Read: (Ephesians 1:1-3)
God has laid it on my heart to take you, verse by verse through the book of Ephesians. So make a commitment to join us every Sunday for this life changing series starting this weekend.
Ephesians is an Epistle, one of the apostolic letters that can be divided into two sections. Section one; chapters 1-3, deal with theology and section two; chapters 3-6 deal with ethics. It's a letter of encouragement with the point of view being the unity of believers in Christ Jesus. These are two things that are needed in the modern church, encouragement and unity among the believers.
Below you will find some comments I have excerpted from my “The Application Study Bible”. May they help you better understand the verses I will cover this weekend.
Research:
(v. 1a) “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints in Ephesus ...” Paul wrote this letter (Epistle) to the Ephesian believers and all other believers to give them in-depth teaching about how to nurture and maintain the unity of the church. He wanted to put this important information in written form because he was in prison for preaching the gospel and could not visit the churches himself. The words “... in Ephesus ...” are not present in some early manuscripts. Therefore, this was very likely a “circular” letter – it was first sent to Ephesus and then circulated to neighboring local churches. Paul mentions no particular problems or local situations, and he offers no personal greetings.
Paul had been a Christian nearly 30 years. He had taken three missionary trips and established churches all around the Mediterranean Sea. When he wrote Ephesians, Paul was under house arrest in Rome (see Acts 28:16). Though a prisoner, he was free to have visitors and write letters.
Ephesus was one of the five major cities in the Roman empire along with Rome, Corinth, Antioch and Alexandria. Paul first visited Ephesus on his second missionary journey (Acts 18:19-21). During his third missionary journey, he stayed there for almost three and a half years. (Acts 19). Paul later met again with the elders of the Ephesian church at Miletus (Acts 29:16-38). Ephesus was a commercial, political and religious center for all of Asia Minor. The temple of the Greek goddess Artemis (Diana is her Roman equivalent) was located there.
(v. 1b) “... to the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus ...” - what an excellent reputation! Such a label would be an honor for any believer. Hold fast to your faith one day at a time; faithfully obey God, even in the details of life. Then, like the Ephesians you will be known as a person who is faithful to the Lord.
(v. 2) “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” This form of greeting was very common, almost universal, in Paul's Epistles. It is in a very peculiar sense a Christian form of greeting. Grace is the central fact of the gospel, the key to its meaning. The essential and primary meaning of the word “grace” is undeserved favor bestowed by a superior upon an inferior. In the gospel, it is that active and energetic love of God which, in and through Christ, clothed itself in human form, and continue now to work for man's redemption. “Peace” is the result of the action of this grace of God in the human heart.
God has laid it on my heart to take you, verse by verse through the book of Ephesians. So make a commitment to join us every Sunday for this life changing series starting this weekend.
Ephesians is an Epistle, one of the apostolic letters that can be divided into two sections. Section one; chapters 1-3, deal with theology and section two; chapters 3-6 deal with ethics. It's a letter of encouragement with the point of view being the unity of believers in Christ Jesus. These are two things that are needed in the modern church, encouragement and unity among the believers.
Below you will find some comments I have excerpted from my “The Application Study Bible”. May they help you better understand the verses I will cover this weekend.
Research:
(v. 1a) “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints in Ephesus ...” Paul wrote this letter (Epistle) to the Ephesian believers and all other believers to give them in-depth teaching about how to nurture and maintain the unity of the church. He wanted to put this important information in written form because he was in prison for preaching the gospel and could not visit the churches himself. The words “... in Ephesus ...” are not present in some early manuscripts. Therefore, this was very likely a “circular” letter – it was first sent to Ephesus and then circulated to neighboring local churches. Paul mentions no particular problems or local situations, and he offers no personal greetings.
Paul had been a Christian nearly 30 years. He had taken three missionary trips and established churches all around the Mediterranean Sea. When he wrote Ephesians, Paul was under house arrest in Rome (see Acts 28:16). Though a prisoner, he was free to have visitors and write letters.
Ephesus was one of the five major cities in the Roman empire along with Rome, Corinth, Antioch and Alexandria. Paul first visited Ephesus on his second missionary journey (Acts 18:19-21). During his third missionary journey, he stayed there for almost three and a half years. (Acts 19). Paul later met again with the elders of the Ephesian church at Miletus (Acts 29:16-38). Ephesus was a commercial, political and religious center for all of Asia Minor. The temple of the Greek goddess Artemis (Diana is her Roman equivalent) was located there.
(v. 1b) “... to the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus ...” - what an excellent reputation! Such a label would be an honor for any believer. Hold fast to your faith one day at a time; faithfully obey God, even in the details of life. Then, like the Ephesians you will be known as a person who is faithful to the Lord.
(v. 2) “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” This form of greeting was very common, almost universal, in Paul's Epistles. It is in a very peculiar sense a Christian form of greeting. Grace is the central fact of the gospel, the key to its meaning. The essential and primary meaning of the word “grace” is undeserved favor bestowed by a superior upon an inferior. In the gospel, it is that active and energetic love of God which, in and through Christ, clothed itself in human form, and continue now to work for man's redemption. “Peace” is the result of the action of this grace of God in the human heart.
Excerpted from Studies in Ephesians by E. Y. Mullins
(v. 3) “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” Means that in Christ we have all the benefits of knowing God – being chosen for salvation, being adopted as his children, forgiveness, insight, the gifts of the Spirit, power to do God's will, the hope of living together with Christ, we can enjoy these blessings now. The heavenly realms means that these blessings are eternal, not temporal.
Reflect:
- Ephesians 1 speaks of the awesome beauty of Christ. Have you ever had a wow-moment in nature where you were just blown away by the beauty of creation? If so, what was it?
- Take a moment and read through Ephesians chapter one, what did you find most fascinating or interesting?
Respond:
- What would it take for others to characterize you as faithful to Christ?
- As you reflect on these verses and this chapter, were there any one or two things that God seemed to be saying to you, specifically?”
- In light of what you believe God said to you, how is your life being changed, or in what ways does it still need to change?”
Request:
Pray, asking the Lord to help you change those things that He brought to your attention.
What a very complex chapter! And very moving. I began to weep when read verse thirteen. I guess I just forget that I was chosen. Looking forward to the message.
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