In 3:7 Paul says that he “became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God.” As we pointed out in the previous message, a minister is one who serves. Therefore, we should not just be stewards, but also ministers, serving ones.
The words “of which” in verse 7 refer to the gospel in verse 6. This indicates that Paul became a minister of the gospel, that is, one who served others with the gospel. We also are ministers of the gospel. This gospel is not concerned with heaven, but with the nations becoming “joint-heirs and a joint Body and joint-partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus” (v. 6). The gospel spoken of in verse 6 has to do with joint-heirs, a joint Body, and joint-partakers of the promise. All the saints can be ministers of such a high and rich gospel.
We need to preach the high gospel to our parents, neighbors, and friends. Tell them about becoming joint-heirs and joint-partakers of the promise in Christ. If they argue with you in a negative way, simply continue to speak positively to them about what you have seen in the book of Ephesians. Do not be worried that they may not be able to understand you. If you regularly speak to them in a proper way, they will eventually understand what you are saying. Let us all speak to others from the book of Ephesians.
If we would reach the standard established by the Apostle Paul, our whole being needs to be strengthened into the inner man. By being strengthened into the inner man, we shall be rooted and grounded in love and shall become strong to apprehend the dimensions of Christ, to know the knowledge-surpassing love of Christ, and to be filled unto all the fullness of God (3:16-19). Paul was a person with his entire being strengthened into the inner man. Therefore, he was rooted and grounded in love and knew the dimensions of Christ and the knowledge-surpassing love of Christ. What about us? Paul prayed that we would be strengthened into the inner man so that, ultimately, we might be filled unto all the fullness of God.
Do not think that Paul could be such a person, but that you cannot. The crucial point in chapter three is that Paul expected all the saints to be the same as he was. We all can and should be strengthened into the inner man. Likewise, we all should be rooted and grounded in love, and we all should be strong to know the dimensions of Christ, to know the knowledge-surpassing love of Christ, and to be filled unto all the fullness of God.
In chapter three of Ephesians we see that Paul’s desire was for all the saints to be the same as he was. In verses 2 through 9 he expressed this from one angle, and in verses 16 through 19 he related it from another. From one angle, we are stewards, we have received grace, we have seen the revelation of the mystery, and we are ministers of the high gospel. We minister the riches of Christ so that the church may be produced in a practical way. From another angle, we need to be strengthened into the inner man so that we may be rooted and grounded in love and may become strong to know the dimensions of Christ, to know the knowledge-surpassing love of Christ, and to be filled unto all the fullness of God. From both angles, we need to be the same as Paul was. If we are the same as he was, we shall be walking worthily of God’s calling, for we shall be up to the standard for a believer.
As he was about to beseech the saints to have a walk worthy of God’s calling, Paul became burdened to insert the parenthetical word found in 3:2-21. In this parenthetical section, Paul presented himself as the standard of a normal, proper believer in Christ. He was one who had received grace, who was a steward, who had seen the revelation, and who had become a minister of the high gospel. He was one who preached the riches of Christ as the gospel for the producing of the church. As such a one, he was strengthened into the inner man, he was rooted and grounded in love, he knew the dimensions of Christ and the love of Christ, and he was filled unto the fullness of God, which is the church as the expression of the Triune God. Today we all can be such a person. Praise the Lord that in Ephesians 3 we have not only the standard, but also the way to reach the standard!