Ephesians 2:1-10

This morning I can think of two great benefits of getting to be the pastor of Christ Family Church.

! Firstly, I get to make requests of songs, and the band actually does them. So if you didn't like that, I'm sorry, that was for me.

Secondly, I get to preach to you the Word of God and the great blessing that it is. So please turn in your copy of God's Word to Ephesians chapter 2.

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

Ephesians chapter 2, and follow along with me as I read to us verses 1 through 10.

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins of 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, 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.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses,

made us alive together with Christ. By grace you have been saved, and raised us up with him, and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

so that in the coming ages you might show the immeasurable riches of his grace and kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God,

not a result of work, so that no one may boast.

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

This is God's word to us, written for his glory and our good. We would all do well to listen to it and obey it.

Let's pray together.

Father God, we praise you this morning for the risen and reigning Jesus Christ.

It is in his person and work that we have the redemption of our souls,

and it is because of what he has accomplished that you are forming us into a people for your possession,

that you are making us into a temple as your dwelling place, with Jesus as the cornerstone.

Father, today we want only to exalt him.

I do not want to be exalted.

People here, people on the stage, people sitting in the seats, do not want to be exalted.

Father, we want Christ to be exalted.

And Lord, all that we do, apart from the work of your spirit, would not exalt Christ.

They would be mere motions.

And so we pray that by your spirit you will work in us this day.

That the preaching of your word will have power, not because my words have weight,

but because my words speak of the word of God.

Your very revelation to mankind.

And that by your spirit you would take those words and you would apply them to our hearts,

that we might be changed, not in degree, but in type.

That we will belong to Jesus.

And as a result, we will obey his every command.

And we pray all of this in his matchless and wonderful name.

Amen.

Amen.

Well, I know that it's not lost on any of you that today is Easter Sunday,

the Sunday that the Christian church celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

But I put forth to you that the church of Christ celebrates in each and every meeting,

as well as in each and every action of every day throughout the week,

the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Now, I'm not against us having a special Sunday in which we do that.

I think that that is okay.

But I want us to be mindful that this is not the only time of year that we should remember what Christ accomplished.

His person and his work is what we praise with our lives.

At least I hope that's true of you.

But today we are going to take a break from our verse-by-verse exposition of the Gospel according to Mark

to look in Ephesians and to see some of the benefits that we gain by the resurrection of Christ.

But first I want to ask the question, how can we know that Jesus was raised from the dead?

How can we know that this is true?

And I'm going to give you four reasons, and these are not exhaustive reasons,

but just four reasons that I find particularly compelling.

But let me say to you that ultimately and finally,

for these reasons to become reasons for you,

they must be accepted by faith.

They must be accepted by faith.

If we were to say that we ourselves stood in the empty tomb,

we could still, with some reason of our mind, say that Jesus' body was stolen.

We could say that somebody broke in,

rolled a stone that could be not rolled away by a couple of men,

but by an army of men, and took his body.

We could somehow rationalize it away as the world does.

We must accept these things by faith.

But nonetheless, there are reasons and some very compelling ones.

Firstly, Jesus stated that he would be raised from the dead.

He himself knew that this was going to happen.

Mark 8, verse 31.

Mark 8:31

And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things,

and be rejected by the elders, and the chief priests, and the scribes,

and be killed.

And after three days, rise again.

There was a prediction on Jesus' part that this would, in fact, take place.

Secondly, the tomb was empty.

We have a record of that.

Luke 24, verses 1-3.

Luke 24:1–3

We see three women, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and a woman named Salome,

go and visit the tomb to bring more spices for the body.

Verse 1 of chapter 24.

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb,

taking the spices they had prepared.

And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb.

But when they went in, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.

Thirdly, in a particularly compelling case, the disciples of Christ were transformed.

Those closest to Him called the apostles.

We have many accounts of their fearless proclamation of the gospel of God after Jesus' death.

Acts 2, verse 32.

Acts 2:32

This is Peter's sermon on the day of Pentecost.

He says,

And you recall, after the death of Christ,

what the apostles and the larger group of disciples were doing?

They were cowering in a room together.

150 of them did not know what to do.

This Jesus that they thought was going to come and reign politically and militarily,

was going to overthrow the Roman government,

had been put to death.

And they did not know what to do.

They feared for their very lives.

Remember, Peter, who preached this sermon,

was the one who had denied Christ because of his fear.

They were turned from proverbial mice to men when they saw the risen Christ.

Between the years of A.D. 34 and A.D. 74,

all of 12 of the apostles, save Judas, who hung himself,

and John, who died of natural death,

all of them were martyred across a 40-year span.

They didn't come together in a room together,

get each other really psyched up to continue to try to promote a myth.

And they all were excited about it for a couple of months,

and they were all put to death.

But across a span of 40 years,

these men believed that Jesus lived,

and they were willing to give their lives to it.

Let me give you examples.

Paul's first martyr, not an apostle,

but Stephen, one of the early deacons,

was stoned.

As we know, Paul, Saul then, stood aside and watched.

James was killed by Herod Agrippa with a sword.

Peter was crucified upside down.

There are extra-biblical accounts of all of these things.

Andrew was crucified on an olive tree in a town called Petra in Achaia.

Thomas was run through with pine spears,

tormented with red-hot plates,

and finally burned alive.

Philip was tortured, then crucified in Phrygia.

Matthew was beheaded.

Bartholomew, also known as Nathaniel,

was flayed, split open, and then crucified.

The other James, called the Lesser James,

was beaten to death with a club.

Simon was crucified in Syria.

Judas Thaddeus, beaten to death with sticks in Mesopotamia.

Matthias stoned while being crucified in Ethiopia.

Paul was beheaded in Rome.

And then John, as I mentioned previously,

died a natural death,

but it's rumored and fairly historically accounted for

that he was scarred horribly by being burned in boiling oil.

These men were willing to receive these types of torments,

these types of death,

because they had seen the risen Christ.

Turn with me, if you will, to Acts chapter 5.

Acts 5 · chapter mention

Keep your finger in Ephesians chapter 2.

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

Acts chapter 5.

Acts 5 · chapter mention

I'm going to read a little bit to you of an account

of early on, in the early church,

when the apostles were arrested.

And I want you to see some of the peculiar response here,

which helps fortify this reason

why we can believe in the resurrection.

Beginning of verse 27,

So this is a council of Jews

had brought them, the apostles.

They set them before the council,

and the high priest questioned them,

saying,

We strictly charge you not to teach in this name,

the name of Jesus.

Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching,

and you intend to bring this man's blood upon us.

But Peter and the apostles answered.

So here's Peter,

fearful Peter,

denying Christ,

just days before.

He says to them,

to this council,

We must obey God,

rather than men.

The God of our fathers raised Jesus,

whom you killed by hanging him on a tree.

God exalted him at his right hand

as leader and savior

to give repentance to Israel

and forgiveness of sins.

And we are his witnesses to these things.

And so is the Holy Spirit,

whom God has given to those who obey him.

When they heard this,

they were enraged and wanted to kill him.

But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel,

right here,

we need to have the same reason that he had here.

A teacher of the law,

held in honor by all the people,

stood up and gave orders

to put the men outside for a little while.

And he said to them,

the council,

Men of Israel,

take care of what you are about to do

with these men.

For before these days,

Theodos rose up,

claiming to be somebody,

and a number of men,

about 400,

joined him.

He was killed,

and all who followed him

were dispersed and came to nothing.

After him,

Judas the Galilean

rose up on the days of the census

and drew away some of the people after him.

He too perished,

and all who followed him

were scattered.

So in the present case,

I tell you,

keep away from these men

and let them alone.

For if this plan

or this undertaking

is of man,

it will fail.

You catch that?

These Jewish people

had been waiting

for somebody

who was going to come

and conquer,

who was going to fulfill

the prophecy of the Old Testament

as they saw it.

Someone who was going to come

and reign politically

and militarily.

Someone who was going to come

and overthrow

the Roman Empire.

And some men had come along

and said that.

They were false in that way,

and they were killed,

and their followers dispersed.

It will fail.

Verse 39,

But if it is of God,

you will not be able

to overthrow them.

You might even be found

opposing God.

So they took this advice,

and when they had called

in the apostles,

they beat them

and charged them

not to speak in the name

of Jesus

and let them go.

So just the same,

bring them in,

they beat them,

tell them,

do not speak in the name

of Jesus.

Then they left

the presence of the council,

rejoicing that they were

counted worthy

to suffer dishonor

for the name.

Strange,

if Christ was not risen.

And every day

in the temple

and from house to house,

they did not cease

teaching and preaching

Jesus as the Christ.

This is great reason

for us to believe

that Jesus was in fact

raised from the dead.

John 2.22 says,

When therefore

he was raised from the dead,

his disciples remembered

that he had said this,

and they believed

the scripture

and the word

that Jesus had spoken.

In Romans 8.18,

Paul records,

For I consider

that the sufferings

of this present time

are not worth comparing

with the glory

that is to be revealed

to us.

Recognize, beloved,

that if we believe

the gospel

in its fullness,

Jesus Christ did in fact

bear the wrath of God

on our behalf

and was killed,

buried,

and resurrected,

he's seated at the right hand,

we will be bold

in this way.

And we have no reason

to be bold in this way

if he was not

raised from the dead.

He was defeated

2,000 plus years ago.

Why would we think

he can reign now?

But he does in fact

reign.

Fourthly,

the promises

of the Bible

hinge

upon the reality

of the resurrection.

The promises

of the Bible

hinge

upon it.

If we are not

willing to believe

all of the Bible,

we have no business

believing any part

of the Bible.

This is revelation.

This is God's

word to us.

It is inerrant.

It is powerful.

It is sufficient

as the rule

for our lives.

Our experience

can affirm

the truth

of the Bible,

but it cannot

define it.

Does it not

cause you fear

that some people

think that they can

find truth

within themselves?

Do you not do this

at points in your life?

Think that you yourself

can define what is

and what isn't

true?

This is a fearful

thing.

I know myself

too well

to think that I

can define truth.

I need some

external source

of revelation.

I need something

absolute,

something objective,

and praise God

we have his scriptures.

He condescended

to become an author,

to write a book

for us.

There must be

an objective reality

outside ourselves

which governs

our lives.

And I will tell you

that if I cannot

believe every word

in this book,

then I can't believe

any of it.

I have no grounds

to believe any of it

at all.

And my salvation

is at risk

in that.

Jesus himself

affirms

the validity

of at least

our Old Testament

scriptures.

He quotes it

78 times

in the New Testament.

Jesus was a man

of the word

who believed

in the revelation

of God.

These are great reasons.

Great reasons

to believe

in the resurrection.

And there are

three ways

that all

that we believe

to be true

of the gospel

would fall apart

if the resurrection

was not

in fact

a reality.

And that was

the introduction.

So here we go.

Three ways

it would all

fall apart.

Without the reality

of the resurrection,

we would not have

firstly protection

from the wrath

of God.

We're back in

Ephesians chapter 2

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

now if you're

tracking along.

I'm going to read

to you a few verses

here again.

And you were dead

in the trespasses

and sins

in which you once

walked.

This is Paul

writing to the church

at Ephesus

those who have

claimed to be

in the faith.

We need to hear

this this morning.

We know that he

is writing to

believers.

You were dead

once you were

dead in your

trespasses and sins

in which you once

walked.

Following the

course of this

world.

Following the

prince of the

power of the

air.

That is Satan

if you don't

know.

The spirit

that is now

at work in

the sons of

disobedience.

Among whom

we all once

lived in the

passions of

our flesh.

Carrying out

the desires of

the body and

the mind.

And we're by

nature.

By the very

center of who

we are.

Our definition

of who we are.

Children of

wrath.

Like the rest

of mankind.

mankind fell in

the garden.

Original sin now

permeates the rest

of humanity.

And therefore we

are apart from

Christ enemies of

God.

And as enemies of

God, God is

right.

He is just.

Not unloving, but

just to punish

sin.

It's right for

him to do it.

We would not

want to worship a

God who's not

just.

Who one day will

not make all

things right in

judging this world.

We want to

worship a just

God.

But because of

that, wrath is

due us.

The weight of

our sin, the

very thing that

it purchased for

us, was the

wrath of God.

Saying to God,

you are not

God, but I

am.

I want to be

like a God.

I want to

define truth for

myself.

It's due the

wrath of God.

Romans 1.18,

Paul writes,

for the wrath of

God is revealed

from heaven against

all ungodliness

and unrighteousness

of men who

by their

unrighteousness

suppress the

truth.

Here's the

beautiful message

of the gospel.

It's not that

God lays aside

his justice.

He doesn't

cease to be

just in order

to be loving,

but that in

his perfect

justice and

in his perfect

love, he

punished for

us our sin

in Christ.

He poured

out his

wrath on

Jesus.

We know

that crucifixion

is the most

horrible death

that man has

ever imagined.

I'm not going

to take the

time to get

into the

details for

you this

day, but

it was a

horrid, horrid

way to

die.

But this is

nothing.

This has

nothing.

Look at how

many of the

apostles themselves

were crucified.

This is nothing

compared to the

fact that Jesus

bore the wrath

of God for

our sins.

It was

punished in

him.

1 Thessalonians

1, 9-10,

Paul writes,

And you see

how in Paul's

mind, Jesus'

death and his

resurrection are

intertwined in

his ability to

deliver us from

the wrath to

come.

Right?

That he died

on behalf of

us, but that he

was raised and

conquered that,

that even the

consequence of

sin could not

reign over

Jesus Christ.

And now we

have deliverance

from wrath as

a result.

Again, Paul

writes in

Romans 5,

9-10,

Since therefore

we have now

been justified

by his blood,

much more

shall we be

saved by him

from the

wrath of God.

For if while

we were enemies

we were

reconciled to

God by the

death of his

son, much

more, now

that we are

reconciled,

shall we be

saved by his

life.

We have

life because

Jesus is

alive.

Praise God.

Without the

reality of the

resurrection, we

would not have

protection from

the wrath of

God.

But that

protection is

ours in his

death and

resurrection.

Secondly,

without the

reality of the

resurrection, we

would not have

our sin

pardoned.

The dismissal

of that, it

would not be

written off.

We would not

be justified

before him.

Again, Ephesians

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2,

beginning of

verse 4, this

most precious,

my favorite

conjunction in

all of the

Bible.

For those of

you students

of grammar,

it's in fact a

discourse connective

in case you

care about such

things.

But you see

this picture of

who we once

were.

That what was

due to us was

the wrath of

God, eternal

destruction, eternal

damnation, misery

forever, and to

these precious

words, but

God, but

God, being

rich in mercy

because of the

great love with

which he loved

us, even when

we were dead in

our trespasses,

even when we

were those

children of

wrath, he

made us alive

together with

Christ.

By grace you

have been

saved.

And you have

to get this,

you have to

understand, you

have to see the

language of the

Bible, that it

speaks to us not

about degree, but

about type.

All over our

nation today, there

are people who

are guests in

churches, meeting

with the people of

God because they

think in some way

that gains them

some stance with

the Lord, that

that puts a

check in the good

box for them.

That would be a

thinking of degree.

I'm a little

better here, I'm a

little worse here.

If my good works

just outweigh my

bad works, I'll

find heaven.

That is not the

basis on which we

are justified.

We are justified

by type.

And that is that

God has made us

alive.

By grace you

have been saved.

In verse 6, and

here's the axiom

verse, and raised

us up with him, and

seated us with him

in the heavenly

places in Christ

Jesus.

Jesus, both the

language for raised

and for seated in

the Greek, it's

speaking as if it's

already happened.

Because of the

personal work of

Christ, these things

have been guaranteed

on our behalf.

Verse 7, so in the

coming ages, he might

show the immeasurable

riches of his grace

and kindness toward

us in Christ Jesus, so

that for all eternity,

that's what it's

saying, that God can

show his grace toward

us, to the world.

Verse 8, for by grace

you have been saved

through faith, and

this is not your own

doing, it is the gift

of God, not a result

of works, so that no

one may boast.

God gives to us by

his grace a gift

called faith, and it

opens up our heart

that we might believe

in who Jesus is, that

he is in fact the

Christ, the anointed

one of God, that he

is risen and that he

reigns, and it is by

this act that we are

made new.

I hope that we can

echo with Paul, Galatians

6, 14, but far be it

from me to boast, except

in the cross of our

Lord Jesus Christ.

This is important, this

is axiom that we might

understand that our sins

are forgiven because

Christ has been raised.

1 Corinthians 15, 17, and

if Christ has not been

raised, if he's not been

raised, if this is not

true, your faith is

futile, and you are

still in your sins.

Paul goes on to say,

we are to be most

pitied for believing

such foolishness.

If Christ has not been

raised, but because he

has, we have the

redemption of our souls.

1 Peter 1, 3, Peter

writes, blessed be the

God and Father of our

Lord Jesus Christ.

According to his

great mercy, he has

caused us to be born

again to a living hope

through the resurrection

of Jesus Christ from

the dead.

Beloved, we do not

differ in degree, but

we differ in kind.

We are those who

belong to God.

We are his people.

We have been made

alive eternally.

Luke 20, verse 36,

Luke 20:36

it says, for they cannot

die anymore because they

are equal to angels and

are sons of God.

There is that type, being

sons of the resurrection.

Romans 8, 11, if the

spirit of him who raised

Jesus from the dead dwells

in you, he who raised

Christ Jesus from the dead

will also give life to

your mortal bodies through

his spirit who dwells in

you.

Without the reality of

the resurrection, we

would not have our sins

pardoned.

Without the reality of

the resurrection, we

wouldn't have protection

from the wrath of God, our

sins pardoned, or thirdly,

the presence of Jesus

Christ.

The last verse that we

read there in chapter 2,

verse 10, for we are his

workmanship created in

Christ Jesus for good

works, which God prepared

beforehand that we should

walk in them.

We have been made now into

a new type.

Those who are disciples of

Jesus Christ, those who

are called Christian, those

who are sons of God, we've

been created in Christ

Jesus.

And not just to our own

ends, but for a greater

end, and that is for good

works.

Good works that God

prepared beforehand that we

should walk in them, that

he might be displayed in

this world.

And we do this by the

power of the Spirit that's

been granted to us now

because of the accomplished

work of Christ.

Romans 8, 9-11.

Paul writes,

You, however, are not in

the flesh, but in the

Spirit, if in fact the

Spirit of God dwells in

you, if you are in fact

believers.

Anyone who does not have

the Spirit of Christ does

not belong to him.

But if Christ is in you,

although the body is dead

because of sin, the Spirit

is life because of

righteousness.

If the Spirit of him who

raised Jesus from the dead

dwells in you, he who

raised Christ Jesus from

the dead will also give

life to your mortal bodies

through his Spirit who

dwells in you.

What is this life?

It is a life of pursuit of

Jesus Christ.

John 14, verse 15-19.

John 14:15–19

Jesus says,

If you love me, you will

keep my commandments.

And I will ask the

Father, and he will give

you another helper to be

with you forever, even the

Spirit of truth, whom the

world cannot receive, because

it neither sees him nor

knows him.

You know him, for he

dwells with you and will

be in you.

I will not leave you as

orphans.

I will come to you.

Yet a little while, and the

world will see me no more,

but you will see me.

Because I live, you also

will live.

Do you see the resurrection

language that's so spun

throughout all of the New

Testament?

If you love me, you will

keep my commandments.

And I'm going to give you

a helper.

The Spirit of God is going

to come and abide with you

because I have been

resurrected.

Because I have left, I will

send you a helper.

It's with this confidence

that he says, Jesus says in

Matthew 28, in the Great

Commission, verse 20,

Behold, I am with you

always to the end of the

age.

Paul writes in Romans 6-9,

We know that Christ, being

raised from the dead, will

never die again.

Death no longer has dominion

over him.

So because of the

resurrection of Jesus

Christ, we now have the

Spirit of God that dwells

within us, that gives to us

his presence in every moment

of every day.

So without the reality of the

resurrection, we would not

have protection from the

wrath of God.

We would not have our sin

pardoned.

And we would not have the

presence of Jesus.

Praise God for the

resurrection of Jesus

Christ.

Now what is the application

of all of this?

What does it mean for us?

Good, I believe.

You may be sitting there

saying, of course I believe

in the resurrection of

Jesus Christ.

I see the benefits.

I know what they are.

The application for us is

this day and every day

moving forward.

If we are those who claim

to know Christ, to have

placed our faith in Him,

is that we enjoy the

realities of the

resurrection in a way

that causes us to exalt

the name of Jesus Christ

in our experience, in our

display, and in our

proclamation.

That in everything we do,

we say to this world, we

worship a risen King.

He sits now and He reigns.

Beloved, this is the

kingdom that we are a part

of.

We should be less concerned

about the politics of this

world.

We should be less concerned

about amassing for

ourselves a kingdom, stuff

for our enjoyment.

We should be more concerned

about the name of our

Christ.

We should be more concerned

about exalting Him among

this world.

This is the application

today.

Knowing that Christ has

risen, should move us,

should give us boldness

like the boldness that the

apostles had.

For a 40 year span to

preach the gospel in the

fear of death.

To know that His kingdom

will advance because He

reigns.

This should be the great

cry of our hearts.

This should be the great

activity of our lives.

Let's pray together that

we will do that.

Let's pray together that