The Purpose of the Ages

Dearly beloved, there have been times that my wife has shared her mail with me, like a birthday card, or a note from a child in fellowship, or from a mutual friend. Reading her mail is nice, but it is not the same as receiving a personal letter to me from a loved one. The same is true with the Word of God.

We can learn much from the Old Testament scriptures, but the love letters that our Father addresses to us are out of this world! The letters of Romans through II Thessalonians concern you and me; us.

The revelation in Romans begins with man’s natural condition in the flesh, dead in sins, guilty before God, hopeless, and then by the believing of Jesus Christ, God reveals how He justified us from sin freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus; Jesus was the full payment for the remission of sins that are past. We learn that we died and were raised with Christ!

Ephesians doesn’t begin with our depravity and hopeless condition in the flesh, it begins with who we are in Christ. God our Father has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm in Christ. We are chosen in him, holy and without blame in him; in love the Father determined we would have sonship in him, and He determined all of this by the good pleasure of His will. He highly favored us in Christ, and on it goes.

Romans deals with man as a sinner and it deals with him individually. Ephesians is written from God’s point view concerning those who are in Christ and it deals with us collectively as one body, one new man, as the husband and wife are one flesh so are Christ and the Church.

In Romans, the believer is dead and risen with Christ, while in Ephesians he is set forth as seated in the heavenly realm with Christ.

Thessalonians takes us a step further; we will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air and when he shall appear, we shall appear with him in glory; we will be glorified together with him!

In these letters God reveals the purpose of the ages that He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This is why I write so much about who we are in Christ. This is revelation addressed to us and which concerns us. It chronicles God’s purpose, and the good pleasure of His will concerning Christ, and who we are in him; it reveals the purpose of the ages that God purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This is not only the pinnacle of revelation, there is a fight in the heavenly realm by the devil and his wicked spirits to keep us from knowing, believing and walking in these truths. This revelation is so fantastic that the princes of this world would not have crucified the Lord Jesus had they know it.

Put on the armor of light; clothe yourself with who you are in Christ, dearly beloved. Conduct yourself as a member of his body that is filled with all in all, complete in him. We are dead and risen with Christ, seated with him in the heavenlies and soon to be gathered unto him and glorified with him. Press toward the high calling of God in Christ Jesus, dearly beloved.