Monday 16th December
Read Ephesians 3:1-3
“For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles –
2 Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3 that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly.” (NIVUK)
Paul is about to explain what and why he prays for the Ephesian church, because they have been built into God’s family by Jesus (Ephesians 2). But he gets distracted partway and doesn’t finish his thought until the end of the chapter. What could be so important for the Ephesians to understand in order for them to understand his prayer?
Grace, undeserved divine kindness. That grace that he has spent time trying to get them to grasp was first shown to him – for them. There is an outward leaning, other-focussed, aspect to grace that is essential for us to grasp if we are to have hope. It is reflected in God revealing Himself to an unwilling Paul and commissioning him to tell the Gentiles about Jesus. It is reflected in Paul’s chains, on their behalf (v1). It is reflected in the gifting to Paul of the gospel itself, on their behalf.
It is this undeserved divine kindness to Paul that Paul wishes the Ephesian church to grasp in order to understand the undeserved divine kindness to them. So that they too will share that kindness with others. Grace is received so that it can be shared. Grace can never be horded. Stinginess is antithetical to grace. Stinginess is an instinct that hides deep within each of us but grace overcomes it when the Spirit takes up residence.
A grace the reaches far and wide.
