"Showcasing God in the grace of Jesus Christ- Eph 2:6-8

Good morning. It is our privilege and joy here at Dillingham Moravian Church

to be able to lead you in the study of God's Word.

My name is Pastor Simon here at Dillingham Moravian Church.

Our mission is to make disciples of Christ as we shine the light of God's Word

throughout Bristol Bay, Southwest Alaska, and beyond.

Down in Oregon, between Portland and Beaverton, there is a highway that goes

through a mountainside.

Now, there wouldn't be any way to go from one side of the mountain to the other without that tunnel.

Effectively, one side would have been cut off from the other side.

Now, I don't know who or when that tunnel was blasted and built through that

mountain, but there is now a two-lane highway that gives both sides of that

mountain access to each other.

Dealing with God and salvation, there are no perfect human examples.

However, my point with this illustration is that before Christ,

there was an impossibly huge mountain between us and God, and that mountain was our sin,

and there was no way for us as human beings to cross over to get to God.

It was the undeserved favor of God towards us that compelled the Father to send

Jesus Christ to be the blood sacrifice on our behalf, to save us from His wrath,

but also so that we can have access to God.

Let us pray. Father, we are so thankful that you have given us this joyful privilege

to be able to enter into your presence.

That we now have the ability to be your children, to be loved by you,

and to experience your love.

Lord, I pray, Lord, that as your word goes out through me and from me,

may your word teach us, may your word guide us with your Holy Spirit,

your power, and your precious love.

And with your conviction, would you convince us? That's what that word conviction means, convince.

May you convince us of your gospel truth.

In your precious and most wonderful Son's name, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.

Here at Dillingham Moravian Church, before the Advent and Christmas season,

we had been teaching through a preaching series in Paul's letter to the Ephesians.

In Ephesians chapter 2, Paul taught the Ephesian Christ believers,

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

and subsequently us as well, that they were once dead in their trespasses and

sins and were enslaved in the world system that Satan controls.

But due to Christ's intervention, the Ephesian disciples of Christ were no longer

dead in their trespasses and sins.

God intervened into human history and human existence by demonstrating His unlimited

mercy and overwhelming love.

God demonstrated His beyond abundant merciful love in Jesus Christ's sacrificial

death on the cross and in His resurrection.

That we who were once spiritually dead before God are now alive together with Christ.

Moreover, we have learned that God raised up His church to be seated with God

in the heavenly places in Christ.

And this is where we come to our passage today in Ephesians 2, verses 6-9.

Ephesians 2:6–9

But we'll start back in verse 4 for context, where Paul wrote in verse 4,

But God, being rich in mercy because of his great love for which he loved us,

even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ.

By grace you have been saved.

And here's where we're beginning today, verse 6.

And raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ,

so that in the ages to come he might show the surpassing riches of his grace

in kindness towards us in Christ Jesus.

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves.

It is a gift of God, not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.

There are two overarching truths that I believe God to be teaching us in our Bible texts today.

The first timeless truth I would like to show you is that as part of Christ's

church, we were raised up to be a showcase of God's surpassing grace.

Before Christmas, my family went to the Christmas Bazaar held in the middle school gym.

However, just past the main foyer, the Dillingham Middle High School,

there is a glass showcase where the school sports team's awards and trophies

are held, along with the school's mascot, the Wolverine.

The point of the showcase is to show off the great achievements that the teams

and students have accomplished during their time in Dillingham Middle School and High School.

This concept of being a showcase is what the Apostle Paul was teaching in Ephesians

Ephesians 2:6–7

2, verses 6-7, where Paul continued the teaching of the Ephesian congregation by explaining.

And verse 6, and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly

places in Christ, so that in the ages to come, he might show the surpassing

riches of his grace and kindness towards us in Christ Jesus.

I want you to see two principles in verses 6 through 7.

The first principle that I would like to impress upon you is that God has positionally

raised us up as Christ believers,

to be seated with God in the heavenly places so that God may showcase or display

the surpassing riches of His kind grace to us in Christ.

The word that Paul used in verse 7 for show meant to make visible or noticeable.

The word for surpassing meant to attain a decree that extraordinarily exceeds

a point on a scale of extent, to go beyond, to surpass, the outdo.

Lastly, grace referred to the goodwill freely disseminated by God,

especially to the benefit of the recipient, regardless of the benefit accrued to the disseminator.

What Paul meant was that God raised us

up to be seated with him in order to show the riches or the wealth of his freely

given goodwill with no expectation of return that far outseated or outdid any

other riches or wealth that anyone else could ever give.

According to Forbes.com, there are now more billionaires than ever,

2,781 in all, 141 more than last year, and 26 more than the record set in 2021.

They're richer than ever, worth $14.2 trillion in aggregate,

up by $2 trillion from 2023, and $1.1 trillion above the previous record, also set in 2001.

Two-thirds of the list's members are worth more than a year ago.

Only one-fourth are poorer.

Much of the gains come from the top 20 who added a combined $700 billion in wealth since 2023.

I'm sharing this statistic with you to point out that even though the world's

combined billionaires are worth $14.trillion altogether, which to me is an enormous sum of money.

Yet the billionaires and all of the world's wealth combined are but a single

grain of sand to God's planet of riches at His disposals.

God's riches that surpassed all others was dispensed to us in the miraculous

kindness of his undeserved favor in Christ.

The huge question that you and I need to ask is, why does God need to show off

his kindness in Christ to such a colossal extent?

The first reason that I want to bring to your attention on why God the Father

showcases Christ's work through us is to display to the heavenly authorities

that the greatest display of power and riches in the universe was motivated

by the undeserved kindness of God.

Paul in Ephesians 3, verse 8-10 taught, To me, the very least of all the saints,

Ephesians 3:8–10

this grace was given to preach to the Gentiles the what?

The unfathomable riches of Christ and to bring to light what is the administration

of the mystery for which ages have been hidden in Christ or hidden in God who

created all things so that the manifold wisdom of God,

meaning what God has done in Christ Jesus,

might now be made known through the church. To who?

To the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. Let me show you another scripture.

In Philippians 2, verse 3 through 8, Paul taught perhaps the most central and

Philippians 2:3–8

important themes of the Bible,

doing nothing from selfish ambition or vain glory, but with humility of mind

regarding one another as more important than yourself. Not merely.

Merely wasn't in the Greek.

looking out for your own personal interest, but also for the interest of others.

Have this way of thinking in yourselves, which was also in Christ Jesus,

who although existing in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped.

But he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being made in the likeness

of men, being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient

to the point of death, even death on a cross.

What did God the Father do and will do in response to His son's humble and most loving sacrifice?

The Father exalted Christ far above all names!!

Paul in Philippians 2, verse 9-11 explained, For this reason also God highly

Philippians 2:9–11

exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,

so that the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in earth and

on the earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus

Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

Satan and the world believe that physical power, money, and status are the real

wealth and the riches that lead to glory.

The Father showcases us to let the authorities in the heavenly places,

including Satan and his demons, that the greatest act of power that ever gave

glory to God was Jesus' humble luring of himself.

Motivated out of the loving kindness of God.

And he did all that so that Jesus would be sacrificed on the cross to pay the

blood debt for our sin that we couldn't pay on our own.

God's gracious kindness is the real riches and power in the universe.

Satan could never understand this truth. So, God showcases us as proof of this fundamental truth.

The second reason for why God shows us off is to give honor to His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ.

Let's look at Ephesians 2, verse 7 again.

Ephesians 2:7

So that in the ages to come, He might show the surpassing riches of His grace

in kindness towards us. Here it is, in Christ Jesus.

Again, the greatest act in the history of the universe to give God the most

glory was in the weak and humble and shame-filled blood slaughter of Jesus on our behalf.

Yes, God the Father receives the glory. But I also see from Philippians 2 and

Ephesians 2 that the Father wants to showcase us to even more greatly showcase His Son.

Remember, as the Father glorifies His Son, the more the Father is glorified.

And this brings us to the last and main reason that God showcases us,

His church, seated in heaven next

to Him in Christ, is so that God will receive the glory that He is due.

There are so many texts in Scripture instructing and commanding us of the supreme

importance of giving glory to God, but here are just a few.

Paul in Ephesians 1, verse 4-6 proclaimed, In love he predestined us to adoption

Ephesians 1:4–6

as sons through Jesus Christ to himself, according to the kind intention of

his will. Here's what I want you to see in verse 6.

To the praise of the glory of his grace, which freely bestowed on us in the beloved.

Psalm 19 verse 1 declared, The heavens are telling of the glory of God,

Psalms 19:1

and their expanse is declaring the work of his hands.

Psalm 29, verse 2, Ascribe to the Lord the glory due to His name.

Psalms 29:2

Worship the Lord in holy array.

All of creation, especially us as God's children, have been designed to glory

to God, give glory to God, the Most High.

This is the greatest reason why Paul taught the Ephesians that God puts us on

display in the heavenly realms, so that God can be glorified,

that He can be worshipped as the only God in the universe.

What can we as Christians learn from Ephesians 2, verse 6-7?

Ephesians 2:6–7

We as Christ's church have been raised up to be seated in the heavenly realms

in Christ because we are showcases of the loving kindness of the grace of God.

Life is not about us. It's never been, and it never will be about us.

Even Christ's church being given such honor as being seated next to the Lord

of everything is to display God's magnificent riches of His kindness for the glory of God.

We as Christians can be so easily tempted by the desire to have more money,

more possessions, which give more status and honor in this world.

And yet the riches of God are measured in His love.

Remember what Paul wrote, Ephesians 2, verse 4. But God, being rich,

Ephesians 2:4

and what is God so rich in? mercy because of his great love with which he loved us.

As God is showcasing his grace through us to the heavenly authorities,

we must also imitate God by showcasing his grace to those around us as we extend

his undeserved love to others.

A huge part of extending the grace of God to others is to first trust in God's

grace to ourselves and then give out mercy and kindness to those around us,

with no expectation of them deserving our kindness.

This grace or undeserved favor is the type of love that God in Christ has shown us.

So far, we have learned that Paul taught the Ephesian congregation that God

in Christ has raised his church up to be seated with the Father in the heavenly

realms in order to showcase the riches of God's kind grace to all those in the heavenly realms.

Paul went on in Ephesians chapter 2 to explain that God's church is saved by

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

God's free gift of His grace through faith.

The Apostle Paul explained further to the Ephesians, Ephesians chapter 2 verse

Ephesians 2:8

8, For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourself, it is a gift of God.

I want you to notice that Paul continued his teaching to the Ephesian church

about the theme of God's undeserved favor and kindness towards us. in verse 8.

The principle I want to point out to you is pretty obvious. It is by God's grace

that we are saved through faith.

The word that Paul used for grace meant the undeserved favor of God by which

we are now well-pleasing to God.

Paul taught the Ephesian congregation that it was by God's grace or his undeserved

favor towards us that we have been saved from the wrath of God.

Paul also wanted to make clear to the Ephesians and to us that faith does not

save us, rather we are saved by the grace of God.

Remember our initial illustration of a mountain between Portland and Hillsboro,

Oregon, where construction crews blasted a tunnel to a mountain to provide access

from one side to the other.

So also Christ is our only access to God. Christ is our tunnel by which we can get to God.

There is no other access to God but by Jesus Christ. And thus it was God's grace

by which you and I were saved.

However, for God's salvation to be applied to our lives, we as human beings

must believe and trust that Jesus is God, that His sacrifice and resurrection

truly does save us from the wrath of God.

In John 14, verse 6, John said to him, meaning Philip, I am the way and the truth and the life.

John 14:6

No one comes to the Father but through me.

Christ is the tunnel or the way by which we now have access to God and the salvation

that he died to secure us.

However, how do we receive our salvation from Christ?

How does the salvation of Christ

that is held for us on the other side of the mountain get over to us?

How do we as human beings enter into and go through Christ our tunnel in order

to go into the presence of God?

Through faith in Christ as our only God and Lord. through faith in what Jesus

Christ had done through His death and His resurrection on our behalf.

Acts 16, verse 31. Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household.

Acts 16:31

Paul in Romans 5, verse 1-2 proclaimed, Therefore, having been justified by

Romans 5:1–2

faith, we have peace with God through who?

Our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by what?

By faith into this grace in which we stand, and we exalt in the hope of the glory of God.

Paul also taught in Romans 4, verse 5, But to the one who does not work,

Romans 4:5

but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness.

Our faith response to what Christ has done for us is the vehicle in which we

can receive the grace from God through the tunnel to God, which is Christ.

How can we apply these truths to us as Christians? is to truly believe and trust

that salvation from the wrath of God is only found in the grace of God as we

respond to God's grace with faith in Christ.

There are so many ways to apply this truth to us as believers in Christ,

but I will focus on three applications for now.

If you are here today and you find yourself trying to earn God's favor so that

you can be saved from the future destination of hell,

I'm here to tell you that no amount of good works or personal sacrifice will

be able to put you into the good graces of God so that you can be saved.

Your sins and my sins are just too great a mountain or chasm to climb over.

You and I and every other human being on the planet cannot climb over or around

that mountain of our sin on our own.

According to the Bible, for just one of our smallest sins, one that we don't

even realize that we have committed,

all of our lifeblood must be shed to atone for even that one little sin,

let alone all the sins that we've committed in our lifetime.

But do not fear, for God has given us the way back to Him, and that way is Jesus.

I want to encourage you today to surrender to the grace of God in Jesus Christ

by trusting in Christ Jesus as your only Savior and Lord.

Recognize that your sin is a barrier too high to cross and too wide to walk around on your own.

Ask for forgiveness from God and believe and trust in the salvation that Jesus

Christ died and rose again to give you.

The promise from Scripture is that when you truly put your faith in the grace

of God in Jesus Christ, you will be saved from the furious wrath of Almighty God.

And if you are a believer in Christ and you find yourself struggling with conflicts

in your family or your workplace, even in your church or community,

I want to encourage you that we did not have to earn God's love.

He gave His grace to us freely with great kindness.

It is so easy for us as human beings to resent those who have hurt us in some

way, to be bitter against a loved one or a fellow Christian and not want to forgive them.

Yet God in Christ has forgiven us and has kindly lavished upon us his undeserved

favor when he had every reason not to forgive us.

I want to encourage each of us, including myself, to begin seeing the people

around us as those who need God's unmerited favor, just as we did and as we still do.

I encourage us all to confess our sins to God,

and if possible to the person that had wronged us in some way or that we perceived

had wronged us and then release them in our hearts from all obligation that

we believe they may owe us.

After we have let go of our unforgiveness and bitterness, then we are to joyfully

and prayerfully do good towards them just as Jesus our Lord has done for us.

Another important way of applying God's grace to us as Christ's church is to

stay or remain in the grace love of Jesus Christ.

Please do not forget this. This is super important. As we trust in the love

of God in Christ, we experience God's love.

The more we experience God's love, the more of Christ's joy that we have to

give us strength and contentment to obey God's word and serve Christ.

In an article from Desiring God that I just received a couple of weeks ago,

the author wrote, people basking in God's love are happy people.

This is from 1 John 3, verse 1. How could it be otherwise?

1 John 3:1

Experiencing God's love results in joy and provides the key to serving God over the long haul.

Jesus told his disciples, These things I have spoken to you,

that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

After that, he gave a call to sacrificial service. This is my commandment,

that you love one another as I have loved you.

First the joy, then the ministry.

It's so often my experience in my works-oriented flesh that I try to obey God

first and then trust Him with my efforts and then think I can receive God's joy.

But that's not how God works.

We first trust Him and bask in Christ and His love, and we receive and experience

joy from God, and then we have the strength to minister happily and boldly in Christ's name.

Have you ever seen a dog basking in the sun, truly just soaking up the sun's rays.

That dog gets up happy and he is energized and he zooms off to whatever a dog does.

You and I must learn to trust and bask in the love of God so that we can receive

his joy and be recharged joyfully through the work that God has called us to.

So what has God taught us in our passage today? The first truth that God has

taught us through Paul is that God in Christ has raised His church up to be

seated with the Father in the heavenly realms in order to showcase the riches of God's kind grace.

The second truth we have learned today is that salvation from the wrath of God

is only found in the grace of God as we respond to God's grace with faith in Jesus.

I want to encourage you today that God is showing you and I off to the heavenly

realms and will continue to do so for eternity.

The more we trust and bask in the grace of God in Christ, the more we show off

Christ and the surpassing riches of his humble work on the cross.

And the more we show off Christ, the more glory we give to God the Father.

Let us pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your truth.

May we abide in you. May we live and trust in your love and live according to your ways as we do so.

Lord, we pray, Lord, that you would be showcased through us so much so that

God the Father is glorified in everything we do.

Use us, teach us, and thank you for Your Word today.

In Your precious Son's name, Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.

I'll leave you with this benediction from 2 Corinthians 13, verse 14.

2 Corinthians 13:14

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of

the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.

Have a wonderful Sunday. May the Lord bless you!