Ephesians • Remember the Treasure of Your Rescue from Darkness

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Do you remember what it was like when you were in spiritual darkness? The Bible says that every human is born into the kingdom of darkness. And we have a spiritual enemy who keeps people in that darkness. But our God rescues anyone who turns to Him. In the last article in this series, we learned that we begin our treasure hunt with looking at Jesus Christ. He is our first and most important treasure! This is post #3 in the Ephesians blog series. In this post, we will look at the treasure we receive of being rescued from darkness.

Listen to this post as a similar podcast from the Seek the Treasure Bible Study covering Ephesians in the New Testament. (8 lessons)

A Really Dark Place

Think of a time when you were in a really dark place, I’m talking about physically dark with not even a glimmer of light. Walking in a cave. Camping in the woods. Standing in a room with no windows when the electricity goes out.

How did that make you feel? Afraid? Alone? You long for light from any source, don’t you?

What can happen when you are walking in a dark house at night? You can bump into things. If you hear strange noises, your imagination can go wild making you terrified.

Our house at night is very dark. But when I walk down the dark hallway, I begin to see a little light coming from the skylight in the living room. I gain perspective again and can find the doorway into that room. That light coming through the skylight rescues me out of darkness and brings me into a place of light.

That’s what God does for us. He rescues people out of spiritual darkness, and He brings them into His wonderful light.

Born into the Kingdom of Darkness

Do you remember what it was like when you were in spiritual darkness?

The Bible says that every human is born into the kingdom of darkness. And we have a spiritual enemy who keeps people in that darkness.

In 2 Corinthians 4, Paul described this darkness by saying,

The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. (2 Corinthians 4:4)

Unbelievers have blinded minds. They cannot see the light. They live in darkness. Do you know someone like that? Were you like that at one time?

Paul described life in this blinded dark condition in Ephesians chapter 2, beginning in verse 1…

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts…” (Ephesians 2:1-3)

Before Christ, you were not only blind. You were also dead. And a lot of substitute powers are influencing spiritually blind and dead people.

Read the previous blog describing what substitute powers are and how to recognize them.

The Substitute Power of the World

The first substitute power is the world. Ephesians 2:2 says you followed the ways of this world. Not just one way, but you followed many “ways” of this world. The ways of the world are a substitute power for living.

Paul talked about the ways of the world a lot in his letter called 1 Corinthians. Apparently, you could meet a so-called wise man on every street in Corinth who had his own solutions to the world’s problems.

Doesn’t that sound like today? You can find “wise men” all over the internet and follow all kinds of seemingly good advice for living your life. There are a lot of SUBSTITUTE WAYS for approaching life available to everyone. Most of them do not lead to God’s way of approaching life. The world is a substitute power.

The Substitute Power of the Devil

Another substitute power is the devil. Ephesians 2:2 says that there is a spirit now at work in those who are disobedient. That rebel leader is Satan, also known as “the devil,” and those with him in rebellion against God are called “demons.” Demons are angels created by God at the beginning of creation. But they chose to rebel against God instead.

Satan and his demonic forces do everything they can to thwart the good purposes of God. They gain control over people through deception, counterfeits, fear, manipulation, and torment. Demons are behind every act of rebellion against authority. And demonic forces offer a substitute power for living that always leads to disobedience and rebellion against God.

The Substitute Power of the Flesh

Power of the flesh

The third substitute power at work is the flesh. This is what is stated in v. 3, “gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts.”

The sinful nature is also called “the flesh” in the Bible. It is that part of the human spirit that is in rebellion against God. Living by the flesh is a substitute power for living.

Read more about the flesh in this blog, “John 8 • Adulterous Woman, Jesus satisfies your heart with VICTORY.”

Here is how it is described in Ephesians chapter 4,

“So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.” (Ephesians 4:17-19)

Not a pretty picture! That’s the power of the flesh.

Once controlled by the flesh

In the context of Ephesians, the reference to Gentiles means those who are still unbelievers. It’s not referring to the Gentile Christians. But many of the Ephesians who had been Gentiles remembered what life was like for them.

Following the desires and thoughts of the sinful nature leads to skewed thinking and darkened understanding. There’s that blindness again.

Hardening of hearts feeds their ignorance about God.

Losing all sensitivity leads to giving oneself over to gratifying every kind of fleshly desire just like we read in Ephesians 2:3.

And unbelievers are separated from the life of God. They are blind and dead because substitute powers are not life-giving.

The world, the devil, and the flesh as substitute powers are not life-giving. The opposite happens.

Hopelessness of the flesh

Ephesians chapter 2 says this,

remember that at that time you were separate from Christ … without hope and without God in the world. (Ephesians 2:12)

Without hope and without God in the world. That’s very sad.

The world, the devil, and the flesh are very powerful substitutes. But spiritually dead people are not necessarily criminals or immoral. Someone who is controlled by the devil, the world, and the flesh could be a good person who receives applause from the world for doing good works. One writer described such a person as being moral, proud, and individual. She thinks she is self-governed and has no need of God.

You know people like that, don’t you? Maybe you were like that once.

There are a lot of blind people walking around. And in their blindness-darkness-deadness, they are groping along the walls to find their way to a door that will give them purpose in life. Most don’t even know they’re blind until they see a light illuminating the way to something more beautiful than what they’ve ever known.

But God had compassion on all of us who were living in darkness. He is the light to lead us out of it. And John chapter 1 tells us about that,

[God’s] light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:5)

God’s light is shining in the darkness. And no matter how bad your situation is, the darkness of this world, the devil, or your own sinful flesh cannot overcome God’s light that leads you to being rescued. He rescues you and brings you into His light.

God’s Rescue

God acted to rescue us from that wretched condition. Ephesians chapter 2 continues with these marvelous words,

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.” (Ephesians 2:4-5)

God was motivated by His great love for us and His mercy for our wretched condition. Because of that love, He sent His Son to die on the cross for our sins. Because of Christ’s finished work on the cross, God extends His grace to every human living in darkness. It’s an invitation to come out of the darkness. To be rescued.

Three Powerful Words

Three words associated with God are more powerful than any of those 3 influences holding you in darkness (the world, the devil, and the flesh). We find those beautiful words in Ephesians chapter 2.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Those three powerful words are grace, saved, and faith. Let’s look at them more closely.

Grace

Grace is undeserved favor. It is a gift we don’t deserve. Because of Christ’s finished work on the cross, God extends an invitation to every human living in darkness. The invitation is this: come out of the darkness. Be rescued. No one on planet Earth deserves this gift of rescue. God offers this to us because of His great love for us. By His grace, you have been rescued from the darkness.

Saved

The rescue is our salvation. God saves us from the darkness of sin and also from His own judgment against sin. That’s what salvation means. We are rescued by our faith in Jesus Christ. And we are made alive so we are no longer dead. That happens the moment you place your faith in Jesus Christ.

Faith

What is faith? First, let’s cover what faith is not. Faith is not a blind belief or mindless gullibility. It is not a life of passivity and doing nothing. Faith is also not a religious feeling like a tingle or good feeling from performing some ritual.

So, if faith is not that, what is it? The word “faith” means a “belief, trust, and commitment of mind and heart to something or someone.” There are three things we know about faith:

Faith is intelligent. That means first you need to know about that something or someone. It is based on information about the object of your faith.

Faith is also decisive. It involves the element of assent or agreement that the information about that someone or something is true.

Faith requires an act of the will. Any conscious choice that involves trust, reliance, or dependence on someone or something requires a deliberate action to choose to trust the information. It is the difference between walking alongside a pool of water (seeing it is there) and floating on the water (experiencing the water personally).

Christians of the first century AD recognized that the whole content of the gospel message is Jesus. They agreed that the information about Jesus was definitely true. They decided to trust God completely and believe in His Son Jesus Christ.

Simply put, faith is placing your trust in God and His Word. It is a full commitment to Christ. When you received Christ, you put your trust in Christ and His death for your sin. Instead of believing in your own ability to earn God’s favor, you now trust that you have been reconciled to God through what Christ has done for you.

By God’s grace, you are saved through your faith

It is by your faith in Christ alone that you are rescued from your blindness, darkness, and deadness.

God rescues you from the destruction caused by sin. He offers you this salvation by His grace that is given to you. It is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast of their efforts. Your response to God’s gift of rescue is to say, “Yes. I accept.” That’s a response of faith.

Let’s say you were standing before God and He asked you, “Why should I let you into my heaven?” You can answer, “I know I am saved by your grace through my faith in your Son Jesus Christ.” You are in!

Faith Is Fed by Knowing God

Trust or faith is always an issue of credibility. It is hard to trust God if you don’t know Him. Faith is fed by knowing God. The more you know Him, the easier it is to trust Him. You don’t have more faith by talking about faith. You get more faith by getting to know the object of your faith, your God. That increases your confidence in Him.

Knowing God’s character plus knowing His promises give you plenty of reasons to consider Him trustworthy. The Bible describes that confidence as having your feet firmly planted on solid rock with God as your Rock. He is a trustworthy God.

I heard Bible teacher Rebecca Carrell say that God’s plan for your life is simple:

Follow His Son. But you won’t follow someone you don’t trust. You can’t trust someone you don’t know, and you cannot know Christ apart from His Word. (Rebecca Carrell, heartstrongfaith.com)

That’s why it is so important to study the Bible. We have not physically beheld the risen Christ as the apostles did. We must see Him through eyes of faith and allow the gospels to leap off the page revealing our Lord. And Jesus isn’t just in the gospels. When you read the book of Acts, you can see how Jesus was repeatedly involved in everyone’s lives even after He ascended to heaven.

And here’s another treasure, we are given a new purpose in life:

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Ephesians 2:10)

Once you are saved, you are a new creation in Christ—God’s handiwork with a new purpose. God has some good works for you to do. These good works are not for you to gain your salvation or even keep it. They are ways for you to express your love and gratitude for what God has already done for you. It’s a win/win!

God’s Power Rescues You

God’s power rescues people out of spiritual darkness through faith in Jesus Christ. And He brings them into His wonderful light.

When you were helpless, His love, mercy, grace, kindness, and life-giving spirit stepped in to meet your need. His power rescues anyone who comes to Him through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. That’s all it takes to be rescued.

No one reading this blog is from a rougher background than those Ephesians. Did you grow up being deceived? Were you mistreated? Do you still struggle with relying on your own feeble power to make your way in the world?

Jesus Christ came to rescue you from that condition. This letter was written by the Holy Spirit through Paul to show them and you how to overcome whatever is coming against you. There may be evil spiritual forces behind the people, the habits, and the situations that are messing up your life. But the answer is not to try out everything available to see if something “sticks.” The answer is found in what Jesus already provides to you in Himself.

Have you made that choice by faith in Jesus Christ? If you aren’t sure, I invite you to do so today, right now.

Please consider praying this prayer along with me: Thank you, God, for loving me and for sending Your Son Jesus to die for my sins. I trust in Jesus Christ to be my personal Savior and turn my entire life over to You. Thank you for rescuing me. Amen.

If you did that, tell someone.

As soon as you trust in Christ to be your Savior, you begin a loving relationship with Him. You receive treasure that is yours to know and experience for the rest of your earthly life and beyond. When you trust in Christ, He is in your life forever. You will never be without Him. Ever!

In the next post, we will rejoice as we finger all the spiritual blessing jewels we have from Christ in our treasure chest.

Let Jesus satisfy your heart with the confidence that the treasure you have in Him is more powerful and valuable than anything you could substitute for Him.

All of the above information is covered in the Seek the Treasure Bible Study covering Ephesians in the New Testament.

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