Unveiling the Divine Mystery
Discovering the Hidden Mystery in Ephesians
I love reading the Bible! There are more times than I can count when the Holy Spirit has helped me to see something amazing in God’s Word that I hadn’t noticed before or perhaps had never fully grasped the depths of its truth, even though I may have previously read it a thousand times. Can you relate to this? It’s incredible how much treasure is contained in the pages of Scripture and it’s always exciting when God leads to a discovery of something new. This is exactly what happened not long ago while I was reading through the Book of Ephesians.
God’s Eternal Plan Revealed Through Paul
In the third chapter of Ephesians, the Apostle Paul talks at length about a great mystery that God had kept hidden for ages (Eph. 3:2–7). It was a mystery that had been shrouded in secrecy since the beginning, known only to God Himself; yet He sovereignly chose to disclose the details to Paul, tasking him with the responsibility of unveiling what was previously hidden to the rest of the world (Eph. 3:8–9).
Now, most people I know love a good mystery, so I suspect that if I were to tell you that God Himself had a mysterious secret He had concealed for generations, it ought to pique your interest. And what exactly was this mystery? It was that God had always planned to bring together Jews and Gentiles alike into a singular body, meaning the Church, and that both would be partakers of the same promise in Jesus (Eph. 3:6). In other words, God’s promise of salvation and eternal life would be extended to the entire world through Christ; it wouldn’t simply be limited to the Jewish people. What we see then, is God bringing together everyone who places their faith and trust in Jesus into a unified family that we as believers call the Church (Eph. 2:19).
Why the Church Is a Heavenly Statement
But why is this so amazing? Why is God’s creation of the Church so remarkable? Why was His plan for its establishment kept hidden for so long, and what has it got to do with you and me? I’m so glad you asked! Let’s unpack this together. Look with me if you will at the following verses from Ephesians:
“To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things; so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Eph. 3:8–11)
As we examine this passage, let me guide your attention to a few important details. First, though we as Christians in the twenty-first century may view the Apostle Paul as an extraordinary follower of Jesus, he viewed himself differently. He perceived himself as the most undeserving, lowest, or of least significance compared with all other saints. Secondly, as I shared earlier, God uniquely graced him with a special twofold assignment: 1) to tell Gentiles about Jesus, and 2) to administer, dispense, or reveal God’s incredible plan of salvation that had been shrouded in mystery until then to the rest of the world.
The Church as a Display of God’s Wisdom
If you are anything like me, thinking about God keeping this great mystery hidden until Paul came along begs the question, why? Why was it that God’s “eternal purpose,” that is, His plan to create a single, universal Church comprised of believers from all nations, kept hidden all that time? It’s not like God was just randomly thinking to Himself one day, “You know, I think I’d like to have one large family made up of all peoples in the world, not just Israel.” If it was God’s plan all along to extend forgiveness of sins and the promise of eternal life through Jesus to all people (Jn. 3:16), why didn’t He just make it known from the beginning? Well, if you look carefully at the passage above, you’ll see that the answer to this question is provided, and this is where things start to get interesting!
In verse ten, Paul explains that this hidden truth, this eternal plan, was now being revealed so that God’s “manifold wisdom,” meaning His vast, multifaceted, or abounding brilliance would be made known through the Church, to the “rulers and authorities” in the heavenly places. Some Bible versions use the terms “principalities and powers” in lieu of rulers and authorities. In other words, the Church, that is Christians, believers like you and me, reveal and display the greatness and genius of God’s wisdom to rulers and authorities in heavenly places! And just who are these rulers and authorities? Well, if they reside in heavenly places, we aren’t talking about earthly kings, queens, presidents, or prime ministers! Paul is referring to spiritual rulers and authorities.
The Church Declares God’s Victory Over Darkness
To shed further light on the identity of this group, Paul again refers to “rulers and powers (authorities)” in chapter six of Ephesians when speaking about spiritual warfare. He explains that the true struggle for followers of Christ “is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (Eph. 6:12) In other words, the “rulers and authorities” are none other than the fallen angels and demons who comprise the satanic forces of evil led by the devil.
Taken all together, summarizing the above, God uses the Church to make known to these foul creatures, the magnificence and magnitude of His wisdom, and to declare the accomplished brilliance of His eternal plan in bringing forth salvation and eternal life to all people who place their faith in His Son Jesus! How incredible is that?! God uses ordinary men and women, Christians like you, me, Paul, and every other member of His Church to proclaim and demonstrate His unparalleled wisdom to the kingdom of darkness.
Your Faithful Life Makes a Spiritual Statement
Now you may be wondering, what purpose would God have in making His wisdom known to these evil rulers and authorities in heavenly places? The answer, I would argue, goes all the way back to the beginning in the Garden of Eden, when God cursed the serpent, that is the devil, or Satan (Rev. 20:2), for his deception of Adam and Eve. In Genesis 3, when God cursed the serpent, He also gave the first prophecy of One who would come to destroy him, alluding to Jesus.
“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel.” (Gen. 3:15)
Simply put, God had a plan from the beginning to send a deliverer, an offspring descended from Eve, who would crush Satan and destroy all his works. It is a declaration that Satan’s schemes would be no match to contend with God’s unfathomable wisdom and His limitless power. In the end, Satan will lose.
Jumping back to our passage in Ephesians, when Paul highlights that God’s wisdom is made known through the Church, what he is saying is that Church’s existence proves the fulfillment of God’s masterfully conceived plan since time immemorial, the plan which “He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The implications of this are profound! It means everything that each individual member of the Body of Christ says or does for Jesus is a declaration and reminder to the kingdom of darkness that God is victorious! Our actions in service to and worship of the Lord are a memorial of Jesus’ words on the cross:
“It is finished!” (Jn. 19:30)
You could almost say it’s the equivalent of God using our lives to proclaim to the rulers and authorities, “Game over. You’ve been outsmarted, outmaneuvered, and defeated! Jesus has triumphed and His Church proves it!”
Everything You Do for Jesus Matters
So, what does this mean for you and me? It means that everything, EVERYTHING, you do for Jesus matters! When you share your faith with your neighbor, it matters. When you serve in the parking ministry at church, it matters. When you help to support a mission trip, it matters. When you pray for your friend who is hurting, when you facilitate a Bible study, or when you teach children about Jesus, it matters! This reminds me of some amazing members from our church family here in Minnesota and in California who recently stepped up to advance the Gospel in New York, Tennessee, and Uganda by serving on missionary teams that sang worship in Carnegie Hall, assisted ministries in Nashville, and told families about Jesus in African villages. Everything that was accomplished through these men and women of God on each of these teams mattered to Jesus! Not only did these brothers and sisters in Christ help to spread the Gospel and build His Church, but their efforts and actions stand as a shining testimony against the dark spiritual forces of evil that they are no match for the spectacular wisdom of our God!
Understanding this, my prayer for you is that you would realize just how meaningful you are as a member of God’s family! Not only did Jesus give His own life that you might find forgiveness, love, and eternal life in Him, but He is using you to glorify His name and reveal His wisdom to the enemies of the cross. I pray that you take this to heart and in doing so, it would inspire, encourage, and motivate you to assault the kingdom of darkness through living a life of humble obedience to Jesus. Understand that everything you do to honor Christ is significant, meaningful, and matters. Regardless of who you are or where you are from, in Jesus, you are a member of God’s family and a part of His Church. Your thoughts, your words, and your actions impact and echo here in our world that is seen as well as that which is unseen in the spiritual realm. So, seize every moment God gives you to boldly proclaim His wisdom to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places, and in the process, fulfill Jesus’ exhortation:
“Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (Lk. 5:16)