Ephesians 2:3,4 - But because of His great love

2:3

Paul is not singling anyone out, what he has just said applies to all of us. We were all the same, living to gratify the cravings of the flesh, it thoughts and desires. This does not just include what we commonly think of as “cravings of the flesh” (normally sexual!), but our whole self-oriented way of life. There are two ways of living, one is with ourselves at the centre, which leads to a live dominated by our body and soul. The other is a Christ-centred life, which is one dominated by the Lord. So we, like everyone else, were by nature objects of God’s wrath. Christians are sometimes accused on thinking ourselves better than others. If we are in any way consistent with the gospel then nothing could be further from the truth. We consider ourselves as deserving of God’s wrath, as deserving of hell, as anyone else.

2:4

Given the terrible state of mankind, what hope is there for anyone? How can the great promises and prayers of chapter one have any relevance for us? Jesus said “blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 5:3). We could perhaps paraphrase this as “blessed are the scumbags, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. We deserve absolutely nothing except hell, and if that was the end of the matter we would indeed be in a sorry state. “But God ..” two of the most important words in the Bible. Because of the great love of God, and the fact that He is rich in mercy, there is hope for us, and hope for everyone.