Matthew Henry Commentary Ephesians 1
Matthew Henry Commentary
Ephesians 1
Matthew Henry Commentary
Ephesians 1
"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, to the saints that are at Ephesus, and the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." — Ephesians 1:1-2 (ASV)
All Christians must be saints; if they do not embody that character on earth, they will never be saints in glory. Those are not saints who are not faithful, believing in Christ, and true to the profession of their relationship with their Lord.
By grace, understand the free and undeserved love and favor of God, and the graces of the Spirit that come from it; by peace, understand all other blessings, spiritual and temporal, which are the fruit of the former. No peace without grace.
There is no peace or grace except from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. And the best saints need fresh supplies of the graces of the Spirit and desire to grow.
"Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly [places] in Christ: even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blemish before him in love: having foreordained us unto adoption as sons through Jesus Christ unto himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved: in whom we have our redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence," — Ephesians 1:3-8 (ASV)
Spiritual and heavenly blessings are the best blessings; with them, we cannot be miserable, and without them, we cannot help but be so. This was from their election in Christ before the foundation of the world—a choice that they should be made holy by separation from sin, set apart to God, and sanctified by the Holy Spirit, as a consequence of their election in Christ.
All who are chosen to happiness as the end are chosen to holiness as the means. In love, they were predestined (or foreordained) to be adopted as children of God by faith in Christ Jesus and to be openly admitted to the privileges of that high relation to Himself.
The reconciled and adopted believer, the pardoned sinner, gives all the praise of his salvation to His gracious Father. His love appointed this method of redemption, did not spare His own Son, and brought believers to hear and embrace this salvation. It was rich grace to provide such a surety as His own Son and freely to deliver Him up.
This method of grace gives no encouragement to evil but rather shows sin in all its hatefulness and how it deserves vengeance. The believer's actions, as well as his words, declare the praises of divine mercy.
"making known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him unto a dispensation of the fulness of the times, to sum up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens, and the things upon the earth; in him, [I say,] in whom also we were made a heritage, having been foreordained according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his will; to the end that we should be unto the praise of his glory, we who had before hoped in Christ: in whom ye also, having heard the word of the truth, the gospel of your salvation,-- in whom, having also believed, ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, which is an earnest of our inheritance, unto the redemption of [God`s] own possession, unto the praise of his glory." — Ephesians 1:9-14 (ASV)
Blessings were made known to believers, by the Lord showing them the mystery of his sovereign will, and the method of redemption and salvation. But these must have been forever hidden from us if God had not made them known by his written word, preached gospel, and Spirit of truth. Christ united the two differing parties, God and man, in his own person, and made satisfaction for the wrong that caused the separation.
He worked, by his Spirit, those graces of faith and love, by which we are made one with God, and among ourselves. He dispenses all his blessings, according to his good pleasure. His Divine teaching led whom he pleased to see the glory of those truths, which others were left to blaspheme. What a gracious promise that is, which secures the gift of the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!
The sanctifying and comforting influences of the Holy Spirit seal believers as the children of God, and heirs of heaven. These are the first-fruits of holy happiness. For this we were made, and for this we were redeemed; this is the great design of God in all that he has done for us; let all be ascribed to the praise of his glory.
"For this cause I also, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which is among you, and the love which [ye show] toward all the saints, cease not to give thanks for you, making mention [of you] in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him; having the eyes of your heart enlightened, that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, and what the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to that working of the strength of his might which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and made him to sit at his right hand in the heavenly [places], far above all rule, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: and he put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all." — Ephesians 1:15-23 (ASV)
God has stored up spiritual blessings for us in His Son, the Lord Jesus; but requires us to draw them out and obtain them by prayer. Even the best Christians need to be prayed for, and while we hear of the welfare of Christian friends, we should pray for them. Even true believers greatly lack heavenly wisdom. Are not the best of us unwilling to come under God's yoke, though there is no other way to find rest for the soul?
Do we not often part with our peace for a little pleasure? And if we disputed less and prayed more with and for each other, we should daily see more and more what is the hope of our calling and the riches of the Divine glory in this inheritance. It is desirable to feel the mighty power of Divine grace, beginning and carrying on the work of faith in our souls. But it is difficult to bring a soul to believe fully in Christ and to venture its all, and the hope of eternal life, upon His righteousness.
Nothing less than Almighty power will work this in us. This signifies that it is Christ the Saviour who supplies all the necessities of those who trust in Him and gives them all blessings in the richest abundance. And by being partakers of Christ Himself, we come to be filled with the fullness of grace and glory in Him. How then do those forget themselves who seek for righteousness apart from Him!
This teaches us to come to Christ. And if we knew what we are called to and what we might find in Him, surely we would come and be suitors to Him. When feeling our weakness and the power of our enemies, we most perceive the greatness of that mighty power which effects the conversion of the believer and is engaged to perfect His salvation. Surely this will constrain us by love to live to our Redeemer's glory.
Jump to: