The Pulpit Commentary — Ephesians — Section 16

~nd of interest among the believers or every 'place, for his deep yearning afte1 appreciation, and the heartfelt joy of finding his services recognie;ed by the Churohea he l!errnd, as well as by the facility with which he held a hundred interests in his hand, and engaged the sympathy of all sorts of men in the cause of Christ. III. THK TERMS OF THE SALUTATION, "Grace be to you, and peace, from God our. Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ." 'l'liis is the apostle's usual salutation to Churches-it is only in the pastoral Epistles that he adds the word "meroy "~but its form 8uggests a beautiful and significant blending of the Greek and Hebrew methods of salutation, as if to anticipate the share of Jew and Gentile alike in the future blessings of the gospel. How sweetly Christianity sanctifies the common courtesies of life I 1. The d,ou,bu blessing. "Grace and peace." The word "grace" has a unique history among English words. It means ever so many things, all suggestive of the happiest associa- tions, and has never suffered that contraction of meaning which has spoiled the moral beauty of so many other words. In the gospel sense, whether it applies to the origin of man's salvation or t;o the Christian disposition which is the result of it, grace marks a beautiful movement of life in the direction of blessing given or received. Grace is the key-note of the Ephesian Epistle. Grace is the well-spring of all blessings. "The way t;o heaven lies not over a toll-bridge, but over a free bridge, even the unmerited grace of God in Christ Jesus." Peace is the fruit of grace, which can never be severed from its fruits. It is the very testament of Christ: "My peace I give unto you:" the very equanimity, firmnes.5, serenity, of his own life carried into the lives of his saints. This peace so " keeps the heart and mind" that nothing can break down a spirit so established. The two graces are here in their due order; for there is no peace without grace. They co,er the whole space of a believer's life; for if it begins in grace, its latter end is peace. The Lord al ways has " thoughts of grace and peace toward us" (Jer. xri.x. 11). They are together the bright sum of the gospel 2. The dou,ble Sou,rce of "bl.essing. "From God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ." There is a certain intensity of bright suggestion in the asserted origin of these blessings. God the Father is the "God of grace" (1 Pet. v. 10) and "the God of· peace" (Heb. xiii. 20); and equally so "grace and truth came by Jesus Christ" (John i. 17), and he is also our Peace (eh. ii. 14). But the Father is the original Fountain of all blessings, and the Son the Dispenser of blessing to us. The juii:taposition of Christ with the Father is the significant proof of the divinity of the Son of God. No man's name can be placed beside God's in the dispensation of Divine blessings. 'l'he Holy Ghost is not named, because it iB he who communicates the grace and the peace. Similarly, the believer has "fellowship with the Father and the Son "'(l John i. 3), but the Holy Ghost is the power of this fellowship. 3. It is neither improper nor 'U/11,11,ecessary to pray/OT grace and peace, though we already possess them. We need a continuous supply and a continuous experience of both blessings. Believers ';I-re, therefore, fully justified. in coming boldly to a throne of grace, that they may obtam mercy and find grace to help in time of need.-T. C. Ver. 3.-The bkssing, of rea,emptwn. Full minds overflow in long sentences. The sentence which be!tlns with the third verse runs on continuously to the fourteenth, marked all the way by many rich and happy turns of expression. The apostle pours forth his thoughts with a splendid exuberance, '!"hich dazzl~s common re~,e-~s, bu~ is kindling to congenial minds. The whole passage lB "a 1;11a;~m~,cent anthem, in wh!c? the ideas "sugcrest each other by a law of powerful assoc1ation. It takes up the spmt of the psalmist, "Bless the Lord, 0 my soul: and all that is within me, .bless his holy Name" (Ps. ciiL ). L THE BLESSINGS ABE TBACED UP TO THE FATHER AB TREIB SoUBCE, It is he who bas blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus. It is a mistake to represent the Father as a harsh creditor, who has no point of contact with his debtor except at the moment when the bond is beincr 0 discharged; or to represent the Son as the tender and compassionate Redeemer, who prevaile with hie Father to grant a salvation he is unwillino- to bestow. The true source of salvation is in the Father's heart, and the ;r mission the Son was to execute the loving will of the Father who is in heaven. 'l'ho atonement was t,he effect, not the cause, of Divine love. Jesus did not die on the cross that Gc,d might be induc1:d to love us, but because he did love us. '!'he cross could OH. I. 1-23,] THE EPISTLE TO THE EPHESIANS. 13