One of my favorite films is the movie, Signs, which is a film by M. Night Shyamalan released in 2002. In the film, Mel Gibson stars as Graham Hess, a former Episcopalian priest grieving the tragic death of his wife and grappling with the existence of God and His involvement with His creation in the aftermath of his wife’s death. In an article published on March 24, 2024 about the film, Niall Gray and Zachary Moser summarize the movie’s message which is not so much about hostile and invading aliens, but how all of the characters play an important part in the movie’s overall plot and:
Merrill is a failed minor-league baseball player, Morgan is asthmatic, and Bo leaves half-drunk glasses of water all over the house. These traits, and Graham's crisis of faith, are all significant to the film's story, leaning into Signs' central themes. In the movie's signature M. Night Shyamalan twist, the aliens are defeated due to their deadly reaction to contact with water, and Graham's faith is ultimately restored by his family's survival of the ordeal. The ending comes together, arranging all the clues Shyamalan laid out for a thrilling and thoughtful ending….
Upon the alien invasion, Graham rediscovers his faith when all the things he perceived as random suddenly become significant. This is evidenced earlier in the movie by Graham's speech about how the world is split into two types of people, those who believe in coincidence and those who believe in miracles. Graham's belief that everything happens for a reason is restored, making faith and predetermination a central element of Signs' story.[1]
There are many reasons why I loved this movie, but what I love most about this movie is that it is really about the purpose and design behind all that Graham believed to be coincidence—his young brother’s failure as a minor-league player who could destroy a ball if he connected with his bat, his son’s severe asthma, or his little daughter’s weird behavior of leaving half-drunk glasses of water all over the house—when in fact there was purpose and design behind all of it; there was even purpose in the way his wife died.
I think that my oldest son, Nathan, was nine years old when I introduced him to the movie. Nathan was captivated by the movie, but I could tell that he was growing more and more distressed as he watched the story unfold. At some point I got up to check his pulse, which was high because of the scary and hostile aliens. To put his anxious heart at ease, I explained to him the many signs that were in plain sight in the film to show him that the family would be okay in the end.
In Ephesians, Paul shows us that the redemption and salvation of people from all nations was not a coincidence, but God’s plan from the very beginning. The “mystery” was not developed by the apostle nor was it created out of someone’s imagination. It is not the kind of mystery we think of based on the way the word “mystery” is used in English. The way Paul uses “mystery” in Ephesians is not the way it is used in a Scooby Doo episode. What Paul means by “mystery” is that although God’s plan was visible, it was beyond the realm of human understand and needed divine revelation for it to be understood. Just as my son needed me to show him the open secret that was always before him since the story began.
The Glory of the Mystery Revealed (vv. 3-7)
So what is the mystery Paul is talking about in Ephesians? Well he tells us in verse 4, it is the “mystery of Christ” that has been revealed to the “apostles and the prophets in the Spirit” (v. 5). But what about Christ is it that was so mysterious in ages past? Wasn’t God’s plan to redeem and save lost sinners clear enough throughout the ages?
After Adam and Even sinned against God, there was no sugar-coating how God would eventually deal with the great serpent, the devil: “And I will make enemies of you and the woman, and of your offspring and her Descendant; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel” (Gen. 3:15). Wasn’t God clear enough when He promised Abraham, “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing; and I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.” (Gen. 12:2-3)? Would it not have been obvious that the descendant of King David was the one promised to Eve, when God guaranteed: “When your days are finished and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come from you, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever…. Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever” (2 Sam. 7:12–16). The descendant promised to David, who would sit on His throne forever, would be the child promised in Isaiah 9:6-7, of whom, “There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore.”
But what are we to do with Isaiah 53? If David’s descendant will sit on the Davidic throne forever, then who is the One described in verses 5, “But He was pierced for our offenses, He was crushed for our wrongdoings; the punishment for our well-being was laid upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.”? If that were not confusing enough, how about the description given of the descendent of David in Jeremiah 23:5-6? How can David’s descendant be described in this way: “‘Behold, the days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. ‘In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will live securely; And this is His name by which He will be called, ‘The Lord Our Righteousness.’” How can sinful David have a righteous human descendant who will also bear the Divine name of Yahweh?
All of this was always before the people of Israel. The mystery is that Jesus was the Descendant promised to Eve, Jesus was the seed that would come through Abraham who would bless the nations, and Jesus is the descendant of David who will sit on his throne forever. Jesus is the King who will establish lasting peace as the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, and Prince of Peace. Jesus is the One who is the rightful heir of the Davidic Crown who would first have to suffer the sinners cross. Through the cursing of the cross, Jesus is the “righteous Branch” who was more than just a man, but the God-man who bears the title: “The Lord Our Righteousness.”
The mystery of Christ is that the Law of God points lost humanity to their need for the Son of God (Gal. 3:24). The mystery of Christ is from the Passover to the Feast of Tabernacles, all seven Jewish feasts point to Jesus. The mystery of Christ is that He is God’s “Yes” to all His promises (2 Cor. 1:20-22). However, this “mystery” that was always before the people, “was not made known to mankind” until it was revealed through the Holy Spirit to the apostles and prophets (v. 5). Jesus is the glory of the mystery revealed, and it was the mystery of Christ that Paul was called to preach to the Gentiles, after the gospel of Jesus Christ met him on the Damascus Road where Paul went from death to life in the same way the Christians in Ephesus went from death to life (vv. 2-3). What is the glory of the mystery of Christ? It is what Paul wrote of in Ephesians 1:7-10, “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He set forth in Him, regarding His plan of the fullness of the times, to bring all things together in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth.”
The Treasure of the Mystery Revealed (vv. 8-12)
The mystery of Christ for Paul was the treasure Jesus spoke of regarding the kingdom of God: “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells everything that he has, and buys that field” (Matt. 13:44). While Paul was seeking to bring harm to Christ’s Church, Christ found him and it was there on that road that he not only experienced the grace of God, but a grace that the One he sought to destroy lavished upon him!
When Paul described himself as, “the very least of all saints” (v. 8a), he did so because he understood and was mindful of just how far he was from God. In the opening verses of his letter to Timothy, Paul wrote of himself: “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost” (1 Tim. 1:15). But, because of Christ, Paul had become both the recipient of “the unfathomable riches of Christ” and an ambassador for the One who also bears the name, “The Lord Our Righteousness” (Jer. 23:6) to preach to the Gentiles, “the unfathomable riches of Christ” (v. 8b).
Paul was responsible for the death and persecution of the Church. He was on his way to continue to persecute the Church with the approval of the same religious Counsel that crucified Jesus, and then the unthinkable happened, this is how Paul described what happened to him:
“But it happened that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus at about noon, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me, and I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ And I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me, ‘I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting.’ And those who were with me saw the light, but did not understand the voice of the One who was speaking to me. And I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Get up and go on into Damascus, and there you will be told about everything that has been appointed for you to do.’” (Acts 22:1-10)
Paul went to Damascus where he called upon Jesus to be both savior and Lord of his life, and he was never again the same as a result. However, he was always mindful that it was only because the rich mercy, great love, and sufficient grace of God that Jesus met him where he was. We can hear it in the way Paul responded to Jesus: “And I said, ‘Lord, they themselves understand that in one synagogue after another I used to imprison and beat those who believed in You. And when the blood of Your witness Stephen was being shed, I also was standing nearby and approving, and watching over the cloaks of those who were killing him.’ And He said to me, ‘Go! For I will send you far away to the Gentiles’” (Acts 22:19–21).
For what purpose was Paul saved? Why did Jesus meet him on the Damascus Road? He tells us in Ephesians 3:9-10, “…to enlighten all people as to what the plan of the mystery is which for ages has been hidden in God, who created all things; so that the multifaceted wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.” It is the same reason why God saved the Ephesian Christians who received this letter! Why did God choose them before the foundation of the world (1:4)? Why did He redeem those who formerly worshiped Artemis (1:7)? Why did he make these people who were once dead in their offenses and sins, alive with Christ (2:1-5)? The reason why God saved Paul, the reason why God saved those in Ephesus, and the reason why God saved you Christian is the same: “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” (2:10). The “mystery” is not only Jesus, but the plan of God to redeem people from all people groups through Jesus as the seed through whom all the nations will be blessed.
The Hope of the Mystery Revealed (vv. 1-2, 11-13)
I will speak more on these verses next week, but for now, I want to point a few things out to you. First, notice what Paul says in verse 1, “For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus…”. Paul didn’t identify himself as a prisoner of Nero or the Roman Empire, but instead, he understood himself to be, “the prisoner of Christ.” Do not miss the significance of that statement! For the reason that Jesus was the cornerstone of Paul’s life and that the gospel was bringing both Jews and Gentiles together as one temple, “being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit” (2:19-22), Paul was a prisoner not because Nero or the Roman Empire wanted him there, but because of the Lordship of Christ and the eternal purpose of God almighty (3:11).
I will unpack this more next week, but what I want you to hear today is that if you are a Christian, whatever you have suffered, are suffering, or will suffer is not a coincidence. Because you are a Christian, you can be sure that there is a greater design in your suffering because, like Paul, you also are the recipient of, “the unfathomable riches of Christ.” This is why Paul encouraged his readers with these words: “Therefore I ask you not to become discouraged about my tribulations in your behalf, since they are your glory.”
Think about all that we have learned of ourselves and what it means to be the Church from this epistle so far. Jesus is the glory of the mystery that was never a secret and always in plain view from the very beginning. Christian, God chose you in Jesus before the foundation of the world, that you would be holy and blameless (1:4). The promise to Eve to crush the head of the serpent is your promise in Christ! God’s promise to bless Abraham is your promise in Christ! God’s promise to King David that his descendant would sit on his throne forever is your promise in Christ! All of the promises of God to His people are now yours in Christ and he intended to make you a recipient of those promises, “before the foundation of the world.”
If God has taken great care to make sure you heard the Gospel so that you would receive the Gospel, do you really think that every tear and every pain is a coincidence? It is not! If Ephesians 1:3-14 is true, then you can know that there a good and benevolent God working all your past, present, and future sorrows for His glory and your good, the glory of the mystery is Jesus and treasure of the mystery is our union to and with Him. There are bright designs behind your hurts!
God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm.
Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs
And works His sov’reign will.
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy and shall break
In blessings on your head.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.
His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flow’r.
Blind unbelief is sure to err
And scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
And He will make it plain.
