God’s wisdom (Ephesians 3)
To the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the Church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places (Ephesians 3:10).
Paul was suffering imprisonment in Rome because of his ministry to the Gentiles. God, in His wisdom, chose Paul for this service. The apostle’s Jewish credentials were outstanding. He seemed the ideal servant to be sent to his own people, and he served effectively among them. But God sent him beyond Israel into a world where idolatry was pervasive and dominant, and where Satan’s power was so evident. Grace had transformed the apostle, and in Acts 9:15, when Saul was first brought to Christ, God explained to Ananias that Saul was “a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles”. It was this, called “the mystery” (v. 3), unknown in former generations, that was revealed by the Holy Spirit to apostles and prophets. After Paul’s salvation in Acts 9, in the very next chapter Peter is sent to the Gentile household of Cornelius. And the mystery that the Gentiles would become fellow heirs, members of the body of Christ and partakers of the promises in Christ, began to be revealed. Christianity has been in Western Europe for such a long time that we forget how far we were away from God and how thankful we should be that He, in His wisdom, drew us to Christ.
Paul was chosen and empowered by God for this ministry. He had been the most dedicated and vicious persecutor of the Church. But the Lord Jesus transformed him. And he describes himself as “less than the least of all the saints”. The world he served in was divided by language, boundaries, culture, religion, conflict, hatred, violence and hopelessness. In that world he preached the Gospel, manifesting God’s love, grace and wisdom. Christ was building His Church, and the gates of Hades could not prevent it (Matthew 16:18). God had expressed His love and wisdom in the giving of His Son to make salvation possible. The Gospel removed all that separated people from God and from one another. Christ’s Church was born and quickly grew. Paul had explained it is the dwelling place of God by the Spirit (ESV). By its worship, prayers, edification, preaching, righteousness, and its fellowship of love the manifold wisdom of God is seen.
God has accomplished in Christ Jesus, our Lord, His eternal purpose (v. 11). This is seen in time and ultimately in eternity (see Ephesian 5:27). It is through Christ that we have the boldness and liberty of access to the presence of God. Paul powerfully describes the journey which began when we were “without God and without hope in this world” and led us into a place of nearness to God and a hope in Christ that leads us into glory.
Paul comforts the Ephesian Christians, encouraging them not to lose heart because of his tribulations. This was the wisdom of God in action. Paul never doubted that all the circumstances he passed through would be used by God for His glory and the blessing of others. God in His wisdom took Paul to Rome. He was placed at the very centre of the most powerful nation on earth at that time to preach Christ Jesus “who became for us wisdom from God” (1 Corinthians 1:30). In doing so he encourages us not to lose heart but to “know that all things work together for good to those who love God” (Romans 8:28) and to rejoice in faith in the manifold wisdom of God.
