Series: Ephesians
Title: Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation
Text: Ephesians 1: 17
Date: May 19, 2013
Place: SGBC, New Jersey
Ephesians 1: 15: Wherefore I also, after I
heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, 16: Cease
not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; 17: That the
God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit
of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
I. THE TITLES PAUL USES OF GOD THE FATHER
Ephesians 1: 17: The God of our Lord Jesus
Christ, The Father of Glory
Most
often, wherever God speaks of himself, or where his prophets or apostles speak
of him, the title that is used has something to do with what the passage is
about.
The God of Our Lord Jesus Christ
God the
Father is called “the God of our Lord Jesus Christ” because one of the things
Paul will pray for is that they might see more clearly that Christ as our
Mediator is our Covenant Head and we are his body.
Ephesians 1: 22:…gave him to be the head over all things
to the church, 23 Which is his body, the
fulness of him that filleth all in all.
Christ
our Head stands as the perfect servant of God and in Christ, every child born
of the Holy Spirit, is perfect—ye are complete in him. So God the Father gives all blessings to
Christ our Head and all blessings that are Christ’s belong to us by this union
we have with Christ. When Christ rose
from the dead he sent the message to his disciples, saying,
John 20: 17:…Go to my brethren, and say unto them, I
ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.
He said
that because since Christ, our GodMan Mediator is the Head of his church,
everything God is to Christ, he is to us—God is his God and our God, God is his
Father and our Father.
So Paul
prays “the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,” because the blessings given from God
the Father to Christ our Head are also ours because of our union with Christ.
Application:
I want every believer here to get the significance of that. Because of our union in Christ, the believer
can draw near to Holy God with assurance of acceptance, as comfortable as a
child draws near to their father.
·
God reconciled his elect to himself by the
blood of his Son.
·
God has made us righteous in Christ.
·
God has purged away our sins in Christ
·
God will not remember our sins anymore.
So the sinner born of the Spirit of God, with Christ formed in you, can approach
God through Christ Jesus and God receives you as his child as dear to him as
God’s own Son.
The Father of Glory
Paul
also addresses God as, “The Father of Glory.”
Paul is about to ask for “revelation in the knowledge of him” for “their
understanding to be enlightened.” We
begin, in this life, to get a glimpse of God’s glory by the Father of glory
enlightening us in regeneration:
2 Corinthians 4:6: For God, who commanded the light to
shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the
knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
We were
recreated after his image when the veil was taken off our heart by the Spirit
of the Lord entering into us.
2 Corinthians 3: 18: We…with open face beholding as in a
glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to
glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
The glory
of heaven will be to see the glory of God face to face and know him fully.
1 Corinthians 13:12
For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I
know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
So our
petition to behold his glory is the petition of our Lord Jesus Christ.
John 17: 24: Father, I will that they also, whom thou
hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou
hast given me; for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.
So since
Paul is asking for this “glo” of revelation, of enlightening, he prays “the
Father of glory.”
II. HE ASKS FOR A GIFT
Ephesians 1: 17: That the God of our Lord
Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, MAY GIVE UNTO YOU…
Freely Given
This
one of those offenses to the dead, proud sinner. Everything the child of God has, we are given
freely from God.
1 Corinthians 4: 7: For who maketh thee to differ from
another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst
receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?
Until a
sinner is graciously given light to see what utter darkness he is in himself,
he is too proud of his ignorance to beg God to give him the spirit of wisdom
and revelation in the knowledge of him. But
once we are shown that we have nothing, are nothing, can do nothing, and can
produce nothing—then we are no longer ashamed to be a beggar before God. In fact, we delight that salvation is all of
God’s free and sovereign grace.
Application: Brethren, isn’t there something delightful about getting
alone and pouring out your heart to God and asking God for spiritual
blessings. I was once so afraid to pray,
even alone. Now, I look forward to a
quiet time when I can thank God and ask for his grace. I do believe God is more delighted to give us
grace than we are to ask him for grace.
III. LET’S SEE WHAT PAUL ASKS FOR
Ephesians 1: 17: The Spirit of
Wisdom and of Revelation in the knowledge of him.
The Holy Spirit of Wisdom
By the
Spirit is meant the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is himself "the Spirit
of wisdom" It is the Holy Spirit who is also the giver of
wisdom to the saints—not exclusive of the Father and of Christ. But rather, spiritual truth which is
discerned by the spirit given of God is not discernible by ordinary human
faculties, it is made known only by the Spirit of Revelation.
Note: It is
not wisdom and revelation itself that Paul asks for but “the Spirit of wisdom
and revelation.” A natural man can learn true doctrine in the letter, but to
have the Holy Spirit abiding in you, to seal you and give unction—is the
difference between a head knowledge and a heart knowledge.
The Holy Spirit of Revelation
You and
I are born the first time of corrupt seed passed down from Adam. We are
conceived in sin. But when we are born
again of the Spirit of God, a new man is born, the inward man, created in
righteousness and true holiness.
The Spirit
of Revelation opens the heart and opens the scriptures so we can see. This book was once sealed to us. It was
like trying to read in the dark. But the gracious Spirit of revelation gave us life
and light and a new heart and the word of God became a brand new book.
The wisdom
and revelation we are given is in the knowledge of God in Christ. God gives his new born
child wisdom and knowledge of God the Father by giving us wisdom and knowledge
of his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. We are given the knowledge of the Wisdom and Power of God
when the Holy Spirit reveals Christ the Wisdom and Power of God.
1 Corinthians 2: 9: But as it is written, Eye hath not
seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things
which God hath prepared for them that love him. 10 But God hath revealed them unto us by
his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. 11
For what man knoweth the things of a
man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth
no man, but the Spirit of God. 12 Now we
have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God;
that we
might
know the things that are freely given to us of God.
·
Grace
·
Life
·
Free Justification
·
Free Sanctification
·
Free Redemption
·
Faith and Repentance are given freely
We are
given an understanding of the sinfulness of our sin, of the insufficiency of
our own righteousness, and of the beauty, glory and suitableness of Christ as
Redeemer and Lord.
Jeremiah 9:24 But
let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that
I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in
the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD.
Lovingkindness: in election, redemption, effectual calling, the pardon
of sin, justification, adoption, eternal life, all towards ruined ungodly sinners
undeserving of any favor from God.
In Judgment: He hath laid on him the iniquity of all his people. Sin being on him the just Judge charged him
with the sins of his people. He made
him a curse for us. With his stripes
we are healed. Judgment demands each one be called, be preserved and be glorified.
In Righteousness: Wrought by Christ on earth in our nature. He honored
and magnified the law for God and for his people. When the Spirit of God has
recreated his child after the image of Christ, when his incorruptible Seed has
given life within, in that inward man that cannot sin because he is born of
God, when he draws us to cry out from a pure heart in faith, believing on
Christ, our just God imputes to us the righteousness Christ wrought for us for
he has made us the righteousness of God in him, not by our works, but through
the righteousness of faith. Whereby we have a right to eternal glory. In these things I delight, saith the
LORD.
John
17:3: And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God,
and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
Growing in Grace and Knowledge of Him
Our
inward man grows in knowledge of him the same way. When Peter says,
2 Peter 3: 18: But grow in grace, and in the
knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Paul shows
us here how we grow in knowledge of him. We are dependent upon God so we must
ask, through prayer, for the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory,
that he may give unto us the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge
of him. And we actually grow according to the measure of the gift which the
Spirit of wisdom and revelation gives us in the knowledge of him.
Ephesians 4:7: But unto every one of us is given grace
according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
Ephesians 4: 21 If
so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in
Jesus: 22 That ye put off concerning the
former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful
lusts; 23 And be renewed in the spirit
of your mind; 24 And that ye put on the
new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. 25 Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man
truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. …30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God,
whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and
clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: 32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted,
forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you. 5: 1: Be
ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; 2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved
us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a
sweetsmelling savour.
Amen!