Scripture: Ephesians 2:1-10
Title: Once were Zombies
Structure:
- Introduction
- Once were Zombies
- God’s salvation
o God’s salvation changes our relationship with Him
o God’s salvation changes our spiritual environment
o God’s salvation changes our condition
- Conclusion – God’s character
Introduction:
On the wall here we have a list of movie titles
– 28 Days Later
– Black Sheep
– World War Z
– I am Legend
– Pathogen (and)
– Warm Bodies
– Can anyone tell me what these movies share in common?
That’s right – they all have Zombies in them
– A Zombie is a fictional creature – they don’t exist except in the movies
– Zombies used to be human but have lost their humanity (usually through a virus) and essentially become the walking dead
The script for most Zombie films that I’ve seen (and to be fair I haven’t seen that many) usually involves a remnant of people who are struggling to survive the Zombie apocalypse
– And survival normally involves lots of guns and shooting – with the human survivors destroying the Zombies to save themselves
But the better Zombie films usually try to create some redemption and hope by having the hero and heroine find a cure to reverse the Zombie virus or at least give people immunity from it
This morning we continue our series in Ephesians by focusing on chapter 2, verses 1-10
– In this section Paul talks about God’s salvation of us
– Paul contrasts the way the Ephesians believers used to be, before God acted to save them, with the way they are now
– Before believing in Christ’s death & resurrection we were essentially like Zombies – the walking dead
– But with Christ we are raised to new life and our humanity is restored
– From Ephesians 2, verse 1, we read…
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to walk when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following the desires of body and mind. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate this Scripture for us
This reading is essentially about God’s salvation of us
Once were Zombies:
Paul begins by describing our situation before God saved us – we were once Zombies – the walking dead
– In verse 1 Paul says we were dead in our transgressions and sins
– We tend to think of death in physical terms – when someone’s heart stops beating and their brain function ceases
– But that’s not what Paul means here by death
– Often when the Bible talks about death it refers to spiritual death
– If eternal life is union with God, or intimacy with God, then death is separation, or alienation, from God
– Someone might still be breathing and walking around, (even able to run marathons) apparently going about their life like normal, but if they are estranged from God then they are dead, spiritually speaking
We see this in Genesis – God told Adam & Eve they would die if they disobeyed Him by eating the forbidden fruit
– Then, after they ate the fruit, God sent them away from the Garden of Eden and they lost their close connection with the Lord
– Adam & Eve didn’t die physically for a long time – but they lost the intimacy they previously had with God
– Sin was the virus that entered the human race and made us Zombies so that we lost an important part of our humanity, our connection with God
– That’s not to say we have completely lost our humanity but we have missed the mark God intended for us – we have gone astray
The word ‘sin’ actually means to miss the mark and the word ‘transgression’ means to cross a boundary that shouldn’t be crossed, to leave the path and lose our way
One of the things about Zombies is that they don’t know they are Zombies
– Their self-awareness isn’t working all that well – they are obtuse
– Zombies are driven by an insatiable desire which they can’t control
– Zombies are consumers in the extreme, following their own cravings without regard for anyone else. We live in a consumerist society.
In vs. 2 Paul continues to describe the situation we were in before God saved us
– We followed the ways of this world
– We followed the ways of the ruler of the air (i.e. Satan)
– And, in verse 3, we followed the desires of our mind and body
– The old fashioned expression for that unholy trinity is ‘the world, the flesh and the devil’
– Like Bob Dylan said, ‘You gotta serve somebody’
– If we don’t follow God (if we don’t serve Him) then we will end up serving something far less – the world, the flesh and the devil
– And when that happens we essentially become slaves to evil
In verse 3 Paul continues his summary of our situation before God saved us by saying, ‘Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.’
– ‘Like the rest’ says we are not better than anyone else, the ground at the foot of the cross is level, we all have the same zombie pedigree
– ‘By nature’ describes what we become when left to our own devices
– ‘By nature’ stands in contrast to ‘by grace’ which we’ll come to shortly
To be an ‘object of wrath’ means to be destined for the garbage heap or headed for destruction
– If I make a mistake on a piece of paper I might screw it up and throw it in the bin – the paper is an object of wrath
– Or if my car keeps breaking down and costs too much to keep on the road then I might sell it to the wreckers – the car becomes an object of wrath
– I’m not necessarily angry with the paper or the car, it’s just that they are headed for destruction
Now the word ‘wrath’, in the English language at least, has associations with powerful and destructive anger
– Wrath makes us think of someone flying off the handle or losing their rag, going into a rage
– We need to distinguish human wrath from God’s wrath
– Although Paul doesn’t attach God’s name to the wrath in this context, God’s wrath seems to be implied – certainly Paul isn’t shy about talking of God’s wrath in other letters he wrote
– It is important to understand that God’s wrath is not an arbitrary reaction, nor an impersonal process, like human wrath can be
– God doesn’t fly off the handle in a rage or lose his rag
– John Stott describes God’s wrath as his ‘constant hostility to evil, his settled refusal to compromise with it and his resolve to condemn it’
– The idea of God’s wrath shouldn’t scare us – it should comfort us
– God’s wrath is an appropriate and measured response to injustice
– God’s wrath means that God won’t abide evil, at least not forever
– God’s wrath means evil will ultimately be destroyed but first God wants to redeem his good, albeit damaged and fallen, creation
In a nutshell then, we were once like zombies – dead in our sins, slaves to the world, the devil and the desires of our own mind & body and, because of our union with evil, we were objects of wrath on a path to destruction
Now, as someone who didn’t grow up in a Christian household, and who still feels an affinity with non-Christians, I’m a bit uncomfortable with the strength of Paul’s language in these verses
– To say your non-Christian friends and family are akin to zombies is kind of offensive – it makes me cringe
– And although Paul doesn’t exactly use the word ‘zombie’, that’s pretty much what he is describing when he talks about the walking dead
Three things I would like to say in Paul’s defence…
– Firstly, Paul himself is very quick to point out that Christian believers are in no position to look down on unbelievers
– In no way can we claim to be superior or ‘holier than thou’ because we have all been like zombies at some point in our life, to some degree
– What’s more Paul emphasises the fact we are saved by God’s grace, not by any virtue or merit on our part – therefore we cannot boast
– We may be luckier than some but we’re not better
– The second thing is that Paul, more than most, had a genuine desire to see people of all creeds and races come to faith in Christ
– Paul suffered greatly so that zombies like me could become human again
– And the third thing to say in Paul’s defence is that his language is accurate – Paul doesn’t mean to be offensive – he’s simply being honest
– To really appreciate what God has done to save us, in Christ, we must first realise how bad the problem was
– Sin created a zombie apocalypse and God provided the remedy in Christ
God’s salvation:
Okay, so we were once zombies, before God saved us
– What then does it mean to be saved by God?
– Well, it means a number of things – God’s salvation is not one dimensional, there are many facets to God’s salvation
– Three dimensions in particular to be aware of from today’s reading…
o Salvation brings about a change in our relationship with God
o A change in our spiritual environment
o And a change in our condition
– First let’s consider salvation as a change in our relationship with God
God’s salvation changes our relationship with God:
In verses 4 & 5 we read that God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions
– Remember to be dead, in a spiritual sense, means to be separated from God – therefore to be made alive means to have our union with God restored
– Eternal life isn’t just about living forever – eternal life describes a certain quality of relationship with God
One of the things about zombies is they don’t talk – they don’t have any means of communication and so they aren’t capable of real intimacy
Intimacy is about being close with someone – it’s about sharing yourself with them and letting them share themselves with you
– Intimacy requires us to trust the other person – to lower our defences and make ourselves vulnerable
– It also requires honesty and a deep respect for the other person who is putting their trust in us
– With intimacy we let the other person in and a common understanding forms, an understanding too deep to express with words
– Intimacy is the antidote to loneliness and alienation
– One of the biggest diseases (killers) in our society today is loneliness and the feeling of alienation that comes with it
Now the important thing to note here is that we are made alive with Christ
– When God raised Christ from the dead all those who believe in Christ were raised from spiritual death too
– So it’s through Christ and His Spirit that God restores the communication and intimacy with us
Imagine you’ve been walking around, lost in the desert for days – your water bottle has run out and you’re extremely dehydrated
– As a consequence you are having hallucinations and seeing mirages
– You’re just not sure what is real anymore
– Eventually you fall down, unable to go any further, and as you lie on the ground panting for breathe, a man rides up to you on a camel
– He gets off his animal, bends down and offers you a drink
– At this point you have a choice – you can either trust that he is real and not another hallucination, accept his kindness, drink the water and live
– Or you can refuse to believe he is real, not trust his water and die
– We are raised with Christ – we are saved by believing that Jesus’ resurrection is real and accepting his Spirit for our parched soul
– You see, the real thirst of our soul is to be close to God – to share in His life, to drink His Spirit
God’s salvation changes our spiritual environment:
Another dimension to God’s salvation is that it changes our spiritual environment. In verse 6 of Ephesians 2 we read…
– And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus…
Last week we celebrated Jesus’ Ascension. Forty days after his death & resurrection Jesus ascended to the heavenly realms
– The ‘heavenly realms’ refer to the spiritual realm – which we can’t see or hear or measure but which is still very real
– Paul is saying that what is true for Christ is true also for those who believe in Christ
– Just as Christ ascended, so too we who are in Christ have ascended to another spiritual realm
– Physically we are still here on earth, but spiritually we have changed sphere’s or environments
For those who watch the Netflix show, ‘Stranger Things’, it’s like we used to live in the ‘upside down’ (spiritually speaking) but God saved us by transferring us to the world above
Or if Charles Dickens is more your thing, it’s like we used to live in a slum with a gang of pick pockets who answered to a criminal called Fagin but now we have been delivered to a better, healthier environment – one in which we are not forced to steal to survive
Or if fiction is not your thing, then it’s like we used to live in a refugee camp but now we have been granted citizenship to live in a land which is free of poverty and injustice
Or it’s like we were soldiers, fighting in a war overseas we wanted nothing to do with, but now we have been released from our tour of duty and are free to return home to live in peace
Or it’s like we were born in prison, where might is right and it is survival of the fittest, but now we have been released into a society where weakness is met with compassion and the measure of success is how well we treat the least
As I said a couple of weeks’ ago – Christian conversion is ‘in Christ’
– When we become a Christian we are entering a new spiritual realm
– We leave the realm of Satan and enter the realm of Christ – and Jesus is a far kinder and more just ruler than the devil
In Paul’s mind salvation means a restored relationship with God and entry into a new spiritual environment, one in which we can thrive
– God’s salvation also changes our condition, our self
God’s salvation changes our condition:
If we were once zombies then God’s salvation is the process of restoring our humanity to its fullness
– God originally made us in His image and he declared us to be ‘very good’
– We became infected by sin and the image of God was damaged – we lost something of our humanity and became like the walking dead
– God’s salvation includes re-creating us in His image
In verse 10 Paul writes…
– For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Again we note that the environment in which God creates us is ‘in Christ’
– Just as God creates a baby inside a woman’s womb, so too we are created inside Christ
And our creation is meaningful (not accidental) – we are created for a purpose
– Previously we walked in sin, but now we are to walk in good works
– To walk in ‘good works’ means we live our life in a way that points to God and reflects His image
– Paul is quite clear (in verse 9 and other places) that ‘good works’ are not the means of our salvation but rather the outcome
– Twice in our reading today Paul says we are ‘saved by grace’
– In other words God’s salvation is a gift – we don’t do anything to earn it
– God’s grace is the root of our salvation, good works are the fruit
Conclusion:
So God’s salvation changes our relationship with him, it changes our spiritual environment and it changes our condition
We may well ask, why did God save us? After all, as zombies, we had nothing to offer – we were not at all attractive and we were powerless to save ourselves
– God saved us because that’s who he is – saving us was simply Him being true to His character – to not save us would be a denial of Himself
Verses 4-10 of Ephesians 2 are peppered with words which describe God’s character and motivation
– Verse 4 tells us, God made us alive with Christ because of his great love for us, and because, He is rich in mercy
– Verse 7 tells us, God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms…to show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
– And verse 10, For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus…
– God is a craftsman, an artist, who enjoys making things
– So God saves us because He is loving, merciful, gracious, kind & creative
As creatures made in God’s image – we are to emulate God’s character
– Like God, our good work (the way we live our lives) is to be loving, merciful, gracious, kind and creative.
Questions for discussion or reflection:
1.) What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon?
– Why do you think this stood out to you?
2.) Do you have a favourite Zombie movie? What is it and why do you like it?
3.) What was our situation / condition before God saved us?
– What does Paul mean by death in Ephesians 2:1?
4.) What is God’s wrath?
– Why is God’s wrath a comfort to us?
5.) What does it mean to be ‘made alive with Christ’?
6.) What does it mean to be ‘raised with Christ and seated with him in the heavenly realms’?
7.) What does it mean that we are ‘God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for good works’?
8.) Take some time this week to reflect on the words Paul uses to describe God’s character
– How might we emulate God’s character in our daily lives?
Tawa Baptist 