The Messenger 3
Introduction
Those words in the introduction to Ephesians – “to the saints and the faithful in Christ Jesus”- imply, as we saw in the previous reflection, that the specific contents of this letter are intended for specific people. Discovering what Paul meant by those terms, therefore, becomes an important starting-point in our understanding of this letter. We need to know whether we qualify as one of the intended recipients of this wonderful letter. Is it for us? Do the contents have specific relevance for us?
Should we come to the conclusion that right now we do not qualify; that we actually fall below the base-line reflected in Dr Martin Lloyd-Jones’s so aptly termed phrase “the irreducible minimum of what constitutes a Christian,” it is wonderful to know that God can change all that in a moment of time. That’s what makes looking at Paul’s introduction to his letters so encouraging and so important. His words of introduction to his letters are not only a challenge to us, but they are also a reminder of what we need to be and can become in Christ.
The Gospel is all about grace – God’s undeserving love and mercy. To enter that company of the saints and faithful in Christ Jesus no qualifications are needed on our side, no waiting-time, no trial period to see if we are going to make it. All that is required is a submission on our part to the amazing, redeeming grace of God in Christ.
“For it by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).
The faithful in Christ Jesus
When Paul writes – “To the saints AND the faithful in Christ Jesus” – we should not think of two distinct groups of people to whom he is writing. Imagine a comma where the AND is and we get a more accurate understanding of who the recipients of the letter are – “To the saints, the faithful in Christ Jesus.” Rather than implying two separate groups of people Paul is simply enlarging on the meaning and implication of being a saint. A saint, he is informing us, is one who not only has been set apart for God but who is faithful in Christ Jesus. As John MacArthur says, “That covers both sides. From God’s side He’s made us holy, from our side we exercise faith. We are the saints – divine definition; the faithful – human definition.”
In our previous reflection we looked at the first half of Paul’s phrase – “To the saints (those set apart for God).” We focus now on the second part – “the faithful in Christ Jesus.”
The word “faithful” in verse 1 is a translation from the Greek word pistos. There are two ways we can think of this word – we can think of it in a passive sense – what one is; we can think of it in an active sense – what one does. We are going to look at both. It really helps to give us a deeper insight into the meaning of being a Christian from a New Testament perspective.
In the passive sense pistos means faithful, true to one’s profession, to be trusted, reliable. In a world where people’s values are being influenced by the media, secularism and by the cult status given to celebrities, it is important that the values of God’s saints are being shaped not by the world but by what God values. The world may value power, position, status, money, the right connections, possessions, achievements, personal looks, being admired and looked up to, being well thought of by one’s peers. God, however, values trustworthiness, dependability, reliability. He wants those whom He has set apart for Himself in Christ to be trustworthy, dependable, reliable, true to their profession of faith in Christ. In a word – faithful! It is what we are or what we ought to be as professing believers in Jesus Christ.
In the active sense of its meaning pistos refers to those who exercise faith in Jesus Christ. It is what we do. Saints exercise faith in Jesus Christ. In the words of Professor Kenneth Wuest in his Greek New Testament for the English Reader, exercising faith means: “A definite taking of one’s self out of one’s own keeping and entrusting one’s self into the keeping of the Lord Jesus.” Entrusting ourselves into the keeping of the Lord Jesus!
So what does that mean for our life? Well it does not mean that we are not allowed to think for ourselves or never allowed to make a mistake. It does not mean we becomes less of a person, less of an individual than we were before we met Him. On the contrary – it means we become more than we were before we surrendered to His love. He liberates us to discover our potential of having been created in the image of God. He clarifies our thinking, silences our doubts and helps us focus on what is important. As we entrust ourselves to His keeping we learn to recognise the difference between what only He can do and what He wants us to do. We become supremely people of hope. We are not discouraged and continue to trust God even when He says “No” to our requests. It is in the “No” that we learn that His grace is sufficient for us. We are content when He says “Not yet” for we understand that He wants to teach us patience without our losing hope.
Entrusting ourselves into the keeping of the Lord Jesus means we have entered into a partnership with Jesus with Jesus as the senior partner. You may have heard the lovely story of the elephant and the mouse crossing the bridge together. When they got across to the other side the mouse looked up at the elephant and said “My, we made that bridge shake didn’t we?” Entrusting ourselves into the keeping of the Lord Jesus will always mean that our contribution in the partnership relationship will be very small when measured against His. Nevertheless it remains vital in this amazing partnership between Jesus and the believer. Someone summed it up this way: “without God we cannot, and without us He will not.”
It should be clear by now that the two phrases Paul uses in his introduction, “the saints” and “the faithful in Christ Jesus,” are inseparable.
No one can be set apart for God without exercising faith in Jesus, and everyone who exercises faith in Jesus is called into a life set apart for God.
While we recognise that none of us reaches perfection this side of eternity and while all of us fall short of the glory of God, that can never be an excuse for settling for anything less than “our utmost for God’s highest” (Oswald Chambers). We are on a spiritual journey. The ultimate goal is still before us. Yes, there may be many distractions on this journey, but Paul reminds us in Philippians chapter 3:7-14 of the importance of keeping our focus on the goal. Mark well the contents of that passage in Philippians.
To the saints (the set-apart ones), the faithful in Jesus Christ. Does that describe you? If it does not then there is something God wants to do about it. His grace is able to reach you wherever you are.
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