An apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God

Ephesians 1 FROM THE DAILY READING IN THE ONE YEAR BIBLE

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,

To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus: ² Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, ⁴ just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love ⁵ He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, ⁶ to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. ⁷ In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace ⁸ which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight ⁹ He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him ¹⁰ with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him ¹¹ also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, ¹² to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory. ¹³ In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, ¹⁴ who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.

¹⁵ For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints, ¹⁶ do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers; ¹⁷ that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. ¹⁸ I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, ¹⁹ and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might ²⁰ which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹ far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. ²² And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, ²³ which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

It is good thing for a person to be acknowledged and ordained by people in their calling.  But as Paul says:  Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, our position; our ministry; our calling first and foremost must be according to the will of God. While 1 Timothy 5:18 says: The Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle the ox while he is threshing,” and “The laborer is worthy of his wages,” so it is not wrong for those who minister to receive payment for their ministry; ministry and position in the church should not be first a vocation, but rather obedience to the will and calling of God. In Acts 9:16, when Paul was converted and called, the Lord said:  “I will show him how much he must suffer for My name’s sake.”  Ministry for the Lord is both a great privilege and a great responsibility. It yields both great suffering and great reward. Those who minister in the name of the Lord, first and foremost should minister to the Lord.  Paul says:  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.  The training and equipping from people and human institutions is valuable for ministry, but in truth, God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing and has also gifted us with every spiritual gift that we need for ministry. No one should say, concerning ministering for the Lord, that they are unqualified. We can learn from others how to use the gifts, people can help us to open and utilize the gifts, but it is God, through the Holy Spirit, who gives them.  

Paul’s exhortation to the church should be the exhortation of those who minister. He says:  He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace  which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight  He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him.  The desire of those who minister should be that people would understand the riches of God’s grace which is lavished on us. That in God’s eyes we are family, sons and daughters of God through Christ Jesus. But, His grace should not be taken lightly. By grace we are redeemed; through the blood of Christ we are restored so that we would be holy and blameless; not that we remain as we were. Grace without repentance is not grace received but rather grace presumed. Something that is freely given and not earned should not be presumed, but rather received with praise and thanksgiving. In truth, God’s will is not a mystery. He makes it known through the revelation of His word. He makes it known through the revelation of His Son and He makes His will known through the gift of the Holy Spirit who is with us and in us.

With Paul I say:  For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers;  that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him.  I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,  and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might  which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,  far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.  And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church,  which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.  Amen.