God’s Plan June 30th, 2024
God of all generations, send us your Holy Spirit as we listen to the Scriptures, read, and interpreted. Open our minds to your wisdom, open our eyes to see how to serve you, and open our hearts to share in your healing love. Amen.
There wasn’t a very encouraging beginning from today’s scripture lesson from Paul. He doesn’t pull any punches. He's straightforward and frank, delivering his thoughts in a direct and candid manner. He starts by saying, “In the past your spiritual lives were dead because of your sins and the things you did wrong against God. Yes, in the past you lived the way the world lives. You followed the ruler of the evil powers that are above the earth.”
And what he’s describing in those words is a person’s spiritual state before coming to faith in Jesus Christ. At that time, they didn’t follow God, but rather followed the ways of the world. Paul says that, before accepting Jesus as our Saviour, we were all dead in our sins, which means, as Paul will say later on, we were “without God” and “alienated from the life of God”. Apart from life with God, we were dead. And just because you’re breathing doesn’t mean you’re alive. We were dead in our sins because of our rebellion against God, and our failure to live according to his will.
But the Father didn’t send Jesus Christ into this world to help us cope with our problems. He didn’t put his Son on the cross to make us feel better about ourselves or to boost our self-esteem. Christ came and offered himself on the cross to deal with our most fundamental problem, that our sins have separated us from the love of God.
Some say that they don’t want to focus on the negatives, such as sin, but rather on the positives, such as God’s love and grace. But if we don’t understand the depths of sin from which God rescued us, we won’t appreciate the riches of his grace and the magnitude of his love.
Paul then continues on, saying, “We lived trying to please our sinful selves. We did all the things our bodies and minds wanted. We should have suffered God’s anger because we were sinful by nature.” And what he means is that our desire was to please ourselves rather than God. Our desires and passions ruled us. And they are very strong forces, aren’t they? Just think about how you act when you lose your temper: the things you say that you would never say at other times; the way you’re happy to hurt those you love the most. Yes, and sadly, we still find ourselves ruled by our desires and passions, far too often. And what was the result for those who lived like this? Paul says, "We were by nature children of wrath, like everyone else." That is, our very nature meant that we were under God’s judgement.
Sometimes we need to hear the bad news before the good news will make any sense. And now Paul gives us the good news. He says, “But God’s mercy is great, and he loved us very much.” Those words remind us of the opening line of our Responsive Psalm this morning, which was written by King David, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.”
And because of God’s mercy and love, Paul tells us, “But God gave us new life with Christ. You have been saved by God’s grace. And he raised us up with Christ and gave us a seat with him in the heavens. He did this for those of us who are in Christ Jesus.” God’s compassion is boundless, and his care for us runs deep. Though we were once lifeless in spirit due to our transgressions against him, it is through Christ that God has breathed new life into us. By his grace, we are redeemed. In union with Christ, God has elevated us, granting us a place alongside him. This gracious act was bestowed upon us who abide in Christ Jesus.
This is a message of hope and redemption, affirming that salvation is a gift from God, not something earned by human efforts, and it sets the stage for the unity and purpose of believers as part of a larger divine plan. Out of his rich and merciful heart, God did three things: he made us alive with Christ, he raised us up with Christ, and he seated us with Christ.
Twice in that passage Paul uses to words, “But God”. First, he says, “But God’s mercy is great, and he loved us very much.” And then, “But God gave us new life with Christ.” Although we were lost in our sins God loved us so much that he offered his own Son as a sacrifice so that we might have redemption. Our salvation hangs entirely on those two words, “But God”. It was God who intervened for us, to offer us the opportunity for forgiveness.
And why did God do such a wonderful this for us? Paul says, “He did this so that for all future time he could show the very great riches of his grace. He shows that grace by being kind to us in Christ Jesus. I mean that you have been saved by grace because you believe. You did not save yourselves. It was a gift from God. You cannot brag that you are saved by the work you have done.” Here Paul speaks of God's kindness and mercy that are given, not because we have earned them, but simply as a gift. This grace is essential for salvation, and it is not through our efforts that we are saved, but by God's grace alone. Because of God’s love for us, his forgiveness is freely given. We can’t earn it, we are saved by grace through faith, and by grace alone.
So, what must be our response to God's love and forgiveness? Paul gives us the answer. He says, “God has made us what we are. In Christ Jesus, God made us new people so that we would do good works. God had planned in advance those good works for us. He had planned for us to live our lives doing them.” And what he is telling us is that we are not saved by our good works, but we are saved for our good works. Works are the fruit of our salvation, not the root of our salvation.
God does his work in us and for us so we will walk in the works he has prepared for us to do. If, after coming to faith in Christ, we truly are new people, then God has called us to serve him. It’s part of his plan and purpose for our lives – he’s prepared you to do the works he has prepared for you to do. Rick Warren, an American pastor, says, “Without a purpose, life is motion without meaning.
And God has not only prepared us for good works; he has also prepared good works for us. The things that God wants us to do have been decreed beforehand. This means we don’t have to search hard for what God wants us to do today. Our job is to simply walk in the works God has prepared for us to do and be responsive when these opportunities present themselves.
God saves us to be a part of his story for the world and gives us a role to play. Jesus taught this to his disciples when, in the Sermon on the Mount, he told them, “You are the light of the world.... Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14a, 16) God is at work, and he calls us as his people to be a part of his plan for salvation. The good works that he calls us to do flow out of that gracious relationship God has initiated with us.
In closing, let’s summarize what Paul has told us. We can do it in four points. First of all, our plight: we were dead in our sins. Secondly, we have God’s plan: he made us alive through Christ. Thirdly, God’s promise: to save us through faith. And finally, our purpose: to do deeds of service.
Paul sets before us the wonderful difference between what we once were, apart from Christ, and what we now are, in Christ. The good news of the gospel is that we need not remain dead in our transgressions and sin, separated from God and destined for wrath. God has provided a way of salvation—one way—by which sinners can become saints. And this “way” is Jesus Christ. As Jesus said to the disciple Thomas, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through me” (John 14:6).
When the Apostle Paul had that encounter with Jesus on the Damascus Road, he asked him, “‘What am I to do, Lord?’” Jesus answered, “‘Get up and go to Damascus; there you will be told everything that has been appointed for you to do.’” God had already prepared beforehand Paul’s future ministry! Paul had to learn God’s plan and walk in it. So do we!
Let us Pray:
Lord Jesus, thank you for your love, for your grace, and for your mercy. With all our hearts we believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for our sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing our sins and giving us the gift of eternal life. Help us do the works you’ve prepared for us and to give you the glory you deserve. Amen.