In his prayer a few moments ago,
Rex expressed what I covet from you all the time, as I seek God's
message each hour when I come to preach to you, that you pray
for me. I write a lot of letters to people
every week who correspond about the labors of this congregation
and of your pastor. And seldom do I write that I
don't express this thought in words similar to these. I am
more keenly aware than ever that my most ardent labors are less
than vanity without the blessing of God upon them. And I ask that
you continually pray for me that God would bless the word, make
it effectual, my labors and our labors together effectual for
his people. With that, let's turn to Ephesians
chapter 1. The title of my message is Three
What's and a Who. I use that title not because
I'm trying to be clever, because that's what's in the text. In
this passage of Holy Scripture, the Apostle Paul told the saints
at Ephesus his desire for them. These are the things he prayed
that God would do for these who were his saints at Ephesus. But
don't ever read such things and think, well, that was for the
Ephesians. If Paul sought this and wrote it by divine inspiration
for God's saints at Ephesus, this is that which we need ourselves,
and this is my prayer, my desire, this is what I want for you,
God's people in this place. This is my prayer for you. For
you who yet do not know our God, you who are yet without Christ,
lost and undone. And this is my prayer for you
who are His saints, you who are born of God, you who have faith
in Christ. Our text will be Ephesians 1,
verses 18, 19, and 20. But let's begin reading at verse
15. Wherefore, I also, after I heard
of your faith, in the Lord Jesus and love unto all the saints. Paul is telling these saints
in Ephesus, there's a common rumor about you. It's been going
around that you believe God and you love his people. And if you
believe God and love his people, the rumor spreads. As I heard
of your faith, in the Lord Jesus and your love to all the saints.
And since I first heard this, I cease not to give thanks for
you. I thank God for his grace upon
you. I thank God for choosing you,
redeeming you, calling you, giving you life and faith in Christ
and giving you this grace, making mention of you in my prayers,
calling on God on your behalf. And this is what I ask God to
do. that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, you read that statement,
and ought to stand in awe. Jesus Christ, the man, lived
on this earth as God's servant in obedience to God, worshiping
God, believing God, serving God, just like we do only perfectly
and as our representative. He is the God of our Lord Jesus
Christ in that sense. The father of glory. This one
who is the God of our Lord Jesus is the father of glory. All the glory awaiting us. All the glory that we shall possess,
all the glory bestowed on His Son as the reward of His obedience. I pray that God, the God of our
Lord Jesus Christ, the God of your mediator and mine, the God
of that glory awaiting you and me, that He may give unto you
the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. in the
knowledge of God, in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, that
God may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation. What does he mean by that? He
tells us plainly what the spirit of wisdom and revelation is in
the knowledge of Christ in the next verses. The eyes of your
understanding being enlightened, that ye may know what is the
hope of His calling? And what the riches of the glory
of His inheritance in the saints? And what is the exceeding greatness
of His power to us who believe according to the working of His
mighty power which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him
from the dead and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly
places. Our text, verse 18, begins with
a personal experience, an experience within the heart, within the
mind, within the judgment. Paul says, I'm praying for you,
the eyes of your understanding being enlightened. This is what
I ask God to do for you who have been enlightened by His grace
in the new birth. Everything depends upon the opened
eyes. The scene, whatever it is, may
be fair, beautiful, magnificent to look on, but if there's no
eye to see it, the scene is meaningless to the person standing there.
Zedekiah the king was taken by the king of Babylon and his eyes
were put out. And then Zedekiah was brought
to that magnificent city, one of the wonders of the world.
Those vast halls, the magnificent palaces, the hanging gardens
for which the city was famous. Zedekiah beheld nothing of that
magnificent wonder of the world because he had no eyes to see. The glory of the kingdoms and
the beauty of the Caldees excellency, he could not see. That's the
way it is with all men by nature, spiritually. We are blind. We see nothing. Fallen man has
no knowledge and no apprehension of spiritual things. No power
to discern spiritual things. No power to discern eternal good. Our foolish hearts are darkened. Therefore the Lord must first
open your eyes that you may see. Hold your hands here in Ephesians
and turn back to our Lord's marvelous discourse with Nicodemus in John
chapter 3. Nicodemus came to the Lord Jesus,
this learned, well-trained, highly educated, brilliant leader of
the Pharisees. And he said, I know your teacher
come from God, for no man can do the miracles that you do.
And the Lord Jesus said to Nicodemus, Nicodemus, you must be born again. And Nicodemus said, why, that's
ridiculous. He answered him in the most cocky,
arrogant way imaginable, ridiculing what he'd said. He said, how
can a man be born again? Can he crawl back up into his
mother's belly? Can he go back to his mother's
womb and be born a second time? Why, that's absurd. Nicodemus
wasn't being polite, he was being a smart aleck, because he didn't
have a clue what he was talking about. And Jesus answered, verse
5, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of
water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
You've got to be born, not just naturally, but spiritually. Born not just by natural process,
but born of the Spirit of God. Otherwise, you cannot enter the
Kingdom of God. Then our Savior explains, that
which is born of the flesh is flesh. That which is born natural
is just natural. That which is born of the water
from a mother's womb is just flesh, nothing else. That which
is born of the Spirit, that's Spirit. When God comes to the
dead sinner, he makes that man who is body and soul to be body,
soul, and spirit again, putting a new nature in it. Marvel not
that I said unto thee, you must be born again. And this is how
it happens. The wind bloweth where it listeth. Thou hearest the sound thereof,
but canst not tell whence it cometh and whither it goeth.
everyone that is born of the Spirit. Men and women are born
again by the sovereign pleasure of God Almighty. He gives life
to whom He will, when He will, by the power of His Spirit. The
eyes of your understanding, Paul speaks of back here in Ephesians
1 18, are really the eyes of your soul, the eyes of your heart,
The things of God are seen by the heart. The things of God
are seen by experience. They're not seen by reason or
by logic or by mental ability. They're seen by the heart. There
are a thousand things God has revealed which we shall never
understand. And yet we can know them by faith,
by the experience of God's grace. Our Savior said, are the pure
in heart for they shall see God. Blessed are the pure in heart
for they shall see God. And he's not talking about just
seeing God in the final day of resurrection glory when we see
our God in the face of Christ face to face. Those whose hearts
are purified by grace, by the washing of regeneration and the
renewing of the Holy Ghost, see God, the very glory of God in
the face of Jesus Christ. I pray then that God the Holy
Spirit may enlighten our eyes, yours and mine, to behold and
know the things of God. Turn to that passage I referred
you to just a week or two ago in 1 John. Understand what he's
talking about when he talks about knowledge and understanding.
Oh, may God give us that unction of the Holy Ghost that gives
sinners the mind of Christ, causing us and enabling us to truly know
all things. 1 John chapter 2. John says,
they went out from us because they were not of us. If they
had been of us, they would remain with us to this day. They went
out from us because they were not all of us. And then it speaks
of the sure preservation of God's elect in verse 20. But you have
an unction from the Holy One. In verse 27, the same words translated
anointing. And the unction and the anointing
are not two different things. It's two words for the same thing.
You who believe, you who are born of God, you have an unction
from the Holy One. The Savior has sent His Spirit
upon you. And you who have this unction,
this anointing, this new birth by God the Holy Spirit, you know
all things. Now, he is not suggesting that
because you're born again, you're smarter than other folks. He's
not suggesting because you're born again, you'll understand
mathematics and science better. He's talking about spiritual
things. And he's telling us we who are born of God and taught
of God know everything in the sum revelation of God in the
person of his Son. We know everything we need to
know. I have not written unto you because
you know not the truth, but because you know it. I've been talking
to you and teaching you because you know the truth. And you know
that no lie is of the truth. who is a liar, but he that denieth
that Jesus is the Christ. Everyone who denies. I've chosen
my words deliberately, and I'm repeating to you what I've said
to you countless times these past 35 years. And I pray that
God will give me grace and wisdom to state the same thing to you
repeatedly, and I pray He will seal it to your hearts. Those
who deny, and the vast majority of this religious world, preachers
included, especially preachers, deny that Jesus is the Christ. They do not verbally say Jesus
is not the Christ. But their doctrine, the doctrine
they verbally proclaim, denies that Jesus is the Christ. For
they deny that Jesus of Nazareth actually did perform all that
God in His Word in the Holy Prophets of the Old Testament declared
that Christ would accomplish. They say He tried. They say He
made an effort. They say He did the best He can.
Now the rest is up to you. That's all an utter denial that
Jesus is the Christ. And such people, God the Spirit
here says, are liars. Who is a liar? Who is a liar? But he that denieth that Jesus
is the Christ. He is antichrist. And those who
deny that Christ accomplished righteousness, put away sin,
redeemed his people, fulfilled the word of God and the glory
of God, they are antichrist. Antichrist. Denying the Father
and the Son. Verse 23. Whosoever denieth the
Son, the same hath not the Father. They don't know God. They've
not been taught of God. They're not born of God. They're
lost and undone. But he that acknowledgeth the
Son hath the Father also. Let that therefore abide in you,
which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have
heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall
continue in the Son and in the Father. Now he speaks both of
a responsibility and of a promise. It is our responsibility to ever
seek the abiding presence of God the Holy Spirit by whom we
are sealed in the grace of God. And it is God's promise that
if we're born of God of God, sealed of the Spirit, that blessed
promise of grace shall abide in you. This unction shall continue
to be yours. And this is the promise that
He has promised us, even eternal life. These things have I written
unto you concerning them that seduce you. John says, I've said
all of this because the whole world anti-Christ. The whole religious world surrounding
you, the whole religious world that is constantly seeking to
influence you would seduce you away from Christ. The whole religious
world around you is endeavoring to seduce you away from Christ. Read on. I've written these things
to you concerning those that would seduce you. Verse 27, But
the anointing which you have received of Him, God the Holy
Spirit, Christ in you, the hope of glory, abideth with you. And ye need not that any man
teach you, but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and
is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye
shall abide in Him. All right, let's go back to our
text. Paul's prayer here in Ephesians 1 was offered for believers,
converted people, for those who had faith in Christ Jesus and
love all the saints, who know the truth, who know all things. What's he talking about? He's
talking about believers who know the Lord Jesus, His person, His
work, His grace, that which you know. The Spirit of God continually
teaches you to know. He says that he never ceased
to pray for these believers, for you and me, that the eyes
of our understanding might be enlightened. There is a reason
for that. He who sees most still needs
to have his eyes enlightened to see more. how little we see of the kingdom
of God. How little we see of the kingdom
of God. How little we see of the glory
of God. How little we see of our all
glorious Christ. How little we see. Several years
ago I've told you before I had a experience first time I preached
in California and I don't know that I've ever seen the fellow
since but There were folks came from all around and this young
man came up to me. I guess he was probably maybe
25 30 years old and He said he said brother Fortner you and
I need to talk That's why I'd be happy to talk with you as
you soon as you get an opportunity. He said he said I I'm really
a very spiritual man. I said, well, I'm happy to know
that. And then I kind of brushed it off and he came up to me the
next day. He said, Brother Don, we really need to talk. You would
be astonished at how much I know. And I said, I'm sure I would.
I'm sure I would. But the fact is those who see
most. see how little they see. Those
who know most see how little they know. We see through a glass
darkly. We see through a glass darkly. Turn to Philippians 3. Oh may God give you and give
me opened eyes to see and know our Redeemer. Here's the Apostle
Paul, nearly the end of his days. He'd
been preaching the gospel for a long time. And he says, finally,
my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you
To me, indeed, is not grievous. He said, I'm repeating to you
what I've said to you before, and I'm repeating to you what
I say to God's people all over the world. And for me, it's not
grievous. It's not a burden at all. But
for you, it's safe. Beware of dogs, those that would
seduce you, religious male prostitutes, preachers who come in the name
of God who don't know God. Beware of evil workers. Evil
workers. Who are they? The concision.
Those preachers who would teach you that in order to be holy
and righteous, you need to cut yourself, and you need to beat
yourself, and you need to do without pork, and you need to
not go to the picture shows, and you need to be circumcised. You need to make yourself suffer
in the flesh. In other words, those preachers
who teach you that holiness comes by what you do. Beware of them.
They're dogs. They're evil workers. For we
are the circumcision. We are God's elect. We are God's
covenant people. We are those who have been circumcised
in the heart by God the Spirit, which worship God in the Spirit
and rejoice in Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the flesh,
though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any man, if
any other man thinketh, he hath, whereof he might trust in the
flesh. circumcised the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of
the tribe of Benjamin, and Hebrew of the Hebrews, as touching the
law of Pharisee, concerning zeal, persecuting the church, touching
the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. Paul said,
now, you think you got something to brag about, buddy? I can show
you what good works are. I can show you what religion's
all about. But what things were gained to me Those I counted
loss for Christ. I kissed all my religion goodbye. I kissed all my righteousness
goodbye. I threw it away. I counted but
dumb. That's what I did. But now listen
to what he says I do. Yea, doubtless, and I count all
things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus
my Lord For whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do
count them but done, I do that that I may win Christ, and be
found in him, not having mine own righteousness which is of
the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness
which is of God by faith. Now watch this next line, that
I may know him. that I may know him, I counted
it all lost. I counted it all done, and I'm
counting it all lost. I'm counting it all done, less
than nothing, because I want to know him. To know him whom
to know is life eternal. Even those who stand on the top
of Pisgah's lofty mount and are favored to gaze into the glories
of Emmanuel's land, have not begun to perceive the things
which God has prepared for them that love Him. They've never
entered into our minds. Yes, the Spirit of God has revealed
them to us, and we know them factually as matters of divine
revelation. We know them somewhat experimentally,
having experienced His grace in our souls, but we haven't
begun to imagine. We haven't begun to imagine what
heaven is. Brother, many of us go publications
working on a small book I did years ago on heaven. And I stated repeatedly in the
book, I'm just scratching the surface.
Just scratching the surface. I don't pretend to know what
heaven's glory is. But these things, God has taught
us by His grace and ever continues to teach us. And if believers
need to have their eyes enlightened, how much more must you who were
yet without Christ? O blind eye, may Christ cause
you to see. Let's look at these three what's
and the who. Here's the first what spoken
of in our text. What is the hope His calling. If you would see the hope of
His calling you must be called. Called by the effectual call
of His omnipotent grace. Called by the Holy Spirit and
graciously forced to believe on the Lord Jesus. We have beautiful
pictures given us in the scriptures. Ezekiel saw an infant cast out
from his mother's womb. And the Lord said, I pass by
thee. And I said unto thee, live. That's the call I'm talking about.
We have a picture in Ezekiel 37 of a valley of dry bones portraying
all the host of God's Israel, all the host of God's elect,
a valley of dry bones scattered through a battle laying in the
open field, nothing but bones. And the prophet of God's commanded
to prophesy to the bones. The prophet said, preach to bones? Preach to bones? That's what
we do. We preach to dead sinners. Dead sinners who have no ability
to hear what we say. To dead sinners who have no ability
to hear what we say. And we say, dry bones! Live! Well they can't do that, except
we prophesy to the wind, pray for God the Spirit to come and
blow upon the valley of dry bones and every one of the house of
Israel scattered among those dry bones rise up and live. If you would have your eyes open
and see the things of God you must be called from death to
life by God the Holy Spirit. And if God has called you to
life and faith in Christ by His grace, there are some things
you see. There are some things you see.
Everyone who is born of God, taught of God, sees clearly sin,
righteousness, and judgment. Every one of them. Every one
of them. I don't pretend to suggest they're theologians. I don't
pretend to suggest they can state things in terms that Folks who
think they're brainy and spiritually brainy would approve of. But I'm telling you, everybody
who's born of God knows his sin because he believes not. He knows
that his problem with God is he hates God and won't trust
his son. He will not bow to Christ as
Lord. You know your sin because you believe not. And you know
righteousness. not what righteousness is and
how you go about producing it. You know that righteousness is
accomplished by God's righteous servant, the Lord Jesus, who
went to glory, having brought in everlasting righteousness.
And you know that judgment is finished. There's no condemnation
to them that believe because the prince of this world is judged. Now, if you don't know those
things, you're not born of God. And if you didn't know those
things until just this last minute, You weren't born of God until
just this last minute. All who are taught of God know
these things. The spirit of truth convinces
them that that's so. Our Lord said so in John chapter
16. So that the believer, everyone
who sees the things of God, knows the exceeding sinfulness of sin.
the utter insufficiency of his own righteousness, the beauty,
the glory, the fullness, the ability of Christ as our Savior. They know the excellency and
truth of the gospel. But what is it that Paul desires
for us to see? What does he mean when he says
that you may know what is the hope of his calling? What is
that hope? Certainly, Paul means for us
to understand Christ is our hope, the basis of our hope. is the
finished work of Christ, His blood, His righteousness. Christ,
our hope, is how it is described in Titus chapter 3, verse 1. He is our hope. Our hope is founded
upon, based upon, built upon the finished work of Christ,
His person and His work, His glory, His majesty as God our
Savior. But our hope Is Christ in you
the hope of glory? That which gives sinners hope
is not the fact that Christ died. But when God gives you faith
in Christ, now you have hope. When God makes you a new creature
in Christ, giving you to be partakers of the divine nature, now you
have hope. But Paul is speaking here specifically
about that which we who are called hope for. the hope of his calling. Certainly, he's talking about
our Lord's glorious advent, the second advent called the blessed
hope. Certainly, he's talking about that good hope through
grace bestowed upon us with the gift of faith that enables us
to live in the blessed anticipation of the glory awaiting us. Would
you like to read about it one more time? Turn to Revelation
chapter 21. Revelation 21. I have no idea how many times
I've written about these two passages of scripture or preached
from them to you and around the world. I have no idea how many
times. And I'm convinced that when I get done preaching and
saying all I know about it, I can't do much more than just read what's
here because it's about all I know about it. Will you read with
me? I saw a new heaven and a new
earth. For the first heaven and the
first earth were passed away, and there was no more sea. And
I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God
out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And
I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle
of God is with me, And he shall dwell with them, and they shall
be his people, and God himself shall be with them and be their
God. And God shall wipe all tears from their eyes, and there shall
be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there
be any more pain, for the former things are passed
away. Isn't that amazing? The former
things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne
said, behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, write,
for these words are faithful, are true and faithful. Look at
chapter 22. And he showed me a pure river
of water of life, clear as crystal. Proceeding out of the throne
of God and of the lamb in the midst of the street of it on
either side of the river Was there a tree of life? which bear
twelve manner of fruits and yielded her fruit every month and the
leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations and There
shall be no more curse but the throne of God and of the lamb
shall be in it and his servant shall serve him and they shall
see his face and His name shall be in their foreheads And there
shall be no night there, and they shall need no candle, neither
light of the sun, for the Lord God giveth them light, and they
shall reign forever and ever. And he said unto me, These sayings
are faithful and true. And the Lord God of the holy
prophets sent his angel to show unto his servants the things
which must shortly be done. Behold, I come quickly. Blessed
is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.
Look back at Ephesians 1. Here's the second watch. What
is the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints? Oh, what riches await us. We just read about the resurrection,
immortality, No curse, no pain, no sorrow,
no grief of any kind, no trace of the fall. This is more than I can begin
to comprehend, but I'm as sure of it as I am that I'm standing
here in front of you right now. When our God has finished, finished
all things, You and I will suffer no loss as a consequence of Satan's
fall, and our fall, and our sin, and our father Adam, and all
our transgressions on this earth. But rather we shall be given
a crown of glory, a crown of righteousness that fadeth not
away, and there will be no sorrow, no regrets of any kind. I can
hardly imagine no regrets of any kind. But that's not what
Paul's talking about here in this next watch. He's not talking
about the glory of our inheritance, but rather he's talking about
the riches of the glory of God's inheritance in the saints. What can that be? What can that
be? Can it be that God enriched by
us. I know no more about that than
what I read in the Scriptures. I'll tell you exactly what I
read in the Scriptures. He shall see of the travail of his soul
and shall be satisfied. We who are God's, we who are
Christ's, are the fullness of Him that filleth all in all. When our Savior presents us faultless,
without blame, without spot, without wrinkle, in the perfection
of holiness, in the perfection of His holiness, in the perfection
of His person before the Father, we're told in Scripture He will
do so with exceeding great joy. God, God, God speaks here of
the riches of his inheritance in the saints. Jacob is my portion,
saith the Lord. We're given illustrations of
it in scripture. The good shepherd goes out to find the one lost
sheep and it brings back that sheep and there's joy in the
presence of angels over one sheep that was lost and now is found.
The prodigal son comes home and his father receives him and says,
let's throw a party. My son who was lost is found. He was dead and he's alive again. Rejoice with me. and in heaven's
eternity God shall be glorified before wandering worlds because
of his great grace wrought in us in Christ Jesus bringing us
to the perfection of his own dear son in the glorious liberty
of the sons of God. The quarter text says, I want
you to know what is the exceeding greatness of his power to usward
who believe according to the working of his mighty power which
he wrought in Christ Jesus when he raised him from the dead. What does it take for a sinner to believe God? How will you ever believe Him? I pray for you. I preach to you. I urge you to flee to Christ.
I do all I know to do to set Christ before you, but I can't
give you eyes to see. I can't give you life to live. I can't give you ears to hear. I can't give you a heart to pray,
and nobody else can except God. With men, it is impossible. With
God, even you can believe. With God, all things are possible. What does it take? It takes the
very power of God by which Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. That's what it takes. the very
power of God by which Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. That's the reason the scriptures
speak of the new birth as the first resurrection. It is the
first resurrection, the resurrection of life in the soul. The second
resurrection comes when our Lord Jesus comes again and raises
these bodies from the grave. It takes the power of God to
give sinners faith. Thy people shall be willing in
the day of thy power. Blessed is the man whom thou
choosest and causest to approach unto thee. It's the power of
God that preserves his elect in their lost estate unto Christ. The power of God that gives us
life in the Savior. The power of God that gives us
faith to believe. The power of God that preserves
us in grace. And as we believe now, it takes
that same power for us to believe today that it took for us to
believe this morning. We believe God only in proportion
as he gives us faith and works faith in us. Preacher, that makes
us utterly, completely, entirely, all the time dependent on God? On whom else would you depend? On whom else would you depend?
Now, our text speaks of three what's, and it speaks of one
who, in Christ. In Christ. All this wisdom and
knowledge All the spirit of grace and revelation is given to sinners
in Christ. Believe on Christ. Oh, may God give you eyes to
see Him. May God give you faith to believe
Him. Believe on Christ. And all this
blessedness is as surely yours Christ is Christ. As surely yours
as Christ is God. As surely yours as God himself
sets on his throne. Oh may God have mercy on you
and on me giving us eyes to see. Eyes to behold him. Eyes of faith. with which to rejoice in Him.
Amen.