Unboxing
There’s a trend across social media wherein an “influencer” opens a package and people watch. That’s it—that is the whole experience. People, sometimes by the thousands, virtually watch as packing tape is cut, boxes are opened, and packages are torn to reveal the contents inside. This is called “unboxing,” and posts and reels are created to influence followers to purchase what they see coming out of the box.
As I read from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, I was thinking about this unboxing phenomenon. Throughout his epistle, Paul seeks to convey the magnitude of the blessings we have through our relationship with Christ Jesus. In the first chapter alone, Paul says that every spiritual blessing has been given to us, God’s glorious grace has been bestowed on us, salvation and deliverance were lavished on us according to God’s riches, and we are guaranteed a glorious inheritance with Jesus through the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:3, 6, 7-8, 14).
Often, it seems that words fail Paul in his efforts to convey the enormity of God’s salvific work and the benefits that accompany it through the Holy Spirit. When he compares the darkness and hopelessness of life without Christ to the new life we experience because of Christ’s sacrifice, Paul says,
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 transgression—it is by grace you have been saved. 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. (Eph. 2:4-7 NIV)
We see here in verse seven that one reason God raised us to life through his gift of salvation was to show us, those of us living here and now, the incomparable, indescribable riches God lavishes on those who are in Christ. In chapter three, Paul again is caught up by the infinite and unmeasurable blessings of God:
I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power. Although I am less than the least of all the Lord’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of Christ …] (Eph. 3:7-8 NIV).
Paul, though he labeled himself the least in God’s Kingdom, was one of the great “influencers” of his day. Ephesians is a perfect example of the modern unboxing practice carried out in ancient times. As he unpacks for that first-century church all the benefits God has provided in Christ through the Holy Spirit, Paul desired for every one of his followers to covet all the blessings described.
Furthermore, the box he was unpacking was like Mary Poppins’ carpet bag: there was no end to what was inside! But where she pulled out a lamp, Paul grabbed hold of life. Mary Poppins may have presented a hat stand, but Paul presented the multi-faceted, great, wonderful, and intense love of God for humanity, while we were still sinners. The box of benefits was jam-packed according to God’s riches in love, grace, mercy, and wisdom, all of which have no end.
I don’t know what trend is around the corner that will soon replace unboxing. Once enough people realize that it is nothing new and that influencers have been around since the beginning of time, maybe (hopefully) the trend will fade. However, the tremendous gift of God will never expire, weaken, or end. God’s gift is so lavish that it knocked Paul to his knees as he prayed,
I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Eph. 3:16-19 NIV)
Paul described a boundless, measureless, never-empty, and always full box. This box is not meant to be emptied just for show. It is not enough just to know about this box. Its contents are not merely for display, enticement, or objects to wish for, but are meant to be the actual experience of every believer who has submitted to Jesus as Lord and Savior and welcomed God’s Holy Spirit to permeate and influence their life. So immense are God’s gifts, rather than try to unbox all of them, it is better to dive right inside!