The Passion Translation

Secrets are for friends. How wonderful to know that God delights to bring you and me into the understanding of the mysteries of His heart. In Christ, the secret desires and hidden mysteries of God are unveiled! And through the revelation of the Anointed One, he unveiled his secret desires to us—the hidden mystery of his long-range plan, which he was delighted to implement from the very beginning of time. God has given us every spiritual blessing in Christ, including being chosen in love, given redemption’s power, sonship, and grace. Now Paul turns to the revelation of Christ and the wisdom that it imparts. Wisdom has much to teach us and will always lead us back to Christ. Paul speaks of the revelation of the Anointed One (Christ) unveiled to us showing us clearly the secret desires hidden in His heart. ​This means that through knowing Christ intimately we know God’s intimate secrets.​

It’s no longer a matter of who you are; it’s a matter of ​where you are! You have been positioned in Christ in heavenly places. In that powerful place...you have been (past tense) blessed, so fully blessed. The picture here is you ​wrapped in Jesus Christ. That is how God, all of heaven, and all of hell sees you. How do you see you? It’s time to envision it, believe it, and live it—you are in Christ! This important truth cannot be overemphasized. In fact, Paul says it eleven times just in this first chapter of Ephesians! ​Your eternal position is fully in Him.​ However, this does not yet match our condition, does it? And so, we press on “to lay hold of that for which Christ laid hold” of us. We believe He has placed us in the Secret Stairway of the Sky, in Christ, and by faith and love, we submit to the process of Him taking us...where He has already placed us ​by grace. “For you are my dove, hidden in the split-open rock. It was I who took you and hid you up high in the secret stairway of the sky…” Song of Songs 2:14 (TPT)

This first chapter of Ephesians is so full of the treasures that are yours in Christ. Do you realize all you’ve been given? As you go through this lesson, ask the Lord to reveal to you any area of your life where you may be living below the level of blessing you already possess. Fullness is what Jesus paid for on Calvary. ​Saint of God, fullness is your inheritance; don’t settle for less! Dive into the treasure chest of eternity...right now. Why wait!

The Letter to the Ephesians is one of the most significant documents ever written. It would be difficult to overemphasize the importance of the book of Ephesians as it relates to New Testament truth. Many have likened it to the “constitution of the church.” It is recognized as the favorite book in the Bible for many believers. F. F. Bruce regarded it as ‘the quintessence of Paulinism’ because it ‘in large measure sums up the leading themes of the Pauline letters, and sets forth the cosmic implications of Paul’s ministry as apostle to the Gentiles.’ 1 It brings us into the divine purpose of bringing all things together under the authority of Christ. Ephesians gives us a panoramic vision of what Paul describes as “the hidden mystery of his (God’s) long-range plan,” that is, the plan of the ages.