Special Insights No. 3
Fourth Quarter 2005
“Ephesians: The Gospel of Relationships”
(Produced by the Editorial Board of the 1888 Message Study Committee)
“What God Has Done”
This week’s lesson focuses on just a few verses from the first chapter of Ephesians, but what power-packed verses they are! When reading this section of Scripture one gets a sense of urgency and exuberance as the words tumble out of Paul’s mouth. Look at the punctuation. From the beginning of the chapter all the way down to verse 12 it is one continuous sentence. The good news is so good that Paul is beside himself in eagerness to share it with the Ephesian congregation.
The pure Gospel message shines brightly in these opening words of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians: “in Christ” we have been given all things necessary to prepare us for an eternal existence with holy, heavenly beings. In Christ, “we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (vs. 7). Christ gave up everything to save us from sin (Phil. 2:6-8; Matt.
All the blessings Paul shares with his readers are found “in Christ,” that is, God in Christ has already done something for every human being who ever lived (2 Cor. 5:19). “In Christ” the human race has already been blessed “with all spiritual blessings;” “in Christ” we have already been chosen, predestined, and adopted as God’s precious children; “in Christ” we already have redemption, reconciliation, and restoration.
No wonder Paul was so excited! Salvation is a “done deal” for the entire human race, having been accomplished “in Christ” from the foundation of the world (Rev. 13:8). The only way to lose these precious blessings is to refuse to believe the good news.
Foundational Themes of the 1888 Message
This message of Christ and His righteousness was the foundation of the “most precious message” presented by A. T. Jones and E. J. Waggoner at the 1888 General Conference session in
The 1888 message is the preaching of “the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth” (Rom.
Faith Brings the Victory
Through faith in Christ’s work for us and corporately as us in conquering the enemy of our souls (
Christ is the victory. Christ and His righteousness has been given to every man, woman, and child who ever lived. There is no excuse for continued sinning. We can have this victory in our lives NOW, if we will only believe in God’s power to save us.
But “self” keeps getting in the way. In 1889, E.J. Waggoner addressed this very problem:
“We have heard many people tell how hard they found it to do right; their Christian life was most unsatisfactory to them, being marked only by failure, and they were tempted to give up in discouragement. No wonder they get discouraged; continual failure is enough to discourage anybody. The bravest soldier in the world would become faint-hearted if he had been defeated in every battle. Sometimes these persons will mournfully tell that they have about lost confidence in themselves. Poor souls, if they would only lose confidence in themselves entirely, and would put their whole trust in the One who is mighty to save, they would have a different story to tell” (“Living by Faith,” article found in Lessons on Faith, p. 2-3).
“In Christ” We are Worth Everything
The good news is that “in Christ” we are worth everything heaven had to give. We are “more precious than fine gold” to God, who gave His own Son to redeem us from sin and restore us as His beloved children. We have already been given the righteousness, and soon we will receive the “inheritance” promised to Abraham—the earth made new—the everlasting covenant fulfilled (Gen. 15:5-21; Rev. 21:1-27; Isa. 65:17-25).
So we discover that in these few verses of Ephesians, Paul has encapsulated the entire message of Christ and his righteousness—the same message of righteousness by faith that Jones and Waggoner presented at the 1888 General Conference. In these few verses we discern: (1) the corporate oneness of Christ with those He came to save (since “in Him” we have all these blessings, the importance of the nature which Christ assumed at His incarnation is a necessary corollary); (2) legal justification for the whole human race (we are all predestined and adopted); (3) the everlasting covenant of redemption and restoration through the unilateral power of God; and (4) woven throughout all of this is the eternal demonstration of the love of God (agape) toward those who rebelled against Him. What a gracious and merciful God we serve!
The message from the cross “speaks to each child of humanity, declaring, It is for thee that the Son of God consents to bear this burden of guilt; for thee He spoils the domain of death, and opens the gates of Paradise” (The Desire of Ages, p. 755). Believe this “most precious message” of good news and your life will be transformed; nothing will stand in the way of your personal victory over sin. God’s promises are sure and certain, if we don’t hinder them from being fulfilled.
—Ann Walper
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