Sunday Morning, November 9, 2025
Supporting Texts: Genesis 12:3; Isaiah 49:6; Daniel 2:18-19, 27-30, 47; Acts 13:46-47; Romans 8:28, 11:25.
We live in a world in which there are many mysteries. Treasures of gold, long hidden away and forgotten, refuse to be found. Lost civilizations flourished for centuries and then vanished away for no apparent reason. Events that changed nations that historians still cannot explain. There are many mysteries that are tightly sealed and refuse to yield to human exploration. There are mysteries that have kept their secrets for centuries and still provide daunting challenges to unravel.
For example, there is the mystery of the ark of the covenant. For centuries it was the center of Israel’s worship of Yahweh the Lord. It was constructed in the days of Moses and was placed in the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle and later in the temple. It is seen for the last time in the days of King Josiah in Second Chronicles 35:3, when the king commanded it to be restored to its place in the temple. Then it vanished without a trace. During those days, the Assyrians had captured the northern kingdom of Israel, and it would not be long before the Babylonians would come to take the southern kingdom of Judah captive. Today, archaeologists still search for the Ark. Its existence and location remain a mystery.
The first thirteen verses of the third chapter of Ephesians largely form a parenthesis. From verse two through verse thirteen, Paul begins a prayer for believers for them to understand their resources in Christ. He seems to stop in mid-thought and decided to reemphasize and expand some of the truths he had already mentioned. He does not actually begin his prayer until verse fourteen where he repeats the phrase “for this reason,” so that he can pick up the thought he originally expressed in verse one. He may have thought that the people in the Ephesian church needed further preparation to hear his prayer on their behalf so that they would apply it correctly. Apparently, Paul thought he needed to affirm his authority for teaching such a new and radical truth such as that of the unity of the Jew and Gentile together in Christ. In this parenthesis, Paul declared that this was God’s message and both Jewish and Gentile Christians needed to take note and apply it to their relationships in the church.
Paul’s primary emphasis is on the great mystery that is now revealed by God that Gentiles and Jews are one in Christ and that there are no longer any distinctions between them in their relationships with God and with each other. He begins with the revelation of the mystery, then the explanation of the mystery and then the proclamation of the mystery. He concludes this parenthetical thought with the intention of God’s mystery. “To be specific,” Paul said in verse six, the sacred secret never before revealed is “that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” We begin with the revelation of the mystery.
THE REVELATION OF THE MYSTERY. Ephesians 3:1-3
Paul the Prisoner. Paul reminds us that as he wrote this epistle, he was under arrest and imprisoned in a Roman jail. It is true that as he awaited his day in court before the emperor, he had some personal freedom, but he was still a prisoner. By this time, he had been a prisoner for five years. He had initially been arrested in Jerusalem and moved to Caesarea where he spent his first two years in prison. Then, because he appealed his case to Caesar, he was moved to Rome, where it had now been three years.
He had been arrested on false charges. Although he had been arrested by the Jews, he does not claim to be a prisoner of the Jews. While he was presently imprisoned by the authority of the Romans, he did not consider himself to be a prisoner of Rome. He understood the sovereignty of God over every aspect of human life and knew he was in prison because of God’s perfect will. Because he had such a biblical worldview, he knew all he did was subject to Jesus Christ and His control. Paul lived in total trust in God’s purposes. He knew his future, his present afflictions, and every other aspect of his life were completely in God’s loving and gracious hands. We should live with the same biblical worldview and trust in God’s sovereignty.
Paul the Steward. God had given Paul a unique ministry and its focus was on proclaiming the gospel to the Gentiles. At his trial before King Agrippa, Paul said God sent him to the Gentiles, “to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in [Christ]” (Acts 26:17). The word “stewardship” in general speaks of oversight, management, or administration one has over something. Paul was given the responsibility of having oversight or management over the grace of God in the sense that he was to administer it in proclamation. He was given the revelation about God’s grace and the responsibility of correctly preaching and teaching it. This God-given stewardship gave Paul his authority and authenticated his message. This was, and is, God’s message for the church.
God’s Mystery Revealed to Paul. In the New Testament, a mystery is a truth known only by divine revelation. It is something beyond natural knowledge but has been granted to us by divine revelation through the Holy Spirit working in the life of the apostle. Paul did not arrive at this conclusion through his own personal study but only because God revealed it directly to him.
Paul’s use of revelation is similar to the way Daniel used it. I am sure you remember Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of Daniel chapter two. The dream remained completely inaccessible to the king and the wise men of Babylon, but Daniel sought God’s mercy concerning this mystery. Clearly, the mystery of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream was purposely given by God to reveal God’s absolute sovereignty over the course of history. Like Daniel, we should be driven to recognize God’s authority. Daniel said, “Let the name of God be blessed forever and ever, for wisdom and power belong to Him. It is He who changes the times and the epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings and the light dwells in Him” (Daniel 2:20, 21, 22b). This mystery was God’s plan revealed to Paul. This mystery established the church and it has changed human history. This mystery is still being expanded to this day and it will remain until the Lord calls His church home.
THE EXPLANATION OF THE MYSTERY. Ephesians 3:4-6
Paul’s Insight and Christ’s Mystery. This is a very interesting statement by Paul. He actually expected the people of the church of Ephesus to read these words and understand them as God’s revealed truth to them. They would understand the insight given to Paul by the Lord Jesus regarding this mystery. No one else had ever understood this but now, because God revealed it to Paul and had it written down for the Ephesian Christians, they could fully comprehend God’s truth. This applied to the Christians at Ephesus and it also applies to Christians here today. The Bible is the Word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, and He uses the Scriptures to illuminate our thinking.
In the original language, “insight” shows the idea of critical thinking and understanding. It grants the apprehension of biblical truth that others without the Holy Spirit cannot understand. This mystery has now become the “mystery of Christ” which shows that this newly revealed truth places the Lord Jesus Christ at the center (where He should always be), and relates both the Jewish believer and the Gentile believer to Him. The Gentiles and the Jews now occupy places of equal importance. Jews and Gentiles worship the same Lord Jesus Christ, they are united with each other, and they occupy the same level of privilege before God. God has revealed Himself as a saving God and the Savior. He has now shown Himself to be the One who reveals mysteries and empowers people to cross barriers and become one in Christ.
The Mystery Never Made Known Before. This great mystery had never been revealed to anyone or discovered by anyone. No one had ever understood what Paul now revealed. That does not mean that God did not give clues to this great mystery in the past. To Abram, God promised, “And I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed” (Genesis 12:3).
Isaiah, the prophet, wrote, “It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also make You a light of the nations so that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6). While God revealed this in the Old Testament, the people of Old Testament days had no vision of the church, which is the assembling of all the saved into one Body with no distinctions. God waited until the resurrection and ascension of the Lord Jesus before revealing this mystery to the twelve apostles, and Paul, and the prophets of the early church.
The Definition of God’s Revealed Mystery. So, what exactly is this mystery that God revealed? Using three nouns, Paul tells us that Gentile believers, along with Jewish believers are first of all, heirs together of God’s riches. God promised Abraham that He would bless his descendants and through him all the families of the earth would be blessed. Now, God revealed His plan revealed that through faith in the gospel, all the families of the earth would also be counted as God’s children. They share the faith of Abraham and the promises God gave to him.
They are also members of the same body. Believing Gentiles have been placed with believing Jews into the same body and are therefore fellow members of the body of Christ. Third, they are sharers in the gospel promise. This is the promise of the Holy Spirit who now indwells both Jewish believers and Gentile believers. Those who believe in the gospel, which is a commitment of faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, are not only granted eternal life, but they are also granted all of these promises and blessings: both Jew and Gentile alike.
THE PROCLAMATION OF THE MYSTERY. Ephesians 3:7-9
Paul the Minister. Paul tells us he was made a minister because of God’s grace. God calls and appoints those whom He desires to serve as leaders in His church. Any person in the ministry of the church whom God has not appointed is there under false pretenses. In the days of the prophet Jeremiah, God pointed out false prophets. He said, “I did not send these prophets, but they ran. I did not speak to them, but they prophesied” (Jeremiah 23:21). No man should enter the ministry unless he is absolutely certain of the Lord’s calling.
What is significant for the present knowledge of a divine call to ministry is given in First Timothy chapter three. There, Paul speaks of the pastor or spiritual overseer as a man who “aspires to the office” and who is verified and approved by those who know him as one who is above reproach. The present call is bound up in a manifesting desire and church verification. Here Paul tells us that his service was initiated by “the gift of God’s grace” and it continues by “the working of His power.” A pastor’s service must be caused by God’s grace, centered on the Person of Christ, and enabled by the “working of His power.”
Preaching the Unfathomable Riches of Christ. What was Paul’s message? First, it was given to Paul because of his humility. With all of his skills, training, and knowledge, he still considered himself to be “the very least of all saints” and he recognized God used him because of His grace. And the message Paul preached was not one of his choosing. By God’s grace he preached the unfathomable riches of Christ. These riches cannot be discovered by human methods, but must be revealed and energized by the Lord Jesus Himself. These riches include all His truths and blessings. It is the purpose of every preacher to declare those riches to those who are believers. Those riches include, kindness, perseverance, patience, wisdom, knowledge, mercy, God’s great love, His assurance, and His Word.
Bringing the Mystery to Light. To bring this mystery to light included the explanation or the administration of how this truth is to be applied in the church. It explained how believers were to treat each other within the framework of the local church. The church is designed to be a unified body, with no barriers between Jews and Gentiles. The same God created both, both must worship the living God, and both must do so in Jesus Christ through His church.
THE INTENTION OF THE MYSTERY. Ephesians 3:10-13
Make Known the Wisdom of God. God’s wisdom is called “manifold.” In the original language, the word “manifold” referred to the beauty of an embroidered pattern or the variety of colors in flowers. It can be understood as “multi-faceted.” The “manifold wisdom of God” does not refer to redemption as such but rather to the new relationship between believing Jews and Gentiles in one body. The instrument God uses to display His wisdom is the church; the recipients are the angels “in the heavenly realms.” These “rulers and authorities” refer to both good and evil angels. As the angels witness the church, they must admit that having Jews and Gentiles in one body is evidence of God’s wisdom.
Angels have been watching the human race since the day of mankind’s creation. They have been our observers ever since. In fact, they are still watching, now at this time and here in this place. They are watching you and me and they are watching God’s grace unfold in our lives. How can God use a race of sin-ridden people to proclaim and live out His matchless grace and learn to be obedient to His will?
God’s Eternal Purpose. If someone asked you what God’s eternal purpose is, what would you tell them? Here, Paul tells us that God supreme purpose in the church is for us to glorify Jesus Christ by showing His wisdom before the watching angels and the watching world. The real drama of redemption can only be understood when we understand that God’s glory is the supreme goal of creation. The angels are watching as God takes Jews and Gentiles, slave and free, male and female – who together murdered the Messiah and were worthy only of eternal condemnation – and making them, by that very cross of murder, one spiritual body in Christ Jesus. They watch as He breaks down every barrier, every wall that divides and makes all believers one in an indivisible, devoted, and eternal union with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, along with every other believer from every age. In the classroom of God’s universe, He is the Teacher, the angels are the students, the church is the illustration and the subject is the manifold wisdom of God.
The Privilege Given by the Mystery. The reality of the gospel is that all believers, of whatever distinction, have full and unlimited access to God. We have now been granted the privilege to enter His Holy of Holies any time with boldness and confidence. Listen to the words of Hebrews 4:14-16, “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Psalm 119:160 says, “All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal.” The verses we have studied today are God’s inspired and authentic words. The epistle to the Ephesians was written to people who had received the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior and had chosen to live in obedience to His commands. They recognized the words Paul wrote were inspired by the Holy Spirit and they put these principles into practice in their own lives. They recognized the treasure of God’s wonderful revelation in His Word. How about you? Do you treasure God’s Word? Do you rejoice in the riches God has granted to you or are you distracted by the things of the world?
Have you received the Lord Jesus into your life as your Savior? Please listen to these familiar words from John’s gospel, and honestly apply them to your life: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.” (John 3:16-18, NIV)
