"The Unsearchable Riches of Christ" (Part 1)

Although I am less than the least of all God's people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. (Ephesians 3:8-12 NIV).

I must confess to being a bit “lazy” with this series. I’m actually writing two things at once. This Sunday, August 1st, I will be preaching at a Baptist church in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Since it is the day before my 61st birthday I have chosen to rewrite one of my favorite sermons and make it the basis for the devotionals . I have actually preached this message in many churches. In fact, it was first preached in February, 1979 at University Heights Baptist Church; I then used it in every other church I pastored as the selection for my first sermon as pastor. It presents the heart of what I believe is the central message of God!

It is an intensely personal section of the epistle. It begins with a prayer which is interrupted with a lengthy digression that forms the extended interpretation of Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles. It is as if Paul is praying and then feels compelled to parenthetically provide an explanation to his readers. From this he makes this incredible declaration of his call to “preach the unsearchable riches of Christ.”

The Apostle Paul says that he has now become privy to a far great treasure than any man may have hidden. It is the treasure of grace that is unsearchable in its depth or height, breadth or length. It is the content of Paul’s message to the Gentiles then and to us today. This phrase, the unsearchable riches of Christ, uses a very vivid Greek word. It literally means “untrackable,” or “inexplorable.” It is simply too vast to be measured! Curtis Vaughn says of it:

It suggests the figure of a man standing, with uplifted arms, in a posture of great amazement, before continuous revelations of immeasurable and unspeakable glory. It is as if a man were tracking out the confines of a lake, walking its boundaries, and when the circuit were almost complete should find that it was no lake at all, but an arm of the ocean, and that he was confronted by the immeasurable sea!

That is his message! That is the treasure! And when we begin to hear it ourselves we must be struck by it as well. That God would love us so much that He would send His only son to die on our behalf, giving us access to fellowship with Him again is the most incredible treasure any man could possess! That’s the measure of God’s grace!