Made Nigh
A Sermon on Ephesians 2:13
Originally preached Feb. 5, 1956
Scripture
13But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
Sermon Description
Everyone has a past. It is often painful to look back on one’s life and see the suffering their sin caused others and how it offends a holy and righteous God. But if one recognizes God’s power in salvation, “looking back” is an important ingredient. In this sermon on Ephesians 2:13 titled “Made Nigh.” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones states that the other ingredient to consider is the Christian’s current position because of God’s power. The apostle Paul remarkably does this with just one word: “but.” This word brings relief to the believer in Christ and points to the utter contrast between the old life and the new life in Christ. It also points to the separation between the believer and the unbeliever. Dr. Lloyd-Jones explores this contrast by looking at the details of the new covenant. One must not think that the absolute nature of the contrast is only true for those who were “really” bad before Christ. The difference between a Christian and a non-Christian is an absolute difference, whether one grew up in a respectable environment or the gutters of life. Listen as Dr. Lloyd-Jones takes a close look at the remarkable promises of the new covenant.
Sermon Breakdown
- The apostle Paul is emphasizing the greatness of the Christian salvation in Ephesians 2.
- To understand the greatness of salvation, we must understand our condition apart from it and our condition as a result of it.
- Last week, we looked at our condition apart from salvation - without Christ, aliens from Israel, strangers to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God.
- This week, we are looking at our condition as a result of salvation - made near to God.
- There is a sharp contrast between what we were and what we are now in Christ. We were far off but now are made near. This is an absolute and complete change.
- The change from non-Christian to Christian is not gradual. It is a distinct transfer from one state to another. We either know God or we do not.
- Our position as Christians is defined by our relationship to God, not by our behavior or morality. We have been brought near to God through the blood of Christ.
- As Christians, we have access to the holiest place, the presence of God. We can come with boldness to the throne of grace. We have been given authority to be children of God.
- We know God as our Father and have fellowship with Him. We have the Spirit of adoption by which we cry "Abba, Father".
- We can draw near to God because we know the way - through the blood of Jesus. His blood gives us free access into God's presence.
- Do we know and experience these blessings of being made near to God? Do we pray with confidence as His children? This is what it means to be a Christian.
The Book of Ephesians
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.