The Gospel of God - The Covenant

"Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God —" Romans 1:1 (CSB)

Ephesians 1:1-14

In Romans 1:1, Paul refers to the gospel as "The Gospel of God". I have taken this phrase with the design of encouraging you to think about how this good news is truly God's good news - from start to finish. With this phrase still in our minds, let's see what more Paul has to say as he expounds on the gospel to the church in Ephesus. Paul provides many actions that are taken by the Triune God and how each one provides and applies the procured blessings to the one who is in Jesus. While each action, and it's benefit, are vitally important; the scope of this post isn't to expound on each of the actions, rather to look at the One performing them.

"For he [God The Father] chose us in him [God The Son], before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in love before him." (Eph. 1:4 CSB)

The first One who acts is God the Father. The salvation of the human race, the redemption of the head of creation and the restoration of a fallen creation that is being ruled by the devil and mutilated by sin and death was never an afterthought for God. Before the foundations of the world were ever established, before the first creative word of The LORD ever went forth, God The Father had chosen those whom He would save through The Son. The apostle John also tells us this as he writes under the Holy Spirit's inspiration, "All those who live on the earth will worship it, everyone whose name was not written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slaughtered." This Gospel of God was determined before the beginning. We are told that not only the who, but the how was established before the world's beginning as Peter, inspired by The Holy Spirit, proclaims "For you know that you were redeemed… with the precious blood of Christ…He was foreknown before the foundation of the world…" (1 Peter 1:18-20 CSB) God's gospel is God's because it is from the mind and heart of almighty God. God's gospel is God's because The Father chose to act - the who, the what, the why, and the how were all chosen by God before the foundation of Creation.

"In him [Jesus The Son] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he richly poured out on us with all wisdom and understanding." (Eph. 1:7 CSB)

The Father covenanted with The Son to give Him a people, redeemed through the blood The Son would shed by giving His life over to the hands of wicken men. It was redemption through His blood. Through His stripes, He healed all those who The Father gives Him (Isaiah 53:5, John 6:37). Isaiah also tells us that Jesus, as He was being the guilt offering for others, that he saw them (Isaiah 53:10). Such was the covenant the Triune God made with Himself.

"The Holy Spirit is the down payment of our inheritance, until the redemption of the possession, to the praise of his glory." (Eph. 1:14 CSB)

The Father acts, The Son acts, and now we see The Holy Spirit acting as well. It is He who births us into God's Kingdom (John 3:3-8), comes to reside with us (John 14:16-17), guiding us into truth (John 16:13), sanctifying us to be conformed into the likeness of Jesus (Galatians 5:16-18), seals us to the day when our salvation is fully realized (Ephesians 4:30), and the One who raises us to life on that day (Romans 8:11).

This salvation, this gospel, is truly God's gospel. The Triune God has acted, and is continuing to act as the gospel goes forth. He moves among men, quickening His sheep and bringing them to The Good Shepherd. All the glory belongs to God alone who has accomplished our salvation. It is all of Him, from start to finish, and it is because of this that "We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure." (Hebrews 6:13-20)