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God, rich in mercy, So loved the world … He sent his only son … What does ‘salvation’ really mean? 50 People in a room express their hope for the Church’s help to understand what that means for them; help to know how to respond to that love to understand more deeply what this means: Ephesians 2:10 “For…

Ephesians 1 establishes the tone for the entire epistle. Its opening words prepare its audience for an authoritative declaration from an influential leader in the church. Yet Paul’s blessing in Eph 1:3–14 deviates from the normal structure of first-century letters. Rather than launching into a prayer of thanksgiving, as might be expected, Paul offers a blessing with a liturgical focus. Best (1997, 37) views Eph 1:3 as a summons to worship inaugurated by the words “Blessed be.” The rest of Eph 1–3 serves as a means of informing this worship—explaining the depth and breadth of God’s redemptive accomplishments and their manifestation and relevance in the life of the believer. Derek R. Brown, Miles Custis, and Matthew M. Whitehead, Ephesians, ed. Douglas Mangum, Lexham Research Commentaries (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2013), Eph 1:1–23.