(7-8) The work of God the Son.
In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence,
a. In Him we have redemption through His blood: The Him is the Beloved of Ephesians 1:6. In Him we have redemption and nowhere else. There is no possible redemption outside of Jesus and His redeeming blood.
i. Redemption always implies a price being paid for the freedom that is purchased. It uses the ancient Greek word lootruo, which means, “to liberate on the receipt of a ransom.” (Gaebelein) Here the price is His blood, showing that the blessing from the Father and the Son comes not only from a divine decree, but it also comes according to His righteousness and holiness. He cannot bless in opposition to His righteousness and holiness.
ii. Jesus does not redeem us by His sinless life or His moral example, but only by His death in our place – by His blood. “Observe, it is not redemption through his power, it is through his blood. It is not redemption through his love, it is through his blood.” (Spurgeon)
iii. We should not take a superstitious or mystical view of “the blood.” It was not Jesus’ physical blood that saved anyone, but His real and total payment for the sins of man in His whole person on the cross. This is what the New Testament means when it talks about “the blood.”
b. According to the riches of His grace: The redemption and forgiveness given to us comes according to the measure of the riches of His grace. It is not a “small” redemption or forgiveness won by Jesus on the cross. It is immense.
c. Which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence: Many think it is unwise of God to lavish such redemption and forgiveness on guilty sinners. But it was in all wisdom and prudence that He gave this to us.
3. (9-12) The mystery of His will.
Having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth; in Him. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.
a. Having made known to us the mystery of His will: Part of what belongs to us under the riches of His grace is the knowledge of the mystery of His will, God’s great plan and purpose which was once hidden but is now revealed to us in Jesus. Through the Apostle Paul, God called us to consider the greatness of God’s great plan for the ages and our place in that plan.
i. “In the New Testament sense a mystery is something which is hidden to the heathen but clear to the Christian.” (Barclay)
ii. The idea behind the word dispensation also reflects a plan or a strategy. “The plan which the master of a family, or his steward, has established for the management of the family… it signifies, also, a plan for the management of any sort of business.” (Clarke)
b. That… He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth; in Him: God’s ultimate plan is to bring together – to ultimately resolve – all things in Christ, either through Jesus as a Savior or Jesus as a Judge; this will happen in the fullness of the times.
i. The word for gather together has the idea of “to unite” or “to sum up.” It was used for the process of adding up a column of figures and putting the sum up at the top. Paul’s idea is that God will make all things “add up” at the end, and right now He is in the process of coming to that final sum.
ii. This shows that God wants to unify all things in our lives under Him. “It is a heresy of our times to divide life into sacred and secular.” (Foulkes)
iii. This is the great resolution and deliverance that even the creation groans for (Romans 8:18-22), the day when every wrong will be righted and every matter resolved according to God’s holy love and justice.
iv. Bruce on the fullness of the times: “When the time is ripe for the consummation of his purpose, in his providential overruling of the course of the world, that consummation will be realized.”
c. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance: For believers, Jesus is not a judge, but the One in whom we have an inheritance. Believers are predestined for this according to the counsel of His will – again, the reasons for His choosing reside in Him, not in us.
d. Being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will: We see three aspects of God’s plan working together. It begins with His purpose, then the counsel of His will, and finally results in His work. God made His plan carefully according to an eternal purpose, taking counsel within the Godhead, and then He works with all wisdom.
i. “Our God is a God who not only wills; He works; and He works according to His will… The word counsel stands for deliberate planning and arranging, in which the ways and means of carrying out the will are considered and provided for.” (Morgan)
ii. By the counsel of His will: “God doth all by counsel, and ever hath a reason of his will, which though we see not for present, we shall at last day. Meanwhile submit.” (Trapp)
e. That we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory: God’s purpose in all this is so that those who have trusted Christ will exist to the praise of His glory. The goal of God’s ultimate plan is to glorify Him.
f. We who first trusted in Christ: This speaks of Jewish believers. The words you also in Ephesians 1:13 speak of Gentile believers. God’s great plan has a place for both Jew and Gentile, and it brings them both together in Jesus.
4. (13-14) The work of the Holy Spirit.
In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
a. In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth: God’s sovereign choice works, but it does not exclude human cooperation. These ones who were so sovereignly chosen were also the ones who trusted, heard the word of truth, and believed.
b. You were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise: Also essential in God’s work is the sealing work of the Holy Spirit. His presence in our lives acts as a seal which indicates ownership, and which is a guarantee of our inheritance.
i. “The seal is therefore the Holy Spirit Himself, and His presence in the believer denotes ownership and security. The sealing with the Spirit is not an emotional feeling or some mysterious inward experience.” (Gaebelein)
ii. The word guarantee (“down payment”) is used only in the New Testament of the Holy Spirit. He is our only down payment of coming glory; nothing else is provided – or needed.
c. Having believed, you were sealed: The sealing does not come before we believe, and those who demand some assurance from God before they will believe treat God as if His word could not be trusted.
i. “For sealing there are needed the softened wax; the imprint of the beloved face; the steady pressure. Would that the Spirit might impress the face of our dear Lord on our softened hearts, that they may keep it for evermore!” (Meyer)
d. Until the redemption of the purchased possession: We have this guarantee until we are “completely purchased” by God through resurrection and glorification – again, all to the praise of His glory.
C. Paul prays in light of God’s ultimate plan and the work of the Triune God.
1. (15-16) Paul’s statement of prayer and declaration of thanksgiving.
Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers:
a. After I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints: When Paul heard of the faith and love of the Ephesians, he could do nothing else but give thanks for them. This was because their faith and love were evidence of their participation in this great work of God.
i. Faith and love do not earn us participation in this great work of God. They are evidence of our participation in God’s plan.
b. Love for all the saints: Significantly, Paul gave thanks not for their love for God, but for their love for all the saints. The real evidence of God’s work in us is not the love we claim to have for Him, but our love for His people that others can see (1 John 4:20, John 13:14 and John 13:34-35).
c. Making mention of you in my prayers: Paul not only gave thanks for God’s work among the Ephesians; he also prayed that it would continue with greater strength, as the prayer in Ephesians 1:17-23 makes clear.
i. Paul shows us here that preachers must do more than preach to their audience – they must also pray for them. “Whether a minister shall do more good to others by his prayers or preaching, I will not determine, but he shall certainly by his prayers reap more comfort to himself.” (Trapp)
ii. Paul often prayed making mention of others in prayer. When he prayed he mentioned the Christians in Rome (Romans 1:9), the Christians in Thessalonica (1 Thessalonians 1:2), and Philemon (Philemon 1:4).