I Know a Guy

For through Him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father (Eph 2:18).

I know a Guy.  Doesn't everybody know a guy?  You "the guy" I'm talking about.  He's the dude that pulls the strings.  He's the dude that makes things happen.  He seems to know every power broker in town.  He seems to have access to the movers and shakers.  You've got his number in your phone but you try not to abuse the privilege.  But when you need those tickets to that big game or concert, he's "the guy."  The Go To Guy.

Paul lets the Ephesians know that he knows a Guy.  And they do to.  That Guy is Jesus.  He's their Go To Guy for absolutely everything.  "For through Him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father" (v18).  Oh, He knows power brokers alright.  He has unquestioned access to the greatest movers and shakers.  Christ's closest Friends are the Holy Spirit and His heavenly Father.  Yeah, that's right.  The Holy Trinity.  There's no more exclusive group in the universe.  And because of their relationship with Jesus, the Ephesians have access to Them.  They know a Guy. 

It's only "through Him" that we have any hope of this entertaining this privilege.  We certainly can't do it on our own.  We can earn our way in.  We can't do it by keeping a list of rules.  We can't do it by practicing some sort of elaborate religious ritual.  It's only through Jesus.  Period.  End of discussion.  There's absolutely nothing we bring to the table that's worthy of getting in and staying in God's kingdom.  In Jesus.  Through Jesus.  Just Jesus.  That's the HUGE point of Paul's note to his friends back in Ephesus.  Don't fall for any spiritual snake oil salesmen's con.  There was plenty around back in the day.  And they are still grifting 2,000 years later.  It's only through Jesus.  He's the Guy.

I know a Guy.

The apostle lets his readers know that while he comes from a completely different race and religious background, everyone has access to God through Jesus.  "We both have access" (v18).  By "both," he means both Jews and Gentiles.  A few years back, God used Paul to reach first Jews and later Greeks in his three-year assignment to Ephesus.  Dr. Luke writes all about it in Acts 19.  This movement called The Way began as a strictly Jewish enterprise.  That certainly makes sense because Jesus is a Jew and came as their long-awaited Messiah.  But He also came to knock down all the walls between races, cultures, religions and social status (Eph 2:14; Gal 3:28; Col 3:11).  The construction of Paul's phrasing in the original Greek adds a little oomph to his point.  He literally writes, "We have the access--we both!"  He knows a Guy.  They know a Guy.

I know a Guy.

So just what does Jesus allow us to do?  Paul uses the Greek word prosagoge. It means freedom, the right to enter, admission, the privilege of entrance or a solemn approach.  It's the opportunity to address someone of a higher status.  Luke uses a close cousin of this term in Acts as citizens sough access to city officials.  When it all hit the fan in Philippi, an angry mob dragged Paul and his buddy Silas and "brought (Gr. prosago) them to the magistrates" (Acts 16:20).  When meeting with somebody up the ladder, you don't just walk right in.  You need access.  

But because we know a Guy, we have easy access to a place we would previously have no right to be.  Because of Jesus, we can walk right in.  "Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need" (Heb 4:16).  Because we know a Guy, we confidently enter.  "In Whom we have boldness and access (Gr. prosagoge) with confidence through our faith in Him" (Eph 3:12).  Because we know a Guy, we boldly enter.  Peter tells us that Jesus personally escorts us into His Father's presence because of His sacrifice for our sin.  "For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might bring (Gr. prosago) to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit" (1Pet 3:18).  Paul knows a Guy.  The Ephesians know a Guy.

I know a Guy.

Don't miss the sudden appearance of every Member of the Godhead here.  They're all in attendance.  Jesus ("through Him").  His "Spirit."  "The Father."  It's absolutely impossible to wrap our brains around the Trinity on this side of eternity.  Three Whos.  One What.  In complete and perfect relationship.  And thanks to Jesus, we're invited to join in.  Why?

I know a Guy.  Do you?  If not, I can hook you up.