Gospel Dynamite with J. Allen Mashburn gospeldynamite.org

Verse 4 describes a Divine Intervention. It describes God intervening in our lives to bring us to Jesus Christ by His grace. When God intervened in our lives, He brought us out of spiritual death, spiritual deception, spiritual depravity and spiritual doom. He literally took us out of Adam and placed us in Jesus. Col. 1:13 says it this way, “Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son.” Thank God He has because, “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive,” 1 Cor. 15:22. When we are placed “in Christ”, we become the exact opposite of what we were before. Everything changes, and it changes forever. These verses we will consider today describe the wonderful changes that are suggested in the word “but”. That word is a word of contrasts. Here, Paul contrasts what we have become “in Christ” with what we were before we met Christ.
Not only has God intervened in the lives of the redeemed by loving them and saving them from their lost condition, He also identifies those who are redeemed with His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, when God looks upon His redeemed ones, He never again sees us like we are. He sees us just as we are in Jesus. He does not see our sins, but He sees the righteousness of His Son. He does not see us as we are, but He sees us as He is!
When God interrupted our march toward Hell and saved us by His grace, He changed our relationship with Jesus Christ. In our sins, we were separated from Him. In grace, we are placed into a vital relationship with Him. Notice these verses: “with Christ”, v. 5; “in Christ”, v. 6; “through Christ”, v. 7.
 

Ephesians 2:1-3 describes the deplorable condition of those who are unsaved. These verses remind us that the sinner “is dead in trespasses and sins”. Satan and the world system keep them in a constant state of deception. They are depraved in their appetites and their actions, and in that state, they have no appetite for the things of God. Their only goal is to satisfy their lusts and gratify their flesh. In that dead, deceived, and depraved condition, they are separated from God, and they are doomed to face God in judgment someday.
The lost sinner is in a terrible situation today. My friend, if you have never trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior, you are in trouble! You need to be saved by His grace, and you need to be saved today!

While these verses give us a depressing view into human depravity, these verses are essential to an understanding of the power sin holds over the sinner. Because sin invaded the human race, all humans are now sinners, and lost in their sins, until they come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. I am glad we have spent the time in the verses that we have for a couple of reasons.
 
First, because we considered these verses in depth, there should be no question in our minds that lost sinners are in deep trouble and are in need of a Savior. Second, because we have lingered here, and looked full in the face of the awful human condition, we should be motivated like never before to share the Gospel with the lost. Third, I am glad we lingered here because the Lord showed one of our young men that he was “dead in trespasses and sins” and he came to Jesus for salvation. That alone makes everything I have preached these last few weeks worthwhile.
 
Today, we will finish verse 3 and move on to truths that are more exciting. But, for today, we need to take one more dip in the cesspool of sin.
 

In verse 1, Paul lays out the desperate condition of those who have never been born again. He tells us that they are “dead in trespasses and sins”. This does not mean that they are merely crippled in their spiritual life. The word “dead” refers to a “corpse”. It refers to the fact that sinners are “dead” as far as their relationship with God is concerned. Sinners are spiritually dead!
 
They do not care about Him. They have no desire for Him. They do not appreciate anything that has to do with Him. They cannot come to Him on their own for salvation. For all intents and purposes, sinners are spiritual corpses, who need to be born again. They have bodies which live, breath, love and die, but they are dead even while they live.
 
Most of us who are saved understand this truth, because we have been there. We know how we were before Jesus redeemed us, and we know the great changes He brought about in our lives after salvation. In fact, while this passage reveals the terrible condition of the lost, it is a passage written to the saints of God.
 
In verse one, Paul says “and you hath He quickened.” Paul writes to remind the Ephesian believers, and all other believers who take the time to read this book, that their lives have changed. He wants us to know that because we are in Jesus, everything has changed.

This passage details the desperate condition of the lost sinner. This passage also reminds every redeemed child of God of what they were before God saved them by His grace. In chap. 1, Paul reminded us of our riches in Christ. He told us how God came to us, saved us by his grace, and adopted us into his family. Paul reminded us that the salvation we enjoy is completely of the Lord.
This passage details what we were before we met the Lord Jesus Christ. This passage also declares the hopeless, helpless condition of those who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. This passage exposes the devastating results of sin’s intrusion into the human race.
I want to take these verses, and examine these "Dead People”. I want to share with you the characteristics that are common to all those who are trapped in the bondage of sin. If you’ve never been saved, this message is designed to teach you the truth about sin and its consequences. If you are saved, this message is designed to remind you of where you were when Jesus found you, and how He saved you and transformed your life by his power.
This description of the lost around us and among us ought to stir our hearts to reach them with the Gospel of grace that they too might come to know the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior!
 

Up to this point in the book of Ephesians, Paul has been praising the Lord. In one long sentence that begins in verse 3 and ends in verse 14, Paul ascends the heights of the glory and majesty of God. In this great song of praise, Paul describes in great detail the amazing riches we possess in Jesus. He also tells us all that God has done for us to bring us to Christ and to guarantee our eternal salvation.
After telling these Christians much of what God had done for them, and how wealthy they were spiritually, Paul tells them how he feels about them. He wants them to know that they are not just on the mind of the Lord, but they are on the mind and in the heart of the great Apostle.
As Paul begins to bear his heart to the people of God, his first words are “for this reason.” This phrase lets us know that Paul wants to help them understand the things he has already told them about. He is saying, “In light of all the blessings that flow to the saints of God from God, I want you to know that I am praying for you that you will understand everything you have been given in Jesus Christ.”
Paul knows that he has given them a lot to think about. He has talked about subjects far too deep for most people to grasp. He knows they are confused by some of the things they have heard and that they are concerned about other things. He wants them, to know that he understands.  
If you have been here for the other sermons in this series, you may have encountered some ideas and teachings that have concerned and confused you. That’s all right because we are all at different levels of understanding when it comes to the doctrines of our faith.
As Paul pours out his heart to the Ephesians, he does so in an effort to help them understand what he has been writing to them. In reading his words to them, there is help for us as well. In verse 18 Paul tells them he is writing “that ye may know...”