Brethren, if you will, let's
open to Ephesians chapter 3. Ephesians chapter 3. Do you have any gripes? Any complaints? Any burdens,
murmurings? This old flesh does. God reveals
His mystery to us, giving us stewardship, chores as His children. Gives us a task, something to
do. Whatever that may be, the new man will be content with
that. And in all things, look into
our Master with contentment. That's what will happen. In our
day, in our town, Right now, this morning, I don't want to
speak to somebody that's going to listen 50 years from now.
I don't want to speak to somebody watching online. I want to speak
to you sitting here, to us, right now, you and me. We are experiencing in the providence
of the Lord, in our current lives this year, it brings out a few
words that we hear, often misused, misunderstood. We see that all
that's going on in this draconian government that we have, it's
all over the headlines. And the word prisoners comes
up a lot. It comes up in the news, it comes up in conversation,
and shamefully, it comes up in pulpits. We're prisoners. That's
the narrative of the day. We're being treated like prisoners
in our own homes, confined in our own cities, our own freedoms,
prisoners. We see what's happening at the
grocery stores earlier this year and the food chains and the supplies
on the shelves and the word steward and stewardship comes up a lot
in conversations, even in pulpits, sometimes even on the news. Don't
buy too much food. Don't go getting all the paper
products. Save your money. You need to be a good steward.
Don't hoard is how we worded it. People hoarding stuff shouldn't
be doing that. Those prisoners are hoarding
stuff. They're not good stewards. Because all going on this year,
many times the word revelation and mysteries comes up. Not so
much from the news, but in conversations around this country, and in homes,
and most disappointedly, from pulpits. They're comparing spiritual
things to worldly things. looking at what's around us instead
of the one that gave us what's around us. The title of my message
is Prisoners and Stewards. I want to look at a couple of
words in our text today, and I truly feel that the Lord will
instruct His people and comfort His people from this text. He
has me. I think it will be a comfort
for you. Ephesians 3, verse 1, For this cause I, Paul, the prisoner
of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation
of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward, how that
by revelation he made known unto me the mystery, as I wrote afore
in few words, whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge
and the mystery of Christ, which in other ages was not made known
unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles
and prophets by the Spirit, that The Gentiles should be fellow
heirs and of the same body and partakers of His promise in Christ
by the gospel." Now Paul begins there in verse 1 and he says,
for this cause. For what cause? He's referring
to everything that we read in chapters 1 and chapters 2. We
hear these for so many years and someone says, turn to Ephesians
1. Turn to Ephesians 2. We perk up, don't we? Something
good's coming. We're going to see some good
things in Ephesians 3. I hope the Lord will open our eyes to
it. He begins in chapter 1 telling us that the Father chose a people
in Christ before the foundation of the world for His purpose,
for His good pleasure, according to His own will, which He will
get all the glory for His grace. That graciousness of His will
receive the glory for it. And He made those put in Christ
accepted Through the redemption of Christ's blood, He made us
nigh by the blood of Christ. God the Holy Spirit abounds towards
His children. abounds towards us. Not kind
of ways He grabs a hold of us, that new man. He abounds towards
us, making the Lord's salvation in Christ known to us. Teaching
His people, giving that free gift of faith to look to Him
alone and sealing us with His promise. Comforting us, making
us know that none will be lost. He's abounded to. God hold us. Taught. Taught of God. They will
not be lost. They'll be His forever. Sealed.
And then in chapter 2, Paul describes the church of God. That we are
fitly framed together. Built on Christ. That chief cornerstone. Our one foundation. The church's
one foundation. Jesus Christ our Lord. That's
who we're built on. All those that the Lord's called.
Those poor, fleshly sinners. Poor sinners saved by the grace
of God. for this cause." Because of everything he just told us.
For this cause, I, Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for
you Gentiles. Now, while Paul was under arrest,
he was a prisoner in Rome, he writes to these brothers and
sisters in Ephesus for this cause. Because of this, because they
are fellow saints in the Lord. And that's the commission that
he was given. He says they're the prisoner of Jesus Christ. So many people, they understand
They get it when Paul says, I'm a servant. They say, oh, I'm
a servant. I know what that is. That's good. I'm an apostle. Many foolishly in this day think
they're apostles. Oh, I understand that. A minister.
Oh, I know what a minister is. We can relate to it. Many understand
those things. He's an ambassador. But it's
not common to speak of being a prisoner in a good light in
our day, is it? I'm the prisoner of Christ. His
prisoner. He didn't say he was the prisoner
of Caesar. of Nero. He didn't say that he was put
there by the Jews. They conspired against him. Evil
things are going on in this world, isn't it? They got together with
those headships up in Rome and they threw me in jail. Not what
he said. He said he was a prisoner of
Christ. Five times in this epistle, Paul tells us with this wording. And in other letters he wrote
from prison as well to Timothy and several others, that he was
a prisoner of Christ, that he was in the bonds of the Lord. He was bound by the Lord, shackled
by Him. What's Paul saying? He is the
prisoner, he is in prison by the sovereign will of his Lord. God Almighty put him in prison.
In full power, in full wisdom, in full righteousness, Christ
Jesus the Lord put me in prison. That's what Paul is saying. He
is where he should be doing what the Lord wills him to do. Do
I see my life that way? Do I? Am I a prisoner of the Lord when
I'm in pain? Am I a prisoner of the Lord when
I'm in comfort? Am I His prisoner when I'm in total distress? Or
am I His prisoner when I'm in peace? And His wisdom and His
power, His majesty, justice. Am I His prisoner when I'm in
bonds or when I'm at liberty? Yes. So I'm His, I am. Are you? You as a prisoner. Turn
over to Philippians chapter 4. Just a few pages there, Philippians
chapter 4. When a believer is at peace,
Paul was at peace at being a prisoner in Rome. When a believer is at
peace at any time, it is the grace of God that makes us receive
that blessing of contentment, of being content. It is our Master
strengthening us. There's a great strength given
by God to be content. Not to be happy, to be content.
Look here at Philippians 4 verse 10. Philippians 4.10, But I rejoiced
in the Lord greatly, that now, at the last, your care of me
has flourished again, wherein you were all so careful, but
you lacked opportunity. Paul's talking to those Philippians
and saying, they took such good care of me, and they weren't
able to for a while, they wanted to, but now they're taking care
of me again. Verse 11. Not that I speak in respect of
want. I'm not telling you these things
because I want something. For I have learned in whatsoever
state I am therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased
and I know how to abound. That's something. That's a particular
grace I know how to be humbled, but I know how to abound. Everywhere
and in all things, I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry. That's at the same time. in all
things, abasing and abounding, I am to be full and I am to be
hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things
through Christ with strength in me. How am I going to be full
and I'm going to be hungry at the same time? How can I understand
the Lord gave me a gift to do something and with happiness
and joy do that gift but still be abased while I'm doing it?
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." That's
the only way a man or woman or child or anybody else that knows
Him is going to have the strength to do what the Lord put us on
this earth to do, whether that's at liberty or in prison, and
to look to Him as if Christ strengthens them, puts it in their heart.
Now our text tells us, for this cause I Paul, the prisoner of
Jesus Christ for you Gentiles. For you Gentiles, you children
of Adam, that were foreknown of God, loved before time of
God, those that he's been sent to preach to, that's the reason
he has so much joy with him. Turn over to 2 Timothy, just
a few more pages to the right. 2 Timothy. Paul gives us a little
clearer explanation of what he just told us here when he writes
to Timothy, that he's suffering He's experiencing this for the
Church of Christ. That this burden he is bearing
is for his brethren after the Spirit. Him being in bond, suffering
affliction and wrong. This is for the Lord's Church.
Look here in 2 Timothy 2.9. Wherein I suffer trouble, as
an evildoer. They call Paul an evildoer. That's
what you're doing is wicked. Not that you're just preaching
Christ, you're preaching it to those dogs, those Gentiles, even
unto bonds. But the Word of God is not bound.
They cast him in prison, gave him a gag order, but the Word
of God's not bound. I might be, he's not. Therefore,
I endure all things for the elect's sake, that they may also obtain
the salvation which is in Jesus Christ with eternal glory. I pray that I'm a prisoner of
Christ for the elect's sake. I pray the Lord teaches me that.
For His sheep's sake, whatever's laid on me, whether I'm abased
or I'm abound, for Your sakes, I pray the Lord makes me His
prisoner. His Word will not be bound. I may. His Word will not. Back to our
text there. Why would Paul be so motivated
to suffer and preach and labor and bear the burdens for the
elect? Bear their infirmities, bear
their burdens. Look here in verse 2. For these Gentiles, these
Gentile dogs, why would he be so motivated? Ephesians 3, 2. If ye have heard of the dispensation
of the grace of God which is given me to you. The word dispensation is used
a lot throughout the Scriptures. That's misinterpreted, too. I always think of a vending machine.
It dispenses something, don't it? Well, that's my little portion
for now, and then I'll give a little portion for later. No. The word
here, that Greek word, means stewardship. Stewardship. Paul is the custodian. He's the
steward of God's grace that was given to him towards and for
the Gentiles. The Lord gave him that grace.
That was his mission for you military folks. That's his task
that was given to him, his assignment. It was his assignment to preach
the gospel to the Gentiles. That's what the Lord had for
him. Turn over to Acts chapter 9. Acts chapter 9. All the Lord's children are stewards
of the grace of God. But most so-called churches,
they speak of stewardship concerning money. Don't they? Let's talk
about, do you have a good steward of money? Why do they tell you
that? Because they want some of it. They want you to give
it to them. That's not what Paul is speaking of. This dispensation,
this stewardship. It's not just about that. Look
here in Acts 9. Begin in verse 10. And there was a certain disciple
at Damascus named Ananias. And to him said the Lord in a
vision, Ananias? He said, Behold I, Lord. Behold I, Lord. And the Lord
said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called
straight, and inquire in the house of Judas. For one called
Saul of Tarsus, for behold, he prayeth. He hath seen in a vision
a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hands on him
that he might receive his sight." Remember, the Lord met Paul and
he blinded him on the road to Damascus. And he's speaking to
Ananias, his prophet, his representative, his ambassador. And you notice
he's real specific. I said nonsense on TV. I don't toot into it. Here and
there I'll hear something on the radio. They'll say, oh, there's
somebody with cancer in the Northeast. Somebody's got this ailment. They've got heart diseases in
Florida. Some kind of makeshift doomsday prophet or something.
The Lord's specific, isn't He? He said, here's the street, here's
the house, here's the man that owns the house, here's the name
of the man in the house, and here's what he's doing. Go to
him. Verse 13, Ananias answered and
said, Lord, I've heard by many of this man how much evil he
hath done to thy saints in Jerusalem. And here he hath authority from
the chief priest to bind all that call on thy name." Ananias
gave a rebuttal. He said, I know exactly who you're
talking about. He'll kill me and he's got marching orders
to arrest whoever he wants. You sure you won't be talking
to him, Lord? But the Lord said unto him, go thy way. There's
Ananias' stewardship. There's his commission. You go
do what I tell you. For he is a chosen vessel unto
me. He's my child. "...to bear my name before the
Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel. For I will
show him great things he must suffer for my name's sake." There's
Paul's stewardship. There's Paul's dispensation.
That's what the Lord gave him to put in his hand before he
knew it. Ananias knew before he did, didn't he? He said, you're
going to preach to those Gentiles, and to some kings, and the Jews
are going to be Provoke to jealousy through you doing it, through
you magnifying your office. That's what's going to happen.
That's Paul's dispensation, his task. Turn over just a little
bit to Acts 20. Before Paul wrote this letter to the church of
Ephesus, that's her text, he'd visited there several times,
been there a few times, and for two years he stayed there preaching
to them. He preached to the church of Ephesus and he grew with them.
And he loved them. That's his brothers and sisters
in Christ. You know, he's attached to them. And here in Acts 20,
he's giving a farewell to the elders of Ephesus. And he's telling
them, he said, I must go to Rome, I'm going to be made a prisoner,
I'm going to suffer some afflictions, and I don't even know what they
are. It tells them here in verse 24, 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, I might finish
my dispensation, my task, my stewardship, that I might finish
my course with joy, and the ministry which I have received of the
Lord Jesus to testify the gospel of grace of God." Preaching the
gospel of free and sovereign grace in Christ to the Gentiles
was a task given to Paul by our Lord Jesus Christ. He was kept
by the Lord through all things and he was enabled to be able
to perform that task. He was given the word and the
ability and the opportunity to preach Christ and Him crucified
to His people. And by God's will and power,
Paul completed that stewardship. He completed that dispensation.
Did you know that? He wrote to Timothy, he said,
for I am now ready to be offered at offering of Thanksgiving.
I'm now ready to be offered and at the time of my departure is
at hand. It's almost here. I'm about to go home. My life's
almost done. I have fought a good fight. I
have finished my course. I've finished the stewardship,
the dispensation that the Lord gave me. I have kept the faith.
How do we keep the faith? The Lord gives us faith and He
sustains it. How do we keep the course? How
do we keep what the Lord's put in our hand to do? He strengthens
us. That's how we fight the good
fight. He makes us. He was a prisoner of Christ with
a stewardship, with a task. But now is that only Paul? Is
that just the apostles? Well, they're different. Is that
just preachers in our day? Do I have a commission of the
Lord to preach Christ to His people in this area of the country
and it's just me? Am I different than you? You
that believe Him? Turn over to 1 Peter chapter
4. 1 Peter 4. Paul wrote to the church at Corinth
and he said, Let a man so account of us as the ministers of Christ
and stewards of the mysteries of God. He said us. as the servants
of Christ, ministers of Christ, count us stewards of the mysteries
of God. You that believe on Christ, you
that are made a child of God, you are a steward of the mysteries
of God. You possess it. He's given it
to you and you're stewards of it. All of Christ's sheep are
stewards. We've all received our dispensation
of the Lord. We may not be good stewards, But we ought to be, out of that
debt of gratitude, understanding what it took for the Lord to
save us, to give us that grace, to give us the knowledge, that
mystery of Christ. We ought to be good stewards
of it, shouldn't we? Look here in 1 Peter 4, 7. 1 Peter 4, verse
7. But the end of all things is
at hand. Be ye therefore sober, and watch
unto prayer. And above all things, have fervent
charity among yourselves." Have fervent love, a burning love. For charity shall cover the multitude
of sins. How did Japheth and Shem cover
their father? Lovingly. This is my duty. This is what I'm supposed to
do. I've got to check the block. Oh, they loved him then. Fervent
love. Use hospitality one to another
without grudging. Ever had somebody be nice to
you by the grit of their teeth? Fear. Have a cookie. Cookie don't taste as good, does
it? Be hospitable without holding a grudge. And as every man hath
received the gift, what gift? The gift of salvation, the gift
of grace, the gift of faith, the gift of love, the gift of
knowledge and wisdom, the gift of longsuffering. That's a gift.
The fruits of the Spirit, isn't it? The Lord gave it to us. As
every man hath received the gift, even so, minister the same one
to another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. As the multitude, the immensity
of the grace of God. We are to serve one another with
what the Lord's given us. Believer, how abundant has our
God been to us in mercy. How manifold has He been to us
in grace and in love towards us. Over and over again, He's
gracious to His people. His mercies are new every day.
And what is our task? What's our assignment, our dispensation,
our stewardship? To obey His commandments. To
believe Christ and love the brethren with what He's given us. How
do I love my brethren? God has to love us first. It's
the only way we know it. We learned that in 1 John, didn't
we? We're to love one another, to be hospitable to one another,
and to pray for one another. I ask you, I said some believers
aren't good stewards, are they? How can a believer show hospitality? How can they show grace? How
can they show love if they isolate themselves from the assembly
of the saints? If they hole up in a cave somewhere, and the
only person they are generous to, hospitable to, and love is
that person in the mirror. How can we encourage others and
tell them of the work done of grace in our hearts? Not just
tell them, like, well, when I was 16, I walked down the aisle and
God saved me and everything's been fine since then. No, yesterday
morning, when I was just aching on the inside and just depressed
and downtrodden and horrible, I read this and I thought, boy,
Paul's a prisoner. He was in prison writing a letter
to saints. And he was happy about it. I
ought to be happy too. The Lord lifted me up. Didn't have nothing
to complain about. And I'll come here today. We'll
get a cup of coffee and talk about it. Don't do no good to
that man in the mirror, does it? That's for you. The Lord
did that for me for you. And you for me. Of course there are brethren
that can't meet with other brethren physically, geographically, rule
their country. It's legal in some countries.
But they communicate with other believers, don't they? They pray
for other believers. They pray for the saints. They
encourage the saints. No, they go out of their way
to. They have to. That's a family. Knows that God enables to be
stewards of the grace of God. He causes them to be steadfast
until the end. And He strengthens them in Christ
to the end. To run a good race. To finish
that assignment. To finish that course. To love
the brethren and bear their burdens and to keep the faith. He strengthens
us to do that. Back in our text. That sounds
mysterious stuff. Sounds mysterious to the natural
man. All that working I could do. I could help the hungry. We could dig wells in Africa. We can do all these things. Do! I could go around your houses
and make sure you ain't got nothing on the shelf you ain't supposed
to have. There's a lot of stuff I could do. You mean to tell
me all I gotta do is just show up to service? To be an encouragement
to your brother when he don't feel like it? To listen to a
brother or sister. Give them an ear. Bear with them. Bear their burdens and infirmities.
Suffer with them. Pray for them. Tell them what
the Lord's done for us. That's it. That's it. Well, it just comes natural,
don't it? If the Lord's grace crosses in you, it's going to
bust out. It comes natural. You can't keep from it. It's
your family. That's all we've got to do. That's mysterious.
It's mysterious that that contentment is given to the child of God.
It could be so great that they consider it an honor and happy
to be in prison. That's mysterious. You're crazy. What's wrong with you? You know,
that's only part of the mystery. That's only the result of having
a true mystery revealed to us. The Lord truly teaching us something. Look here at verse 3. Ephesians 3, 3. How that by revelation
He hath made known unto me the mystery. What's He talking about?
What mystery? As I wrote afore in few words,
whereby when ye read, You may understand my knowledge in the
mystery of Christ." The few words that he just had wrote us in
chapter 1 and chapter 2. And when you read, because you
have to read chapter 1 and chapter 2 to get here, don't you? I'd
go through that. And they'll read it again. They'll
read it in front of that church. We read it again here, don't
we? You may understand Paul's knowledge in the mystery of Christ. when we see everything that the
Holy Spirit writes to His people in chapter 1 and 2. And now we're
reading Paul saying he's a happy prisoner of Christ. And preaching to them and writing
to them is the assignment that he was blessed to be given of
our Master. You may understand this mystery
he's speaking of. How is it that a man or woman
can understand the mystery of God's grace, the mystery of the
gospel, of His mercy, of His electing eternal love? It's got
to be revealed. He says there in verse 3, how
that by revelation He made known unto me the mystery. How did
Paul know the mystery of Christ, of His person and His work for
His people? It was revealed to him. How do
you and I understand this mystery? It's not by our own wisdom. It's
not by our own knowledge. You know, Paul was brilliant.
Paul was brilliant in the flesh. In this world, he was brilliant.
Do you think we can figure out something that great, worldly-wise? Do you think we can figure out
something that great that that brilliant man had to have revealed
to him? I wrote this down just a minute
ago. They didn't have Braille back then. Paul had to have somebody
write for him. Cataracts or whatever it was
in his vision, he wasn't able to see. How did he know so much
Scripture? The Lord blessed it to him. He
was brilliant, wasn't he? This great man knew so much.
We call them mental giants. He had to have it revealed to
him. Well, I can figure it out on
my own. I don't think so. Turn over to Matthew chapter 11. Spurgeon
used to say, if you speak of sin, it offends the natural man's
dignity. And if you discount all of our
good works, it offends Man's righteousness offends his good
works. And if you speak of effectual atonement, of free grace, it
offends man's pride. But if you shut him up to revelation,
that's a good word, Nana. If you shut him up to revelation,
it offends his wisdom. God has to teach us something.
He has to be our teacher. He has to reveal it in our hearts.
And then our pride and our wisdom gets upset. I can do it by myself. All people think they know God.
Especially this time of year, doesn't it? You know Jesus? They say they do, don't they?
You know who Christ was? Oh yeah, he was born in a manger.
I know. Scripture says if a man thinks he knows, he does not
know as he ought to know. If we think, if we've ciphered
this mystery out, we sit down and figured it out, on our own,
we do not know what we think we ought to know. Look here,
Matthew 11, verse 25. And at that time, Jesus answered
and said, I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because
Thou hast hid these things, what things? The things of Christ,
the things of the covenant of grace, the love of God, the love
of our brethren. You have hid these things from
the wise and the prudent, those clever, those intellectuals,
and has revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father, for it seemed
good, and I saw it." It's got to be revealed. Christ said so. His Father has to reveal it to
him. Turn over a few pages to Matthew 16. Matthew, this is one of my favorite
passages, first passage of Scripture I ever preached out of, so it
kind of, kind of dear to me. Matthew 16, verse 13. When Jesus
came into the coast of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples,
saying, Whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? And they
said unto Him, Some say they are John the Baptist. They thought
that, didn't they? Imagine that. Some say Elias, and others Jeremiah,
or one of the prophets. They have a lot of their own
conceits. They're wise in their own conceits, aren't they? But
He saith unto them, unto them, Whom say ye that I am? And Simon
Peter. That great theologian, not fisherman,
commercial fisherman. Simon Peter answered, said, Thou
art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered
and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh
and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which
is in heaven. How did Peter know that? God
of heaven taught him in his heart. And that new man, it revealed
it to him. That's the only way a person's going to know who
Christ is and what His work finished for His people forever is for
the Lord to reveal it in our hearts. Paul wrote to the church
of Corinth, he said, But as it is written, I have not seen nor
heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which
God hath prepared for them that love Him, for His people. But
God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit. For the Spirit
searches all things, yea, the deep things of God." How are
we going to understand all His mysteries? The Lord is going
to reveal it to our hearts. It's a work He must perform. I'm back
in our text. All that the Father reveals Himself
to come to Christ. Those that He reveals Himself
to, they come to Christ. They follow Christ. They desire
the Word of God. They crave to hear of our Master. so that revelation has been made.
They crave to know Christ, to know more of Him, to love Him
more, and to rejoice with the brethren that know Him and love
Him, that He abides in. And they will have contentment
in whatever the assignment it is that the Lord has given them.
They will know that the mystery of Christ was revealed to them
by the Spirit, and they will want to have more revealed, want
to know more of Him. And they will be given discernment
of what is true of the Word of God. He'll give us discernment
in His Scriptures. Look here in Ephesians 3 verse
1, For this cause I, Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for
you Gentiles, if ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace
of God which is given me to youward, how that by revelation he made
known unto me the mystery, as I wrote afore in few words, whereby
when ye read You may understand my knowledge in the mystery of
Christ." When we read this, when this has been shown to us, taught
in our hearts, revealed to us, do we understand Paul's knowledge
in the mysteries of Christ? Is Paul telling us the truth?
That's what he's getting at. Do we know that what he's saying
is right? We do, don't we? He's telling us the truth, isn't
he? We'll see there in verse 5. which in other ages was not
made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto His
holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit, that the Gentiles,
us, should be fellow heirs and of the same body and partakers
of His promise in Christ by the gospel." We're going to be takers
of the promises of God. put in Christ, and we're going
to be notified of that by the Holy Spirit, by the preaching
of the gospel. If you work all that backwards,
we hear the gospel preached, the Lord reveals His mysteries
in Christ to us, and He gives us a task. He gives us a stewardship
to love our brethren and to believe Christ. Whatever state that we
end up, if we know those things, If the Lord does that to us,
we are proud prisoners, aren't we? Thankful to be exactly where
we are in the Lord's providence. I pray we can see that stewardship
He's given us and that we can be content in that assignment
and that He continues to give us more and more understanding
of His grace and what He's done for us. Amen.