God’s Marvellous plan for the Gentiles
There’s a lot involved into planning an occasion, a function or even travel. Every detail is taken into account so that everything flows smoothly and effortlessly. I always say that God is the grand master planner, knowing the end from the beginning, and what sometimes looks like a mess or doesn’t make sense, He eventually makes every single detail fall into place and His plans takes shape and form. Looking back at the very beginning, one would think that God was a God only for the Israelites and would miss the point where He mentioned that His Son would come and crush the enemy in Genesis 3:15 (NLT) “And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.” The NLT application study Bible notes this down, ‘The phrase “you will strike his heel,’ refers to satan’s repeated attempts to defeat Christ during His life on earth. “He will strike your head” foreshadows satan’s defeat when Christ rose from the dead. Already God was revealing His plan to defeat satan and offer salvation to the world through His Son, Jesus Christ.’
God The Father had His plans for the Gentiles all set from the very beginning, it wasn’t an after thought, it was pre-planned. This is what Ephesians chapter three is talking about, God’s marvellous plan for the Gentiles. Paul was given administration of God’s grace to the Gentiles, a mystery that was made known to him by revelation. “The mystery of Christ was not made known to people in other generations, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets,” God reveals His plans to His people because He works through people to deliver and complete His plans. As He revealed His plans to the Apostles in the Bible, He keeps revealing even now to Prophets and His people all over the world. To Paul He revealed the mystery “that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body and sharer’s together in the promise in Christ Jesus.” An heir is the legally rightful owner to property or an inheritance, and in this case, the Gentiles (us) are also rightful heirs together with Israel to every promise laid out in Christ Jesus our Lord.
There’s nothing as good as knowing what you’re supposed to be doing instead of idling around, not knowing what to do and wondering where to go. Paul’s purpose was was all set out as an Apostle to the Gentiles “to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of Christ, and make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery; which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. 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.” ‘The boundless riches of Christ,’ such a short statement, but one that carries a lot of weight with it. Unlimited, immense, limitless riches of Christ! after all everything does belong to Him right? ‘a cattle on a thousand hills’ (Psalms 50:10) all the ‘silver and gold’ (Haggai 2:8) and everyone of us.
The hidden mystery in God, is now been unfolded through our very eyes, that through the church, which is the body of Christ, the manifold (numerous) wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the Heavenly realms. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 1:25 “For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.” The wisest human being on the planet cannot be compared, even to God’s foolishness, Paul doesn’t write this to say that God is foolish, absolutely not! He’s trying to show us that nothing here on earth can ever come close to the wisdom of God, absolutely nothing. All creation both in Heaven and earth, all principality will all get to see the wisdom of God who is all knowing, all powerful and when all is said and done, everyone, even those who persecuted Him will all bow down and worship Him. “As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God” Romans 14:11
God’s ultimate purpose was that, “In Him (Jesus) and through faith in Him (Jesus) we may approach God with freedom and confidence.” The writer of Hebrews speaks of the same thing in chapter 4:16 “Let us then approach God’s Throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” Through Jesus Christ, you and I, may now approach God with freedom and confidence, because Jesus has prepared the way on our behalf. Reading the Bible and seeing how things keep unfolding right in front of my eyes, PROVES, that the Bible is the very Word of God and every Word written will be fulfilled, why? God watches over His Word, He’s not a guy who says one thing today, and changes it tomorrow, no! Every Word that comes out of His mouth, will be FULFILLED, it’s only a matter of His perfect timing.
Paul closes chapter three of the book of Ephesians with a prayer. Every time when we read the Bible, we should read the words and apply them even in our present life. That said the prayer that Paul made for the Ephesians, is one that we should pray for ourselves. Ephesians 3:14-19 “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in Heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”
May God strengthen us through His Holy Spirit and may Christ dwell in our hearts, rooted and established in His foundation. May you get to know and experience God’s love in its full range; it’s width, length, height, depth, a love that surpasses knowledge. It surpasses facts and every other information, loves when were unloveable, faithful even when were not faithful – this is the kind of love that Paul is writing about God, so deep and so wide and so high and so long.
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! amen.
Take Home: – God’s love for you and me cannot be contained, cannot be understood, a love that surpasses knowledge, therefore approach His Throne through the Blood of The Lamb (Jesus Christ) and get to unravel the love and wisdom of God.
Memory Verse Ephesians 3:12 "In Him and through faith in Him, we may approach God with freedom and confidence."
Blessings!!
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