Monday
Ephesians 2.4-5 “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions –“
Paul is never short of comparatives and superlatives when it comes to speaking of the love and mercy of God. God’s love is greater than any other we can conceive, and beyond compare in the whole universe of possibilities. This is love that makes alive, that forgives and cleanses, that sets free and restores. “God, who is rich in mercy”, draws us from death to life giving us a new heart, creating a new centre from which to live, replacing previous disobedience with grateful obedience, and loving service.
Tuesday
Ephesians 2.4-5 “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved.“
Grace. The word also gives us the word gift. For Paul Christ is the ultimate gift, for in Christ God gave himself in love, grace and mercy. Paul never tired of telling of Christ, the gift of God’s self in his Son. It is in and through the once for all gift of Christ that God’s great love is made known, and in whom God, who is rich in mercy, enacts his saving grace. In Christ we are saved, by grace, love and mercy. Saved from our sins and delivered to a life of freedom and obedience. Saved by grace! No wonder Paul ran out of superlatives! “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift.”
Wednesday
Ephesians 2.6 “And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus…”
The old hymn had it right: “You ask me how I know he lives, he lives within my heart.” Yes, we serve a risen Saviour, but Paul says, there’s more. We are raised with Christ, and we live in Him and Christ lives in us. The resurrection of Jesus has reverberations that extend to the whole of creation, and to the whole of our life. We are made alive with Christ, raised with Christ, seated with Christ. Being saved is a rich incorporation into the life of the risen Lord Jesus. Our lives are now hidden with Christ in God. There is no safer place to be than “with Christ.”
Thursday
Ephesians 2.7 “in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”
Paul’s back to his word search, looking for words that describe the riches of God’s grace: unsearchable, extraordinary, outstanding, incomparable, surpassing, immeasurable. All of these have been used to translate that dense and nuanced word Paul uses to distinguish God’s grace from any other kind of generosity. In the end it is reduced to a lovely generality – “his kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” It was that word that inspired the lines, “Let us with a gladsome mind, praise the Lord for he is kind.” The word is an understatement of something that can never be overstated anyway. It is by such grace, kindness toward us, that we are saved.
Friday
Ephesians 2.8-9 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God –not by works, so that no one can boast.”
Just to be clear, so there is no misunderstanding, for the avoidance of doubt, Paul repeats the truth that is the cantus firmus, the supporting underlying theme of the Gospel: “by grace you have been saved.” We are not saved by faith, we are saved by the grace that enables us to believe, trust and surrender ourselves to the call of God in Christ. Such faith is itself a gift of God’s grace, mercy and love. None of this is our doing. No wonder Paul struggles for words to describe “the unsearchable riches of God’s grace toward us in Christ Jesus.”
Saturday
Ephesians 2.10 “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
Each one of us is a unique piece of art, crafted with skill, love, and imaginative care, called to be a walking demonstration of the creative mercy of God. We are God’s workmanship. Each of us is unique and uniquely valued, someone in whom God has invested without limit of time, effort or trouble. There is cost in the work of the artist and skilled craftsman; creative excellence can be exhausting. Behind God's workmanship is one whose whole creative purpose is gift, grace and self-giving for the sake of the finished work. We are created in Christ Jesus, to be formed into the community and communion of Christ, God’s masterpiece.
Sunday
Ephesians 2.10 “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
To do good works" literally to walk in good ways, so that as God's workmanship, as an exhibit of God's work, we reflect the style and the character of the Artist. We are not saved by good works, but to fulfil all that God has purposed for us when he called us to faith and obedience. In the gift and grace of our salvation we become implicated in the work and mission of God. We are both called and sent, created in Christ Jesus as collaborators in the mission of God, and ambassadors of Christ.
Leave a Reply