In Christ

I. Introduction

Over the last couple weeks we have set out on this journey of understanding our role when it comes to the spreading of the gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We looked if you will remember a couple weeks ago at Who Jesus Is and then last week we looked at Who Are We To Be and how we are to be like our Lord and being as He was Mission Minded, we are to be Mission MInded as well!

And so this Sunday I was acutally going to move on to who it is we are taking the gospel to but as I began to sit down and study God redirected me to Ephesians Chapter 1 and man what a blessing I received this week studying this portion of text! After He led me to Chapter 1, I was reading through and thought… “well, I will preach on the whole chapter” then I went back and just started reading each verse and slowed down a little and the slower I read, the more the Holy Spirit began speaking to me and when it was all said and done I felt like God give me enough in the first two verses to preach a message on itself so that’s what we’re going to do!

We are going to take just the first two verses here and break them down line by line and with God leading the way I’m going to try to bring out to you what He brought out to me! The title I’ve given today’s message is In Christ and I want us to keep our mindset along the same theme as last week…Who Are We To Be.

So when you think about the them and the title it would be…Who Are We To Be — We Are To Be In Christ! And we’re going to see this right here in the first two verses of Ephesians Chapter 1.

II. The Passion of God

Paul begins his letter to the Ephesians here as he does the majority of his letters with the phrase, “Paul an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God.” In almost every epistle Paul writes he starts with “Paul an apostle of Jesus Christ.” Now to the majority of us, that doesn’t seem to have a too deep a concept, right? But as I began studying on this it took on a whole new meaning to me!

You see even the name “Paul” when looked at very closely relates to what I feel Paul is really trying to convey to his listeners here. You see when we first met Paul he went by Saul of Tarsus, right? Saul was of Hebrew origin and more than likely was given to Paul by his parents because he was of the tribe of benjamin which was the same tribe as King Saul of the Old Testament. The name Saul literally means “desired.” If you will remember, King Saul of the OT was desired by the people and so they went to God and asked God to make Saul King over them and so he granted their wish.

Now, the name Paul on the other hand, was the Roman surname of Paul and it comes from the Latin origin meaning small or little. Now, most people claim that Paul was a wee little man and was small of stature although the Bible never records this that I know of but as I began to study and ponder on this a different thought came to mind.

Before Saul came to know Christ, he was a man who thought very highly of himself. He thought he was something special. He thought he was all high and mighty running around chasing these Christians all over the area and having them persecuted! No doubt the Jews in Jerusalem thought he was doing some great deed by hunting down these so called balsphemers and the religious leaders more thought highly of him for doing their dirty work!

In Saul’s eyes he was something special! He had the big head if you will! But when he met Jesus that day on that road to Damascus, he realized he wasn’t as high and mighty as he thought he was! Now, with that being said, his name didn’t change that day and to be honest, nowhere in scripture do we find that God acutally changed his name, for the Bible records even the Lord and Annanias referred to him as Saul after his conversion when he came into Damascus. It wasn’t until 4 chapters later in Chapter 13 that we see the first instance of Saul’s name being swapping to Paul.

a. Acts 13:9 — Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him,

After this instance, the only time Paul is referred to as Saul is when he tells his testimony of how he met Jesus that day on the road to Damascus. Luke never refers to him again as Saul nor any of the other NT Books.

So what caused this drastic change from Saul to Paul? Let me give you my idea! As Saul, he was a prideful man! He was heady and highminded. He thought he was above the law. He lived for himself and his advancement although he claims he was zealous for God. I believe Saul was out for Saul. I believe he wanted to make a name for himself! He had studied under the feet of Gamaliel and no doubt he wanted to leave his legacy and his mark on society for ages to come but for all the wrong, selfish reasons!

After meeting Jesus though, Saul’s life as he knew it changed forever! Instead of living for self, his life was now hid with Christ! He understood the great verses which we would all do well to understand which say...

b. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 — 19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

His pride had went to the wayside. His life meant nothing to him now that he had become a child of God! His dreams of leaving a legacy for himself had now swapped to his desire to leave his mark on humanity for the Lord Jesus Christ and boy did he! God honored his wishes but in His way and not Paul’s!

Paul stated in Philippians 1:21 — For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

His life now belonged to Christ and I believe that’s why we see his name change from Saul to Paul! He no longer wanted to be seen or heard for himself. He no longer wanted to be desired but he wanted people to see Christ in him! When people looked at him I believe Paul wanted them to see Christ and not Saul! That’s why I believe Saul “one to be desired” became Paul “small or little.”

John the baptist said when speaking of himself and Jesus… “He must increase but I must decrease” and I believe this was Paul’s way of saying, “the old me is gone, the new me is in Christ!”

And we’d all do well to take a little page from Paul’s book here! In our personal lives, Jesus must increase and we must decrease! When people look at us they should see a little or small piece of us and a whole lot of Jesus!

Then the Bible goes on to record that Paul is an “Apostle” of Jesus Christ. The word “Apostle” means one sent forth by another, often with a special commission to represent another and to accomplish his work.

Cargo ships were sometimes called apostolic, because they were dispatched with a specific shipment for a specific destination.

In secular Greek apostolos was used of an admiral of a fleet sent out by the king on special assignment.

In secular Greek apostle was commonly used to describe one who was sent in an official capacity as a delegate, messenger or envoy. A good parallel of apostle is our English word ambassador which is defined by Webster as "a diplomatic agent of the highest rank accredited to a foreign government as the resident representative of his own government for a special and often temporary diplomatic assignment".

Paul was God’s official ambassador sent forth with an official proclamation of the good news of Jesus Christ!

And what I want us to realize this morning is that the word apostle in its broadest sense refers to all believers, because every born-again believer is sent into the world as a messenger of and witness for Christ!

Let me ask you something…what does a witness do? A witness is called to testify of what he/she has seen, heard or experienced, correct? The witness isn’t called to be the lawyer but simply provide what they know! What do you know about the Lord Jesus Christ? How have you experienced Him personally? How have you seen Him move in your life?

The simple answers to those questions are what we are all called to share with a lost and dying world. You’re not called to try them as a lawyer would, you’re simply called to share with them your experiences of the Lord Jesus Christ and how he’s touched your life!

Now, to one of my favorite parts! Notice what Paul says next… “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God.” The word “By” is a primary preposition denoting the channel of an act. God's will was the conduit so to speak by which Paul was called to be an apostle.

In his letter to the Galatians, Paul said it like this in...Galatians 1:1 — Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)

He’s saying, look I’m not an apostle by my own doing but rather this is what God has called me to do! Now, some may read this in a very fleshly way and say well if it’s God’s will then he didn’t have much of a choice!

But dear friend let me teach you a little something I learned this week that puts a whole new perspective on the will of God!

The word “will” comes from the Greek word “thelema” and conveys the idea of desire, even a hearts desire. So if you take that meaning and consider we are talking about God’s will here, it means that while God has a plan in place that is immutable or unchanging, that plan is also His hearts desire! His will is his passion and behind the plan and the counsel is not just a mastermind but a heart of love!

So when Paul says he’s an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God he’s not saying it like “well, ya know, it’s not like I had any other option. It was be an apostle or else and I didn’t want to choose the or else.” But rather Paul’s thought process was...“somehow, I of all people, who am chief among sinners, tugged on the heartstrings of the God of all creation and He desired to use me to spread the message of His dear Son!”

To know that whatever God’s will is, is also His hearts desire is a game changer and we’re going to talk a little more about that in a minute but isn’t that a wonderful picture! So, keep this thought of the “will of God being his hearts desire” fresh on your mind because like I said, we’re going to come back to it.

So we see the Passion of God, next let’s look at the People of God.

III. The People of God

Paul says here… “to the saints in Ephesus and the faithful in Christ Jesus.” Now let me start by saying we’re not talking about two distinctly different groups of people here but rather when Paul refers to the Saints which are at Ephesus and the faithful in Christ Jesus, he’s talking about the same group of people.

The word “Saints” is the Greek word “hagios” and it refers to those set apart for a specific purpose, "persons possessed of holiness, separated from sin and set apart to God."

We Christians are saints, not in the sense that we are very pious, but because of the new relationship we have been brought into by God. It’s not because of anything we’ve done or our good works but on account of what Christ has done in us! We are set apart for Him and His service.

Matthew Henry – All Christians must be saints, and if they come not under that character on earth, they will never be saints in glory.

Mr. Henry was trying to make a point that if we are true believers in Jesus Christ, it will be manifested down here on earth that we are saints. And if it’s not manifested down here on earth, then we cannot expect to become saints when we get to heaven.

Every truly born-again believer is a saint and is considered as one dedicated to God and reserved for Him and His good purposes.

Think about that for a second…the Saints (Hagios) of God, the born-again believers, are reserved for Him and His good purposes!

Have you ever thought of your daily existence as "Reserved for God?” Isn’t that a wonderful thought! To be able to wake up every morning and know that because I have trusted in His dear Son, I am Reserved by Him!

I am His and He is mine! Naught of this world can harm me because I belong to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords! My life, my work, the very breath in my lungs is reserved not for me and my might but for God!

This word Hagios also caries the idea of taking something filthy, washing it and setting it apart as something brand new and useful for a different purpose!

What a beautiful picture of our salvation in Christ. We were dead in our trespasses and sins, filthy with sin, but according to His abundant mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit we were saved.

We were washed in the blood of Christ and set apart to God. Now we are "holy" a distinctive characteristic of our lives which marks our separation from the world.

The question of the day is this though…would others say that your life represents a “holy and set apart” life for God?

Ray Stedman – Saints is a word at which we all shudder a little. We don't like to be called saints because we have such a plaster idea of what a saint is. We think of them as being unreal -- so holier-than-we, so unlike ordinary human beings. But the saints of the New Testament are not that way; they are people like us. Saints are people who are beset with struggles and difficulties, who have disturbances at home, and problems at work, and troubles everywhere else. They're normal people, in other words! But one thing is remarkable about them: They are different. That is really the basic meaning of this word saint. In the Greek it is a word derived from the word for holy. And holy means distinct, different, whole, belonging to God and, therefore, living differently. That is the mark of the saint. It isn't that he doesn't have problems, only that he approaches them differently. He handles them in a different way. He has a different lifestyle. That is what Paul is talking about here. Their characteristic is that they are faithful, which means, of course, that they can't quit. That's what a Christian is -- a person who can't quit being a Christian. A true Christian just can't stop!

Although we as saints live in the world, we must always in one sense be different from the world and continually choose to separate ourselves from the world. Our standards are not the world's standards.

We as saints are like a boat – a boat's purpose is fulfilled when it is in the water, but it’s function and usefulness deteriorate drastically when water begins to get in the boat, right?

So it is for the saints when too much of the world gets into them. We must keep our "vessels" in the water of this world but not let the water of the world get into our "vessel"!

I love how he says there “their characteristic is that they are faithful which means they can’t quit!”

And I believe that is why Paul added that phrase “to the faithful” in here!

The word “Faithful” here means trustworthy, dependable, reliable, inspiring trust or “faithful and not given to running away” or believing.

You see, it’s one thing to be a Saint but another thing altogether to be a Faithful Saint!

Are you a trustworthy member of the Church? Are you a dependable member of the Church? Are you a reliable member of the Church?

Are you a Faithful Saint or just a Saint?

Now, I want to take a moment here and finish up this section with what it says at the very end of Verse 1. It says, “to the saints which are at Ephesus and the faithful “in Christ Jesus.”” This little phrase right here at the end of verse 1 is where I got the title for this message. “In Christ Jesus!”

Listen, I can assure you that there are only two types of people in this world…there are those who are Saints and there are those who are Aint’s!

You are either born-again from above or you’re lost! You are either “In Christ” or you’re “Not in Christ!”

And when I began reading and studying this letter from Paul this stood out to me here and the reason it stood out so much is this…Paul is writing to the believers, the faithful saints here at Ephesus and since he’s writing to the believers, that means he’s not writing to those who are lost, right?

And when you read through the rest of this chapter at the blessings at the blessings that God bestows upon His children the thought that jumped out at me was how much the lost are missing out on! They have no idea the richness and goodness that God intends to bestow upon those who believe in His Son and it’s breaks my heart!

It takes the phrase “good news of the gospel” to a whole new level and for those who are blinded by the God of this world they aren’t experiencing this good news and its sad!

If you are sitting here and lost this morning friend, you need to be saved! Why you ask? Because you’re missing out! “Well I don’t feel like I’m missing out,” you say! That’s because you’ve never tasted of the goodness of God because when you do, there’s no way you could ever turn back!

And the worst part of it is, God wants to bless you, He wants you to be saved, He wants to be a part of your life, He wants to share His goodness with you but you won’t let Him! And if you die without coming to know His Son as your personal Lord and Savior, then He will have no other option but to cast you into outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth! If what you seek is separation from Him, then eternal separation is what you will get but what you need to know is that’s not what He wants!

Going back to His will that we were talking about earlier…God’s will, the desire of God’s heart is that all men would be saved! That all men would come to the saving knowledge of Christ! That all men would be “In Christ Jesus!” The Bible says in...

c. 2 Peter 3:9 — The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

God’s will is that “ALL” men would be saved and not just saved but gloriously saved! Jesus came to this world to save us from our sins! He was a friend of sinners…He ate with sinners, He supped with sinners, He healed sinners, He cared for sinners, He loved sinners and He loved them so much that he died for them!

He died for me & He died for you! And this morning if you don’t know Him, He bids you come! God’s will is for you to be In Christ! Not to die lost and undone! Some people have this twisted idea that God gets some kind of kick out of casting lost sinners into hell but I’m here to tell you this morning, I believe it breaks God’s heart everytime He has to say, “depart from me ye that work iniquity I never knew you!”

He finds no joy whatsoever in being separated from His creation! That wasn’t how He intended on things to be from the beginning but if you won’t accept His Son then He has no other option! The Bible says...

d. Romans 8:1 — There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

In Christ you shall be gloriously saved, but without Christ you will be ingoriously damned! If you end up in hell friend you’ll end up there knowing one thing…it’s not what God wanted for you! If you end up there, it’s because it’s what you wanted and not Him!

His will is for you to be In Christ and the question I pose to you is this…Are you in Christ this morning? Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?

If so, let’s land this plane by looking at what the product of believing in Christ is. Look with me at Verse 2.

IV. The Product of being In Christ

Paul says here in Verse 2...”Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.”

To be In Christ, means to enjoy Grace & Peace! Peace comes from Grace did you know that? Grace is getting something you don’t deserve. When you believe in Jesus, you get a whole lot you don’t deserve! The acronym for Grace is....God’s riches at Christ’s expense and there couldn’t be a better explanation than that!

And to be able to lay our heads down at night, knowing that no matter what comes our way, if we are In Christ, we have access to the Father! That my friend will bring a soul the kind of peace that surpasses all understanding!

Two of the byproducts of being In Christ is Grace & Peace!

Opposit of that though, to not be In Christ, brings wrath and turmoil. If you’re here and lost or watching online and lost, I want you to know one thing…you’re missing out! The BIble says in...

e. Isaiah 55:1-7 — 1 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. 2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. 3 Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. 4 Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people. 5 Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the LORD thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee. 6 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: 7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.