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This is the fifth segment in my sermon entitled, "The Mystery of Christ".
4. The Mystery of God's Gracious Gift
(Eph 3:7-8a) "Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God's grace, which was given me by the working of his power. To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given,"
-Paul was first given the gift of God's grace in the forgiveness of his sins and the adoption into God's church.
-Second, Paul was made a minister by the gift of God's grace. Spiritual regeneration comes before spiritual service.
-Paul was first given the gift of God's grace in the forgiveness of his sins and the adoption into God's church.
-Second, Paul was made a minister by the gift of God's grace. Spiritual regeneration comes before spiritual service.
Sometimes we get this backwards. We think somebody's natural gifts make them a great teacher or preacher, but without God's work to regenerate that person so that they really get the gospel that would make them a really diabolical teacher. How many men are there out there that think because they are outgoing and personable and can communicate well to others and they are smart and knowledgeable that this means they should be a pastor. And then they go years operating a ministry that may look positive to outsiders, but really ministers death unto death to others and leads people astray from the faith because they never really got the gospel themselves. The natural man can only preach a natural gospel; and a natural gospel is not the gospel of Christ. This is the mystery of God's gracious gift of his Spirit. Only those who have the Spirit of God can understand spiritual things for they are spiritually discerned. We must all learn this lesson. All your giftings, all your ministering, all your advice-giving, all your serving, all your administrating, all your foot-washing, is nothing to God unless you are spiritually made new. This was the mystery that Nicodemus, the teacher of Israel, couldn't understand: You must be born again. And then spiritual service and spiritual gifts become meaningful.
-God's grace is given by the working of his power, both gifts of regeneration and service are given to magnify Christ, not you. They are to be done in the operation of his power, not your own, in order that he might be glorified, made to look as great as he is, in the work and not you. This is a mystery because we are so inclined to want our use of God's gifts to make us look great. And then when they don't make us look great, when we don't get as many compliments as we want, when the people around us don't continually sing our praises, we are disappointed, mystified, angered. We need to learn to pray with the hymn, "May they forget the channel, seeing only you."
-God's grace is not based on merit. Spiritual gifts do not determine status. Many who are first will be last in the kingdom. Success is faithfulness to God, not the size of one's ministry or influence. Paul, on the basis of his past life, could rightly have a very low view of himself as the least of the all the saints, because he persecuted the church of God. And the fact that he was an apostle did not change that and make him think highly of himself. He was very willing to make much of his office, to make much of his calling, so that he might serve God by it. He has no problem pulling his rank as an apostle at multiple times in his letters. He commands that the office he has been put in be respected. But at the same time he retains great humility about his person. He views himself as lower than the least of all the saints. How Paul does this balancing act is mystery that is only explained by the nature of God's gracious gift, first of regeneration, and second of apostleship. It is only possible because of the mystery that salvation is by faith alone, through grace, and this is not from ourselves or our own merit or work, it is the gracious gift of God.
-God's grace is given by the working of his power, both gifts of regeneration and service are given to magnify Christ, not you. They are to be done in the operation of his power, not your own, in order that he might be glorified, made to look as great as he is, in the work and not you. This is a mystery because we are so inclined to want our use of God's gifts to make us look great. And then when they don't make us look great, when we don't get as many compliments as we want, when the people around us don't continually sing our praises, we are disappointed, mystified, angered. We need to learn to pray with the hymn, "May they forget the channel, seeing only you."
-God's grace is not based on merit. Spiritual gifts do not determine status. Many who are first will be last in the kingdom. Success is faithfulness to God, not the size of one's ministry or influence. Paul, on the basis of his past life, could rightly have a very low view of himself as the least of the all the saints, because he persecuted the church of God. And the fact that he was an apostle did not change that and make him think highly of himself. He was very willing to make much of his office, to make much of his calling, so that he might serve God by it. He has no problem pulling his rank as an apostle at multiple times in his letters. He commands that the office he has been put in be respected. But at the same time he retains great humility about his person. He views himself as lower than the least of all the saints. How Paul does this balancing act is mystery that is only explained by the nature of God's gracious gift, first of regeneration, and second of apostleship. It is only possible because of the mystery that salvation is by faith alone, through grace, and this is not from ourselves or our own merit or work, it is the gracious gift of God.
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