With Him in the Heavenly Realms

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. (Ephesians 2:6-7)   Between the "by grace you have been saved" of verse five and the "by grace you have been saved" of verse eight, comes this powerful picture of what that grace means. Not only has God saved us from the death of sin and evil by "raising us" up to a new, resurrection life in the life of Christ, but he has raised us all the way up.  We usually stop the good news of the gospel after we've said the words death and resurrection.  But Paul doesn't.  He says we've been raised all the way—raised up with Christ through his resurrection, ascension, and his enthronement.  We are with him in the heavenly realms, seated with him in the throne room of heaven where all things dwell under the rule and reign of our King Jesus.  We are there, seated not under him, but with him.  As if we were his siblings, co-heirs to the throne.   That's a powerful place to be.  And it rhymes with everything that has come before.  Like in chapter 1:3 where Paul praises the God who has "blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ."  Yes—here we are, seated with Christ in the heavenly realms between grace upon grace.  Or in chapter 1:20-21 where we hear of God's power for us, which is the same as that which "raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come."   It's a beautiful picture of unassailable power—a perfectly complete salvation.  Such a contrast from those opening words of "dead in your transgressions."   And yet: I write this sitting in the church at 61 Mohawk Road West.  I can assure you that my feet are firmly on the ground of planet earth this cold and cloudy day as the trees look increasingly bare.  Paul's vision of us with Jesus in the heavenly realms doesn't quite line up with reality, does it?   Or does it?   I think Paul invites us here to see beyond what we can see.  In the eyes of God: all of this "raising up" is already accomplished.  It is as good as done.  His promise is sure, his grace irresistible, and his power complete.  Nothing can steal us out of his hand or out of the future with King Jesus that Paul paints.   The challenge is holding onto this vision of our true, royal salvation reality amidst the pain, sorrow, and suffering of still sin-broken world.  I think that's why Paul paints the vision so starkly.   I have to think of the Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers movie where Gandalf shows up in King Theoden's court under a gray cloak.  He is announced as Gandalf the Grey and hobbles forward on the arm of a companion as if an old man.  He approaches the bewitched king as if to set him free from Saruman's spell.  But the king just laughs: "you have no power here, Gandalf the Grey" he cackles.  Then Gandalf takes off his cloak, revealing the White robes of his newly established power as Gandalf the White—immediately the light shines forth and the powers of darkness are quickly dispelled (you can watch it here). So it is here in Ephesians 2 and in our lives.  Remember that underneath the grey, shabby veneer of the darkness and difficulty of our lives, a truer reality exists.  It is the bright and powerful reality of who we are and what we have in Jesus Christ and his power: the incomparably great riches of his grace that saves us and gives us the unshakable promise of a future.