What is the meaning of Ephesians 3:6? This mystery is Ephesians 3:6 opens with, “This mystery is …”. Paul is highlighting something God once kept hidden but has now unveiled. Scripture consistently uses “mystery” for truths concealed until God’s chosen moment of revelation (Colossians 1:26–27; Romans 16:25–26). The point: what follows is not human speculation but a divine disclosure, authenticated by the prophetic Scriptures and made plain in Christ. Through the gospel The verse continues, “ … that through the gospel …”. All of God’s saving purposes converge in the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1–4). Only by believing this message do people—Jew or Gentile—enter God’s family (Acts 10:34–43; Galatians 3:8). Human merit, ethnic background, or ritual cannot add or subtract from what Christ finished (Ephesians 2:8–9). The Gentiles Paul specifies that “the Gentiles” are included. Gentiles—those once “without hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12)—had been promised blessing as far back as Genesis 12:3 and Isaiah 49:6. Now, in Christ, those distant nations experience the fulfillment foretold (Acts 15:7–9; Romans 9:24). God’s plan always embraced every tribe and tongue, and the gospel makes that inclusion unmistakable. Fellow heirs The first benefit: “fellow heirs.” Believing Gentiles inherit everything promised to God’s people—eternal life, the indwelling Spirit, and a future in Christ’s kingdom (Galatians 3:29; Romans 8:17; Titus 3:7). No second-class status exists; all who are in Christ share equally in the full inheritance reserved in heaven (1 Peter 1:4). Fellow members of the body Next, Paul says Gentiles are “fellow members of the body.” There is one body, the church, with Christ as Head (Ephesians 1:22–23). Jews and Gentiles are joined together, reconciled “in one body to God through the cross” (Ephesians 2:16; see also 1 Corinthians 12:12–13; Colossians 3:11). Unity is not organizational but spiritual, created by the Holy Spirit at conversion. Fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus Finally, Gentiles are “fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus.” The promise includes the Spirit (Ephesians 1:13; Galatians 3:14), forgiveness of sins (Acts 10:43), and every covenant blessing summed up in Christ (2 Corinthians 1:20). Participation happens “in Christ Jesus,” underlining that union with Him—not ancestry—secures every promise. summary Ephesians 3:6 reveals God’s once-hidden plan: the same gospel that saves Jews equally saves Gentiles, granting them the very inheritance, body membership, and covenant promises found in Christ. God’s family is one, built on faith in the finished work of Jesus, displaying His wisdom and grace to the world and to the heavenly realms. |
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