By Grace Through Faith

Paul's letter. Paul wrote this letter to the believers in Ephesus, a big city in what is now Turkey (Ephesians 1:1). He wanted them to remember what God had done for them. Dead in sin. “And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins” (2:1). A trespass is stepping over a line God has drawn. Our bodies were alive, but our hearts were dead toward God. We could not hear Him, love Him or come to Him on our own. Following the crowd. They “once walked according to the course of this world” (2:2). That means living the way everyone around them lived, without God. A real enemy. Paul also names “the prince of the power of the air” (2:2). That is the devil, who still works in people who refuse to obey God. But Jesus is far stronger. God “has delivered us from the power of darkness” (Colossians 1:13). We all. “Among whom also we all once conducted ourselves” (2:3). Paul included himself. Nobody is good enough on their own, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Children of wrath. Wrath means God's holy anger against sin. God is right to be angry at sin, and because of our sin we all deserved that anger (2:3). What we learn. Without Jesus, people are not just a little bit lost. They are dead toward God, and they need Him to give them life.

Where God found them. God “has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ” (1:3). Ephesians 2 tells us who received those blessings: people who were dead in sin. Paul had taught in Ephesus for about three years (Acts 20:31), and he wrote to them as a prisoner (3:1). Nekros (2:1). The Greek word nekros (say: neh-KROS) means dead, the word used for a dead body. We were not just sick or weak; we were dead. A dead person cannot help himself; someone else must give him life. Trespasses and sins. A trespass is a step over God's boundary line. A sin is missing the mark God set. Both are our own choices, and both lead to death: “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). Three pulls (2:2-3). Paul names three things that held people captive: the world (“the course of this world”), the devil (“the prince of the power of the air”) and our own flesh (“the lusts of our flesh”). The flesh means our sinful nature, the part of us that wants its own way instead of God's way. By nature (2:3). We were “by nature children of wrath.” We do not become sinners the first time we sin; we sin because we are sinners. Romans 5:12 says death “spread to all men, because all sinned.” We all. Paul says “we all.” The former Pharisee who had tried hardest to keep the law counted himself in the same grave as everyone else. Why it matters. If we were only sick, good advice might help us. Because we were dead, we need God Himself to give us life.

Paul said people without Jesus are dead in their sins. Their bodies were alive, but their hearts were far from God. A dead person cannot wake himself up. In the same way, we cannot make ourselves alive to God. Paul said we all lived this way once. That means Paul too, and every person ever born. Sin is doing what God says is wrong. Sin is like a wall between us and God. The devil wants people to keep living that way. But Jesus is much stronger than the devil. Being good cannot break down the wall. We need God to give us life.

Sin keeps us far from God. We cannot fix it by ourselves. Everyone needs God's help. God loves to help us.

But God. “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us” (2:4). Everything changes with these two words. We could not climb out of our sin, so God came to us. Rich in mercy. Mercy is God holding back the punishment we deserve. God is not a little bit merciful. He is rich in mercy, with more than enough for every sinner. Great love. God loved us while we were still dead in sin. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Made alive. God “made us alive together with Christ” (2:5). God raised Jesus from the dead, and He gives that new life to everyone who trusts in Jesus. Jesus called this being “born again” (John 3:3). By grace. Verse 5 also says, “by grace you have been saved.” Grace is God's kindness that we do not deserve and cannot earn. Seated with Him. God “raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (2:6). A believer belongs with Jesus right now, even while living on earth. Kindness forever. “In the ages to come” God will keep showing “the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us” (2:7). What we learn. God's love found us when we could do nothing, and in Jesus He gives us life that lasts forever.

Two words (2:4). “But God” turns everything from death to life. Verses 1-3 tell what we did; verses 4-7 tell what God did. Salvation starts with God, not with us. Mercy and grace. Mercy is God not giving us the punishment we deserve. Grace is God giving us the good we do not deserve. “He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities” (Psalm 103:10). Charis (2:5). The Greek word for grace is charis (say: KAH-rees), a free gift of kindness to someone who has no claim on it. Verse 5 says, “by grace you have been saved.” Being saved is all God's kindness from start to finish. Together with Christ (2:5-6). God made us alive together, raised us up together and seated us together with Christ. What happened to Jesus after the cross happens to everyone joined to Him by faith. Paul prayed that believers would know the power God used when He raised Christ and seated Him at His right hand (1:19-20). That same power gave them life. Seated now. God has already seated believers with Christ. Our place with God is safe because it rests on Jesus' place, not on how we feel today. “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). The ages to come (2:7). God's plan is to show “the exceeding riches of His grace” forever. Saved sinners will be living proof of His kindness for all eternity. Why it matters. Our hope rests on God's mercy and love, not on our own record. The same God who raised Jesus gives new life to you when you trust Him.

Paul wrote two little words that change everything. Those words are “But God.” We were dead in sin. But God did not leave us there. God is rich in mercy. Mercy means God does not punish us as we deserve. God loves us with a great love. Jesus died on the cross for our sins. Then God raised Jesus from the dead. God gives new life to everyone who trusts Jesus. Paul said God raised us up with Jesus. We belong with Jesus now and forever. God will show us His kindness for all time.

But God loves us so much. He is full of mercy. He gives us new life with Jesus. Jesus is alive!

Saved. To be saved means to be rescued from sin and its punishment and brought home to God. By grace. “For by grace you have been saved” (2:8). God saves us because He is kind, not because we are good. Through faith. Faith is trusting Jesus. It is like an open, empty hand that takes a gift. The hand does not earn the gift. It only receives it. Not of yourselves. “And that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God” (2:8). Salvation does not start with us, and it does not depend on how good we are. Not of works. “Not of works, lest anyone should boast” (2:9). Works are the good things we do. Good works are good, but they can never pay for sin. Next to God's holiness, “all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6). No bragging. If we could earn heaven, we could brag about it. Because salvation is a gift, all the praise goes to God. Paid in full. Jesus paid for the gift on the cross. Just before He died, He said, “It is finished!” (John 19:30). Nothing is left for us to pay. What we learn. You can stop trying to earn God's love. Trust Jesus, receive His gift and thank Him every day.

Saved (2:8). “You have been saved” describes a rescue God has already finished. A believer is not hoping to be saved someday. He can know he belongs to God now, because he “has passed from death into life” (John 5:24). Grace and faith. Grace is the source; faith is the way we receive it. God gives, and we receive. Faith adds nothing to the gift. It is simply trust in Jesus, the way a drowning swimmer grabs the rope thrown to him. Doron (2:8). The word gift is doron (say: DOH-ron), something given freely and never paid for. “That not of yourselves” covers the whole rescue: none of it comes from us. Not of works (2:9). Galatians 2:16 says it plainly: “a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ.” Justified means declared right with God. Romans 11:6 adds, “if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace.” Lest anyone should boast. If salvation were earned, heaven would be full of people telling God how good they had been. Instead, believers boast only in Jesus: “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 1:31). What about James? James teaches that faith without works is dead (James 2:17). That is not a second way to be saved. Real faith always shows itself in a changed life, which is why Ephesians 2:10 comes right after 2:9. Why it matters. Religion says, do enough and God may accept you. The gospel says Jesus has done it all; receive Him and live.

Paul wrote that we are saved by grace through faith. Grace is God's kindness that we do not earn. Faith means trusting Jesus to save us. Think about a birthday present. You do not pay for a present. You just open your hands and take it. Being saved is God's present to us. We cannot earn it by being good. Going to church cannot earn it either. Jesus already paid for it on the cross. So nobody can brag that they saved themselves. We can only thank God!

Being saved is a gift from God. We cannot earn it. We just trust Jesus. Then we thank God for His gift!

His workmanship. “For we are His workmanship” (2:10). Workmanship means something carefully made by a skilled maker. You are God's handmade work. Made new in Jesus. We are “created in Christ Jesus.” When you trust Jesus, God makes you new on the inside. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17). For good works. God saved us “for good works,” not by them. Good works do not get us into God's family. They are what God's children do because they already belong to Him. Planned ahead. God “prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” God has good things planned for you this week: a friend to help, a brother or sister to forgive, a neighbor to tell about Jesus. Walk in them. Walking means everyday living. Before Jesus, people “walked” in sin (2:2). Now we walk in good works. Let it shine. Jesus said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). Power to do it. We cannot do this alone. Jesus said, “Without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). The Holy Spirit lives in every believer and gives us His power. What we learn. You are saved by grace and made for good works. Ask God each morning to show you the good work He planned for you.

Poiema (2:10). Workmanship is the Greek poiema (say: POY-ay-mah), something made, a crafted work. Our English word poem comes from it. God is the craftsman, and believers are His work of art. Created in Christ Jesus. Salvation is a new creation, not a self-improvement plan (2 Corinthians 5:17). God promised it long before: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you” (Ezekiel 36:26). For, not by. Verses 8-9 say works are not the root of salvation. Verse 10 says they are its fruit. We are saved by grace for good works. Jesus “gave Himself for us” to make a people “zealous for good works” (Titus 2:14). Prepared beforehand. God planned these works before we ever did them. You do not have to invent a purpose for your life. God has already prepared one, and you find it by walking with Him day by day. Two ways to walk. Before Jesus we “walked according to the course of this world” (2:2). Now God calls us to walk in the good works He prepared (2:10). New life shows up in ordinary steps. Power for the work. The fruit of the Spirit is “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness” (Galatians 5:22). Good works grow from the Spirit's life in us, not from willpower alone. Why it matters. Grace does not make believers lazy. People who know they are loved freely serve gladly. Your good works are not a payment to God; they are His craftsmanship showing in you.

Paul said we are God's work. God made us new people in Jesus. Think of an artist making a beautiful painting. The artist plans each painting with great care. God made you with even greater care. God also planned good works for you to do. Good works are kind and loving things. You can share, help and tell others about Jesus. We do not do good works to get saved. We do good works because we are saved. Good works are our way of saying thank you. Jesus helps us do them every day.

God made us new in Jesus. He planned good things for us to do. We help others because God loves us. Jesus helps us!

By Grace Through Faith

🎉 All Matched!