Principle Considerations on Ephesians 3
The administration of the mystery of Christ and his assembly
Ephesians 3 is a vital and central chapter in the Bible for a sound understanding of the counsel and ways of God in relation to Christ and His assembly and the distinct and special place and character of the assembly.
Further it is just as important to get a sound and thorough grasp of the special task and service of Paul the apostle in particular in reference to the assembly.
It is thus a key passage of the bible to gain spiritual intelligence. If we neglect the teaching contained in it, we will hardly ever fully understand the true character and worth and position of the assembly. This is further underlined through the simple fact that, when we compare the first verse of chapter three with the first verse of chapter four, chapter three appears to be an insertion. This is why it is put in a parenthesis in some translations – and rightly so. Thus the heavenly nature and character and the separate place of the assembly in Gods thoughts and ways is emphasized. The assembly is called out and formed between the rejection of Israel and its future restoration. It does not actually belong to the earth, it has a heavenly and eternal calling and character – even though it is formed in time and space, in this interval of time on earth before it is taken home at the rapture to heaven.
In the lapse of time, when Israel is rejected by God because of their rebellion and their killing His son, He forms His assembly – a people that does not actually form a part of the ways of God with the earth. Only after the rapture God will commence anew His dealings with Israel. So the understanding believer will consider with awe and adoration the way how God presents the truth to us.
Verse 1:
Paul was a prisoner for preaching the gospel and the mystery of Christ and his assembly. As early as in Acts 9,16 God foretold him, that he would have to suffer for the sake of Christ and his assembly. In Colossian 1,24 he even speaks of filling up that which is behind the afflictions of Christ for His assembly. Christ suffered and gave himself to purchase the assembly of God. No one can share in this sufferings. But Paul was the main tool to preach the truth of a risen and glorified Christ and his assembly. Connected with this "master builder"-work were sufferings. Therefore, Paul was a prisoner "for you nations". In 2. Tim 2,10 he writes to Timothy that he indeed was willing to "endure all things for the sake of the elect".
Though he has a special place in these sufferings, yet he also shows that all faithful will have to suffer in a certain way (2. Tim 3,12).
Verse 2:
He describes his task entrusted to him by God: the administration of the grace of God. Here administration is the actual task of Paul. That is, he had to "handle" the grace of God in his service. Paul was made the master builder (1. Cor 3,10), the master-tool to carry out the proclamation of the grace of God, that is the mystery of Christ (v. 4).
It is called "administration of grace" because the riches and the glory of the grace of God to men (1,6-7) are brought out. Riches of grace is pointing to the saving of lost sinners, while glory of grace is pointing to the choosing and calling in 1,3-5 and also 1,23. In short it points to the proper christian blessings!
The special ministry of Paul was a thing known amongst the believers. This is a general matter, that the spiritual intelligence in others will realize what gift and task another has, at least to some degree.
It is given Paul towards the Ephesians and all gentile believers (contrary to Peter who mainly had a ministry amongst the Jews). This God announced to Paul when calling him (Acts 9,15; 22,21; Gal 2,7). Again this is a general principle that God imparts a gift to the believer from the start. Developing this gift is then a matter of exercise, of course. Further a gift is never given for self exaltation, but "towards you", for the benefit of others!
Verse 3:
This verse tells us the way, the manner, how Paul received the truth which he had to manage. It is by revelation. God through the spirit revealed it to Paul (comp. 1. Kor 2,9-12). Mainly and foremost to him.
It is of all importance to notice, understand, and believe both the way of revealing the christian truth and the place of Paul in relation to the administration of grace concerning the mystery, that is Christ and his assembly.
Verse 3-4:
"Written briefly" refers to chapter one and two, where the mystery is unfolded, the personal and cooperate blessings that God purposed to give his elect and the way to bring them into the blessing. Briefly and condensed but at the same time comprehensive and complete. It is a message to the Ephesians and to all of us and it becomes, too, a proof of the thorough knowledge and intelligence of Paul in the subject. Spiritual intelligence, of course, and not intellectual intelligence.
"by which, in reading, you can understand my knowledge": this is also a general principle for every service and servant. The ministry of a brother will correlate to the gift on the one hand and to his intelligence or understanding of the scripture. This will be noticed.
The mystery is, in a word, the union of the glorified Christ and his assembly (1,9-11,23).
Verse 5:
Now, that the Christ would have dominion over all the earth was known in the OT (Ps 2 and 8; Dan 71,44; 7,13-14). And the fact that his dominion would also include the salvation and blessing of the gentiles was revealed too (Jes 49,6; 1. Mos 22,18). But not the truth of the union of Christ and his assembly. It was hidden in old Testament times.
So now, we learn a key truth concerning the mystery. It was never revealed to men until the risen and glorified Christ told it through the apostles and prophets of the new testament. Here the other apostles are included in being vessels of the revelation, yet Paul is the main-vessel and he is the one who wrote about it in his letters. Indeed, other passages like 1,3-5; 3,9 tell us that this is a thing hidden in the heart of God in eternity, and only after the death, resurrection and ascension of Christ the time was come to reveal and execute this His eternal plans of love and grace.
Verse 6:
Here Paul gives super-briefly a summary of the main truths of the mystery of chapter 1, that is of the believers part in it. He does so in connection with the dispensational issue of the up to that time separate place of the Jews and the gentiles, and as addressed to the Ephesians who probably where mainly of gentile descent. That is why he speaks of "joint...". Not the Jews only, and not the gentiles only, but the gentiles together with the Jews were thus blessed by God. Three facts are shown:
a) joint-heirs -> 1,11: Both share a common inheritance in Christ
b) joint-body -> 1,23: both are united in one Body of Christ
c) joint- partakers -> 1,3-5: both are made partakers of the blessings God wanted to give those who truly believe in Christ - blessings that were promised in Christ in eternity (comp. Tit 1,2)
Gentiles did not have any part with God or with the Jews. Now they do not have any part alone, but together with the believing Jews. Yet, remember it is not adding the gentiles to the jewish blessings – it is taking them both of out of their former place and state and bringing them to God and forming them into a new men and body, the one body of Christ.
This blessings according to the counsel of God has come to us through the gospel. Here the term "gospel" not only refers to the saving of the sinner, but to the full gospel of all that God had in mind to give to those that believe. All that is called gospel or glad tidings (Rom 16,25). We have seen this in chapter one and two. To this Paul refers in 3,8 as the "the unsearchable riches of Christ". Later he adds a prayer so that the saints may really get hold of all this with their hearts, their whole being!
Verse 7
In this Verse Paul speaks of the gift and the ministry given to him as the servant of God to communicate all this truths (Col 1,23.25). Why is he such a servant? It is a gift! And it is a matter of pure grace! God ordained it thus. Having a gift is always pure sovereignty and grace. Nothing to boast of! How important for every servant of God to remember this. Then it is not the working of human power, but of the "working of His power". In the words "we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the abundance of the power may be of God" we find the practical realization (2. Cor. 4,7; see also 12,9).
It is "given to me". This makes the gift and the task a personal matter. No one can replace fully another. God gives as he sees fit and I and all others are bound to accept this. More of this subject is to be found in chapter four.
Verse 8-11:
Verse 8a:
In view of all this greatness of the mystery and the part of the Apostel in this administration he becomes not great but small in his own sight and says "to me, less than the least of all saints, has this grace been given". Note, he does not refer to his evil life before his conversion as in 1. Kor 15 and 1.Tim 1 but it is the greatness of the blessing and what God had entrusted to him that makes him small in his own sight.
Considering all this vast display of pure grace of the great eternal God we ought to become little and lowly in heart. God has given us everything and thus we can become nothing. If we really stand before the great God, we become little. If we really consider His great grace to us and the great place given to us, we become truly humble. This is the spiritual effect of that which God is and which He has given us! This is the true source for true humbleness: having the great God and the great place He has given us before our inner eyes.
Why do we become full of pride? Because flesh is working, yes of course, but also because we have not really (with spiritual intelligence, in our hearts and conscience) fully understood what God has given us and made us to be. Because if we realize our high calling and place given to us by pure grace why running around trying to become great in our own eyes or before man?
The special gift which he received from the Lord Jesus was an act of pure grace (v. 7). Here (v. 8) he again speaks of grace given him. This time he refers to the particular task and mission that God wanted him to fulfil. All is grace, be it the special spiritual gift or the field of work entrusted to a worker for the Lord. This does not set aside the necessity to be diligent. Thus Paul can write in 1. Kor 15,10: "But by God's grace I am what I am; and his grace, which was towards me, has not been vain; but I have laboured more abundantly than they all, but not I, but the grace of God which was with me". If only we had more of this attitude!
The unsearchable riches of the Christ are, simply put, that which we learned in the first chapter. The whole revelation and counsels of God in and with the glorified Christ, his dear Son! The proclamation of this riches of Christ or mystery of Christ amongst the nations – all those who were not Jews - was Paul’s particular task. We already saw this in the first few verses of this chapter.
Verse 9:
The other important side of his ministry was, to give light to "all", that is to the believers, about the special time in which God carries out his eternal will concerning the mystery. This refers to the second chapter, where we learn about the dealings of God in this time, that is how God brings about the forming of the assembly. Yet here in chapter three not the how but the when is before us and this time-period is here called the "administration of the mystery".
So in other words:
Chapter one: the what?
Chapter two: the how?
Chapter three: the who? and the when?
Thus in v. 9 he again speaks of the administration of the mystery. But while in verse 2 "administration" pointed to the commission of preaching the truth of the mystery and to the main tool to preach it, here in verse 8-11 "administration" means the period during which this mystery is actually preached, the time during which God brings about his eternal purpose concerning Christ his son and the assembly.
Verse 9 repeats that which we already learned in verse 5. The mystery as such was not revealed until the now-time. But additionally we learn here, that it was not like a new idea of God after Israel had failed. The mystery, and especially in the context here, the time of its forming was hidden in the heart of God through all ages, yes we certainly can say from before he created all things, from eternity.
He has plans with men and creation (Mt 25,34) and the centre of this is Israel and of course the son of man, the Lord Jesus (Ps 2; Ps 8). This plan refers to time and creation and the kingdom of the Lord Jesus, still future today, but soon to be realized, and is connected with the first creation and thus, as Mt 25,34 suggests, "from the foundation of the earth".
But as we saw, God also has purposes and plans that go back to eternity and will last forever, unlike the first creation and Israel.
So in other words, there was a purpose for this earth. The plans of God for the fulfilment of these purpose were made known to the prophets of the old testament. But God has eternal plans, which belong not actually to this earth and yet are accomplished in time and space. But neither the thing itself, that is the mystery, not the time of its accomplishment was revealed in the old testament times. Why? Well, because they belong to heaven and eternity and not to time and space, not to this earth.
So consequently, in the end of verse 9 the eternal creator God comes before us, who created to have a scenery to display His eternal purposes and its accomplishment before the eyes of the highest created beings.
Verse 10:
Now the angels have seen God creating an absolute amazing universe and the earth with all the animal and men as the crown of creation (Job 38.7). All this told them something about the might and wisdom of God. But now God forms the assembly, something entirely new, something which he had hidden in his heart and which is for eternity. Something which is unspeakable dear to his heart and the heart of his son (Acts 20,28; Eph 5,2; Col 2,3). Something that surpasses the first creation in beauty and display of power and wisdom (Eph 1,19-20; 2,1) and, even more, displays a love that is more than anyone can comprehend. Thus the angels see in the assembly attributes of God far beyond of that, which could be seen in the first creation. The all various wisdom of God. This display will be fully seen in the millennium and continues for ever, as there can be no doubt about it.
Note, it is the principle fact from Gods perspective that is before us here and not the question of our behaviour as assembly. Of course Angels also now see what is happening on earth and therefore also watch the assembly. When we gather to the name of the Lord, it becomes visible. Yet to our shame we have to admit, that to often they can not see the display of Gods love and wisdom, but the display of our selfishness and self willingness.
Verse 11:
This verse clearly teaches, that this thing, the mystery, the assembly of the living God was purposed in eternity in Christ Jesus our Lord (he is the centre of the plans of God, the originator, life, head a.s.o. of the assembly). According to this eternal counsel God forms the assembly in this specific time.
In this verse we learn that God not only had an eternal purpose for each individual believer of this time (1,3-5) but also for the whole assembly as such. Again it is intimately connected with the Son (as actually everything God does)
The Holy Spirit sets everything before us, creation as the proof of Gods wisdom and the scenery of the display of his more elevated wisdom and working, which is the mystery of Christ, that is the assembly joined with the glorified Christ, being the most elevated "workmanship", higher than the angel, a spectacle to them of Gods manifold wisdom, being in the heart and thoughts of God in eternity, but now revealed and formed and though heavenly and eternal, yet in relation to creation, being co heirs with Christ. The full display of all this is yet a future thing when finally, Christ rules and the assembly is presented a glorious bride, enhancing the glory and fullness of Christ as man, He who at the same time is the eternal God and Son and fills all in all.
Amazing great and awesome God, who has given us grace to be intimate part of this, in closest relation to Himself of whom is every family and who has various relation to them, yet to the assembly a unique and intimate relation that is above and different from all others.
And remember the first creation was made by a word of God. He spoke and it stood. But in order to purchase and form the assembly and bring to pass His eternal purposes, Christ had to become man and to die at the cross of Calvary, not only for our sins, but in order to bring the assembly to life and each one of his saints and eventually also the new creation.
Verse 12:
And this eternal and awesome God we can approach and go to at any time with boldness, freely and confidently.
Verse 13:
Now this whole display of grace toward and with us in Christ leads the apostle to plead the Ephesians, not to faint and lose heart. There are afflictions connected with the life of a christian on this earth and he will endure the reproach of Christ when faithful. Yet this is, as the apostle adds, to their and our honour! Especially his afflictions they were entitled to reckon as their honour.
Why? Because the sufferings were on account of the privileges and blessings given to the believers and this arouse the opposition and enmity of the Jews and the gentiles (1.Kor 1,23; Phil 1,28-29; Apg 5,41).
Verse 14-21:
Here we have the second prayer of Paul at the end of the doctrinal part. It is founded on the one hand on the revelation of the mystery and the blessings which God gave to the believer and on the other hand on the revelation of the (dispensational) ways of God described in this chapter. The prayer is in order that the Ephesians, and with them we all, may not only know, but much more, that through the strengthening of the Holy Spirit Christ may dwell in our hearts and we may comprehend (which is a more thorough knowledge) the whole range of blessings. In other words, that it may have a place in our hearts and thus an effect in our christian life! It is, in other words, to comprehend the whole range of blessings that is ours and that are so profound unique and special and elevated far higher than the blessings of any other family of God! That will result in communion with the Son and the Father.
Verse 14:
He bends his knees before the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. As Jehova He had his relation to Israel (Amos 3,2). As Father He embraces all intelligent creatures. Furthermore, this points out, that Jesus is seen here not as son of man as in chapter one where he was before us as man raised from the dead and given the place above everything together with those who also were raised by the same power by virtue of his death and resurrection. Here it is the eternal Son of the Father, the creator, the centre of all of Gods counsel. We may refer to Mt 16,16 where Peter by a revelation of the Father confesses Him to be the son of the living God, a designation or title of His person that describes His eternal Sonship and the power of life that is intrinsically his, which title Jesus takes up to present himself as the Rock (a name of God 5.Mos 32,4) on which the assembly will be built.
Verse 15:
Accordingly, Paul refers to the whole range of created beings (comp. v. 10). that is, not only to the family of the Jews, nor solely to the assembly, but to every family of beings created by the eternal God through his Son. Every family, that would be nations, Jews, assembly, angels...Amos 3,2). This of course is in accordance with verse 9-10. The whole range, so to say, of Gods counsel and work is before us and the Apostles wishes the Ephesians to comprehend especially the counsel of God toward the assembly, but displayed, so to say, on the background of the whole of Gods ways and works. For remember, we are in connection with all that will be subjected to Christ, we will reign over all creation, judge angels, sit on thrones in the third heaven. And all that because He joined us by pure grace and love to his Son, not to the messiah, not to the son of man, but to the eternal Son of God as man who died, rose and thus proved to be eternal Son, and is now gone back to heaven as man and as eternal Son. Praise be to His name
Before God who is eternal Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (who is thus seen here as eternal Son in an eternal relationship and communion with the Father) and secondly before this great Creator-God from whom everything originated, especially every family of intelligent creatures, before this God he bends his knees with the purpose, that we the Christians may comprehend the most special part of all of Gods counsel and works, that is the mystery of Christ and the blessings of the christian family.
God is originator of all families and all are in a certain relationship to Him and have their place and privileges. But the christian place and blessings are special and higher than of any other family.
Thus he points on the one hand to the centre of all of Gods counsel, His beloved Son and our Lord Jesus Christ, and on the other hand he is pointing to every family of intelligent creatures in his universe, that serves as theatre (so to say) to display Christ and His assembly. A similar broadness we find in 4,6 where God is shown as Father of all, above all, through all.
Verse 16 to 19:
The prayer of Paul for the Ephesians to embrace and comprehend these special christian blessings. We can distinguish six requests. The first three are foundational.
The requests:
- strength from the Holy Spirit for the inner man
- Christ dwelling in our hearts, that is a permanent practical abode in us
- rooted and founded in love, that is His infinite and sure love; so that are ..
- fully able to comprehend the extend of the blessings, of the mystery, of the unsearchable riches of Christ
- to more and more grow in the practical realization of the love of Christ
- to be filled to the fullness of God
Verse 16:
The first request is to be strengthened with the Holy Spirit. In Chapter one he prayed for a spirit of wisdom so that they may "know". There it is not the Holy Spirit but a spiritual attitude worked of course by the Holy Spirit. So it may be close but still different. Here it is the Holy Spirit (and only He could strengthen us thus) that gives strength according to the riches of the glory of God, because nothing less could be a sufficient "measure" of strength in order to help us to better comprehend the vastness and glory of the counsel and blessing of God in Christ for us. If we really want to be able to grow in this things we need a measure of strength that corresponds with the glory of the mystery and this is the full revelation of the glory of God the Father in His Son.
It is the inner man that is strengthened. The inner man is the renewed personality born of God. It stands in contrast to the outward man, that is our body and that which is seen and heard by others.
What is the goal of strengthening us?
Verse 17:
That the Christ may dwell in our hearts by faith. Christ being the centre and object of all Gods counsel thus becoming the centre of our hearts. We cannot expect to really comprehend with spiritual intelligence and affection the whole of Gods counsel and blessing without Christ. Christ dwelling in our hearts, having there a permanent place in our life, we being in undisturbed communion with Him and at the same time He giving our life a foundation, stability, security. So He who fills all in all will fill our small hearts with himself and his love...and thus strengthen us to contemplate what God has displayed before our eyes.
Then in connection with, or maybe better as a result of, the strengthening through the spirit and the dwelling of Christ in our hearts the prayer goes that we shall be grounded and rooted in divine love. Grounded points to safety, stability whereas rooted points to the source we draw from. The Christian is a person that is loved with a divine love. It is of all importance for a sound comprehension of the truth and for our practical life to thoroughly be grounded and rooted in Gods love.
These necessary things prepare the ground to fully comprehend and that surely personally on the one hand, but on the other hand together with all saints, because they also are loved and have a part in the mystery. There is a personal part and a cooperate part in the mystery and consequently we cannot solitarily comprehend...
Verse 18:
...the breadth, the length, the depth, the height of what then? He doesn't tell, but surely it is that of which he has been talking all along, that is: the whole range of all Gods wisdom (v.10), his eternal counsel (v.11), the unsearchable riches of Christ (v.8), the mystery (v.9), in short of the infinite glory of God displayed in His counsel. Four dimensions are given. It is outside and above space and time.
Verse 19:
Then he comes back to the love of Christ. That we may know it. A love that is divine and infinite. A love that is properly the nature of God. Glory is the display of God’s . But love is God himself, so to speak. The love of God is eternal and has chosen us in eternity and the love of Christ has acted in offering himself for us to the glory of God and purchasing a bride for himself to fully display his love to her in eternity.
Filled to the fullness of God is not to His eternal unseen unsearchable Being, but to the fullness of Him thus counselling, working and displaying Himself in Christ and the assembly. "The fullness of God is all that God is as revealed and made known in Christ" H. Smith. We grow towards this God who has revealed Himself but is in Himself infinite and unsearchable.
We realize that Paul is not speaking of a merely intellectual knowledge, but of a comprehension with spiritual intelligence and affection, a fully grasping and realizing with our hearts in which Christ dwells and which are filled with Him and His love. Only on this path true spiritual understanding is possible.
Verse 20:
To this God who has purposed all these things and given us a place in it, and who now does work in us through the Holy Spirit (v.16), to Him be all glory in the assembly (that means to display his glory) forever.
Verse 21 is in measure true today, but only fulfilled in the millennium and even more in the eternal state (Rev. 21,2-3. 9-11). This last verse clearly leads to eternity when the saints are in heaven and in the house of the Father.
But dwelling in love we dwell in God and God in us: and that in connection with the display of His glory, as He develops it in all that He has formed around Himself, to exhibit Himself in it, in order that Christ, and Christ in the assembly, His body, should be the centre of it, and the whole the manifestation of Himself in His entire glory. We are filled unto all the fullness of God; and it is in the assembly that He dwells for this purpose. He works in us by His Spirit with this object. JND Synopsis
Urs Hänseler 1/2023