Welcome to The Encouraging Please take a copy of God's Word and turn with all of us to Paul's letter to the Ephesians chapter 3. And I'm going to request that every single person have access to God's Word this morning. God's servant, a man on mission. I don't believe that it was any accident that we find ourselves in Ephesians chapter 3.
Beginning this Sunday. And I'm going to say to you beloved friends that I would never seek to try and elevate one man in terms of the grace of God upon people. When we get to Ephesians chapter 3, the Apostle Paul begins to talk about himself. And you and I in today's world, we sit there and we say, how can this be?
What an audacity. How is it that one man could ever claim to be blessed by God in so many different ways? And yet it becomes apparent to us, my friends, that the Apostle Paul is speaking from a vantage point of absolute worthlessness and complete and utter humility before the throne of grace. But what a wonderful thing to know that God has chosen by his divine grace to use men and women such as you and me, that have been used mightily to be conduits and channels of God's grace and God's blessing. It is a remarkable thing when one thinks of Jonathan Edwards and Schubel Stearns and Daniel Marshall. It is a remarkable thing to think of James McGrady. It is a remarkable thing to think of D.L.
Moody and John Wesley and Vance Havner and Mordecai Ham. It is a remarkable thing to think of Billy Graham. It is a remarkable thing to think of the scores, if not hundreds upon hundreds of people that are in this place today, that God has used you so mightily to touch so many people's lives. At the funeral of a very dear and precious lady, as we began to celebrate her life and to celebrate the fact that she had been transported by the angels to be seated at the feast table of the king, as I looked out across that congregation, I thought to myself, how incredibly privileged we are in Spartanburg.
Why? Because we live in a community in which God has poured out his spirit and he's used individual people in such incredible ways to touch so many lives for the Lord Jesus Christ. Let's try and understand what Paul is saying before we recoil into the private world of our human indignation that one man would have the audacity to elevate himself to a special place at the right hand of the Father. Ephesians chapter 3 and verse 1 for this reason, now I might stop once or twice because this is such a remarkable passage for this reason. What is Paul saying?
Paul is saying here in verse 3 that he hasn't stopped what he was saying in chapter 2. In fact, you could read verse 22 of chapter 2 and in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his spirit for this reason, I Paul. You see, everything that Paul says is based upon the foundation that he has in Christ. It is attributable completely, not in part, everything that he has, everything that he does, and everything that he hopes to do is rooted in the cross of Christ. And we're going to see, we're going to feel this coming through so strongly in the fabric of the text as we begin to try and understand God's word. For this reason I Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles, by the way, surely you have heard, it's as though Paul here at the end of verse 1 was about to launch into some kind of narrative, perhaps God forbid of some kind of self-aggrandizement, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, isn't it marvelous what I've gone through? And right there at that point, it seems that God takes this man of God and he thrusts him back into the very heartbeat of God himself and he says to him for this reason, I Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles, surely you have heard about the administration of God's grace that was given to me for you.
Not an audacity. Can you imagine that a man has the audacity to say openly and unapologetically that God has given me something to give to you? Surely not. God doesn't have favorites, or does he? God doesn't use individual people, or does he?
And if he does, who does he use? Are you and I eligible? We're going to discover that we are.
We're eligible. Paul is going to tell us in Ephesians that all of us are eligible to say what he's saying. Maybe our problem is we're not prepared to allow God to do that with us.
It's not God's selectivity, it's our availability. Surely you have heard about the administration of God's grace that was given to me for you that is to say the mystery made known to me by revelation as I have already written briefly where in the first two chapters of Ephesians. Now in reading this then, you will be able to understand what?
My insight, says Paul, into what? Into the mystery of Christ which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed how? By the Spirit of God to who? To the apostles and prophets who have been set apart for the work of God. That's what the word holy means. The holy apostles and prophets. Why are they holy? They are holy, my friend, because of the word haggios. It means they have been separated unto the eternal purpose of God. They've been set apart for that specific function and that word haggios within itself, my friend, contains the very reason why God chose this servant of God to be used of God.
Why? Because he had offered himself holy and acceptable under God, that's why. You cannot read that verse without understanding the special designation. Now read it again with me.
It makes a little more sense. Which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy apostles and prophets. Well, what is this mystery that has been made known? This mystery is that through the gospel. By the way, right throughout Ephesians, we're going to hear this word, the gospel, the gospel, the gospel, the gospel, the gospel, the gospel. Next week, I'm going to preach a message entitled, what is the gospel?
This has bothered me so much. Paul keeps coming back to this thing. He says the gospel, he puts it back right squarely on the shoulder of the gospel. Well, what is the gospel?
We're going to try and understand that in this context. This mystery is that through the gospel, three things happen. Here it is in verse six. The Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, number one.
Members together of one body, number two. And sharers together in the promise of Jesus Christ, number three. That's the mystery that has been revealed to God's servant, a man on mission. Verse seven. Now at this point, Paul goes back and he begins to talk about his own role in God's plan of things. I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God's grace, given me through the working of his power.
I love that, don't you? That goes back to chapter one and verse nine, where we talked about the incomparably great power of God. We talked about the working. The word they're working is the same word for energy. It's the vitamins that God gives to his children to take, why?
Because it energizes them to be able to exercise the power of God, the dunamis, the thunder of God's voice. Paul is making an extraordinary statement at this juncture. He says, I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God's grace, given me through the working of his power. And then he stops. He stops dead in his tracks. I don't know, maybe he was preaching like I've just been preaching.
Maybe he was about to burst a blood vessel. It's as though the Spirit of God suddenly stops him again. It's amazing folks in the text of God's word. That's why we've got to study God's word, my friends.
That's why we don't have any alternative. This word doesn't contain the word of God. It is the word of God. That's why it's imperative that all of you look at God's word. Listen to it.
There's all of a sudden a cutting off there. He even uses the conjunction. Listen, although come to think of it, he says, verse eight, I am less than the least of all God's people. I tell you, I keep thinking of Dr. Billy Graham when I read this. Although I am less than the least of all God's people. Now that's a superlative.
We're going to come back and we're going to look at it. It has a very special meaning. This grace was given to me even though I'm less than the least.
To do what? Here it is again, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ and to make plain to everyone the administration. Now we saw that word a little earlier on in verse two.
Surely you've heard about the administration of God's grace. Now let's go to verse nine. To make plain to everybody the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God who created all things. And so what was God's intent? That's in verse 10. His intent, God's intent was that now through the church. Isn't that a wonderful statement? You know what God just said there?
He said that we the church are special. Why do you think folks Satan wants to destroy the church? Why do you think Satan gets people all fired up? Why do you think Satan gets people spreading rumors? Why do you think Satan gets God's people angry? Why do you think Satan tries to do everything? Because of what God tells us about his church.
That's why. Look what he says. His intent was that now through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose, which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. In him, through faith in him, we may approach God.
There it is. It's told us right there in him, and through faith in him, we may approach God. That is God's divine blessing. God has given us permission to come aboard with freedom and with confidence.
I ask you therefore in verse 13, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory. I want us to look at this very briefly in two areas. God's servant, a man on mission. Number one, what was the nature of Paul's mission? Number two, what was the purpose of Paul's mission? Well, if we're going to ask what was the nature of Paul's mission, we're going to be asking the question, why in the world did Paul do what he did?
What was it? There are three reasons according to this passage. Number one, because of the call to stewardship.
Number two, because of the call to service. And number three, because of God's call to suffering. That's what Paul is trying to tell us.
Number one, the call to stewardship. You see, Paul was given the responsibility to administer God's plan for his people. It's right there in verse two. Paul was called to be an administrator. That's exactly and the word there at the administration of God's grace. It means that God entrusted his plan for the church to the administration of Paul the Apostle. He said, Paul, you are the one that I want to carry out and to share my plan for the salvation of man with mankind.
I am giving you that responsibility. You can't explain it. You cannot explain Dr. Billy Graham outside of the administrative plan of the grace of God. You can't explain that. You cannot explain the touch of God upon someone's life outside of the touch of God.
You cannot go beyond that point. God comes down in his sovereign grace and he touches a person's life. Paul say, he says this position was one of extremely high privilege. It is one of sacred trust and it carried with it three things. It concerned the grace of God. It concerned passing it onto the Gentiles and it concerned making known the mystery of God's revealed plan. That's what Paul's stewardship was all about. And what was the content of this mystery? Well, it's right there in those verses for us in verse 14. In verse 6, I beg your pardon, he tells us exactly what the mystery is. That we will become heirs together, that we are members together and that we are sharers together in the grace of God.
Isn't that wonderful to think about that? Paul said, wait a minute. I know God has used me in a special way but the reason he's using me is because he's called me to be a steward. He's entrusted something to me.
Forgive the interruption. We'll be back with the rest of today's message. God's servant, a man on a mission in just a moment with Dr. Wilton. But Dr. Don wants to encourage you on a daily basis. If you haven't signed up for the daily encouraging word devotional, do so today on our website at www.tewonline.org.
As a matter of fact, that place, our website, is filled with resources like this. When Jesus comes, every eye will see him. Even those who crucified Jesus and those who mocked the name of Jesus. Do not be shocked or surprised at what's going on in America today. We had better wake up, America. Jesus is coming again. This month, for your gift of support of the encouraging word, you will receive Dr. Wilton's powerful and timely message, Trusting God, along with the bonus DVD movie on celebrating Ruth Bell Graham, a life marked by the faithfulness of God. Call us at 866-899-WORD to request Trusting God and the bonus DVD movie today for a gift of $20 or more. Thank you for standing with us. Remember the phone number, 866-899-WORD, not just for resources, but for prayer 24 hours a day. That's 866-899-9673.
Now back to today's teaching with Dr. Don. But there's a second reason because of the call to service. The call to service, look at verse 7. He said, I became a servant of this gospel. Now that word servant there is very interesting because the word servant there is the same word that we get the word deacon from, diakonos.
This is what God's word says. I became a servant of this gospel. Isn't that incredible?
Isn't that amazing? Paul is saying here that his stewardship was going to be carried out, the vehicle by which that his stewardship was going to be carried out was his service. The preceding verses, they're pulsated perhaps with Paul's wonder of the inclusion of the Gentiles in God's plan for redemption. But from verse 7 and onwards, verse 7 through 12, he now makes known this profound gratitude for the privilege that God has given to him. Paul cannot contain himself. How did he look upon this appointment of God to Christian service? Two ways, first of all, he considered it a great favor. That's what verse 7 tells.
It was a great favor, can you believe that? Especially for Paul. It's a remarkable statement when you consider the cost that the Apostle Paul had to endure, the bitter hatred of his countrymen, the contempt of those that he sought to win to Christ, the perils of his journeys, the indignity and pain of his stonings and his whippings and his imprisonments. And yet the Apostle Paul says, you have called me to be a man on mission and I believe that's the greatest favor you could ever show me.
That's amazing. I can't even remotely identify with what Paul is saying. I live in a place called Spartanburg, South Carolina. Beautiful, rivers and trees and mountains, plenty to eat, roof over my head, family. Look at this church family.
Look around folks, look at it. Can you imagine this? Can you imagine what God has done for us? He's blessed us so much. It was a great favor but not only that, it involved the exercise of divine power. That's what Paul believed about his Christian service. It involved the exercise of divine power. You see my friends, preaching to a pagan world required such power and it was only because of the grace of God that the Apostle Paul was able to do what the Apostle Paul did. Just literally thousands of people are coming to know Jesus.
How do you explain that? Well, you cannot explain it, excepting if you understand that the force behind Paul's labors was declared to be the act of strength. There it is, the working, the Energia, the vitamins that God had given to him of what?
Of the dynamic power of God and that word dynamic is the word for dynamite. It means that there is an explosion that is placed into God's servant, a man on mission because God has made a choice. God has come down upon his servant. Well, there was the call to stewardship and the call to service, but there's also the call to suffering.
I can't understand that. Paul knew that the way of service was not easy. Look at verse 13, he says, I ask you therefore not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are the basis of your glory. If you understand the Greek text there, my friends, what was Paul saying? Paul was literally saying to the church that you as a church, said Paul to the church at Ephesus, you as a church are not going to be able to understand or contain the suffering that God will call down upon you.
Therefore, I am willing to suffer for your sake so that through my sufferings, you are going to be strengthened by the might and power of God in the inner man. Paul perhaps here at this junction, my friend is saying, isn't that what Jesus Christ did for me? Jesus Christ, the son of the living God, he went and he suffered, he was bruised and beaten.
He died upon Calvary's tree. He took upon himself the sin of the world in order that I might have life and have it more abundantly. And if Jesus Christ could suffer for me, I am willing to suffer for you for the cause of Christ Jesus. Now look at verse 13 again.
What does he say? He says, I ask you therefore not to be discouraged because of my sufferings, but rather that your glory might be made magnified as a result of my sufferings. That you might be encouraged because of God's man on mission. I think so many times as I read of people on mission fields and how much I'm encouraged because of their suffering. That doesn't make sense to the world that somebody else should suffer and I get encouraged by it. What happens is their suffering strengthened my faith. It keeps me together. I say, if that person can do that, I can do it.
I draw nourishment from that. And Paul is saying that this is what God has called me to do. The nature of Paul's mission. But what about the purpose of Paul's mission? There was no doubt that he magnified the dignity of his office. If you went up to Paul the apostle and said to him, what about your position as a pastor, teacher, evangelist?
It's just nothing. He would never have disdained his position. He magnified the dignity of his office, but he was always possessed with a sense of his own unworthiness. In fact, right there, he begins to get into it. Verse eight, he uses a Greek superlative to try and describe how nothing he really is. Look at it, verse eight. He says, although I'm less than the least of all God's people. Now he uses a superlative there that we don't have in the English language. He says, I am the leaster of the least. English people help me here. How do you get least less than the less?
I mean, lower than the lowest. He says, what he's saying in verse eight, he's saying, listen, even though the grace of God has come upon me and even though I've been given this mission, I am least of all the least of all the least. And he says in that context, I have a specific purpose. Number one, there was a missionary purpose. Number two, there was a teaching purpose.
And number three, there was an ultimate purpose. As far as Paul is concerned, there's a missionary purpose. Look at verse eight. He says, this is specific in origin.
It comes from God. It is specific in direction. It is intended for the Gentiles.
It is specific in content. It contains the riches of Christ Jesus. And he uses the word unsearchable. Look there in verse eight.
He says to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ Jesus. He's floundering around trying to find the right superlatives to intensify the verb. He's trying to say there, I cannot out speak the immeasurable grace of God. He uses word unfathomable.
He says the unsearchable means that God's grace is untrackable. It is inexplicable. It is too vast to contemplate. It is unfathomable. It is beyond human comprehension. He says God has given to me this vast reservoir of the riches of God's grace.
And there is not an entire lifetime that I could ever adequately express to you how precious God is. That was his missionary purpose. But then there was the teaching purpose. Verse nine, to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery.
What does that mean? He says I have to be the teacher in order to distribute on a worldwide basis the good news. Paul's task, he says, is to bring out the profound implications of the gospel. There is a missionary purpose.
There is a teaching purpose. And then there is the ultimate purpose which is fourfold to display God's intent in verse 10, to display God's wisdom in verse 10, to highlight boldness, access and confidence and finally he says my ultimate purpose is to encourage the church. That's what he says, to encourage the church. Oh, it's our prayer that you've been encouraged by the teaching of God's Word today.
But as you've heard Dr. Don preach and teach, I pray you'd open your heart to what he wants to share next, straight from his heart. Are you ready to give your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ? Why don't you pray this prayer with me right now? Dear God, I know that I'm a sinner and I know that Jesus died for me on the cross. Today I repent of my sin and by faith I receive you into my heart. In Jesus' name. My friend, I welcome you today into the family of God.
This is exciting news. If you just gave your life to Jesus Christ or rededicated your life to Christ, welcome to the family. We want to walk with you in the next steps of rejoicing and seeing how God is going to use you like never before. Give us a call at 866-899-WORD and we'll send you the free resources Dr. Don wants you to have. That's 866-899-9673. Or meet us online at www.tewonline.org. That's www.tewonline.org. You'll find a number of resources, including today's message you can hear again or share with a friend. That's online at www.tewonline.org. Remember, this program is sponsored by The Encouraging Word and your generous prayer and financial support.
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