I bring you the Glory Games, based on
an all-time, best-selling book: the Bible. In it, an all-powerful, all-present,
all-knowing, loving, and just God creates humans to reign and rule over the
works of His hands and to bring Him glory. The arena, so to speak, the earth. The
fall, a single man’s decision to rebel against his God. The consequence for all
mankind, eternal separation from God. The game? Well, it’s not a game, really.
Not at all, in fact. It’s an offer. A free gift. A love story with one single
message delivered to all: Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, and no man
comes to the Father except through Him, through grace, by faith. For those who
believe in their hearts and confess with their mouths that Jesus is Lord,
eternal life.
The audience?
Here is where you might hear a drum
roll. Here is where we learn why earth. The reason the arena isn’t heaven. The
reason we have to do this earth thing, as my daughter calls it, with its pain,
loss, and suffering.
It’s the climax. The moment I’ve eagerly
anticipated. I feel like the person behind the podium with the envelope. A
hushed room waiting to hear the winner of the Oscar for best picture of the
year.
And the answer is…
A pin drops.
Ephesians 3:1-12:
For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of
Christ Jesus for you Gentiles – if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of
the grace of God which was given to me for you, how that by revelation He made
known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already, by which, when you
read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), which in other
ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the
Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets: that the Gentiles should be fellow
heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the
gospel, of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God
given to me by the effective working of His power. To me, who am less than the
least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the
Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make all see what is the
fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden
in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; 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, according to the eternal purpose
which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and
access with confidence through faith in Him (emphasis mine).
That’s why earth!!! Do you see it? I
can barely contain myself as I type!
Grace was given Paul to preach among
the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ so that the principalities and
powers in the heavenly places would know the manifold wisdom of God by the
church! It had to be earth because the audience is in the heavenly places!!!
In the words of Albert Barnes, “The design
of this was to illustrate, in view of all worlds, the great wisdom of God in
the plan of salvation, Ephesians
3:10-12. It was intended to show to other intelligent beings the glory of
the Divine perfections, and to make manifestations of the Divine character
which could be perceived nowhere else” (www.preceptaustin.org,
Ephesians 3 commentary).
Barnes continues, “The sense is, that
it was with this design, or that this was the purpose for which all things were
made. One grand purpose in the creation of the universe was, that the wisdom of
God might be clearly shown by the church. It was not enough to evince it by the
formation of the sun, the stars, the earth, the seas, the mountains, the
floods. It was not enough to show it by the creation of intelligent beings, the
formation of immortal minds on earth, and the various ranks of the angelic
world. There were views of the Divine character which could be obtained only in
connection with the redemption of the world. Hence the universe was created,
and man was made upon the earth, not merely to illustrate the Divine
perfections in the work of creation, but in a still more illustrious manner in
the work of redemption. And hence the deep interest which the angelic hosts
have ever evinced in the salvation of man.”
Another commentator, Ron
Daniel, says, “Another thing he points out in these verses is incredible: for
ages, the gospel was largely hidden from angels and demons in the spiritual
realm. But now it is being made known to them by the church!” (preceptaustin.org,
Ephesians 3:1-13 commentary).
First Peter 1:10-12 explains, “Of this
salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of
the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time, the
Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand
the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. To them it was
revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things
which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel
to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven; things which angels desire to look
into.”
Daniel exclaims, “Angels
longed to look into these things, and now they watch the church on earth to
learn them. That is so profoundly amazing!”
“Oh, the depth of the riches both of
the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His
ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33).
His wisdom, ordained before the ages
for our glory, and hidden until the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus (I
Corinthians 2:7).
Why?
“God, who is rich in mercy, because of
His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses,
made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised
us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ
Jesus, that
in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His
kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:4-7).
To god be the glory as we become more
wholly His today.
Shauna Wallace
Holy His
