Look inside this book.Where the Bush is Burning: A Daily Devotional by [Thomas Tice]

Tag: Ephesians 2
‘The Riches Of His Grace’

‘The Riches Of His Grace’

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That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:7

Quite a while ago, we examined the subject we find before us today.  God has brought us to spiritual life from the dead.  He has ‘raised us up together and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.’  We explored the implications of this a few days ago.  Today, we return to the stated intention of God in raising us from the dead and seating us with Christ.  For ‘the ages to come,’ God intends to ‘show the exceeding riches of His grace, toward us in Christ Jesus.’  This is a vista which stretches out before us to an endless eternity.  At what point would the demonstration of the ‘exceeding riches of the grace of God’ cease to amaze us?  When would this become ho-hum or passe in our estimation?  Even now, with our very limited understanding of ‘the riches of His grace’ we are amazed, astounded, humbled, and grateful.  All eternity, in which we see the results of His grace unfolding before us, will only be enough for us to continue more deeply to understand that of which we have so far, only scratched the surface.  These riches of grace are all tied to the Person of Christ.  He is the Person Who is the physical manifestation of the grace of God.  He is therefore the Prime Object of our attention and adoration.

Our Glorious Living God,
we rejoice in the riches of Your amazing grace.
We praise You that You will continue to manifest Your grace unto us,
that we may see it and marvel at it for all eternity.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

‘Made Alive’

‘Made Alive’

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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 worketh 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.

Ephesians 2:1-5

What is being in Christ but being alive from the dead?  As Paul writes within the general context of the first two chapters of Ephesians, he discusses the grand transformation which occurs in the life of the soul whom God saves by free and Sovereign Grace.  Our text for today is rather lengthy, but worth our time to consider because of the graphic description it sets forth of our days as ‘the walking dead.’  As long as we were out of Christ we ‘conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind.  That is the characteristic behavior of all us ‘who were dead in trespasses and sins.’  It is from that spiritual deadness that God makes us alive.  We hope to examine some of the elements of this resurrection in greater detail over the next little while.  What is interesting to note today is that the last portion of our text tells us that this making alive of us is ‘together with Christ.’  In short, we have no spiritual life whatsoever apart from Christ.  This makes our being in Christ and with Christ the difference between death and life in spiritual terms.  Today, let us rejoice in the life-giving work of God in us.

Our Glorious Life-giving God,
we rejoice that You have made us alive from the dead.
We praise You that the spiritual life that You have given us,
in Christ, has enabled us, thus far to understand spiritual things,
and to seek after them with all our hearts.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

‘A Dwelling Place of God’

‘A Dwelling Place of God’

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‘….in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.’

Ephesians 2:22

God dwells in His redeemed.  This sounds like a bold and perhaps even arrogant statement.  It would be just that, if we were claiming to have any righteousness of our own.  If we were asserting that God dwells in us because we are good or upright or full of good works, we would be basing our assertion upon our own righteousness, which is in a de facto way, merely self-righteousness.  We have no merit of our own.  We were born ‘the children of wrath.’  Our testimony is that of the hymn writer, ‘For nothing good have I, whereby Thy grace to claim.’  That being said, Paul, in continuing to explore what it means for us to be ‘in Christ’ says that in Christ we ‘are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.’  This falls exactly in line with what Christ said when He declared, ‘I will build my church.’  Elsewhere, Paul quotes the Old Testament prophets when he records the statement, ‘I will dwell in them and walk in them….’  This is but one of many places in the Scripture which indicate that God dwells in His redeemed.  This is more of what it means for us to be ‘in Christ.’  We do not deserve to have Him dwell among us, but we are eternally glad that He does.  The same Spirit of God Who has wrought salvation in us, now indwells us.  This is the Spirit of God.  This is the Spirit of Christ.

Our Wise and Holy God,
we rejoice that You dwell within us
by the power of Your Holy Spirit.
We praise You that He takes the things of Christ
 and shows them unto us.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning
The Whole Building

The Whole Building

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In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord.

Ephesians 2:21

Christ said, ‘I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.’  We find a similar remark from the pen of Paul in our text for today.  Here Paul is referring again to what it means for us to be ‘in Christ.’  He sets it up in the preceding verses by saying, ‘Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; and are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone.’  He continues with ‘in whom…’ that is ‘in Christ, the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.’  So Christ builds His Church.  He does not build it of brick and mortar, but builds it of the people whom He redeems by Free and Sovereign Grace.  Any edifice of brick and mortar is only a location where a group of people meet who are members of the Church, the Body of Christ, the Redeemed of all ages.  Christ has used people to build His Church by building other people.  Earthly buildings, however grand, are destined to crumble.  By contrast, the building which Christ is doing of His redeemed, will continue as ‘a holy temple’ for all eternity.  This is what it means for us to be ‘in Christ.’  It means that we are part of this ‘building,’ this ‘holy temple’ which Christ is continuing to build.  This is that against which ‘the gates of hell shall not prevail.’

Our Glorious Living Christ,
we rejoice that You are indeed building Your Church.
We praise You that You will continue this work
until all is complete and all Your people gathered in.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning
‘In One Body’

‘In One Body’

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And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby.

Ephesians 2:16

It is Christ Who reconciles us to God.  He effectively accomplishes this by His sacrifice of Himself on the cross.  The life and death of Christ are inseparable when it comes to what they accomplish respectively.  It was the flawless life of Christ which satisfied the Law of God in precept.  The life of Christ paved the way for the death of Christ, which satisfied the Law of God in penalty.  The death of Christ paid the penalty which the Law of God demands for sin.  Because Christ had no sin of His Own for which He must pay, He was the only person qualified to pay for the sins of others.  By this substitutionary sacrifice He accomplished what was necessary to break down ‘the middle wall of partition’ between us and God.  He was able to ‘abolish the enmity’ between us and God.  He was able to ‘create in Himself one new man.’  By the sacrifice of His one body, Christ was able to make of us one body, that is, the Body of Christ, the Church, His Redeemed.  This makes for an indissoluble union from which nothing, and no one in heaven, earth, or hell can separate us.  We are in Christ, and being in Christ are one body, united by His redemptive work.  This makes us part of that great multitude which no man can number.  Today, we rejoice in this Person and in His work which has made us ‘one body.’

Our Glorious Living Christ,
we rejoice that You have made us one body.
We praise You that we have, with You,
a union which shall never dissolve.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

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