Ephesians 1

Introduction

Good morning Life church.

Today, we start a new series on the book of Ephesians. My hope in this series is three fold.

We would learn to see doctrines in the Bible in the context of an entire book.

We would be engulfed in hope, wonder, and joy at the Glory and blessings God has given His people in Jesus, through the HS.

We would move from a paradigm of individualism to a paradigm of the Church. A paradigm of division to a paradigm of unity in Christ.

OUR KEY VERSE -

Ephesians 1:9–10 NIV

he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.

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BACKGROUND

I want to give us a little background to this book but I also want to leave some things unsaid so, we can read and hear this letter as if it were written to us.

The world is divided politically, religiously, and socially.

Due to these divides new fraternities have been established to offer social and missional cohesion.

Worker guilds, mystery cults, Synagogues, Pharisees, Sadducees, Philosophical fraternities - stoics

Even still there are large populations of people who are left out of civic and family life.

Slaves / women / Poor /

Also each fraternity was for a specific kind of person and not open to all.

This desire for a more democratic system also left the world very fragmented with new tribal identities.

THESE DIVISIONS ARE MANIFESTING IN THE CHURCHES OF ASIA MINOR.

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THE CHURCH IS A FAMILY SPLIT INTO MULTIPLE ETHIC AND SOCIAL GROUPS.

The Church Resembled my Family Christmas as a Child.

Divided over politics

Divided over sibling rivalries

Divided over egos

Divided over family names (Divorces, remarried, step children, last names).

Always ended in a fist fight in the front lawn with Grandma -Family matriarch, breaking it up and scolding the adult children.

Only Grandma Underwood - The Matriarch to end the fight.

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EPHESIANS IS TELLING US A SIMILAR STORY.

ONLY JESUS CAN HEAL THE DIVISION IN HIS BODY.

YOU ALL KNOW THE CHURCH IN AMERICA IS DIVIDED

WE HAVE EXPEREINCED THAT DIVISION HERE

SOME MAY EVEN BE EXPEREINCING IT NOW.

THEREFORE, THIS BOOK IS OF GREAT IMPORTANCE TO US.

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LET ME LAY OUT A FEW PRESUPUSITIONS WE MUST UNDERSTAND TO GRASP THE THEOLOGY OF EPHESIANS.

GOD IS HOLY

GOD CALLS US TO BE HOLY

HOLY BY BEING IN COVENANT RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM IN JESUS.

HOLY BY BECOMING LIKE JESUS BY THE HOLY SPIRIT.

GOD MOVES US TOWARDS LOOKING LIKE JESUS WHEN WE SET OUR EYES AND HEART TOWARDS LOOKING LIKE HIM AS OUR HIGHEST GOAL.

HEAVEN NOR THE ESCAPE FROM HELL IS THE GOAL.

BEING LIKE JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE GOAL.

Romans 8:29 NASB95

For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;

1 Peter 1:13–17 NASB95

Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth;

TO BE HOLY IS TO LOOK LIKE JESUS, WHO IS THE VISIBLE AND PERFECT IMAGE OF YAHWEH.

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THE MANI QUESTION OF THIS BOOK.

HOW DOES GOD HEAL THE DIVISIONS OF HIS BODY?

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LETS JUMP RIGHT IN.

I want you to notice something as we read, Paul does not start with sin, he starts with a proper understanding of God.

Ephesians 1:1–14 NIV

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To God’s holy people in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 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. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.

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God the Trinity is our Archetype

The trinity is in full unity in affection, mind, and purpose.

All of our blessings come to us through the perfectly unified Trinity.

Father blesses us with

Chose us before time to be Holy and blameless like Him

Predetermined to adopt us as His children in Christ.

In and Through Jesus all the blessings God purposed for us are secure.

He chose us in Christ

He adopted us in Christ

He redeemed us to Himself by the sacrifice of Christ.

The Holy Spirit seals our adoption and our redemption to Yahweh. He is the guarantee that God will fully work these blessings out in our lives to perfection when Jesus returns.

GOD IS IN FULL AND COMPLETE UNITY IN THE COMMUNITY OF THE TRINITY.

Unified in affection - God so loved

Unified in mind and will

Unified in purpose - Call, adopt, redeem, make us Holy like Him.

AS OUR ARCHATYPE WE BECOME LIKE HIM BY LOOKING UPON HIM AND HAVING OUR AFFECTIONS BECOME ALIGNED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT.