From God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
Ephesians 6:23-24
April 26, 2020
Abraham Hong
Sermon Script
Here we are at the very end of the book of Ephesians. It is a special ending. It is special because it was God’s words of blessing to our brothers and sisters in Ephesus. And it is still special today. Because it is God’s words of blessing to us here at Highland.
What a beautiful way to end this letter. Paul ended with a benediction. He ended with words of blessing. Words of proclamation and promise. Words that ultimately come from from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
This is big. Think about it. In the beginning, all things were created by the word of God. Remember Genesis 1. God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. In the fullness of time, we were given the living word, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Remember John 1. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.
And now, as we wait for Jesus’ return, we are encouraged by God’s words of blessing. Remember how Ephesians ends. Peace be to the brothers, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible.
This is so heartwarming. Think deeply here. Your God speaks to you. He has words to say about you. And they are good words. They are words of blessing. Your King proclaims to you and promises to you his peace, his love, and his grace.
You and I, we need his words of blessing. Because we are weak. Because we suffer and because we are under attack. We need his words of blessing because we often talk to ourselves way too much. Because we tend listen to the words of others.
Praise be to our God. The Good Shepherd speaks to his sheep. The bridegroom speaks to his bride. He speaks to us words of blessing.
And this is what he blesses you with.
First, God blesses you with his peace. You have the peace of God.
Before you repented of your sins and believed in Jesus, you were an enemy of God. You were a sinner who lived in rebellion against him. You were not right with God. You were alienated from him. Your relationship with God was not a relationship of blessing. It was a relationship of curse. You did not have peace.
But Jesus reconciled you to the Father and secured his peace for you. Jesus took your sins and credited it to himself and died with it. He took the wrath and the punishment and the hell that was meant for you. He suffered and bled and died for you.
Now you are blessed with the peace of God. There is no more condemnation. There is no more hostility or enmity. God is no longer against you. He is with you. You are now a child of God and a part of his royal family. You are right with him. Your relationship with him has been restored.
This is the peace of God. And you are blessed with it.
Second, God blesses you with his grace. You have the grace of God.
The grace of God can be defined as this: unmerited favor. Kindness and benevolence that is undeserved.
This is so humbling. You have the righteousness of Christ and eternal life. You don’t deserve it. But you have it. You have a place in the new heavens and new earth and a seat at Jesus’ banqueting table. You don’t deserve it. But you have it. You have Jesus. You don’t deserve him. But you have him.
This is the grace of God. And you are blessed with it.
Third, God blesses you with his love. You have the love of God.
And his love is incorruptible because Jesus is incorruptible. Incorruptible means imperishable, indestructible, forever.
In many English translations of the Bible, it looks like the incorruptible love is referring to our love for God. But it is actually the reverse. The incorruptible love is really God’s love for us. I can say this because 1) the grammatical structure of the original Greek links incorruptibility more with Jesus and less with our love, 2) the incorruptibility of our love for God is not a major theme at all in Ephesians whereas the incorruptibility of Jesus is a huge theme of Ephesians and the entire Bible, and 3) this is a benediction moment with a focus on God’s work for us and not a command moment with a focus on our work for God and none of Paul’s benedictions have conditions attached to them. And so perhaps the best translation of this verse is this: “Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ, all who dwell in incorruptibility.”
Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has resurrected from the dead. He is incorruptible. His body is imperishable (1 Corinthians 15). His life is indestructible (Hebrews 7:16). And… what is also imperishable, indestructible, and incorruptible… is his love for you.
This means that his love for you does not waver or change or fade away. This means that he would never say to you, “I don’t love you anymore.” Nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus your Lord (Romans 8:35-39). God’s love for you has no beginning or end. God will never stop loving you. As one theologian put it, “The best proof that [God] will never cease to love us lies in [the fact] that He never began” (Geerhardus Vos). God cannot possibly stop loving you, because he never started loving you. His love for you is eternal. His love for you is incorruptible. Jesus will never let you go.
This is the love of God. And you are blessed with it.
Dear Highland, you are so blessed. You have God’s peace, God’s grace, and God’s love. And I just want you to know that this morning.
Christian life is not easy. We go through many trials and temptations. We worry and we get stressed. We face persecution. We feel discouragement. When we go through these things, it is easy to forget that we are blessed. Blessed by God our Father. Blessed by our Lord Jesus Christ.
Maybe your kids will not turn out the way that you want them to turn out. Maybe you won’t get the job or career of your dreams. Maybe 2020 will end up being one of the worst years ever. Maybe you will want to lose hope and give up on something or someone. And so you conclude that you are not blessed.
But please know this. God has spoken. God has, in these last days, spoken to us by his Son. Jesus speaks his words of blessing to you.
Does his words mean nothing to you? Does his blessing make no difference in your life? Does his peace and his grace and his love give you little joy? I hope not. I hope his words mean everything to you. I hope that his blessing makes a big difference in your life.
You have God’s peace. You have God’s grace. You have God’s love. You are blessed in Christ. Dear church, may your hearts and minds be filled this morning with the joy of Jesus’ salvation.
Soli Deo Gloria