Paul wrote to the church at Ephesus: “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:1).
This chapter compares the past with the present, who the Ephesians were before they believed in Christ alone for salvation, and who they are today.
In what sense were these Christians previously dead? And what guidance were they following — who is the “prince of the power of the air” that had formerly led the people of Ephesus?
Dead in Our Trespasses
Jerrod Rumley explained Ephesians 2, saying, “This is not a feel-good passage. It isn’t a mirror that shows us what we want to see, but what we need to see. And the smell of this. How ghastly. How gross. The stench of spiritually dead people reeks to the Lord. Even Paul remembers the odor of his sin as he was persecuting Christians.”
The person who does not know Christ as Lord and Savior seems to be alive, but he or she is among the walking dead.
This person lives to satiate the desires of self, of flesh, which means giving in to temptations such as those listed in 1 Corinthians 6 — sexual sin, slander, drunkenness, frivolous living, lying, cheating, stealing; a life lacking in discipline or concern for others.
To be dead in one’s sin does not require murder or grand larceny, just pride, denial, and rejection of God. “Apart from Christ, all people are spiritually dead” (Ibid.).
Paul’s teaching comes from that of the Messiah: “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” (John 3:36).
Later in the Gospel of John, Christ declared, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life” (John 5:24).
Death is total separation from God, eternity without life, light, or love. Death is a choice to reject Christ’s propitiation for sin, and it begins with refusing to admit that one is a sinner in need of a Savior.
Death looks a lot like life, even abundant life, to the one who is being deceived.
Led into Sin or Away from Sin
Paul also indicated that the one who is alive in Christ has actually switched allegiance and has turned from following the “prince of the power of the air” to following Christ and being transformed by Christ through his Spirit.
David Guzik hones in on the past tense: “in which you once walked.” There was a time when the Ephesians were following this prince of the air. That was the old self, “the old man, now crucified with Jesus at the time of conversion,” explained Guzik.
Ephesians 2 implies that we always follow some kind of leader; we are all being led, although many believe they need no leader and are actually charting their own course.
They are happy for now because they believe a life lived apart from Jesus is where they will find happiness. Jesus is all about rules, they might think, but apart from him, they can live as they choose as long as they do not hurt anyone. This is a great deception.
We change our allegiance when we come alive in Christ and recognize that living in the flesh is like living in a coffin: “A dead man feels comfortable in his coffin; but if he were to be made alive again, he would instantly feel suffocated and uncomfortable. There would be a strong urge to escape the coffin and leave it behind” (Ibid.). Happiness can only be fleeting apart from Jesus.
Once we see Jesus for who he is and believe he is the one we should be following, we ask for the Holy Spirit to enter us and transform us.
Because of the transforming work, even though we are sometimes led by the same dark powers of death that sounded so appealing before we switched allegiance, we also feel the Holy Spirit pulling us away from temptation.
We experience spiritual conflict; it hurts when we sin, so we want to stop sinning. We even want to stop doing things that the world fully supports, like spending our money on luxuries that only dull our spiritual senses.
We recognize that following Jesus is better than immediate pleasures because it is God-honoring, because Christ loves us, and because His direction is better for us. He has eternal pleasures waiting for those who love him.
Prince of the Powers of the Air
But who is this prince that Paul speaks of? Guzik explained that “this unique title for Satan speaks of his authority (prince) and his realm (the air, a way of referring to Satan’s ‘environment’)” (Ibid.).
The heavens include this realm in which Satan is now in charge, although it is not the Kingdom of God. It “is the abode of those principalities and powers, world-rulers of this darkness and spiritual forces of wickedness against which the people of Christ wage war” (Ibid.).
And as Paul makes clear, the course of this world follows the leadership and design of Satan, “the prince of the power of the air.”
Scripture puts it this way: “We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one” (1 John 5:19). When we read about the “world,” Scripture is pointing to everything that represents a rejection of Christ.
The inspired Word of God wants readers or listeners to recognize the contrast between following the light of Christ and following the darkness of Satan, which sometimes appears benign. One can do good things for the world and still reject Jesus, a choice that leads to death.
Many of them think they have eschewed any type of spiritual leadership and are their own guides. But Satan rules this world right now and will do until he is “cast out” by Christ (John 12:31).
And, since a prince must also possess a retinue of servants, those powers of the air are probably “Satan’s host of demons who exist in the heavenly sphere,” referenced in Ephesians 6, where Paul described the armor of God.
Choose Your Leader
Everyone is following either Satan or Jesus, whether they realize it or not. To follow God is to obey him, and we honor him by submitting to his rule through Christ. Christians reject the prince of this world, the ruler of flesh, thereby going against the grain of society.
Hard as this is, thanks be to God that his Spirit draws us back to the cross and to Jesus’ victory over flesh. We find forgiveness and activate Christ’s power, which he has given us to resist Satan to the glory of God. “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).
For further reading:
9 Ways Satan Seeks Your Destruction Every Day
Why Did Angels and Satan Present Themselves Before the Lord?
Photo Credit: ©iStock/Getty Images Plus/Andry Djumantara
