We don’t see that brought out anywhere else in scripture until we get to the Apostle Paul, and his letters to Gentiles. Jesus brought about mans change to that which was already in him but was not understood or listened to namely mans consciousnesses, the spirit of God. Jesus opposed the voice of the flesh when He had been in the wilderness for forty days and was hungry. This voice tempted Him in three areas the same areas that we are all tried and found wanting in. But as we like Paul came to understand trust God in our soul to rule we don't do a physical works as the Hebrew orthodox leadership dictated. For they lost sight of Moses teachings of Genesis. Now back to chapter 3.
Ephesians 3:1a
"For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for (what people?) you Gentiles."
Most people don’t like to admit that. Most people can’t see that his apostleship was uniquely directed to the Gentiles. Though Paul still had a heart for his brothers the Jewish people. In fact it was such a heavy heart that he was willing to suffer eternal doom if they could be saved. So don’t ever accuse Paul of having turned his back on his own people, but always remember that God was the One that designated on the Damascus road conversion that Paul was going to be sent far hence to the Gentiles. Up until that time, from Abraham to when Paul is sent to the Gentiles, salvation for those 2,000 years was mainly reserved for the Nation of Israel. God dealt with the Nation of Israel through the prophets, and through Christ’s earthly ministry, through Peter and the eleven, but the Hebrews continued to reject their message of the kingdom of God within man to this day. For this was also the message of Moses but had been lost. So now God does something totally different, though not new. Only different in that He sent Paul to the gentiles because would not receive the teaching and that’s the best word that we can put on it. In fact, turn over to the Book of Philippians, and let us show you. We’ll get back to Ephesians in just a moment. Here he’s still talking to Gentiles, and look what he tells them.
Philippians 1:10
"That ye may approve things that are excellent: (different) that ye may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ;"
Now in the King James the translator wrote excellent. But the word excellent in the Greek everywhere else in scripture is translated "different" What is the day of Christ, it what Peter calls the day star rising in our heart, where the spirit that God had hid in man is quickened and become a force again within us by being conjoined to the ontological essence of Christ. Now read it in that light.
Philippians 1:10a
"That ye may approve things that are different:..."
And indeed it is different. This whole Gospel of the Grace of God is something so different that if anything it has never been fully laid on Israel, or anyone else for that matter, and is something that is just mind boggling. That God could now turn to the whole human race without benefit of religion, priesthood, or temple, but rather He goes straight to the heart of the believer, and transforms him. In total agreement with the vow spoken to Adam, He as Father had infused His very nature into ours. And makes us a new person, and then places us into the One Body of Christ. This is all received by way of illumination of inspiration or revelation within our heart from which no one can remove it or change our position. For it is upon this rock that He builds His Church. Now coming back to Ephesians chapter 3.
Ephesians 3:1-2a
"For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles. If ye have heard..."
Now we’ve got to stop for a moment again. Remember that by the time Paul writes Ephesians it’s somewhere around 64 or 65 AD. He’s now a prisoner in Rome, and that’s why we call it one of his prison Epistles. This means that he’s been out there among those pagan Gentiles now for some 25 years. Now that’s not very long, and it took a long time to convince these Gentile pagans, not only to believe this Gospel of their salvation, but of this whole new lifestyle that they had embraced. So that’s why he puts it in this kind of language.
Moving into note book 19 now.
Ephesians 3:2
"If
ye have heard..."
It’s
a good possibility that they hadn’t heard yet. Even though the
believers of Ephesus were the ones he was writing to, we’ve got to
realize that there were multitudes around those believers who had not
believed at all. But this is the way he puts it.
Ephesians
3:2
"If
ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given
me to you-ward."
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