist
Sonlight Ministries
Tijeras, NM
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