Eph 3:9 | KingComments | STEP | . It is striking to see how Paul speaks of himself here, seen in the light of this letter. This is a letter of contrasts. First, man is pictured in his absolute corruption ( ). Opposite to that you have seen how man has been given a marvelously exalted position in Christ. This contrast you also see in picture in the ministry of Paul. Formerly he was a persecutor of the church and therefore of the Lord. And exactly this man, who destroyed the church, received grace to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ. That’s why he calls himself “the very least of all the saints”. It has such a great impact on him when he thinks of the content of the message he is allowed to preach, that it causes him to call himself so. This is the attitude that suits everyone who is given a task from the Lord – and who doesn’t have that? Everything we understand of the truth should make us think less and less about ourselves. When it is about this glorious ministry that was given to him, he compares himself with “all saints”. To them this letter indeed is addressed ( ) and to them he preaches all this wonderful news. But he doesn’t put himself above them, but on the contrary, below them. Paul has this attitude all the time. When he compares himself with other apostles, he calls himself “the least of the apostles” ( ). When he compares himself with the sinners he says “among whom I am foremost [of all]” ( ). The truth which he is allowed to preach has an influence on his attitude. That we understand the truth should be a matter of our heart and then we will also see our littleness. When only knowledge counts, we will be puffed up ( ). Paul feels his littleness when he sees the enormous scope of his ministry (“the Gentiles”) and the all surpassing content (“the unfathomable riches of Christ”). He, and no one else, receives the order to preach (literally: to evangelize) things that are so rich, that they could never be fully searched by anyone. Here also it is about the Christ again, which means: Christ together with His church. . Through the proclamation of such lofty things it became clear (“to bring to light”) what was hidden in God till then. About the words ‘stewardship’ and ‘mystery’, I have already said something in the study of the of this chapter, where these words also appear. By practicing his ministry, Paul fulfills his stewardship. To him God entrusted what He kept for Himself before: a mystery that only the three Persons of the Godhead knew. The moment then came that God came out with His counsels. Paul was the instrument God had chosen to make known His mystery. The purpose of this revelation is found in , but first one more thing of God is said, which must not be overlooked. That is the expression “God who created all things”. How can Paul refer here suddenly to the creation, while he is dealing with so many heavenly and eternal things? Sure, our feet are still on the earth, but until now this letter is about our position in heavenly places and our blessings in and with Christ, isn’t it? That is also true, but just because our feet are still in the first, old creation, we still have everything to do with it. The will of God is that His counsels, that all relate to something totally new that has been realized outside the old creation, will be made visible in this old creation. God has created all things to be of service, as a platform, to display what was hidden in Him. He could have taken away the old and introduce the new. He also could have placed the new next to the old. He could have transformed the old into the new. He didn’t do any of that. He uses the old to make visible the totally new, that is Christ and the church as perfectly united together. . And that not later, when will be fulfilled what we read in Ephesians 1 ( ), but already “now”. God had revealed Himself in the past in certain ways. He did that in the creation ( ). Yet He didn’t reveal Himself in it fully. What we see in it, is His creation wisdom. The angels have seen that wisdom and have rejoiced in it ( ). They also saw that God created men, that man enjoyed the special attention of God and that He went His ways with man. They saw it and admired how God dealt with man who became rebellious. But now that same God showed something that first was not known. He will submit everything to a Man in future. But the Man to Whom He submits that, is new, as that Man is Christ and the church. This was hidden in God’s heart, but is being made known to the angels through the existence of the church. The good and evil angelic powers, “the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly [places]”, have no words for what they see of wisdom, when they look at the church. This wisdom is so unique, that it exceeds all other wisdom. This wisdom is completely new and not just in a new phase of unfolding His wisdom. It is “the manifold wisdom of God”, which means a wisdom in every possible glorious aspects. And that wisdom is seen in those who form the church together, not what they are of themselves, but what God has made of them. That God is almighty and sovereign was known by the angels. If God wanted to put man above angels, He was free to do that. But the way God does that, reveals His wisdom and that is the issue here. He does not only deal in omnipotence, but He does that in a fully righteous way and in accordance with all that He is in Himself: the perfect revelation of love and of light. When He deals like that with the church, it doesn’t mean that He is unfair against one of His other creatures or in contradiction with something that is in Him. Angels had a higher place in the creation than men. Is it not unfair then that He now has given insignificant creatures that were disobedient to God and in addition to that brought the Creator to the cross, a place above angels that have always served Him faithfully and have never done anything against Him? No, for the work that was necessary to do that, is done by a Man , Jesus Christ, on the cross of Calvary. There He has revealed that God is light and love. He has shown God’s hatred against sin and His love for the sinner in all its aspects. He has restored there everything that was destroyed by the work of satan and his angels. He opened the way for God, so that He could fulfill His counsels. God rewarded Him for that by giving Him a place above everything, and there He made the church one with Him ( ). The angels see that and recognize in this God’s manifold wisdom. Now read Ephesians 3:8-10 again. Reflection: Why is the church now on earth?

‏ Ephesians 3:9

The Unfathomable Riches of Christ

Eph 3:8. It is striking to see how Paul speaks of himself here, seen in the light of this letter. This is a letter of contrasts. First, man is pictured in his absolute corruption (Eph 2:1-3). Opposite to that you have seen how man has been given a marvelously exalted position in Christ. This contrast you also see in picture in the ministry of Paul. Formerly he was a persecutor of the church and therefore of the Lord. And exactly this man, who destroyed the church, received grace to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ. That’s why he calls himself “the very least of all the saints”.

It has such a great impact on him when he thinks of the content of the message he is allowed to preach, that it causes him to call himself so. This is the attitude that suits everyone who is given a task from the Lord – and who doesn’t have that? Everything we understand of the truth should make us think less and less about ourselves.

When it is about this glorious ministry that was given to him, he compares himself with “all saints”. To them this letter indeed is addressed (Eph 1:1) and to them he preaches all this wonderful news. But he doesn’t put himself above them, but on the contrary, below them. Paul has this attitude all the time. When he compares himself with other apostles, he calls himself “the least of the apostles” (1Cor 15:9). When he compares himself with the sinners he says “among whom I am foremost [of all]” (1Tim 1:15). The truth which he is allowed to preach has an influence on his attitude. That we understand the truth should be a matter of our heart and then we will also see our littleness. When only knowledge counts, we will be puffed up (1Cor 8:1).

Paul feels his littleness when he sees the enormous scope of his ministry (“the Gentiles”) and the all surpassing content (“the unfathomable riches of Christ”). He, and no one else, receives the order to preach (literally: to evangelize) things that are so rich, that they could never be fully searched by anyone. Here also it is about the Christ again, which means: Christ together with His church.

Eph 3:9. Through the proclamation of such lofty things it became clear (“to bring to light”) what was hidden in God till then. About the words ‘stewardship’ and ‘mystery’, I have already said something in the study of the Eph 3:2-3 of this chapter, where these words also appear. By practicing his ministry, Paul fulfills his stewardship. To him God entrusted what He kept for Himself before: a mystery that only the three Persons of the Godhead knew. The moment then came that God came out with His counsels. Paul was the instrument God had chosen to make known His mystery.

The purpose of this revelation is found in Eph 3:10, but first one more thing of God is said, which must not be overlooked. That is the expression “God who created all things”. How can Paul refer here suddenly to the creation, while he is dealing with so many heavenly and eternal things? Sure, our feet are still on the earth, but until now this letter is about our position in heavenly places and our blessings in and with Christ, isn’t it? That is also true, but just because our feet are still in the first, old creation, we still have everything to do with it.

The will of God is that His counsels, that all relate to something totally new that has been realized outside the old creation, will be made visible in this old creation. God has created all things to be of service, as a platform, to display what was hidden in Him.

He could have taken away the old and introduce the new. He also could have placed the new next to the old. He could have transformed the old into the new. He didn’t do any of that. He uses the old to make visible the totally new, that is Christ and the church as perfectly united together.

Eph 3:10. And that not later, when will be fulfilled what we read in Ephesians 1 (Eph 1:10), but already “now”. God had revealed Himself in the past in certain ways. He did that in the creation (Rom 1:20). Yet He didn’t reveal Himself in it fully. What we see in it, is His creation wisdom. The angels have seen that wisdom and have rejoiced in it (Job 38:7). They also saw that God created men, that man enjoyed the special attention of God and that He went His ways with man. They saw it and admired how God dealt with man who became rebellious.

But now that same God showed something that first was not known. He will submit everything to a Man in future. But the Man to Whom He submits that, is new, as that Man is Christ and the church. This was hidden in God’s heart, but is being made known to the angels through the existence of the church.

The good and evil angelic powers, “the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly [places]”, have no words for what they see of wisdom, when they look at the church. This wisdom is so unique, that it exceeds all other wisdom. This wisdom is completely new and not just in a new phase of unfolding His wisdom. It is “the manifold wisdom of God”, which means a wisdom in every possible glorious aspects. And that wisdom is seen in those who form the church together, not what they are of themselves, but what God has made of them.

That God is almighty and sovereign was known by the angels. If God wanted to put man above angels, He was free to do that. But the way God does that, reveals His wisdom and that is the issue here. He does not only deal in omnipotence, but He does that in a fully righteous way and in accordance with all that He is in Himself: the perfect revelation of love and of light. When He deals like that with the church, it doesn’t mean that He is unfair against one of His other creatures or in contradiction with something that is in Him.

Angels had a higher place in the creation than men. Is it not unfair then that He now has given insignificant creatures that were disobedient to God and in addition to that brought the Creator to the cross, a place above angels that have always served Him faithfully and have never done anything against Him? No, for the work that was necessary to do that, is done by a Man, Jesus Christ, on the cross of Calvary. There He has revealed that God is light and love.

He has shown God’s hatred against sin and His love for the sinner in all its aspects. He has restored there everything that was destroyed by the work of satan and his angels. He opened the way for God, so that He could fulfill His counsels. God rewarded Him for that by giving Him a place above everything, and there He made the church one with Him (Eph 1:20-23). The angels see that and recognize in this God’s manifold wisdom.

Now read Ephesians 3:8-10 again.

Reflection: Why is the church now on earth?