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Ephesians 3:7-8: Spokesman for the Gospel


Ephesians 3:7–8
[7] Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God's grace, which was given me by the working of his power. [8] To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, (ESV)

I love how Paul describes himself when he points out that he has been called to be a minister of the Gospel. “To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles (verse 8).” The pride and arrogance of his former way of life as a Pharisee seems to be a distant memory. In place of his pride is a true sense of himself. He is nothing. God is everything. “Least of all the saints.”

We seem to always use the wrong measuring stick to determine success, don’t we? Paul emphasizes how weak he is so that God will get the glory for what he is doing. He recognizes that everything he has, if it is of any value, comes from the Lord. God should have already wiped Paul from the planet for killing his children. But, instead, God offered grace to Paul. No wonder Paul was such a great spokesman of the Gospel.

The Gospel had profoundly changed Paul. He now recognized who he was and who God was. I am reminded of another one of God’s spokesmen. He was given the task calling people to repentance so that Jesus could follow his message with a message of salvation through himself. I am speaking of John the Baptist. John the Baptist had a similar view of the relationship of himself to Jesus that the Apostle Paul described.

John 3:25-30
[25] Now a discussion arose between some of John's disciples and a Jew over purification. [26] And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him.” [27] John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. [28] You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’ [29] The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. [30] He must increase, but I must decrease.”

One who is a spokesman for Jesus should hold a view of themselves like John the Baptist and the Apostle Paul. We are the least.   We are to decrease. Here’s the rub. We are all called to be a spokesperson for the Gospel of God’s grace. How do you view yourself? Here’s how God wants us to view ourselves:

Philippians 2:5-8
[5] Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, [6] who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, [7] but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. [8] And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Christ humbled himself. He took the form of a servant. He humbled himself and became obedient unto death. And we are supposed to view ourselves the way Jesus viewed himself. With humility. Jesus glorified the Father by humbling himself. We glorify the Son by humbling ourselves.

What kind of a spokesperson are you? Are you humble? In what ways does Christ need to increase in your life?  In what ways do you need to decrease?

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