In the last message we saw the believer’s standard. In this message we shall consider the way to reach this standard.
Ephesians 3:1 says, “For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you, the nations.” This verse is not a complete sentence; it contains a subject but not a predicate. All the verses from 3:2 through 3:21 are a parenthesis, and Darby places them within parentheses in his translation. This means that 4:1 continues Paul’s thought in 3:1. As Paul was writing this Epistle, a burden rose up in him in 3:2 to utter a parenthetical word. Then he continued in 4:1, “I beseech you therefore, I, the prisoner in the Lord, to walk worthily of the calling with which you were called.” Here Paul completed the thought he began to express in 3:1. Thus, by putting 3:1 and 4:1 together we have a complete thought.
The lengthy parenthesis between 3:1 and 4:1 is an extremely crucial section of Ephesians. In this portion Paul indicated that he longed for all the believers to be the same as he was. As those who would walk worthily of God’s calling, we must take Paul as our standard. In order that we might do this, Paul presented himself as an example. In chapter three Paul did not speak on the basis of being an apostle called by God, but he spoke on the basis of being a prisoner of the Lord. As such a prisoner, he was the standard model of one who walked worthily of God’s calling. In chapter three of Ephesians Paul presented not only the standard, but also the way to reach this standard. Let us consider the various aspects of this way in some detail.
Firstly, we must all be stewards, just as Paul was (3:2). The stewardship is not limited to the leading apostles. Rather, it is universal; that is, it is for all the Lord’s disciples. For example, the parable of the steward in Luke 16 was spoken to the disciples. This indicates that every believer, including all of us, must be a steward. I believe that, when Paul spoke of the stewardship in 3:2, he realized within him that the stewardship is for all believers.
In Ephesians 3 Paul develops a concept presented by the Lord Jesus in the four Gospels. The Gospels reveal that all the believers are both stewards and slaves (Matt. 25:14-30). According to the Gospels, a slave is not different from a servant, a steward. The concept in Ephesians 3 is that not only the apostles are stewards and servants, but that all the believers are stewards and servants.
Because of the influence of their religious background and environment, not many Christians regard themselves as stewards. Do you realize that you are not simply a believer, one who trusts in the Lord for salvation? Moreover, have you seen that you are not just a disciple, one who is disciplined and trained? Have you seen that you are a steward, one who serves others with the riches of Christ? We all need to regard ourselves as stewards. If we have this concept, our whole Christian life will be changed. We are all stewards; even we could be called waiters, those imparting Christ’s riches to others as nourishing food. The “kitchen” in which all this food is prepared is the church. If you do not have anything with which to serve others, you may come to this “kitchen” and receive the supply.
Because our stewardship is the stewardship of the grace of God, we need to receive grace, even the abundance of grace. Yes, we all can be God’s sent ones and God’s spokesmen, but in order to fulfill such a function, we must have grace. John 1:16 says, “For of His fullness we all received, and grace upon grace.”
We have pointed out that all the believers are stewards. Furthermore, we as the stewards have the supply that comes from an excellent “kitchen.” But when we contact the “customers,” what shall we serve them? We need to serve them the very grace we have received.
Perhaps you are wondering how you can receive grace in a practical way. For this, we must get into the Word and pray with the Word. To get into the Word is to receive grace, and to pray with the Word is to touch reality. After getting into the Word and praying with the Word, we need to walk in spirit according to the Word. If we do these three things daily, we shall receive a continual supply of grace. With this grace, we shall be enlightened and shall experience the reality of God as grace. This grace spontaneously connects us to the church, giving us a vital link to the “kitchen.” In this way we become proper stewards.
If we say that we are apostles, prophets, evangelists, and shepherds and teachers, but we do not get into the Word, pray, and walk in the spirit according to the Word, then what we have is just an empty title. We have no reality, and we have no way to reach the standard set by Paul.
In our prayer we should not be concerned about trivial matters. For example, do not pray about a minor problem with your health or about your temper. The more you pray about your temper, the more you will be troubled by it. Pray with the Word, especially with chapters like Ephesians 3. We should pray with the Word until it gets into us and fills us. When the Word gets into us and the Spirit fills our spirit, spontaneously our daily walk becomes worthy of God’s calling. We shall then walk in spirit according to the Word, and we shall receive grace and experience grace. By receiving grace in this way, we are brought on to the standard established by Paul.
In order to reach the standard, we also need to receive revelation (3:3, 5). A prophet is one who is full of light, one who sees what others do not see. Those who are in darkness have nothing to say, but those who are in the light have a great deal to speak forth. Whenever we see something by revelation, we automatically have something to talk about. If we would be today’s sent ones and prophets, we must receive both grace and revelation.
By receiving grace and revelation, we shall spontaneously become burdened to contact others. One who gets into the Word daily and who prays consistently will have a burden to speak to others about what he has seen and experienced. At the very least, he will have the desire to call someone on the telephone. Do not think that the grace and revelation you receive will allow you to remain passive or inactive. No, the grace and revelation will burden you to go to others and to minister to them. This is to be an apostle and a prophet in a practical way. It is useless for me or anyone else to charge you to be such a sent one and spokesman. The only thing that avails is for you to get into the Word, pray, and receive grace and revelation. Whenever you are enlightened by the Lord, you will be eager to tell others what you have seen.
The way to receive revelation is to get into the Word. I believe that Paul received revelation through his study of the Old Testament. Because he spent so much time in the Word, revelation could come to him by means of the Word. The Pharisees, however, could not receive revelation from the Word because they were closed and disobedient. Paul, however, was open. All the veils that covered him were taken away by the Lord. As we come to the Word, we should ask the Lord to remove the veils from our eyes. Although we do not know what veils are still upon us, the Lord knows, and He is willing to remove them. We need to pray, “Lord, I am coming to Your Word. Take away anything that veils my sight, and make Your Word open to me.” If we pray in this manner, light will come in, and we shall receive revelation. Then we shall speak to others according to the light we have received from the Lord. Such a speaking, a speaking full of divine light, will greatly surprise the religious ones. Oh, the church people must be full of light, full of revelation!
In receiving revelation, we should not be concerned with minor things such as foot-washing, the method of baptism, or the size of the cup used at the Lord’s table. I am troubled when saints question me regarding secondary matters, but neglect the matters of God’s eternal purpose and God’s economy. Once I visited a certain place where the people were supposed to be quite spiritual. During a fellowship meeting held for the purpose of answering questions, I was disappointed by the kind of questions that were asked. I was asked questions about minor things, but no one asked me about significant things such as the difference between the mystery of Christ and the mystery of God.
The questions we ask indicate where we are and what we are. For example, many of the questions addressed to me by my little grandchildren are nonsensical. I do not expect them to ask questions about profound subjects. In order to ask a high question, we need to have considerable knowledge and experience. As we read chapter three of Ephesians, we need to ask question after question. Here are some questions we should ask: What is the stewardship of the grace? What is the mystery of Christ? What is a joint-heir? What are the unsearchable riches of Christ? What is the dispensation of the mystery? What is the difference between ages and generations? What is the purpose of the ages? What does it mean to be strengthened into the inner man? How can Christ make His home in our hearts? If we seek out the answers to questions like these, we shall receive revelation.
After we receive light and revelation in answer to questions such as these, we shall have a great deal to share with others. We in the Lord’s recovery must be speaking people, those who speak day by day because we have received revelation. The more we see, the more we shall desire to speak. This is the reason that I always have something to speak in the ministry. Actually, the more I speak, the more there is to speak. If we would be such speaking ones, we need to receive revelation. All the saints, not just the leading apostles, should receive revelation.
In 3:7 Paul says that he “became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God.” As we pointed out in the previous message, a minister is one who serves. Therefore, we should not just be stewards, but also ministers, serving ones.
The words “of which” in verse 7 refer to the gospel in verse 6. This indicates that Paul became a minister of the gospel, that is, one who served others with the gospel. We also are ministers of the gospel. This gospel is not concerned with heaven, but with the nations becoming “joint-heirs and a joint Body and joint-partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus” (v. 6). The gospel spoken of in verse 6 has to do with joint-heirs, a joint Body, and joint-partakers of the promise. All the saints can be ministers of such a high and rich gospel.
We need to preach the high gospel to our parents, neighbors, and friends. Tell them about becoming joint-heirs and joint-partakers of the promise in Christ. If they argue with you in a negative way, simply continue to speak positively to them about what you have seen in the book of Ephesians. Do not be worried that they may not be able to understand you. If you regularly speak to them in a proper way, they will eventually understand what you are saying. Let us all speak to others from the book of Ephesians.
If we would reach the standard established by the Apostle Paul, our whole being needs to be strengthened into the inner man. By being strengthened into the inner man, we shall be rooted and grounded in love and shall become strong to apprehend the dimensions of Christ, to know the knowledge-surpassing love of Christ, and to be filled unto all the fullness of God (3:16-19). Paul was a person with his entire being strengthened into the inner man. Therefore, he was rooted and grounded in love and knew the dimensions of Christ and the knowledge-surpassing love of Christ. What about us? Paul prayed that we would be strengthened into the inner man so that, ultimately, we might be filled unto all the fullness of God.
Do not think that Paul could be such a person, but that you cannot. The crucial point in chapter three is that Paul expected all the saints to be the same as he was. We all can and should be strengthened into the inner man. Likewise, we all should be rooted and grounded in love, and we all should be strong to know the dimensions of Christ, to know the knowledge-surpassing love of Christ, and to be filled unto all the fullness of God.
In chapter three of Ephesians we see that Paul’s desire was for all the saints to be the same as he was. In verses 2 through 9 he expressed this from one angle, and in verses 16 through 19 he related it from another. From one angle, we are stewards, we have received grace, we have seen the revelation of the mystery, and we are ministers of the high gospel. We minister the riches of Christ so that the church may be produced in a practical way. From another angle, we need to be strengthened into the inner man so that we may be rooted and grounded in love and may become strong to know the dimensions of Christ, to know the knowledge-surpassing love of Christ, and to be filled unto all the fullness of God. From both angles, we need to be the same as Paul was. If we are the same as he was, we shall be walking worthily of God’s calling, for we shall be up to the standard for a believer.
As he was about to beseech the saints to have a walk worthy of God’s calling, Paul became burdened to insert the parenthetical word found in 3:2-21. In this parenthetical section, Paul presented himself as the standard of a normal, proper believer in Christ. He was one who had received grace, who was a steward, who had seen the revelation, and who had become a minister of the high gospel. He was one who preached the riches of Christ as the gospel for the producing of the church. As such a one, he was strengthened into the inner man, he was rooted and grounded in love, he knew the dimensions of Christ and the love of Christ, and he was filled unto the fullness of God, which is the church as the expression of the Triune God. Today we all can be such a person. Praise the Lord that in Ephesians 3 we have not only the standard, but also the way to reach the standard!
