From the Pulpit of Bro. JR. Fields
September 20, 2009

Ephesians 2:1-11

And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience:  among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.  But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:  That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

In the book of Ephesians Paul talks to the church at Ephesus.  This church was located in a very carnal part of the world.  Paul had much distress with the believers there in Ephesus.  Paul reminded them of the excellent and exalted state of Christ.  (Read Ephesians 1:19-23)

It is written in God's word that at the very mention of the name of Christ every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.  Sad to say, this is not happening today.  There are worlds of people who deny Christ as God's Son.  However, at the final judgment you can be sure that they will cry, beg, and offer up excuses to stay out of Hell.  However, in that day it will be too late.  I would rather believe right now than try to plea my way out of Hell on Judgment Day.  Jesus Christ is Lord.  He is exalted, and He IS the Son of the Living God.  He is the most excellent name in the entire creation.  He is Jesus Christ.

This brings us to Ephesians 2 and the sorry, sinful state of man.  Some religious teachings believe that everyone is going to Heaven.  These teachings say that the kind of life you lead matters little because you are going to Heaven anyway.  I've got news for those who teach this; not everyone is going to Heaven!  There are times when preachers will preach the funeral of a wicked person and make a statement like "They are with Jesus now."  Yes, they were for a split second.  Then what?  The way I understand it, if they did not make a full repentance with the Lord and Savior, they will be cast into the lake of fire.

Paul says, "Man is wicked by nature, thoughts an actions."  Therefore, what happens when the exalted Christ meets sinful humankind?  Something is going to happen.,  Most of the time people will realize if they keep going the way they have been going that they will miss Heaven.  To me it means everything; to know that Heaven is waiting at the end of this journey blesses me so much I cannot find words to express my feeling adequately.  What does it mean to you?  How could you answer the question "Are you on your way to Heaven?"  What do you base your answer upon?  Do you base your answer on believing "I am a good person."?  Guess what!  Good people die everyday and go to Hell.  Do you answer by saying, "Well, I am honest; I never cheated anyone out of anything"?  Guess what!  Honest people die everyday and go to Hell.  It is not what we do that sends us to Hell; it's what we fail to do that dooms us to an eternal place in Hell. 

Some of you may be thinking right now, "Preacher, there are some young and tender ears in the congregation and I don't they they should be hearing you preach about Hell."  Well, let me tell you what I think -- they should hear loud and clear about Hell."  (The congregation said, "Amen").  Our kids need to know there is a Heaven and there is a Hell.  They need to know the way to Heaven and the consequences that will get them into Hell.  That is what is wrong today; our society has lost their fear of a burning Hell.  They scoff at the mention of Jesus' name.

Paul said that when the exalted Christ meets with sinful man something takes place.  We would all like to believe that every time a lost person is introduced to the teachings of Christ, they yield themselves to Him.  That is not the case.  Think back to how long it took for you to yield to Him.  Sometimes it takes years for a person to surrender.  Knowing what I know now, I would not waste another minute without Christ.  I am not getting any younger; my get-up-and-go deserted me a long time ago.  I want to know that I am on my way to Heaven.  We never know when our last moment on this earth will come; I could be a walking time bomb; so could you.  That is the reason why I would not want to live another moment longer without the assurance that "Jesus Is Mine". 

Some of you here today know that Christ is knocking at your heart's door.  In addition, you He is standing at the door, but you are finding it hard to open the door for Him.  Please do not let another day pass without Him

What is the sorry state of man before we know Christ?  We were dead in our trespasses and sin.  Ephesians 2:2 -- wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience.

How would you describe a person not living for the Lord?  The Bible describes them like this:

• Are you walking according to the world?  Let me tell you there are two pathways: the right way and the wrong way.  The course of this world is in its flesh.  People are pleasing themselves to death.  There is an epidemic of drugs, alcohol, and sexual behavior that is self-serving for most people's pleasures.  The world is yielding to the sorry excuse of "Everybody else is doing it, so it much be okay."  It is not okay.  If it was wrong in Jesus' day, it is wrong now.  If it is written in the Bible that it is wrong, then it is wrong!  It will be wrong when Jesus comes back.  How do we know we are walking in the course of this world?

• Do your actions give God glory?  Would you be able to show your actions in front of the preacher?  Would you show your actions to your Mom and Dad?  It is not hard to distinguish which is the right and the wrong way.  Do you walk according to the prince of power of the air -- the Bible calls him Satan? "Preacher, just because I am not a Christian does not make me a bad person, does it?  The Bible says there are two masters and you cannot serve both.  You either will love one and hate the other or you will hate one and love the other.

• Are you walking for Christ?  If not, then you are automatically walking for Satan, the prince of the power of the air.  Jesus said, "Behold I saw as lightning fall from Heaven when Satan was cast down."  In the book of Revelation John the Revelator said, "Woe unto the inhabitants of the earth for the devil has been cast out among you."  We are living in the Devil's playground.  God created this earth and sin perverted it.

Ephesians 2:2b -- the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience.  The spirit Paul is talking about here is the spirit of the anti-Christ.,  According to John there are many anti-Christ. Those who have the spirit of the anti-Christian are anti-Christ.  Are we not living in the most anti-Christian times ever?  Christian people are looked down upon and treated like second-class citizens.

The spirit here in this verse is the spirit that rejects Christ.  Therefore, if it rejects Christ it must be the spirit of the evil one.  Ephesians 2:2 --among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. Oh, my Goodness!  What happens when the excellent Christ meets the sorrow of man?  Something must happen and something does happen every time.    Ephesians 2:4 -- But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)   Though we were as lost as could be and on our way to Hell, God reached down with His mercy and saved us.  I feel blessed today, because when I was at my worst, God was at His best doing a work in my heart.  When I was in sin, I had no direction, no life, and no purpose.  Now since I met Jesus, I have more blessing than I deserve.  I have everything.

When I hear someone using the name Jesus, I listen closely.  I want to know if they are talking about my Jesus and what He has done for them or are they using His name as a byword.  I listen for them to talk about what good things He has done for them, because we would not be where we are today without the mercy of Christ Jesus.  We would be nothing.  By His grace, He has raised us up.  And you know what else?? I don't have to wait until I get to Heaven to enjoy living; I enjoy life today.  I enjoy getting up and coming to church to be with like-minded folks.  It serves as a reminder that we have all eternity to enjoy.  "When we have been there ten-thousand years we will have no less days to sing God's praise than when we first begun."  That's good!

Bro. JR Fields
September 20, 2009