Have you ever wondered why so many professing Christians (maybe even you!) are so spiritually lethargic and even downright apathetic to the things of God? Perhaps it's because they've never truly had the eyes of their hearts opened to see the glory and majesty of who God is and what He has done for sinners through the person and work of His glorious Son. If you truly are a Christian, God's plan and purpose for you is that you display the glory of His power and grace not only in the ages to come, but here and now. But if that is to happen, you have to set your gaze on the glory of the gospel.
The Epistle to the Ephesians tells us that Christ has reconciled all creation to Himself and to God, and Christ has united people from all nations to Himself and to one another in His church. Ephesians 2:11-22 teaches us that through the blood of Christ people have not only been reconciled to God, but reconciled to each other. Through Christ the wall of hostility that once existed between God and man has been removed along with the wall of hostility between Jew and Gentile. The result is that all believers are brought together, in peace and love, by the blood of Christ.
How do I grow in Christ-likeness? Sanctification—the process of becoming more like Christ—is a profound mystery: God alone causes the growth (1 Cor. 3.6-7), and yet Christians are commanded to pursue their own spiritual growth (Php. 2.13, 2 Pet. 3.18). How can that be? More than that, what are we supposed to do about it? The apostle Paul answers that question for us, but maybe not in a way we might expect.
