Ephesians 1:15-23 Study

Verses 15-19

What does it say?

Paul begins with talking about prayer. Specifically, he speaks about why he has been praying for them, how much he has been praying for them, and what he has been praying for them.

Why:

We find this in the first verse. Paul says,

Ephesians 1:15 (CSB): This is why, since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints,

He heard about the great, strong faith of the Ephesian church and was overjoyed. He heard about their love for the saints and responded with prayer.

How Much:

Verse 16 tells us Paul never stop[ped] giving thanks for the Ephesians. Paul’s prayers were constant. He was so overjoyed and grateful that he felt compelled to be in constant prayer for them.

What:

God give them wisdom

God give them revelation of knowledge of Christ

God enlightens their hearts to know hope in salvation

God enlightens them of what is Christ’s power toward us who believe

What does it mean?

Why:

Consider why Paul says he prays for the Ephesians:

I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints…

The Ephesian church was doing so well at bringing the Gospel to others and honoring God in all things that Paul, across the world, heard news of It.

Hearing of such good news, he can only give thanks to God for them.

How Much:

When Paul says he never stops giving thanks, he is being hyperbolic, he is exaggerating, but he is pointing to something true.

Paul made much time throughout his day just be praying for others. He set aside this time being it was a priority for him to be praying for these believers.

What:

God give them His Spirit

He calls the Spirit the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation in the knowledge of Him.

At this time, the Spirit was not working as it did now, because this was a transition period in the early church. The Spirit was coming upon many believers, but, seemingly, at different times.

Paul knew that overall, before anything else, this church needed His Spirit To be able to truly honor God.

God enlightens their hearts to know

hope in salvation

Paul strongly desired that the Ephesians church held fast to the hope of salvation, he calls it the hope of his calling.

There is great hope in the very fact that God has called us unto Himself. He prayed the church would hold onto the hope that exists there.

wealth in the inheritance

He also desired for them to understand the magnitude in our inheritance: eternal life with Christ.

he calls this inheritance wealth and glorious in the saints. The reason he uses these words is that he is trying to convey how awesome this is. We get eternal life with Christ after death. Heaven. Goodness. Glory. All for us sinners saved by grace.

Christ’s power toward us who believe

And yet, he wants them to know the power Christ has through us, for us, towards us, and in us who believe.

The Ephesians were going through hard times, like all the churches. They needed a reminder of God’s power working in them and through them.

Paul calls Christ’s strength mighty. For those working as instruments of God, we cannot forget about His great strength. Our God is far from impotent.

Now what does it mean for us?

Paul prioritized praying for fellow saints in his life. He did not only pray for himself or only selfishly in general, rather he prayed for others often. It was a normal part of his daily life.

We too should make this normal in our lives. Pick three new people a day and pray for them. Believers or not. You should not only be praying for. This is a self-focused brother. We must be others-centered Like Christ was.

All that which Paul prays for the Ephesians church are blessings for us as well. We have hope in our calling, we have a glorious inheritance, and we have His mighty power working in us.

Verses 20-23

What does it say?

Then Paul breaks out in a teaching doctrine. He get’s so excited and pent up with praise that he explodes in doctrine of Christ.

God exercises His power in Christ through

The Resurrection

The Coronation

Christ is above every authority, His power is over all beings

Referencing Psalm 8, God subjected everything under His feet

God appointed Christ as the head of the church

The church is Christ’s body

The church is the fullness of God

What does it mean?

This glorious power that God works toward us in saving us and working through us was first seen exercised in Jesus’s resurrection and then Him being set at His Father’s right hand to rule.

Jesus is not content with only some bowing. Being that He is the Creator of All things, the Sustainer of All Things, and the Judge over All Things, Jesus is worthy of the submission and praise of all things, people, nations, authorities, dominions, etc.

God fulfilled prophecy through Christ by subjecting everything to His feet. Jesus truly rules over everything.

One of Christ’s most important positions of authority, though, is being the Head of the Church. Thus is how He works through us—He works through the church.

Paul closes this portion by speaking of what the church is. He calls it the His body, fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.

Paul is saying that it is in the church of the followers of Jesus Christ that we still see God’s fullness displayed.

Now what does it mean for us?

We must submit to our Ruler and Savior Jesus Christ. Ultimately, He is our authority, our King. This submission must be daily and constantly. Submitting in our friend group. Submitting in school. Submitting in our family. Submission should be normal for the Christian because of this very truth—we only have life through our King Jesus Christ.

How do you do with submission?

Why do You struggle with it?

Looking at the church, we must be servants and partakers of and in the church. There is no way to truly love Christ and exhibit Him to others without being somehow involved and a part of a local Christian church. It must be a priority as it is the church where we can truly be the body of Christ.