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In the first ten verses of Ephesians 2 Paul talks about the amazing transformation from who we WERE before we met Jesus to who we ARE now with Jesus as our Lord and Savior.
Before Jesus we…
- were dead
- used to live in sin
- used to follow the world
- were living to gratify fleshly cravings
- were following only earthly desires
The result of this lifestyle is quite clear: We WERE deserving of God’s wrath (see vv. 1-3).
Verse 4 opens with an amazing word: “But” here is what our new life looks like. We are…
- made alive with Christ
- rescued from death
- raised up with Christ
- seated with Jesus in heavenly realms
- benefitting from God’s kindness
The bottom line: We ARE saved by God’s grace from God’s wrath (vv. 4-8)!
It’s only now that we can realize that we ARE God’s handiwork, created to be in Jesus, to do good works, and to bring God glory. Our lives now ARE a display of the “incomparable riches of His grace” (v. 7)—we ARE a living testimony of His love for lost people.
Being transformed from what we WERE to who we ARE allows us to echo the words of the psalmist—Come and see what our God has done, what awesome miracles He performs for people! (Psalm 66:5 NLT).
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Craig T. Owens 