David Bahn – Reflections

Ephesians 1:1-10

 ¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,

   To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus:

 ² Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

 ³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, ⁴ even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love ⁵ he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, ⁶to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. ⁷ In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, ⁸which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight ⁹ making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ ¹⁰as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

“OK, here’s the plan! You hike the ball. I’ll fade back. You go left. You go right. I’ll fake to him and throw to you, and…” Marks are made in the dirt. The sandlot football game plays are made up on the fly. Sometimes it works. Sometimes, well, not so much. I recall one time when it worked against us. Next time, however, they tried the play. I saw it coming and actually did a blitz and intercepted a lateral in the backfield and scored a touch down! That was a big deal to me; there’s only one such story like that to tell.

God’s plans, however, are not just drawn in the dirt of a sandlot football game; and there are several reasons for that fact. First and foremost we’re talking about God here – the creator of the universe. His wisdom, understanding, power, grace and glory are sublimely perfect. And of course, God has no “Plan B”; he has it all worked out – with every contingency covered even and every set-back accounted for. His is a plan of infinite grace, wisdom, power, purpose, and certainty. God’s kingdom will come; it’s a certainty.

You might wonder, therefore, how it is that we still struggle with sin, sickness, sadness, and shame. If God’s plan has been put into action, and it is certain to come about, why aren’t we all in heaven? Why isn’t earth perfectly joyful? Part of the answer has to do with God’s plan itself: it is a plan that will ultimately exalt his glorious grace; somehow that is yet being played out in real time.

We must also understand that the fullness of time has not yet come. We celebrate the major down-payment on God’s eternal plan at Christmas time. But the full consummation of God’s plan is yet to come. When it does unfold, the lavish grace of God, his wisdom and insight, the mystery of his will, and his purpose set forth in Christ will redound in glory, honor, praise, and joy because of God’s glorious grace. Until then, we live by faith. It’s not a blind faith, for we have seen the down-payment: Jesus has been born, lived, died, and rested in the tomb. He will come again – in the fullness of time – and we who know his love in Christ will be glad!