Ephesians Lesson 19 of 39 part 4

This Bible is for everybody not just for a certain select few or a particular group of people, and we want to be able to help everyone in such a way that they can study on their own, and search the Scriptures and see if these things are really so.

Acts 17:10-11
"And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so."
So after these believers heard Paul they searched the Scriptures (of course that was the Old Testament in those days) to see if what Paul was teaching was in accord with those Scriptures. So now let’s just pick the Scriptures apart word by word, 

Ephesians 3:2a
"If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God..."
This is where we stopped, and we’re going to stay stopped for a bit, because we're still not quite through with what we wanted to get across so far as, "why does Paul define this dispensation of the Grace of God?" Now remember every word that Paul writes, as well as every word that the Old Testament writers wrote, is inspired by the Holy Spirit. None of these writings were just the will of a person. And God is so open that He reveals even our short comings as a way of instruction for us. Even when Paul in so many words says, "this is my idea" it’s still inspired, and never lose sight of that. Every word is here because the Holy Spirit wants it here. When Paul says in Romans.

Romans 11:13a
"For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles,..."
That’s not an egotistical man talking, but rather that’s the Holy Spirit speaking exactly what He wants Paul to write. So in verse 2 let’s see what he says.

Ephesians 3:2a
"If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God..."
We spent sometime defining a dispensation, and we hope it is now clear enough. What is so different about Grace? In Exodus chapter 3, up on Mount Sinai, God, spoke to Moses, and gave to him the Law, and then Moses toke the Law down the mountain and dispenses it to the Nation of Israel. So this was the dispensation of Law, and that’s the way we look at it in scriptures. Now some 1500 years later, on the Damascus Road, Saul of Tarsus, experiences the same God. And God does something different, which is His prerogative, because He’s Sovereign. Now He calls out to Mount Sinai, a different man whom we know as the Apostle Paul. And to Paul God reveals these doctrines of Grace, and Paul in turn dispenses these doctrines of Grace, not so much to the Nation of Israel, but to the Gentile world. These doctrines of Grace are our yoke or burden of learning of Him, He taught Paul and the Holy Spirit wants to teach us by way of Paul's writings.

 

                                           (Mt. Sinai -Moses - Law - Nation of Israel)

                                  The Cross (Mt. Sinai - Paul - Grace - Gentile world)
 
And of course in both cases the Law is going to have an influence on Gentiles, and Grace is going to have an influence on the Hebrews, when allowed. But as a group the dispensation of Law was given through Moses to Israel, and the dispensation of Grace was given through the Apostle Paul to all not only the Gentiles, but the Hebrews and kings. Now there’s only one other place in the New Testament where that term is used explicitly, and that will be in Acts chapter 20, and let’s look at verse 24. In all the other places in Paul’s writings he may refer to this Gospel as the Gospel of Christ, the Gospel of God, My Gospel, and various others, but here in Acts chapter 24 and in Ephesians he refers to it as the Grace of God. 

Acts 20:24
"But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God."