Our Redemption “in Christ” Detailed to the Ephesians Volume 24

Paul declares to the Ephesians that both Jew and Gentile being placed into one Eternal Body is God’s Mystery Revealed Part 3

Ephesians 3:6-7 That the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of His Promise in Christ by the Gospel: Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the Grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of His power. KJV

We find the Apostle Paul very fond of reiterating a point again and again as he is so prone to do in all of his letters and we can therefore; conclude that God likes to make His points over and over again because He (through the Holy Spirit) is breathing into Paul the revelation of this great mystery to all of humanity at the time of the penning of this letter. Paul has already declared to these Ephesian believers that “He (God the Father) predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will” (Ephesians 1:5) and Paul said earlier that “He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him” (Ephesians 1:9) and the pronoun “us” he used in this passage includes these Ephesian believers and all true believers of every generation. Also Paul has already said that “we have obtained an inheritance” (Ephesians 1:11) and that Christ Jesus “might reconcile them (Jew and Gentile) both in one body to God through the Cross” (Ephesians 2:16) and lastly to conclude our recording of Paul’s fondness to retell, repeat, or restate a point that is so dear to him and important to the saints he’s writing to, he said this earlier to these same Ephesian believers, “but you (Gentiles) are fellow citizens with the saints” (Ephesians 2:19).

Now to cap-off his discourse in explaining God the Father’s Mystery hidden in Himself alone but now revealed through Paul, he says those same things above in this manner, “That the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs” (Ephesians 3:6). The English word fellow-heirs Paul uses here in his reiteration of his point made many times earlier in this same letter is translated by the Greek word sugkleronomos which means a sharer by lot, that is, an inheritor (literally or figuratively); by implication a possessor: co-heir, that is, by analogy a participant in common, a joint heir. In other words, Paul was very excited, eager, and enthusiastic to inform these former pagan idol worshippers of the goddess Diana in the self-named temple, that they now have been so brought out of darkness that they are God the Father’s “little children” and heirs that will inherit all that belongs to Him by virtue of them being “in Christ” as Paul wrote it in this very well described manner to the Roman believers when he said, “The Spirit Himself [thus] testifies together with our own spirit, [assuring us] that we are children of God. And if we are [His] children, then we are [His] heirs also: heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ [sharing His inheritance with Him]; only we must share His suffering if we are to share His glory.” (Romans 8:16-17).

When Paul declares to them that Gentiles are “of the same body” (Ephesians 3:6), he means literally the True Christian Church that makes up the Body of our Lord, Master, and Savior Jesus Christ as He Himself said with these words spoken to the Apostle Peter, “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hell will not overpower it.” (Matthew 16:18). When Paul declares to them that the Gentiles are “partakers of His Promise in Christ by the Gospel” (Ephesians 3:6), he speaks here of the indwelling of God the Holy Spirit in the inner man and inner woman of every Gentile that hears the Gospel of Christ or the Gospel of Grace and is born of the Spirit. The English word partakers Paul uses here is translated by the Greek word summetochos which means to be a co-participant; participation, that is, intercourse, or fellowship. In other words, Paul declares that only through the reception of the Holy Spirit can any sinner Jew or Gentile have fellowship with God the Father.

This is exactly what Paul means here by “His Promise in Christ by the Gospel” and this is what our Lord Jesus meant when He said these words recorded by the Apostle John, “Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’’ But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” (John 7:37-39), likewise we have these words also (speaking of the promise) recorded by this same Apostle John, “As for you, keep in your hearts what you have heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the first dwells {and} remains in you, then you will dwell in the Son and in the Father [always]. And this is what He Himself has promised us--the life, the eternal [life]. I write this to you with reference to those who would deceive you [seduce and lead you astray]. But as for you, the anointing (the sacred appointment, the unction) which you received from Him abides [permanently] in you; [so] then you have no need that anyone should instruct you. But just as His anointing (the Holy Spirit) teaches you concerning everything and is true and is no falsehood, so you must abide in (live in, never depart from) Him [being rooted in Him, knit to Him], just as [His anointing] has taught you [to do].” (1 John 2:24-27).

Paul has a two-fold meaning when he declares that he was commissioned by Christ to proclaim His Gospel of Grace when he says, “Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the Grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of His power.” (Ephesians 3:7). The English phrase “I was made” Paul uses here is translated by one Greek word ginomai a prolonged middle form of a primary verb meaning to cause to be. Paul did not go to school as he did when he sat under the highest Pharisee in Judaism, but he was made/ginomai a minister of the Gospel is clear to me because it was nothing less than the Mighty Power of God’s Grace that saved such an obstinate Pharisee as Paul who was striving in works religion to attain and achieve the highest place he could in Judaism as he himself documented with these words written to the Galatian believers, “You have heard of my earlier career {and} former manner of life in the Jewish religion (Judaism), how I persecuted {and} abused the Church of God furiously {and} extensively, and [with fanatical zeal did my best] to make havoc of it {and} destroy it. And [you have heard how] I outstripped many of the men of my own generation among the people of my race in [my advancement in study and observance of the laws of] Judaism, so extremely enthusiastic {and} zealous I was for the traditions of my ancestors.” (Galatians 1:13-14).

Paul was such a zealot for Judaism and the strict observance of the “Law of Moses” that nothing but the Mighty Power of God’s Grace through the Cross of Christ and by the Power of the Holy Spirit could have opened his blind religious eyes to the truth as he again himself declares with these words written to the Corinthian believers, “For I am the least [worthy] of the Apostles, who am not fit {or} deserving to be called an Apostle, because I once wronged {and} pursued {and} molested the Church of God [oppressing it with cruelty and violence]. But by the Grace (the unmerited favor and blessing) of God I am what I am, and His Grace toward me was not [found to be] for nothing (fruitless and without effect). In fact, I worked harder than all of them [the Apostles], though it was not really I, but the Grace (the unmerited favor and blessing) of God which was with me.” (1 Corinthians 15:9-10) and also as he wrote in these words to the Galatian believers, “But on the contrary, seeing that I had been entrusted with the Gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been to the circumcised (for He who effectually worked for Peter in his Apostleship to the circumcised effectually worked for me also to the Gentiles), and recognizing the Grace that had been given to me, James and Cephas and John, who were reputed to be pillars, gave to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, so that we might go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised.” (Galatians 2:7-9). Note: The Grace of God was active and operative, that is, being in force, having or exerting force mightily in the inner man of the Apostle Paul causing him to endure the attacks, hardships, physical pain, emotional pain, etc. that he experienced from the day our Lord Jesus Christ saved him to the day he had his head chopped off dying for Christ’ sake and bringing glory to Christ Jesus our Lord.

Secondly, the Mighty Power of God’s Grace was the only thing that could have turned these Ephesians from their idolatry (worship of the goddess Diana) to the One True Living God Jesus Christ as Paul declared equally of this fact to the converts in Thessalonica with these words, “For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith toward God has gone forth, so that we have no need to say anything. For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.” (1 Thessalonians 1:8-10) and also with these words to them, “For you recall, brethren, our labor and hardship, how working night and day so as not to be a burden to any of you, we proclaimed to you the Gospel of God. You are witnesses, and so is God, how devoutly and uprightly and blamelessly we behaved toward you believers; just as you know how we were exhorting and encouraging and imploring each one of you as a father would his own children, so that you would walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own Kingdom and Glory. For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the Word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the Word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.” (1 Thessalonians 2:9-13).

My own Personal Note: Those who have truly sorrowed for sin will sorrow upon every remembrance of sin. This will not hinder their service for and fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ but rather will increase their joy in the Lord Jesus and in His abundant, life-changing mercy and grace. Repentance is a complete redirection of one’s life demonstrated by profound changes in lifestyle and relationships. The experience of repentance always precedes salvation. Faith is living one’s life in constant submission to Christ and in relationship to Christ. Excerpt from my Book entitled, “Silent Assassins of the Soul: Finding Freedom from Sexual Impurity through the Lord Jesus Christ, A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...


Sincerely in Christ,


Clifford D. Tate, Sr.

Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…