UNSEARCHABLE RICHES OF CHRIST
Wednesday – November 30, 2016
Wow, Wednesday, hump day already. Our Arabian camel is shouting “I Love Jesus”, do we love Jesus? Remember, to love Jesus means that you follow His commandments.
John 14:21 (KJV)
21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
Now let’s pick-up our Bible study in Ephesians.
Ephesians 3:6-9 (KJV)
6 That the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:
7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power.
8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
As we pick-up in verse seven we see the Apostle Paul telling the folks at Ephesus which are apparently a mixed Jewish (Hebrew) and Gentile (before salvation) population that he by the gifting of the Holy Spirit (grace of God) is a teacher of this mystery. This gift to teach given of the Holy Spirit (who is The Teacher) causes Paul to be effective. This teaching is accompanied by supernatural power of God in the impartation of this gift of teaching, one of the five-fold ministry gifts. Let’s see how it is translated in the Message Translation.
Ephesians 3:7 (MSG)
7 This is my life work: helping people understand and respond to this Message. It came as a sheer gift to me, a real surprise, God handling all the details.
The Apostle Paul is self-deprecating in the next verse indicating that he is the least of all saints however God bestowed this gift upon him of teaching and preaching the unsearchable riches of Christ.
Ephesians 3:8 (KJV)
8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
I am sure that Paul is humbled by the honor and privilege of the position given him of God however one has to wonder if he is not dealing with condemnation due to his history before salvation on the Damascus road. Our pristine example is the Lord Jesus. Others in Scripture are also examples of persons from whom we can learn regarding the good, the bad, and the ugly in their lives. We know that Paul dealt with certain things like the thorn in the flesh where he was not exercising the Grace of God given him (and all of us) to take care of this thorn in the flesh. We know that he was beaten, stoned, and shipwrecked none of which is the will of God for him or us but can happen when the hedge is down due to condemnation or lack of faith in an area.
We find Paul saying that he is so privileged to be preaching the Gentiles (Jews also) “the unsearchable riches of Christ;” These riches of Christ are unsearchable to the unbeliever and even elusive for the mature believer due to the expansive nature of God. The word “riches” is just what you would think if it were not in the Bible. In the modern Church talk of the saints being rich in the earth will send people screaming toward the doors holding their fingers in their ears. Sorry saints that is exactly what Paul is talking about here, great wealth and abundance in this life and the one to come. Jesus is in favor of this as well.
Mark 10:29-30 (KJV)
29 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel’s,
30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.
Just how rich do we suppose that Christ might be? We know that Jesus, the Son, inherited all things, and the Holy Spirit has unlimited creative power, together what do you think would be the limit of these riches?
By: Dr. David Wood, Author, Bible Teacher, and Prophetic Voice
