Just a few thoughts in connection I would like to put before you. Grace has a wonderful place in Ephesians. It has in all the word of God, but in some places is more conspicuous than others; so here. When we think where this Epistle came from, how we see that all things serve His might! The dear apostle, taken from active service, and kept in prison two years and subsequently, at Rome—but what a loss to us if it had not been? And God over-ruled it thus for His glory! Taken aside while God made known to Him His will; and so we get the precious Epistles to the Hebrews, Philippians, Colossians, Ephesians. We can take them up full of comfort and blessing.
We are told in ch. 2:5 “By grace ye are saved.” It is blessed to turn to the unmerited favour of God to us, but before ver. 7 of chap. 1 it might not appear as if there was any sin connected with us; then we get redemption. To be holy and without blame before Him in love was absolutely true of Christ as a man down here below, and we have the same nature. There is nothing said about faults or failures, but we are taken back to eternity and God's eternal plans. Then in ver. 7 we find we are sinners, and need a Saviour. Great as God's glory is as Creator, He has greater glory as Redeemer. And the great thing is not that we should be sure we are going to heaven, great as that is, but greater still is it that God has put His hand on us, poor hell-deserving sinners as we are, and picked us up to give eternal joy to the heart of His beloved Son. That is worth having existence for! “To Him be glory in the assembly throughout all ages!” You and I form part of that assembly by His grace. He is going to get glory through it throughout all ages, world without end.
We found redemption in the Lord Jesus Christ, by blood and by power. Here it is through His blood. It is true we are all bought, and we are all redeemed. The difference ought to be a big joy to us. All the world is purchased—the unconverted as well as the saved. “Denying the Lord that bought them” we read. By being purchased, we change masters; every believer is purchased, and every sinner too. In redemption I change my status. Every believer is redeemed. Our liberty is to do His will, to serve God and to serve our brethren. The riches of His grace are found in this—we have redemption. Is there anything higher ? Yes, chap. 2 takes us on to the future. In ver. 7—the “exceeding riches of His grace” He will show, not for us to see, but for others to see in us. That's His purpose. Is there anything higher than that? Yes, blessed be His Name! something higher still. If it had been said, “Taken us into favour in Christ,” it would be wonderful, but it is not put so, but “in the beloved.” There was One here of Whom the Father could say at His baptism, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased"; then on the Mount of Transfiguration, “This is my beloved Son, hear ye Him.” If God says in Him is found all His delight, we believe it, don't we? Nothing counts but Christ. That thought has been a great blessing to me. God wants to let us know what is the very glory of Christ. He has accepted us in the Beloved, in Him in Whom is all His delight. You can never reach a higher point than that.
We are not adopted “children.” Children is a question of birth. A new born babe in the family of God, we see it at once in John 1:1212But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: (John 1:12). “As many as received him to them gave he power to become children of God.” You cannot make a mistake in this. John in his Gospel and Epistles reserves the word Son for One only, and that is the One Who occupies the bosom of the Father. The only exception is in Rev. 21. “Which were. born not of blood,” —not natural descent, “nor of the will of the flesh” —no; of God by His own will; “nor of the will of man” —what can he do? “but of God,” in the sovereignty of His love. That is how we occupy the place of children (1 Peter 1:2, 3; 2:22Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied. 3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, (1 Peter 1:2‑3)
2As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: (1 Peter 2:2)); this is eternal, and can never be set aside.
But with regard to “sonship.” Angels are sons, but never children. Angels are witnesses that God can make a glorious creature and keep him from falling; and they are learning now in us God's various wisdom—not seeing it in the wonder of creation, but in you and me. But in the millennium they will learn that however blessed a creature may be, unless kept he is bound to fall. Sonship tells of privilege, of position. “Because ye are sons God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.” That is a privilege the saints of old could not know.
But our brother wanted to put the truth so that we live more to His glory, and I apprehend that the better knowledge we have of His love will help us and draw out our hearts to Him. We want to see it more, to rejoice in the worthiness of that blessed One. That is what we want, to rejoice more in Him. And I thought of 1 Sam. 17. —a heart acknowledging the worthiness of another. It is David—the beloved, and it often helps us to remember its sweet meaning— “the beloved one.” When Jesus is called David it is as the Beloved. And we know Him who emptied Himself and became obedient unto death, wherefore God hath highly exalted Him (Phil. 2). Oh, that blessed scripture! How it tells God's estimate of the only absolutely perfect One! Every created intelligence shall bow the knee to that blessed One.
“In whom we have obtained an inheritance.” What is the inheritance? Everything in heaven and earth. He is the appointed Heir of all things—the whole universe. You and I are heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. It is too vast; we cannot take it in. It all belonged to Him before He became man, but He has got it now as Man that you and I may share it with Him. Oh, what do we not owe Him!
But I was thinking of that scene in the valley of Elah, and I think we would all agree that it is God bringing before us Calvary-the great victory there showed forth by what took place there. The great champion a type of Satan, and David of Christ. The challenge is given, and no one can take it up. Yet there was One, the despised One, who was not called when Samuel came to anoint him, but they could not sit down till the Beloved came. The despised, misunderstood one—and there was One more misunderstood than anyone. But David goes out with his sling and stone; and Gen. 3 tells of a Deliverer-but a suffering One. I don't want to go into all the details, but David slung the stone and it struck Goliath in the forehead and he was prostrate. What a change in the feelings of the trembling host! There was no sword in David's hand, but I read in Hebrews “that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death.” So as the power of death was the devil's own sword, so it was the giant's own sword in the hand of the Beloved that cut off the giant's head, and they were made more than conquerors; they had the spoil—the result of the victory—and David the praise! Then afterward I see David before Saul with the head in his hand; so typically I see Christ in resurrection (Col. 2:1515And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it. (Colossians 2:15)). Well, there was one singled out who had seen all this (1 Sam. 18:11And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. (1 Samuel 18:1)) a heart won! There was more than one victory won that day the heart of the king's son was won— “knit with the soul of David, and he loved him as his own soul.” I am sure that is a voice to us, not recorded for nothing God intends us to learn by that. Ah, we want to be better acquainted with the cross of our blessed Savior— “Gazing with adoring eye, On Thy dying agony.” We don't want to limit it to the Lord's day morning, but every day let us feed on Him, Christ our Passover.
It is not only simply stated, but there were the results of that love. Jonathan stripped himself. It is very lovely to see. It was not a perfect love—David's love was greater, but we won't speak of his failures. The Holy Spirit records these details here, and in the light of the cross we listen to the truth, “Ye are not your own, ye are bought with a price.” I appeal to each one, Is there anything we ought to keep back from Him? It is all right to sing “the dearest object of my love” etc. —but there is so much—time, talents, wealth, everything. I am His bondman now. May God give us grace to surrender all to Himself. He is worthy. Amen.
J. A. T.