Transcript

During this time in God’s Word we’ll be looking at Ephesians 2:1-7 and the blessing of being “Alive in Christ.”

A woman brought a very limp duck into a veterinary surgeon. As she laid her pet on the table, the vet pulled out his stethoscope and listened to the bird’s chest.

After a moment or two, the vet shook his head sadly and said, “I’m sorry, your duck has passed away.” The distressed woman wailed, “Are you sure?” “Yes, I am sure. The duck is dead,” replied the vet.

“How can you be so sure,” she protested. “I mean you haven’t done any testing on him or anything. He might just be in a coma or something.” Reluctantly the vet turned around and left the room.

He returned a few minutes later with a black Labrador Retriever. As the duck’s owner looked on in amazement, the dog stood on his hind legs, put his front paws on the examination table and sniffed the duck from top to bottom.

He then looked up at the vet with sad eyes, whined and dropped its head. The vet patted the dog on the head and took it out of the room.

A few minutes later he returned with a cat. The cat jumped on the table and also delicately sniffed the bird from head to foot. The cat sat back on its haunches, meowed softly and sadly, and then strolled out of the room.

The vet looked at the woman and said, “I’m sorry, but as I said, this is most definitely, 100% certifiably, a dead duck.”

The vet turned to his computer terminal, hit a few keys and produced a bill, which he handed to the woman. The duck’s owner took the bill and with great shock said: “$750!” “$750 just to tell me my duck is dead!”

The vet shrugged, “I’m sorry. If you had just taken my word for it, the bill would have been $25, but with the Lab Report and the Cat Scan, it’s now $750.”

The truth and diagnosis of Scripture is that all men apart from Christ are dead, spiritually dead in their sins and separated from the life of God.

Paul had spoken about all the blessings that God has blessed us with in Christ by God’s grace in Ephesians 1. Here Paul reminds the Ephesians and us of our past, and we learn how truly undeserving we are of all that God has done for us.

In these verses we are presented with the past, present, and future of the believer, what he was, what he is, and where he is going.

Ephesians emphasizes and gives instruction for how the Church of this dispensation, the Church, the Body of Christ is to operate. Here in these verses, Paul reveals first how one becomes a member of that Body.

Paul speaks of how we are saved from sin, saved because of God’s mercy and love, saved by grace through faith, not of works.

Eph. 2:1 says, “And you hath He quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins.”

Paul speaking of the Ephesian believer’s past condition says, “you…who were dead in trespasses and sins.” Now unsaved people are very much alive physically. The death Paul speaks of here is spiritual death.

In God’s Word, “death” speaks of separation. Paul is saying that in our sins, we are spiritually separated from God, from the life of God. Later in Eph. 4:18, Paul says the same that unbelievers are “alienated from the life of God.”

Isaiah 59:2 says, “your iniquities have separated between you and your God.”

Paul says in Romans 6:23, that the “wages of sin is death.” Sin results in death: physical, spiritual, and ultimately everlasting separation from God in the lake of fire.

We are all born in sin because of our connection with Adam, which is why we all die. Romans 5:12 says, “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that ALL have sinned [in Adam].”

We’re all sinners in Adam and are born with a sin nature. And Romans 3:23 says that “ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”

We are ALL sinners by nature, and from that nature we have ALL sinned and individually done sinful things and sinned against God.

We’re all sinners, we are all “dead in trespasses and sins.” ALL are separated from God, ALL are deserving of eternal judgment, and ALL are in need of forgiveness and life and reconciliation.

Paul says we are dead in “trespasses,” which speaks of false steps, stepping out of line, to deviate. “Sins” speaks of missing or falling short of the mark.

All men have fallen short of the mark of God’s glory, goodness, righteousness, and holiness, and are therefore “dead,” separated spiritually from God.

Unbelievers, aren’t sick spiritually, they’re dead spiritually and have a great need. The world is filled with people who are dead while they live, who need to be saved and given spiritual life, which only comes from Christ.

Ephesians 2:2 states, “Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.”

Continuing on with the spiritual condition of mankind outside of Christ, Paul paints a picture of the lost sinner. And it’s not a pretty picture, but it’s an honest picture.

Scripture does not sugar coat; it is a mirror, which confronts us truthfully with how we stand before God.

Paul says “in time past” when they were “dead in sins,” and outside of Christ, the Ephesians “walked according to the course of this world.”

An unbeliever’s lifestyle follows the lifestyles of other unbelievers, and conforms to the world’s ways and standard of morality, which is always changing.

Consciously or unconsciously, unbelievers “walk” or live according to the world’s “course” or order, by its system of values, its attitudes and way of doing things.

Unbelievers live by the mass of current or past thought, opinion, impulses, aims, and aspirations of this world and worldly people.

They find their authority in popular opinion and by the great number who believe it and follow it. And they just go with the flow.

And this world puts pressure on every person, both unbelieving and believing, to “conform” to what they think and believe.

But Paul tells in Romans 12:2 believers to “be not conformed to this world.”

In walking according to the course of this world, unbelievers walk “according to the prince of the power of the air” who is Satan. The course of this world follows the leadership of Satan, who Paul says in II Corinthians 4:4 is “the god of this world.”

Behind the scenes, the world is a satanically organized system that hates and opposes God. Satan hates God and he actually hates man too.

He is at work constantly to lead man to destroy their own lives and to keep people from being saved, to “blind the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them” (II Cor. 4:4).

“The power of the air” that Satan is the “prince” over is the “principalities…powers… rulers of the darkness of this world…spiritual wickedness in high places” that Paul speaks of later in 6:12. He is the god of this world and ruler over the demonic host.

And because of his power over this world system and through the demonic hosts of hell, Satan influences the lives of all unbelievers.

Colossians 1:13 speaks of how when we trust Christ that He delivers us “from the power of darkness.” Unbelievers unknowingly live under the authority of Satan.

Jesus told the unbelieving Pharisees in John 8:44: “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him.”

Unbelievers live in darkness under Satan’s authority and are subject to his lusts, his desires, deception, and influences.

And as he influences unbelievers, he not only tempts to get man to do evil things and destroy their lives by sin, he’s even more concerned with trying to get man to think and believe in error, so they follow him in his opposition to God.

Being a liar and the father of it, he influences mankind to believe lies, or to worship the creation or false gods. Satan does his greatest work in the church and religion.

Through outright false doctrine, and also by subtly mixing truth with error, he works to confuse and lead people away from Christ, and trusting in the all-sufficiency of His Cross and resurrection.

He also influences and deceives people to live aimlessly for self according to the world, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and the mind.

Since Satan is himself disobedient to God, so he works to keep unbelievers as “children of disobedience” also, to God and His Word and His will.

Ephesians 2:3 says, “Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.”

Paul says “among whom also,” meaning “numbered among or being one ourselves” referring to being “children of disobedience.” Paul says in time past when we were all children of disobedience we lived “in the lusts of our flesh.”

So we find the believer’s three main enemies in these two verses: the world, the flesh, and the devil.

Before we were saved we were dominated and influenced by these three. The unbeliever lives to please “the lusts of our flesh,” or lives by the strong inclinations, the passionate longings, the evil cravings of the flesh, our sinful natures.

The unbeliever lives according to the longings of the flesh and then he acts upon these inclinations: “fulfilling [carrying out] the desires of the flesh” and the wishes and corrupt reasoning of their darkened, disobedient “mind.”

The unbeliever is abandoned to doing whatever feels good and makes them happy. They act on the authority of self and their own mind.

So the conduct of the unsaved we see all around us is lived according to the constant, ever-changing, selfish cravings of the desires of the flesh, in which no true fulfillment or satisfaction is ever found, but only emptiness and meaninglessness.

Nothing should surprise us when we hear about horrible things that take place in the world. Sin is the problem. These horrible things that take place should only remind us how desperately the world needs Christ and His salvation and life and the transformation to our lives that He can give by His grace. Christ is the answer.

A key word in v. 3 is “had.” Paul speaks of the believer’s past and is also subtly implying that these things should remain there and shouldn’t be true of believers who have power within to live above the ways of the world, the flesh, and the devil.

It shows that believers can live like they used to live before Christ and like unbelievers and get caught up in the course of this world and living by the desires of the flesh.

Those who have not received God’s salvation through Christ are “the children of wrath.” Man, by deed, in what he does, is a child of disobedience, and “by nature,” he is a child of wrath.

Being dead in trespasses in sins all are worthy of, subject to, and appointed to God’s wrath and doomed to eternal judgment and punishment in the lake of fire.

Ephesians 2:1-3 present a hopeless and doomed picture of guilty mankind who is dead in his sins, who deserves nothing but God’s wrath and judgment.

This picture is to give us a burden for the lost. And give us a true snapshot of the world. The world likes to make excuses for its behavior. But God’s Word just tells it like it is.

Mankind is separated from God and His life, living according to the influences of the world and the devil. Man is disobedient, controlled by the sinful, empty lusts of the flesh and their darkened mind, and are under God’s wrath and heading for judgment.

Ephesians 2:4 and 5 then state, “But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved).”

We’ve seen the bad news, now the good news! The good news is “But God.”

Singer Steven Curtis Chapman states, “In the gospel, we discover we are far worse off than we thought, and far more loved than we ever dreamed.”

The issue of salvation and eternal life is not what man can do for God, but what God has done for us. It’s not us trying to reach God, it’s what God in His love and grace has done in reaching down and coming to us.

“But God” introduces God actions toward sinners. What we deserve is for the message to end at verse 3. That would be justice. “But God,” introduces mercy, love, and grace. The focus turns from sinful man to a merciful and loving God.

In God’s mercy He does not give us what we do deserve. And God is rich in mercy. It is exhaustless, abundant, overflowing. Psalm 103:8 says, “The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.”

Micah 7:18 tells us that God delights in mercy. The entire 136th Psalm tells us that the Lord’s mercy endures forever. Instead of dealing with man in deserving wrath, He deals with us in compassionate mercy. Aren’t you glad?

And God loves us with a great love. And out of that great love, He “spared not his own Son, but delivered Him up for us all” Romans 8:32 says.

Max Lucado writes this in “He Chose the Nails”: “Envision the moment. God on His throne. You on the earth. And between you and God, suspended between you and heaven, is Christ on His Cross.

“Your sins have been placed on Christ. God, who punishes sin, releases His rightful wrath on your sins. Christ receives the blow. Since Christ is between you and God, you don’t. The sin is punished, but you are safe, safe in the shadow of the Cross.

This is what God did, but why, why would He do it? Moral duty? Heavenly obligation? Paternal requirement? No. God is required to do nothing.

“Besides, consider what He did. He gave His Son. His only Son. Would you do that? Would you offer the life of your child for someone else? I wouldn’t. There are those for whom I would give my life. But ask me to make a list of those for whom I would sacrifice my daughter? The sheet will be blank. I don’t need a pencil. The list has no names.

“But God’s list contains the name of every person who ever lived. For this is the scope of His love. And this is the reason for the Cross. He loves the world.”

Steve Brown states, “The Church is the only organization in the world where the only qualification for membership is to be unqualified. It is a place for people who have been loved, and have no idea why.”

We’ve sinned against God, He can’t have one sin in His presence, He must punish sin, and sin’s just, deserving penalty is everlasting death and torment in hell.

“But God” is rich in mercy and loves us and He sent the Son of His love to die for us, to bear the punishment and to die for our sins, so that we may be saved from our sins by faith in Him, saved from hell, forgiven, and spend eternity with Him.

Out of God’s great love, He sought our greatest and highest good, even though we don’t deserve it at all.

And “even when we were dead in sins” in great need, spiritually dead and needing new life He “quickened us” when we believed, He gave us life, spiritual, eternal life.

He made “us,” spiritually alive “together with Christ” uniting us completely to Him for eternity, giving us His life, making us alive in Him.

We are no longer alienated from the life of God, we are joined to Christ, we are born again and have new life, the life of God in Christ.

Colossians 2:13 says, “And you, being dead in your sins…hath He quickened together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses.”

Paul says being made alive is all because of grace, as by grace we are saved. It’s not that we might or will be saved. We ARE saved the moment we trust Christ as our personal Savior. Salvation is completely the work of God; it is by grace alone; it is simply a gift.

God in His grace helps the helpless and we are helpless (Jonah); He helps the undeserving and we’re undeserving; He helps those who’ve failed to achieve His standard, which is all of us. And by His grace we are saved and made alive in Christ.

Ephesians 2:6,7 says, “And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come He might shew the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.”

Also by His mercy, love and grace, God has “raised us [the Church, the Body of Christ] up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” The heavenly places is the unique hope for the Body of Christ. Israel’s hope is on the earth.

Outside of Christ we are dead in our sins, but the moment we believe, God identifies and unites us with Christ and His death, burial, and resurrection and we are raised up high, given newness of life, and given a seated position in Christ in the heavenlies.

We are “in Christ” and are joined to our Savior. So as our Savior has been raised up and exalted and is seated in heavenly places, we also are raised up, exalted, and seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

God has exalted and honored us highly in Him and given us an eternal position in Him in heaven! God has seated us in Christ in the heavenlies where we will rule and reign for eternity.

God says this is a present spiritual reality, a reality that we’re to live in light of. Colossians 3:1 says, “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.”

As we seek those things which are above in heaven, that’s where Christ is, that’s where our home is, that’s where our exalted position is, seated in Christ.

We’re now to live in light of the fact that this world is not our home, that we honor our Savior and Lord with our lives, that we live in light of heaven’s values and our position.

Before salvation we were dead, now we live. We lived according to the course of this world, now we live according to the course of heaven. We lived according to and under Satan’s authority, now we live according to and under Christ’s authority.

We lived according to the desires of the flesh, now we live according to the new life, the new man imparted within.

We were children of disobedience, children of wrath, now we are sons of God, saved from wrath, children of life, and exalted in the heavenlies.

So sure is God’s promise of our life and hope in Christ, that God already sees us as there. It’s as good as done. In God’s eyes we are already, currently seated there.

And for eternity, the Body of Christ will glorify God for His grace, forever we will be demonstrations of the riches of God’s grace, and forever He will show His endless, limitless kindness to us through Christ Jesus.

We will never stop receiving grace and kindness from God, and God will be eternally praised and glorified because of all He has done for us.

William Henley was born in 1849 in Gloucester England. He was crippled since childhood, and a staunch humanist. He wrote “Invictus,” which is often quoted by valedictorians at graduations.

Out of the night that covers me, black as the pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be for my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance my head is unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears looms but the horror of the shade, and yet the menace of the years finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate, how charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul.

In this poem, we see the course of this world and the pride of man. In answer to Henley’s “Invictus,” a believer in Christ, by the name of Dorothea Day wrote a poem called “My Captain.” In this we see one who is “alive in Christ” and touched by the grace of God.

Out of the light that dazzles me, bright as the sun from pole to pole, I thank the God I know to be for Christ the conqueror of my soul.

Since His the sway of circumstance, I would not wince nor cry aloud. Under that rule which men call chance my head with joy is humbly bowed.

Beyond this place of sin and tears there is life with Him! And His the aid, despite the menace of the years, keeps, and shall keep me, unafraid.

I have no fear, though strait the gate, He cleared from punishment the scroll. Christ is the Master of my fate, Christ is the Captain of my soul.