Don't Lose Heart (Ephesians 3:1–13)

Introduction

Where are the kids? Kids, can you help me preach today? Say this: “Jesus died for me. In Jesus, I am free.”

We are in Ephesians 3:1-13 today, where we will be looking at Paul encouraging the church in Ephesus and us not to lose heart when we go through trials, because God has a bigger plan.

When I was in high school, I took an art history class. We talked about the artist Michelangelo painting the Sistine chapel. If you’ve ever seen the artwork of the Sistine Chapel, it’s incredible.

Michelangelo painted the ceiling for years lying on his back, with his brush in his hand, starting at one small square at a time. With all of the scaffolding up, when he looked at it so close, he couldn’t see the beauty of the full picture. But after all of the scaffolding came down and people walked in the chapel, the beauty of the artwork was incredible.

We’re going to see something similar to that today in Ephesians 3:1-13. In the Old Testament, it was like that artwork, seeing things one square at a time. But now, the scaffolding has come down, and the bigger picture of God’s plan is revealed.

How can we trust God’s plan when it feels like we can only see one square at a time? We’ll see that today in Ephesians 3:1-13.

Scripture Reading

Ephesians 3:1–13 CSB

1 For this reason, I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles— 2 assuming you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that he gave me for you. 3 The mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have briefly written above. 4 By reading this you are able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ. 5 This was not made known to people in other generations as it is now revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: 6 The Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and partners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. 7 I was made a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by the working of his power. 8 This grace was given to me—the least of all the saints—to proclaim to the Gentiles the incalculable riches of Christ, 9 and to shed light for all about the administration of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things. 10 This is so that God’s multi-faceted wisdom may now be made known through the church to the rulers and authorities in the heavens. 11 This is according to his eternal purpose accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 In him we have boldness and confident access through faith in him. 13 So, then, I ask you not to be discouraged over my afflictions on your behalf, for they are your glory.

Pray

What’s interesting about this text is that we are preaching through a parenthesis. Paul starts verse 1 with a prayer, but then he interrupts himself to share some pastoral care from verses 2 through 13. He takes 12 verses to express a pastoral heart for the church in Ephesus before he continues with his prayer in verse 14 (we’ll cover that next week).

What is his pastoral heart for this church? He is telling them, “Don’t lose heart. God is in control. Trust his plan!”

Why is he expressing this concern and encouragement to them? It has to do with his current circumstances. Paul is sitting in a Roman prison. The people might be saying, “If Jesus is Lord, the God of the universe, then why does he allow his apostle to sit in prison?”

It’s the same concern we have when we go through trials. We can be tempted to say, “Jesus, why am I going through this? Aren’t I your follower? Why do you let people who follow Jesus go through hard trials?”

We don’t want to suffer. We want Christianity to be a “Get out of suffering” for free card.

However, the reality is that Christians often face difficult times. We go through trials. What answer do we get from God’s Word that will encourage us to endure through trials?

Paul will express the reason why we should not lose heart in three ways. The first way he will encourage us not to lose heart is to say to us,

I. You Fully Belong in God’s Revealed Mystery

Paul says in Ephesians 3:1 that he is “the prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles.” His chains were not an accident. Paul is a prisoner because it is part of God’s plan.

Kids, have you ever gotten in trouble when you didn’t do anything wrong? That’s what happened to Paul. He was in prison even though he hadn’t done anything wrong. But instead of getting angry about it, Paul trusted in God’s plan.

Why was Paul in prison? Because he was spreading God’s message to the world, a message that was revealing a mystery from God.

What is Paul talking about when he describes God’s mystery? He says that,

A. God’s mystery is now revealed in Christ.

Paul had a responsibility to share the good news of Jesus Christ with the world. The world includes the Gentiles, which is simply anyone who is not a Jew. He calls this responsibility in Ephesians 3:2 “the administration of God’s grace that he gave me for you.” As he was sharing God’s good news to the world, it was revealing something he describes as “a mystery.”

When you think of a mystery today, you think of something that is spooky or that people can’t figure out. But when Paul is describing a mystery in the Bible, he is describing something different.

The mystery Paul is talking about in the Bible is not a mystery for us to solve. Instead, it’s something God is revealing to us now.

Kids, have you ever had a food you loved that you didn’t know how it was made? My son Kevin used to love his Titi Lydia’s chicken. It was the best. One day, he asked his Titi Lydia how she made it, and she gave him the recipe. The mystery was revealed!

The Bible says in Ephesians 3 that the recipe of God’s plan in Jesus Christ is being revealed now. In Ephesians 3:4, he talks about “my insight into the mystery of Christ.” In Ephesians 3:5, it’s a mystery that “was not made known to people in other generations as it is now revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit:”

What is that mystery? It was a radical message in the first century to Israel, that,

B. Gentiles are united as co-heirs in Christ.

He describes this mystery God has revealed to us as the following in Ephesians 3:6,

Ephesians 3:6 CSB

6 The Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and partners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

The Jews saw themselves as distinct from the rest of the world. They had the covenants, the laws, and God’s promises. The Jews didn’t expect the Gentiles to have the same access to the Messiah that the Jews had without them becoming Jews first.

God is now revealing that Gentiles, too, are equal with Israel in three ways:

Co-heirs with Christ,

Co-body, equal members of the same body,

Co-sharers, equal partners in God’s promise.

It says the same thing in Galatians 3:28,

Galatians 3:28 CSB

28 There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male and female; since you are all one in Christ Jesus.

It's like a merge on the highway here in San Diego. You can drive south on the 5 and take the exit to the 54 east. Other people can drive north on the 5 and also take the exit to the 54 east.

People who were going in two directions, now all of a sudden are merging onto a highway and going in one unified direction.

That's a picture of what God has done in Christ. He has brought people going in different directions onto the same highway headed in the same direction toward the same Savior, Jesus Christ. No matter who you are,

C. Every believer is fully included in Christ.

In Jesus Christ, you fully belong to God. That's what Paul wants the Ephesians to understand. Even though they lived in Ephesus, were Gentiles, and far away from Israel, they were not far away from God's promises in Jesus. Anyone who is in Jesus Christ is fully in the family of God.

When I was a child and we had family over, I had to sit at the kids' table. Kids, do you know what the kids' table is? It's when you can't sit with the adults; instead, you have to eat your dinner with the other kids at the kids' table.

But when you're in Jesus, you're not separated off. There are no separate tables. Children and adults, anyone who is in Jesus, we all equally belong to God and can sit at his table in his kingdom.

Another apostle, Peter, also came to understand the revelation of God's mystery when he said in Acts 10:34-35,

Acts 10:34–35 CSB

34 Peter began to speak: “Now I truly understand that God doesn’t show favoritism, 35 but in every nation the person who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.

The first step to being a person who fears God is being a person who believes in God’s promises in Jesus Christ, and the first reason he gives Christians in Ephesians 3 to not lose heart in the middle of trials is because, no matter who we are, if our faith is in Jesus Christ, we fully belong to God.

Not only do we belong to God, but God is using us, the church, in a special way. The testimony of your life in this world matters because,

II. You Display God’s Wisdom as the Church

Have you ever wondered if what happens in our church truly matters? In the Christian world, we tend to judge by numbers. A big church looks more effective, and a small church feels less important. But those are man’s metrics, and not God’s.

When Paul wrote to the Ephesians, he wasn’t writing to a megachurch. Churches in the first century likely met in homes, known as house churches. A large home in Ephesus could only accommodate around 20-50 people.

By human standards, a house church in Ephesus would look like a small group. But Paul tells a small group of people in a house church that they are central to God’s eternal plan.

It all starts with grace.

A. Paul served by the grace of Christ.

In Ephesians 3:7, Paul describes himself as “a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by the working of his power.” God’s power includes his grace, his unmerited favor upon people, to call them into his service, as he did with Paul. When you serve and show the light of Christ to others, you serve by the gift of God’s grace and by his power.

Paul considered himself the least of God’s saints. He says this in Ephesians 3:8,

Ephesians 3:8 CSB

8 This grace was given to me—the least of all the saints—to proclaim to the Gentiles the incalculable riches of Christ,

When Paul describes himself as “the least of all the saints,” he’s remembering what God has done in his life.

Paul was a persecutor of the church and approved the death of Christians. Yet God didn’t see his past as disqualifying. When God forgives sins, it is total and complete.

God is using a man who once opposed the church, and is giving him the privilege of proclaiming the beauty of eternal life and the richness of Christ to the world.

If God can do that with Paul, God can do that with you, too. For our kids, when you trust in Jesus, God can use you, too. He can use you in your school, with your family, and Jesus will do an incredible work in your life.

B. Christ’s riches are unsearchable and true.

What does Paul mean when he is proclaiming, “the incalculable riches of Christ”? The word translated as “incalculable” literally means that it is impossible to trace the end of it.

You are unable to track the riches of proclaiming life in Christ because it goes on forever. Paul described the riches of knowing Christ earlier in Ephesians, when he said in Ephesians 1:7-8,

Ephesians 1:7–8 CSB

7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace 8 that he richly poured out on us with all wisdom and understanding.

Salvation, forgiveness of sin, reconciliation with God, eternal life in heaven, and peace with God: these are eternal riches found only in the person and presence of the Son of God, Jesus Christ.

You can stand at the ocean and scoop up some water to hold it in your hand, but you can never have the whole ocean in your hand. The riches of knowing Jesus are deeper than the ocean, and greater than anything in the entire world.

That’s why Paul says in Romans 11:33,

Romans 11:33 CSB

33 Oh, the depth of the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments and untraceable his ways!

There is no greater privilege than to know Jesus, and no greater message than the gospel. This is why,

C. The church displays God’s wisdom to all.

You are a display of God’s wisdom to the world. Listen to how he makes this point.

He has described himself as someone proclaiming the riches of God’s grace in Jesus Christ to the world. The gospel is showing that all people can come to God through Jesus Christ. Then he says in Ephesians 3:10,

Ephesians 3:10 CSB

10 This is so that God’s multi-faceted wisdom may now be made known through the church to the rulers and authorities in the heavens.

Have you ever played with a kaleidoscope? Kids, I don’t know if you’ve played with one of those. It’s a tube that you look in, and you can see through the light this beautiful, vast array of colors.

God’s wisdom is like a vast array of colors that is beautiful and awesome. The church shines this vast array of colors to the world.

The church is the testimony of God’s wisdom “to the rulers and authorities in the heavens.” Not only is the church, the people of God, a testimony to the world, but Paul says you are a testimony to the angels.

Remember what the Lord says in Luke 15:10,

Luke 15:10 CSB

10 I tell you, in the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.”

When you put your faith in Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven through the cross, you join with the saints as a part of God’s church in the world, and you are a testimony to the spiritual world around us of the love, grace, and wisdom of God.

What some would call an ordinary church in San Diego, God calls the display of his wisdom to “the rulers and authorities in the heavens.” The church is not small or meaningless. The church is the cosmic display of God’s power.

So if the church is the display of God’s power to the world, what does that imply about our ability to persevere through trials? It means that in Jesus,

III. You Can Face Trials with Boldness and Hope

If the church is the display of God’s wisdom to the world, and we have his power working in us, that means we can face any trial that comes our way. We can face trials because,

A. In Christ we have bold access to God.

Look at what the Bible in Ephesians 3:12,

Ephesians 3:12 CSB

12 In him we have boldness and confident access through faith in him.

He uses three terms to describe what Christians have through Jesus Christ: boldness, confidence, and access.

Kids, when you go to your house, do you have to ask permission to go inside? You don’t have to ask permission. You can walk right inside your home.

Why is that? It’s because you belong there. It’s your home, and you can walk in with boldness and confident access because you live there!

In the same way, you can walk into God’s kingdom with boldness and confident access because, in Jesus Christ, you belong there. When we pray, we don’t have to pray like we are hoping that God hears us. We can come before God with boldness and confidence because we fully belong to him.

Have you ever logged into a streaming service and forgotten that you purchased a subscription to it? All of a sudden, you have access.

Access to God was not free, but it is the privilege that Christ purchased for you on the cross with his blood. That’s why we are reminded earlier in Ephesians 2:13,

Ephesians 2:13 CSB

13 But now in Christ Jesus, you who were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

The blood of Christ brings us near to God, and through Christ we have access to the Father. You don’t need to lose heart in trials because you have direct access to God.

Paul also realized something else about his trials.

B. Paul’s trials advanced the glory of Christ.

Paul realized that his trials had a purpose. You see this in Ephesians 3:13,

Ephesians 3:13 CSB

13 So, then, I ask you not to be discouraged over my afflictions on your behalf, for they are your glory.

What does he mean by this? The people in Ephesus may have been tempted to lose heart in Jesus Christ because the apostle Paul was sitting in a Roman prison. It may have looked to them like the gospel had failed, that Rome had more authority, and that God wasn’t in control. It is the same temptation that we may have when we are faced with difficult trials.

Paul flips the perspective of his imprisonment on its head. He was suffering because he preached the good news of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles. He saw his suffering as advancing the gospel.

Take a look at Philippians 1:12-14,

Philippians 1:12–14 CSB

12 Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually advanced the gospel, 13 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard, and to everyone else, that my imprisonment is because I am in Christ. 14 Most of the brothers have gained confidence in the Lord from my imprisonment and dare even more to speak the word fearlessly.

His suffering was not a setback; his suffering was advancing the gospel in places he wasn't able to be in before. So he tells the Ephesians, "Don't lose heart because I'm in prison. My chains aren't proof that God's plan is failing. My chains are proof that God's plan is working!" The message of the riches of God's grace in Jesus Christ to the world was spreading far and wide!

When you get a spiritual perspective on your trials, you can see it this way, too.

C. Our trials become opportunities for glory in Christ.

Why does Paul describe his sufferings to the Ephesians in Ephesians 3:13 as "your glory"? It means that Paul's trials were not wasted. God had a purpose and plan. Paul's chains were proof that the mystery of God's plan is being revealed, and more Gentiles are coming to faith.

The same is true for us. Trials are not signs that God is absent. Trials are opportunities for the glory of Christ to shine through you.

I heard the story of a woman yesterday who suffered terribly for four years. Yet the story of those four years was not the suffering. The story was the resilience and power of Jesus that shone through her life. The story was about her ability to stay positive and resilient through suffering, because God is in control and he holds our tomorrow.

Conclusion

I don't know what you're facing today. I don't know what trials you may be going through. But whatever you face, in Jesus Christ, don't lose heart. In Christ, we are united with him and each other. We are a testimony to the world of his wisdom, and we have bold and confident access to God, so don't lose heart.

If you are not a believer in Jesus Christ this morning, the revealed plan of God in Jesus Christ includes you. You can have access to the Father when you put your faith in Jesus Christ. He will change your life and make you new. Come to know the richness, wisdom, power, and glory of being in Jesus Christ today.

Prayer

Communion

We will have communion, remembering Jesus and his sacrifice for us. Meditate on the Lord and where your heart is with him.

1 Corinthians 11:23–26 CSB

23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, and said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Last Song

Doxology

Numbers 6:24–26 CSB

24 “May the Lord bless you and protect you; 25 may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.” ’

Jude 24–25 CSB

24 Now to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, without blemish and with great joy, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.

You are dismissed. Have a great week in the Lord!