Ephesians: Part 6 - Dead as a Doornail

Ephesians 2:1-5
Pastor Scott Skones

I’m sure that many of you are familiar with the common English phrase “Dead as a Doornail.” The idiom actually dates back at least to the late 1500’s as Shakespeare used it in one of his plays. It was also used by Charles Dickens in “A Christmas Carol” to describe Jacob Marley who had been dead for seven years when he appeared to Ebenezer Scrooge. It was used to emphasize that Marley was really, truly dead.

But, where does the phrase come from?

Dead as a Doornail

In Medieval carpentry, doors were often constructed like the one on the screen. Multiple layers of different pieces of wood, nailed together to increase the strength of the door. And when a nail was driven through, the point of the nail would be bent over and used as a sort of staple – hammered into the wood – to ensure that the nail couldn’t be pulled out and the door disassembled.

However, that sharp bend in the metal did something else. It not only ensured that the nail couldn’t be pulled back through, it also made the nail worthless. If that sharp bend was ever straightened back out, the strength of the metal would be severely compromised, making the nail worthless. Or, they would say that the nail was “dead.

Dead as a doornail. In an era when every nail was crafted by hand in a forge, that was a big deal.

But, of course, we use this phrase in the way that Charles Dickens did – to emphasize just how dead something is. To put an exclamation point on it. To make abundantly clear just how dead – how utterly not alive the thing is.

And we are going to hear this kind of exclamation point in our text for today.

We continue today in our sermon series in Ephesians. Today we are entering Chapter 2, where the spotlight will shift dramatically. At the end of Ephesians chapter 1, the focal point is Christ ruling and reigning over all things as the fullness of God. And in chapter 2 the spotlight moves to sinful humanity. And so I would invite you to stand as you’re comfortable for the reading of the Holy, Inspired, and Authoritative Word of God.

I’ll be reading Ephesians 2:1-5.

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live 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. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

God, Your word is true and it is right and good. Accomplish all that you desire through your word in our hearts and lives today. I pray that the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts would be pleasing in your sight – Oh Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.

I mentioned several weeks ago a shocking statistic that was published recently. If you remember, people who claim to be Evangelical Christians were asked to respond either “agree” or “disagree” with a statement. And the statement was this: Everyone is born innocent in the eyes of God.

And if you remember, the results showed that 64% of people who self-identified as Evangelical Christians agreed with the statement that Everyone is born innocent in the eyes of God.

Now, for some of you, that statement might not seem all that problematic. You look at a little baby and wonder how they could possibly be sinners. And yet we believe that they are, in fact, sinful because scripture teaches it. And then, if we keep watching, it’s not too long before that baby shows us their sin. They don’t have to be taught. It doesn’t have to be explained. It’s just within them.

Sin is the one thing that the entirety of humankind has in common. Anywhere you go, everybody there is a sinner. If you haven’t recently, spend some time in Romans chapter 3. In Romans 1-3, Paul is building the case against mankind. He is laying out, step by step, the reality that all people are sinners before a holy God. And when you get into chapter 3 he breaks out into a quote or a poem or – we don’t really know what it is. But listen to what he writes about the human condition:

Romans 3:10-18

“There is no one righteous, not even one;

11 there is no one who understands;

there is no one who seeks God.

12 All have turned away,

they have together become worthless;

there is no one who does good,

not even one.”

13 “Their throats are open graves;

their tongues practice deceit.”

“The poison of vipers is on their lips.”

14 “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”

15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;

16 ruin and misery mark their ways,

17 and the way of peace they do not know.”

18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

How accurate is Paul in his assessment of humanity? Pretty good, right!? Look back over the history of humanity and he nailed it! There is no one righteous.

But I would say that if you want proof of this condition. If you want proof that all human beings are sinners. That there is no one righteous. That all have turned away. If you want proof of this, you don’t need a pastor to tell you. You don’t need to read it in Psalm 51 or Romans 3. All you need to do is look into your own heart.

I know and I believe that I am a sinner because I know my own heart, my own thoughts. And I need no other evidence.

I want you to think about this for a moment. If you were to write down every thought that you have. Every thought about that co-worker, neighbor, or relative that drives you crazy. Every thought of lust or greed. Every thought of anger at those you see as your enemies. Or how about every fear? Every time you found yourself once again doubting God’s goodness? Every moment that you placed your trust in your bank account, rather than in God’s provision. Every time you lashed out in your mind at a person that you saw as a threat. What if it were to all be logged. All to be written down.

That’s a dreadful thought, isn’t it?

You see, we don’t just commit sins. We are sinners. We don’t just engage in individual sins, but the problem is much more deeply embedded than that. It is deep within our DNA. We can’t escape it. Your sin runs deep. It affects every relationship, every decision, every thought.

Our text today gives us some language to understand our fallen and sinful condition. And so today we are going to highlight from Ephesians chapter 2 what might be the two most critical spiritual principles for us to know and believe. The first is this:

BY NATURE WE ARE SPIRITUALLY DEAD.

V. 1 - As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins…

Paul makes it clear that this is universal. He doesn’t say “some of you”. He says “you”.

But I want to make note of the language of verse 1. I used the present tense “By nature we ARE spiritually dead.” And I used that for a reason. But what tense did Paul use in verse 1? He doesn’t say “You ARE dead.” He says “You WERE dead.” Past tense. And that’s because Paul is writing to the church. To a gathered group of believers in Ephesus who have heard and received the Gospel - God’s answer to their dead condition. But, I’m getting ahead of myself. We will come back to that idea in a few moments.

You may have noticed that he uses two words: transgressions and sins. There are a few ways to think about these words, but, generally, the New Testament uses the word “sin” as more of an umbrella term that encompasses our rebellion and disobedience against God. Perhaps most clearly, Sin is every thought, desire, word, and deed which is contrary to God’s Law or will.

We talk about sin in many ways – for example, we can sin against God by doing the wrong thing, or by failing to do the right thing.

The other word that is used in verse 1 is the word “transgressions.” Now, in some ways these words can be thought of as just interchangeable. But transgression, or trespass, might speak more of the willful crossing of an established boundary, whereas sin is the picture of missing the mark.

However – it’s doubtful that Paul is all that interested in the difference between the meaning of the two words. What he’s doing is stacking these descriptive words as part of his argument. He uses both words to emphasize just how spiritually dead we are.

As we explore this idea briefly today, we are going to consider a couple of questions that will help us on this journey. The first is this:

What does it mean to be spiritually dead?

There are a few things for us to consider as we think about what Ephesians means when it describes the natural state of humanity as spiritually dead.

1 - Spiritual death is far more significant than physical death.

Most of us think about this the other way around. Most of us are more concerned about physical death than we are about spiritual death. But, of course, if the Bible is true, then spiritual death is FAR more of a concern than Physical.

Or we might say it this way. If there is an eternity, then spiritual death is a much more serious matter than physical death.

What else can we understand about spiritual death?

2 - Spiritual death means we are unable to move in the direction of God.

To be dead spiritually means that you cannot and will not choose God on your own.

People often describe salvation using an illustration something like this: Imagine you are off shore in a boat and there is a storm. Your boat capsizes and you are drowning in the ocean. In this illustration, Jesus is the coast guard rescue team. He comes near, hovers above us in a helicopter and throws us the ring buoy. All we have to do is reach out and grab on and he will lift us to safety.

I would guess that many of you have, at one time, viewed salvation in that way. Jesus’ part is coming here to rescue and throw us the buoy. Your part is to make the decision to grab on and then to hold on tight.

And that is a perfectly logical way to view Christianity and salvation. It makes sense from a human perspective.

But the problem is that is not the picture that that scripture gives us of salvation.

How does scripture describe our condition? We aren’t treading water in the ocean, keeping our head above the waves, waiting to be rescued. What picture does Paul use? We are dead, sunk to the bottom. Lifeless. No swimming. No grabbing onto anything. Game over.

This is such an important concept for us to grasp, because it helps us see what Jesus has actually done for us. He doesn’t just lean out of the door of the helicopter and throw a buoy. He jumps in. He swims to the bottom, and he holds onto you. He saves you.

A proper understanding of our natural condition gives us a better perspective on what Jesus has done for us, which will result in more heartfelt worship and true repentance and faith.

Or think of it this way – until we understand just how spiritually dead we are by nature, we won’t appreciate the beauty and power of the Gospel.

Spiritual death means we are unable to move in the direction of God.

3 - Spiritual death means that we are incapable of a relationship with God.

This should be obvious, but we live in an age in which we need to say obvious things because people like to believe silly things and deny obvious things.

Think of it this way: Can you have a relationship with someone who is dead? If you answer yes, come see me this week – we will get you the help you need.

No, of course you can’t have a relationship with someone who is dead. That’s impossible. They are dead. The very nature of relationship means that two people relate with one another.

And so because we are by nature dead in our sins, Spiritually dead, we are, on our own, incapable of a relationship with God.

4 - Spiritual death means that we deserve God’s wrath.

We don’t like to talk about the wrath of God. But look at the end of verse 3 - “Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.”

The notion of God’s wrath and anger against evil does present a logical challenge for many. How can a loving God also promise wrath and destruction? It is a legitimate question. But I don’t actually think it’s all that hard of a question. This might get a little philosophical, but I have great faith in your intellect. You are very smart people. Think about it this way.

The Bible sets up our understanding of God right away in Genesis in this way: God is the central being.

Genesis 1:1 - “in the Beginning GOD.”

In other words, God is the central person, the central being. And it really shows up in two ways early in Genesis. God is the creator of all. He makes the universe. He creates mankind.

But God is central in another way. We might say that God is not only the central powerful creative being, but he is also the central MORAL being.

Here’s what that means. Not only does God establish how nature and physics work, but he establishes right and wrong, good and bad. Morality. Ethics.

Not only does God establish the fact that the sun sends out solar energy to bring heat to the earth, or that two hydrogen atoms bind to one oxygen atom to form a water molecule – but he establishes the guidelines and ethics and norms by which his human creation will interact with each other, their world, and their creator.

In other words, he is not only the central creative being in the universe, but he is the central MORAL being in the universe. He is the very picture of right, good, and beautiful.

Fast forward the story past the sin of his creation and the destruction that came about through humanity’s rebellion against God, and we find God at work to make all things right again. God is working to redeem his creation. To fix all that has gone wrong.

And one essential part of fixing what has gone wrong is ridding the world of evil and sin. And God has put in place a plan to, once and for all, rid the world of evil. To purify the world of all that is opposed to him and what he has declared right and good and beautiful.

And so God’s wrath – while we always hear that in a negative sense – is an essential part of his plan to redeem all things.

If you have invasive cancer, it is not enough for the doctor to point it out and then continue on like nothing is wrong. No, he needs to take out his knife and cut. And keep cutting until every last wicked cell is removed. And then maybe blast that thing with chemo or radiation for good measure.

We think of God’s wrath as if it were a sinful angry human being carrying out punishment, rather than as a skillful and loving physician, ridding his patient of the disease that is ravaging it.

Sin is a disease and our loving and Good creator will rid his creation of every last cancerous cell. That is God’s judgment and wrath.

But we are born sin sick. In fact, Sin-dead. And, apart from something changing. Apart from intervention from the outside, we are needing to be cut out in order for the whole of creation to be made well. We deserve God’s wrath because of our sin.

Thanks be to God, Jesus comes to change the tense of this conversation. Jesus comes to take us from people who ARE deserving of wrath, people who WERE.

But before we talk about that, let’s look at what our text shows us about those who are spiritually dead:

What are the characteristics of those who are spiritually dead?

1 - Following the ways of this world

V. 1-2 - As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world…

Think of this world like a flooded river flowing downstream at a fast pace. When we are spiritually dead we just float along like a log floating down the river. We go where the world goes and we end up wherever the world and the culture take us.

Later in chapter 2 we are going to see that following the ways of this world is contrasted with the good works that God has prepared for us to do.

What’s another characteristic of those who are spiritually dead?

2 - Following the ways of this world’s ruler

Not only do those who are spiritually dead just float downstream with the world and the culture around them, but they follow the ways of the one who is, for now, the ruler of this world.

This title, the “ruler of this world” is one that is used to refer to Satan, the great deceiver, the evil one. Paul borrowed this title for Satan from Jesus. In John 12:32, Jesus said: “the prince of this world will be driven out.” And at least two other times in the Gospel of John – in chapters 14 & 16 – Jesus uses the same language.

Satan is not the forever ruler of this world. And he’s not the true and ultimate ruler. We await the day when Christ will return and finish what he has started – when Satan will be vanquished forever and Jesus will reign, uncontested as king for all eternity.

Those who are spiritually dead do not just follow this world, they follow the ways of the evil one.

But there’s one other description or characteristic of those who are spiritually dead. We see in Verse 3 that they are:

3 - Following the flesh

V. 3 - All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts.

The problem isn’t only the world, it’s not only the evil one – it’s also deep within.

I don’t need to say much about this because we know it’s true. When we are left to ourselves, we will serve ourselves, worship ourselves, live for ourselves. Everything will be about us. We will do whatever we feel is right for us.

Don’t be surprised when a spiritually dead world acts spiritually dead. Don’t be surprised when people who are far from God act like they are far from God.

And the emphasis of Paul in all of this is so important. This is who you are apart from Christ. This is your natural condition. Your natural state. This describes our very natural condition, born as sinners in a broken world.

By nature we are spiritually dead. But, thankfully, there’s more to the story. And that brings us to the second critical spiritual principle that shows up in our text for today. And I’m going to introduce this for us today and then we will spend the next couple of weeks talking more about it in the coming verses.

BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH WE ARE MADE ALIVE WITH CHRIST.

In verses 1-3, Paul drops the hammer of spiritual reality. He slams shut the door in the face of anyone who thinks that they might be a pretty good person. He leaves no room for wondering if it’s possible that I might be able to save myself or somehow come to deserve eternal life. He drives the nail in the coffin on my delusions of self-salvation.

Think about the message of this letter had he just signed off after verse 3. “Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath…” Period. End of story.

But that’s not what happened. Instead, what follows in verse 4 is one of the most beautiful words in the New Testament. What is the beautiful word that I’m talking about? The word, “but…”

You were dead in your sin. You were deserving of God’s wrath.

But. But God.

Listen to verses 4-5: But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

Paul points us away from ourselves and our sinful condition and fixes our eyes on God and his abundant mercy and grace.

Listen to this good news. While you were dead as a doornail. Unable to save yourself. Unable to grab onto the buoy or swim to shore. Unable even to repent because you were dead. Stone Cold Dead – God showed up with his mercy. God jumped into the stormy sea, swam to the bottom, scooped you up, and brought you to life.

While you were DEAD - God made you alive.

Think about the words that show up here:

Because of his great LOVE. God who is rich in MERCY.

While God’s wrath against our sin is justified and deserved and real – God has a different plan in mind. God sent his son to take the just and right and necessary wrath against sin upon himself. In your place.

You deserve wrath, but in Jesus you are given mercy.

You deserve condemnation, but in Jesus you are made alive.

It says “it is by GRACE you have been saved.” Grace is God’s undeserved love and favor.

You did nothing to deserve it. You did nothing to earn it. You were dead. That is what you contributed to your salvation. You laid there on the bottom of the ocean dead. Drowned. Unable to save yourself.

But God. God sent his son to pull your lifeless body up and give you new life.

Over the coming couple of chapters you will hear a rhythmic drum beat of the centrality of God’s grace. God’s undeserved love and favor and mercy for you. Over and over again.

You see, you were dead in your sins. And Jesus came so that he could take your place in death. And when he was raised from the dead, he emptied death of his power.

Church – the news about you is really bad. But the news about Jesus is really good.

There is only one question for you to consider today. And that question is this: Do you believe? Do you believe that your sin is great, but Jesus is greater? Do you believe that you deserve wrath, but Jesus took it for you? Do you believe that you were lifeless on the bottom of the sea, but Jesus jumped in and saved you and made you alive?

As you consider your sin and as you consider how you have it with the Lord today – hear these words. These words are for you: 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.

Do you believe?

In just a few moments you will have the opportunity to confess that you are by nature a sinner, and then to taste the goodness of the Lord as he offers, for all who will believe, his grace to us at the Lord’s table.

Repent and believe the good news – that while you were dead, Jesus jumped in to rescue you.