This fourth Friday of Lent our reading is Ephesians 3:1-13. Here Paul teaches about the “mystery of God”. As you meditate on this passage, ask God to reveal a full understanding of the mystery.
The Ephesians believers were not Jewish, but Gentiles. God had given Paul a sacred assignment to teach the truth of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection to the Gentiles, who previously did not have a seat at the table with the family of God. The gospel broke down the barrier between the Jew and Gentile, bringing both groups into one body in Christ. Years of division between the “chosen” and the “unclean” were reconciled through the gospel.
God choosing Paul (Saul) to be HIS servant in this restoration is almost unthinkable. He was a Pharisee of Pharisees who persecuted the church, actively imprisoning and killing any who were followers of Jesus. This was true until he met Jesus on the road to Damascus where he too became a disciple of Jesus. God told Paul he was selected to bring the gospel to the Gentiles. All of his life Paul would have avoided Gentiles as much as possible. Then the touch of Jesus so radically changed his path that he spent the remainder of his life spreading the gospel among the Gentiles.
Paul surrendered a lifetime of power, prestige, honor, and comfort to become a slave of the gospel. He determined that all he lost was nothing compared to the riches he received through Christ Jesus.
Are we able to say the same today about of life in Christ? Is there evidence in my life that I determine the most valuable thing is knowing Christ?
Something to consider today, and every day.