PASTOR’S NOTES
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ….”
For anyone to ever understand the Good News, they must first understand the bad news. The Good News of the Gospel of course is that Jesus Christ came to die for our sins because of His great love for us. That the One who knew no sin, took on sin, so that we could stand before God righteous. The Good News is what saves the lost and strengthens the weak. However, for the Good News to transform our lives in how we see God and live for Him, we first must come to terms with the bad news.
The bad news rests with us; our condition outside of Christ. The bad news is that from the garden to today, sin has corrupted every inch and aspect of our existence. The bad news is that we were born dead, without hope, destined for the wrath of God. The bad news is that everything we are and have coming to us in our lostness is deserved.
But God, who is rich in mercy…”
You see, so many do not fully grasp the Good News of Jesus Christ because the bad news was never understood. Salvation has been nothing more than a “good decision” in our attempt to avoid Hell or other punishments, when in fact the Good News is meant to be so much more!
When our heart and eyes are opened to the state of our life without Christ, we desire more than just a pass from Hell. When we see the death and the life of the Savior, we desire more than a weekly church service and a prayer before dinner. We desire life with the Father, Creator, King!
In this week’s scripture, Paul starts the chapter in the depths of the bad news in what sin has done to us. He does this only so that we can fully see the magnitude of what Christ has done for us. Paul calls us all to recognize our sins so that we can rest in His salvation!
SCRIPTURE TO GO ALONG WITH THE MESSAGE
Read the first 3 chapters of Romans as you see the mirror of Ephesians 2 in Paul’s writing.
HIGHLIGHT IN YOUR BIBLES
I encourage you to break out 2 different colors in highlighters this week. Highlight verses 1-3 in one color, and then 4-10 in another color. In this we see the separation between the good and bad news.
