The mystery of the Gospel.
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For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles—
if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you,
how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already,
by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ),
which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets:
that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel,
of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power.
To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,
and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ;
to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places,
according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord,
in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him.
The word translated dispensation comes from the Greek Word οἰκονομία, which is derived from the root word οἰκονόμος-manager or house attendant.. Which in turn comes from the word οἶκος-meaning house.
Thus, οἰκονομία means steward of the house or administrator. Paul was saying that the Gospel of grace was committed to him to oversee and that the relay of this message was a chief duty.
This new age that Paul speaks of is the church.
In this new age, Gentiles were welcomed into the body of believers and are welcomed into the family of God.
Now, this does not mean that there was no invitation in the O.T. but rather that invitation was hid.
Examples of this were:
Ruth
But Ruth said: “Entreat me not to leave you, Or to turn back from following after you; For wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, And your God, my God.
Where you die, I will die, And there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, If anything but death parts you and me.”
When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she stopped speaking to her.
Rahab
Now before they lay down, she came up to them on the roof,
and said to the men: “I know that the Lord has given you the land, that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land are fainthearted because of you.
For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were on the other side of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed.
And as soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted; neither did there remain any more courage in anyone because of you, for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath.
Now therefore, I beg you, swear to me by the Lord, since I have shown you kindness, that you also will show kindness to my father’s house, and give me a true token,
Jonah and the Ninevites
However, the mystery of the O.T. was revealed in the N.T.
This mystery was the church age, that we now live in.
Furthermore, this mystery was fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
This mystery was largely hidden from the Gentile in the O.T. age and is now hidden from the Jew in the N.T. age.
Paul teaches much about this church age (The age of grace) in Romans.
What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!
Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?
The hidden mystery.
The hidden mystery.
The O.T. law.
This included demands of sacrifice, ceremonies, festivals, and traditions.
Even today, the mystery remains.
Five red heifers in the news this week.
The tabernacle, sacrificial system, and much more all pointed towards Jesus and His church. However, the mystery was hidden, and the Jew could not and would not see past the law to experience the grace found in Jesus.
The mystery Revealed.
The mystery Revealed.
The revealed mystery only requires grace and is offered freely.
The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,