Ephesians 2:1,2: Who We Were, Part 2

 "And you were dead in your trespasses and sins,  in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience."  Ephesians 2:1,2

When Paul thinks of his readers he can't help but remember who they were before the sovereign grace of God reached out and rescued them. He reminds them in these verses: "you were dead!" Their relationship with almighty God was lifeless. Their essential nature was so polluted by sin and its effects that they were without any spiritual ability either to regain relationship with God or in any way make themselves more attractive to Him. 

But as bad as that declaration was, it didn't tell the whole story. It wasn't just their nature that was polluted by sin. So were their lives, their thoughts, words, and deeds. Turns out the character of their lives was aligned with that sin soaked nature. They acted like who they were. In the court of Heaven, where the records are kept, it was evident that their bad records were the consequences of their bad hearts. 

In a clever use of words Paul states that, though dead, they were still living. And these lives bore daily testimony to the fact that they were of this world. They were conformed to the culture, captivated by the great enemy of God whose spirit continues to work through all who prefer unrighteousness. 

As Christ-followers it is so important that we understand the significant difference that is supposed to exist between those aligned with this world, and those who are citizens of Heaven. I am not here arguing for perfection in this life, but I am saying that those in whom the Spirit dwells must certainly demonstrate a different heart and life than those still in league with the Devil. 

This isn't a popular subject today. We seldom settle down and think about the fact that churches today are more and more filled with people who really don't want to follow Christ if it means radical change in the way they think, dream, love, and live. But that is exactly what Jesus said: "If you want to come after Me, you'll have to deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Me."

 Now, the whole "deny yourself" thing is pretty inviting if you really understand the "self" you were when dead in trespasses and sins. When the Spirit opens our eyes to the reality of our deadness, how hard should it be to run the other way in stark terror? For me that's what it means to repent, and turn in faith to the outstretched arms of our waiting Savior.  And if I read my Bible right, I think that's the way it is supposed to be. 

But a strange thing happens if we never thought of ourselves as "that bad" If we just needed a conversion rather than a whole new life, if we just needed some help, some repair, some better advice, and a better group of friends, then the gracious gift of God in Christ simply won't be seen as the monumental value it really is. If the disease appears incurable, then any remedy will leave the patient marveling for a lifetime. But if the disease seems common and average, then the cure won't seem special. 

Jesus taught that there is a relationship between how much we have been forgiven, and how much we love (Luke 7:47). A great problem in the church today is the compromising of the sinfulness of sin in our presentation of the Gospel. We start off with "God loves you" instead of "God is holy, holy, holy, and you as a sinner are under His righteous wrath." Today we are having to deal with the consequences of decades of "gospel lite" in which people were never told that they were hopelessly corrupt, without any spiritual life, and on the road to eternal judgment. Consequently, their reasons for "accepting Jesus" were almost entirely self-centered, and focused on gaining better relationships, happiness, wealth, or simply escaping the fires of hell (though the idea of hell seems out of place in a Gospel that so minimizes sin). What ends up happening is those who have "trusted Christ" for selfish reasons fail miserably at the "deny" stage, rebel at the "take up the cross" stage, and re-define "follow Me" as "Jesus, I've hired you to be my Life Coach." How can their love be deeper than this when they have almost no concept of being graciously forgiven for an eternity's worth of wickedness and rebellion? 

Paul lays out a great pattern for understanding the Gospel here in Ephesians 2. He recognizes that the Good News is only good against the backdrop of the bad news. Our bad hearts have earned us a bad record in the Court of the Almighty. We weren't charged with misdemeanors that could easily be plea bargained away. Neither were we found guilty of petty crimes or minor offenses. No! Our entire nature was intoxicated with sin, our desires completely focused on self rather than God, and our wills held captive by Satan himself (see: 2 Timothy 2:24-26). And, not content to be sinful by nature, we also demonstrated our internal corruption through our daily actions. We were sinful and we were sinners and unless God changed the trajectory of our lives, we would end up bearing the eternal consequences of divine wrath. 

Paul's main point here is to show that, in our sins, we were on Satan's side. We weren't the independent individuals we thought we were. We were walking his path, doing his will, with no desire for God. And God could have justly let us keep going, walking away from Him. But, turns out God is a competitor! He determined that sin would not win, and so embarked on the greatest rescue mission ever attempted. He sent Jesus, and those whom He calls to new life in Christ will recognize the monumental mess they were in, and seeing how much they were forgiven, will love in a way that is progressively more satisfying and more radical. And that's the way it is supposed to be.

Hope this helps,

David