Over the last couple of months Selina and I have been studying the book of Ephesians with two other couples. When studying Ephesians 2, I was struck anew by the language we see in verses 1-5. These verses are as follows:
“1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins 2 in which you previously walked according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient. 3 We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, 5 made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace!” (emphasis mine)
As human beings created in God’s image, we are capable of absolutely incredible things. Mankind has created means of transportation in cars, trains and planes that make trips that used to take months (or years!), able to be completed in just hours. We have created phones and computers that allow us to talk (even with video) with anyone, anywhere in the world with essentially no delay. We have created programs that allow real-time translation so even language barriers can be overcome. We have built spacesuits and rockets that have allowed humans to travel outside of our atmosphere and even land on the moon, and then safely return again to Earth. We have created medical equipment that allows surgeons to remove someone’s defective heart and replace it with a working one. Amazing!
As human beings we have accomplished some truly incredible things. We invent, create, build and construct. We fine-tune, adjust, renovate and improve. We fix, repair, resolve, remedy and restore. We can even mend, cure and heal with the right equipment and medicines. However, despite all of these things that we can do and have done, there is still something we can’t do. We can’t make that which is dead alive. No human has ever made life. That which is dead, remains dead despite our greatest ideas, achievements and creations. To “make alive” is the work of God.
You may have heard it said that humans have a sin problem. We do, but to say it like this doesn’t necessarily communicate the severity of the situation. We don’t have a sin problem like we may have a mouse problem in our basement. A quick call to the exterminator or a few mouse traps and our problem is resolved. There are solutions at our disposal to solve that kind of problem. Ephesians 2:1-5 tells us, rather, that our sins have made us spiritually dead. Not sick from sin. Not injured from sin. Not beset by sin. We are dead because of our sins. And the thing about being dead is that once you are dead, there is nothing you can do. It’s just like with our physical lives. While we are sick or injured we have means to try and get better. Once we are dead, there is nothing we can do. It’s over. There is no hope left.
And that is our spiritual reality apart from Christ. We are dead in our sins. There is no amount of good deeds, asking for forgiveness, making amends, praying, tithing or anything else we do that we think brings us favor with God, that can make even one iota of difference in our standing before God. We are already dead. We are dead and without hope in and of ourselves.
Thankfully, we have a God who has the power to make alive that which was was once dead. And that is exactly what He has done in Christ. Even though we were dead, we have been made alive in Christ. And verse four tells us that God makes us alive not because we have earned it, but because of who He is. The God of the universe who created the heavens and the earth is rich in mercy and He loves us. He loves you. He loves me. He loves the people of Senegal. It’s God’s love that motivated Him to send His Son to die and receive the judgement for our sin, and then to raise him back to life, conquering death. And it is only because of this act that we can go from spiritually dead to spiritually alive. By ourselves we are dead and without hope, but in Christ we are made alive and the hope of our salvation is secured. Praise be to God forever and ever!
– Adam
