As we’ve seen throughout this series: Ephesians’ vision is of a cosmos that one day will be gloriously freed from all evil, unified totally with the joy, goodness and love of Christ (1:9-10). This is what God made each of us for! So in the book’s final verse Paul comes exultantly back to the `heart of the whole matter’: `love undying`, for CHRIST!
Of course. He must; we must. If we miss this, we miss the whole point. And we all have, haven’t we – when God’s good but smaller things rise up and dominate our thinking: abstractions of theology or doctrine, activism for social righteousness, getting the mechanics of outreach right, repairing the damage the enemy causes, oiling the wheels of the church… And suddenly the thought comes, as it did to me while running a conference a while ago, Christ, that’s someone I used to care about….
A book about the vision of the ultimate cannot be devoted to anything but the `unsearchable riches’ of Christ (Eph 3:8). So heaven, for us, means being in Christ (2:6). And the Church, the Bride, is for Christ (5:31-32). Then if we want to learn more, step by step, of all that our Christ is, Ephesians isn’t a bad place to go looking. (Using biblegateway.com to find all the `in Him’ and `in Christ’ verses is a good way to start…)
- So: in the end, everything good, beautiful, wonderful, is in, from, through Christ! That’s made clear when Paul begins Ephesians with his cry of joy because of Christ: `Praise be to the Father’, because `every spiritual blessing’ is now ours – `in Christ‘ (1:3)! Christ, God, is infinite, so ultimately everything of value must be bound up with Him. I worship You, Lord…! (Learning to make the effort to worship is a discipline crucial to grasping these things!) And so with Him we received everything we could need, when we were `included in Christ, when you heard the word of truth’ (1:13). Thankyou, Lord…!
- Again, it’s `in Him’, and only `in Him`, that we are redeemed (1:7). This is not a colourless `legal fiction’, as liberal theologians sometimes say, but a profound cosmic mystery: it is because we are brought `in Christ’ that we find ourselves benefiting from the huge price paid for our sin `in His flesh’ (2:15), and also find ourselves `made alive with Him’ (2:5), and `raised up with Christ’, and `seated with Him in the heavenly realms’ (2:6). Thankyou, Lord…!
- Yet again, God’s wonderful grace is `freely given us’ – `in the one He loves’ (1:6). It’s `in Him’ we were chosen (1:4,11), `through Him’ we were predestined to be God’s sons and daughters (1:5), and `in Him’ we were `marked with the Holy Spirit’ (1:13). Hallelujah! Only `in Him and through faith in Him’ can we `approach God with freedom and confidence’ (3:12). And then, `in Christ’ likewise we are `created` – and empowered – `to do good works’ (2:10). Thankyou, Lord…!
- Again, it’s `in Him’ we are `built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit’ (2:21,22). It’s as `members of the one Body’ of which Christ is the Head that we are `sharers together in the promise’ – again, `in Christ Jesus’ (3:6, 1:22-23). The whole cosmic plan is `purposed in Christ’, and is `accomplished in Christ’ (1:9,3:11); Christ is its climax, Christ its head and consummation (1:10). `To Him be glory in the church – and in Christ!'(3:21) Amen, Lord…!
And so Paul brings his epistle to its logically inevitable conclusion, with another outburst of prayer and adoration: `Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love undying!‘ (6:24)…
It is Christ who is, in every sense, the ultimate! Lord, my mind can’t hold it all; but insofar as I can, I love, and I worship…
