Because of a reader’s request, I’m returning to the study of Ephesians and comparing how the passages in this book relate to typical Adventist teaching. In this blog I’ll resume this study up with Ephesians 1:15-18:
15 For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, 16 I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, (ESV)
The biggest question to ask ourselves about these verses is, “What does the text indicate about who is performing the actions?” In verse 17 it is abundantly clear that it is God the Father giving the Spirit, but perhaps there is some question in verse 18 about how the eyes of one’s heart are enlightened. In the immediate context of this statement, having enlightened eyes is connected to knowing Him and receiving God’s gift of “the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation”. This language is also similar to Paul’s account in 2 Corinthians 4:6:
For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
Paul consistently places God as the actor and the believer as the receiver. I contend that Adventism sends mixed messages on this subject. The Clear Word paraphrases verse 18 this way: “I pray that the eyes of your heart will see more and more of what Christ has done for you…” This quotation is a great illustration of that Adventist ambiguity. Interestingly, the Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary references Ellen White in a manner that is considerably less ambiguous:
You need to dwell upon the assurances of God’s Word, to hold them before the mind’s eye. Point by point, day by day, repeat the lessons there given, over and over, until you learn the bearing and import of them. We see a little today, and by meditation and prayer, more tomorrow. And thus little by little we take in the gracious promises until we can almost comprehend their full significance. … Fresh wonders will be revealed to the mind the more closely we apply it to divine things. We lose much by not talking more of Jesus and of heaven, the saints’ inheritance. The more we contemplate heavenly things, the more new delights we shall see, and the more will our hearts be brimful of thanks to our beneficent Creator (Letter 4, 1885).
Through the use of this quotation as an explanation of Ephesians 1:18, The Adventist Bible Commentary—a reliable source for understanding official Adventist teaching—shifts the emphasis away from Paul’s continual prayer that God will give believers the gifts of His Spirit of wisdom and revelation in knowing Christ, enlightened eyes of the heart, and the hope of knowing their glorious inheritance. Instead, Ellen White (the author of the quote above) rephrases the meaning of Paul’s prayer and tells her readers what they must do in order to achieve what God promised He would deliver.
Please allow me to be clear; I am not trying to deny or diminish the importance of our study of and meditation on God’s Word. The point I am making is about the theology of the cause and effect. It isn’t our effort that opens that eyes of our heart; it is God’s gift. We benefit from, and even desire to pursue, study and meditation because God’s Spirit opens our eyes, and provides us with understanding.
That small change in emphasis has very little impact on how we would interpret this particular verse, but the consistent shifting away from acknowledging God’s gifts to us and instead placing the emphasis on what we must do ultimately leads to a very different understanding of some key verses throughout the Bible. This difference in understanding, for example, will show up clearly in the next chapter.
What “power”?
Now let’s examine verses 19 through the end of the chapter one:
19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
The biggest question to ask yourself here is, “What actually IS the ‘power toward us who believe’ mentioned in verse 19?” Contextually, this power is linked to the power that raised Christ from the dead (vs 20), that reveals our heavenly inheritance (vs 18), and that guarantees our inheritance (v14). Within the context of Ephesians, Paul also speaks of this power in Chapter 2 as the power that brings believers to life (vs 1-10), and the power that brings believers from being separated from God to being united with Him (vs 11-22).
But does it mean more than that? The Clear Word presents Adventist thinking on verse 19 when it paraphrases it this way: “The tremendous power of God is available to all of us who believe.”
Once again, this paraphrase is an ambiguous statement, particularly to those unfamiliar with Adventist thought and jargon. “The tremendous power of God” available to us is routinely Adventist code for our being able to overcome sin if we would only tap into the power of God. God’s grace, within Adventist theology, isn’t unmerited forgiveness of our sins (or least it isn’t only that). Adventist theology is built on the concept that God’s grace is (or at least includes) the power to live the same sinless life that Jesus did.
The Ellen White-tinted glasses of Adventism change the power of God, as presented in this verse and the immediately surrounding context, from a promise of God’s power to save us and resurrect us in the last day, into a suggestion that this passage is about the power of God being available to use to keep the Law (just as Christ kept the Law, not through His own power—as God Himself—but only through the power provided to Him by the Father). Thus Adventism twists the primary point of the whole first chapter of Ephesians from being about how we can be secure and trust that God fulfills His promise to save us into a works-based salvation that relies on our correctly and sufficiently using the power of God to obey His law in order to be saved.
How Ephesians Contradicts Adventism #1
How Ephesians Contradicts Adventism #2
How Ephesians Contradicts Adventism #3
How Ephesians Contradicts Adventism #4
How Ephesians Contradicts Adventism #5
How Ephesians Contradicts Adventism #6
How Ephesians Contradicts Adventism #7
How Ephesians Contradicts Adventism #8
How Ephesians Contradicts Adventism #9
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