011 ST_The Message of Ephesians (ES 3 Jan 2021)

Ephesians 1:1-2

HHappy New Year! It is a new year, 2021, with new expectations. It is too early to tell what this year will be, but I think many of us are hopeful it will be better. But even if it is worse, we have a gracious God who will see us through it.

For those that are able, please stand with me, as we read God’s word.

Ephesians 1:1-2 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Please be seated.

PRAY

This evening we will beginning our new series on the letter of Paul to the Ephesians. Ephesians was John Calvin’s favorite, and it is certainly mine.

This evening we are going to look at three things about Ephesians, 1) The Author (that is, who wrote it) 2) The recipients (who was it written to) and 3) the message (what is the letter about).

The Author (Paul)

Now, as I read the first verse of the letter, it identifies the apostle Paul as the author. And if you look at the footnotes in your Bible, there is nothing there that says he didn’t. What I mean by that there is no note that says Something like the earliest manuscripts, don’t include Paul. There is nothing like that. However, if you open any commentary or look in Study Bible the first thing the author of that work does is address who wrote the book, usually starting from the position that the apostle Paul didn’t write it.

It usually presented something like this, “Now the Pauline authorship of Ephesians was universally accepted from the first century until the beginning of the nineteenth.” And if the author of the work, isn’t a very conservative Bible scholar, they conclude that some unknown person wrote the Letter to the Ephesians, about a hundred years after Paul’s death, and put Paul’s name on it. So, what happened in beginning of nineteenth century to cause this doubt that Paul wrote Ephesians. And that event is what is called the literary criticism movement that began in Germany around the 1820s. Literary criticism is the “so called” discipline concerned with the literary characteristics of the text, its vocabulary, forms, structure, and style. An example of literary criticism applied, is a critic would look at the Greek words used in Ephesians compare them to other Pauline works, and would conclude that Paul couldn’t have written Ephesians, because there are words in Ephesians that Paul never uses in other letters. Now there are good reasons that Ephesians could have different words, and the letter still be written by Paul. And I don’t think it is profitable to go through all the circular arguments that the critics use to dispute that Paul is the author. Especially when the real problem is these critics don’t believe that the Bible is the Word of God, which means they don’t really believe in God in a personal way.

We know that the Bible is the Word of God, and we know it, not because of any artificial doctrine imposed upon it by churches or theologians but it is the view of the Bible taught by God in the Bible itself.

I like what the highly esteemed conservative Biblical scholar, F. F. Bruce says when addressing this issue if Paul wrote Ephesians. He writes “the preponderance of evidence for Pauline authorship overcomes the arguments against his authorship.” He also wrote, “the man who could write Ephesians must have been the apostle’s equal, if not his superior, in mental stature and spiritual insight … Of such a second Paul early, Christian history has no knowledge.” We are going to conclude with what we have always believed, and most of church history has, that Paul is the author of Ephesians.

In the Biblical narrative, just who is Paul? When the Apostle Paul is first introduced in the Bible, in the book of Acts, he actually goes by his Jewish name Saul, and he is persecuting the church.

Acts 7:58-8:3 Then they (the crowd) cast him (Stephen) out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." 60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." And when he had said this, he fell asleep.8:1 And Saul approved of his execution. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. 2 Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him. 3 But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.

Of his pre-conversion life Paul writes in Gal 1:13-14, “For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. 14 And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.”

Of his post conversion life Paul in the next two verses, But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone. Saul the persecutor is transformed to Paul the missionary.

Paul’s name was changed from Saul and that is first recorded in Act 13:9, throughout my years I have heard teachers say that God changed Paul’s name after he became a Christian. However, it probably more accurate to say it was tied to Paul’s entrance into the Gentile mission.

In the next part of the verse of verse Eph 1:1 it states that Paul was an apostle of Christ Jesus. The Greek word apostolos has two basic meaning in the NT. It can mean 1) a messenger without extraordinary status like Epaphroditus in Phil 2:25 where the word Apostolos is translated as messenger. It can also mean a messenger with extraordinary status. That is how it is used here in the sense of a technical term. The emphasis is on Paul’s authority as one sent as the special envoy of Christ to lead the church.

We see background of the term apostle in Mark 3:14 where we read “And he (Jesus) appointed the twelve (whom he also named apostles) so they might be with him and he might send them out to preach”. In Acts 1, after Jesus ascended into heaven the remaining eleven apostles led by Peter, select a replacement for Judas and one of the requirements in Acts 1:22 was the apostle had to be a witness of the Jesus’ resurrection. Pastor Sean mentioned this, this morning. To be an apostle, the person had to be a witness to the resurrection. Even though Paul was not a Christian at the time of Jesus resurrection, he testifies to seeing Jesus’ resurrection in 1 Cor 15:5-9:

And that he (Jesus) appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. 9 For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

In Eph 1:1 Paul states he is an apostle by the will of God. [There are two wills of God, there is what we call the will of command, and will of decree. For example, the eighth commandment, “you shall not steal” is a will of command. God’s will for me is to not steal, but I could disobey God’s will and still steal. But God’s will of decree is different. An example is in Acts 2:23 where Peter is addressing about Jesus, “this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.” Jesus’ crucifixion was decreed by God, and nothing could thwart his plan.] So Paul had not volunteered, nor had the church appointed him. His apostleship derived from the decretive will of God and he was commissioned by the Lord Jesus . That is why we must listen to the message of Ephesians with attention and humility. For we must not regard Paul as a private individual who is giving his personal opinions, nor as a gifted but fallible teacher, nor even as the church’s greatest missionary hero, but as to see Paul as ‘an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God’, and therefore as a teacher whose authority is precisely the authority of Jesus Christ himself, in whose name and by whose inspiration he writes.

The Recipients:

Now I would like to move the recipients of the letter. In the second part of verse 1 Paul uses several words to describe his readers.

First, they are the saints (hagios). When Paul uses this word, he doesn’t use it in a way, like some would use, like a special group of holy people, but what Paul means here is all God’s people. They were called ‘saints’ (that is, ‘holy’) because they are Christians who had had been set apart and belong to God. The expression was first applied to Israel as the ‘holy nation’ but came to be extended to the whole international Christian community. As the Apostle Peter writes in 1 Peter 2:9: “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

Secondly, (besides calling them saints) they are also faithful. The Greek word here, pistos can have either an active meaning (‘trusting’, ‘having faith’) or a passive (‘trustworthy’, ‘being faithful’). It is probably better here, for “faithful” to be understood in the sense of having faith or exercising belief rather than of being trustworthy or reliable. The recipients of the letter were believers, in the sense of full of faith.

Thirdly, Paul’s readers are in Christ Jesus. This term “in Christ Jesus” is key term in Ephesians and it occurs here in the very first verse. To be ‘in Christ’ is to be personally and vitally united to Christ. When we receive Christ into our lives we are united to Christ, and benefits of our salvation flow from this union. Paul develops this concept theologically in Chapter 2:1-10, but the concept is already here “in the bud” so to speak in verse 1. According to the New Testament—and especially Paul—to be a Christian is in essence to be ‘in Christ’, one with him and with his people. [ Paul uses this term or alludes to it eleven times in Ephesians 1:3-14.]

Fourthly, the recipients of this epistle are in Ephesus. Ephesus was the important Roman city in the province of Asia and was third largest city in the Empire. It was located on the west coast of what is now Modern Turkey on the Aegean Sea. Roads from the city spread out in every direction along the coast and through the interior of the province. Paul first visited Ephesus during the tail end of his second missionary journey which is recorded in Acts 18:19-20.

Acts 18:19 And they came to Ephesus, and he left them (the “them “are Priscilla and Aquila) there, but he himself went into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. 20 When they asked him to stay for a longer period, he declined.

But Paul returned on this third missionary and his time in Ephesus is recorded in Acts 19. Paul was there for over two years.

Now if you have almost any modern translation except for the New King James there will be a note on verse one that say something to the effect that some early manuscripts do not have in Ephesus. So what does it mean? Does it mean Paul didn’t write to the church in Ephesus? No, it just means that the words in Ephesus are not in the early manuscripts. The early manuscripts aren’t the original autographs and just because they are early, doesn’t necessarily mean they are more accurate than later text. It is best to read “in Ephesus” as original even though they are missing in several early manuscripts.

If we put all this information together, the recipients are ‘saints’ because and have been set apart to God; they are ‘believers’ because they have faith in Christ; and they have two homes, for they reside equally ‘in Christ’ and ‘in Ephesus’. All Christians are saints and believers. We live both in Christ and in the world or put in a differently we are ‘in the heavenlies’ and on earth. What theologians call “the already and the not yet” Many of our spiritual troubles arise from our failure to remember that we are citizens of two kingdoms. We tend either to pursue Christ and withdraw from the world, or to become preoccupied with the world and forget that we are also in Christ. And the right balance of this is for us to pursue Christ and be a witness of Christ to the world.

The Message of Ephesians

So the last part I want to address is the message of Ephesians. What is it? Unlike several of the other letters of Paul, Ephesians does not at address any particular problem or heresy. But like most of Paul’s letter it starts with theology in first part of the letter speaking to what God has done for us and then the practical part in the second part of the letter of how we should live in response to what God has done for us.

So the first part is theological (Chapters 1-3), and that is where message of Ephesian lies, that Christ has reconciled all creation to himself and to God has united people from all nations to himself and to one another in his church.

This is captured in Eph 2:4-7.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ-- by grace you have been saved-- 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

The Apostle Paul tells how Jesus Christ shed his blood in a sacrificial death for sin, was then raised from death by the power of God and has been exalted above all to the supreme place in both the universe and the church. More than that, he tells us we who are ‘in Christ’. That we are united to him by faith, have ourselves shared in these great events. We have been raised from spiritual death, exalted to heaven and seated with him there. We have also been reconciled to God and to each other. As a result, through Christ and in Christ, we are nothing less than God’s church, which he is creating, and which includes Jews and Gentiles on equal terms. We are the family of God the Father, the body of Jesus Christ his Son and the temple or dwelling place of the Holy Spirit.

The second part of the letter is the practical (Chapter 4-6). How do we respond to what God has done for us? The gospel transforms the way how we conduct ourselves whether it is in marriage, in parenting, and in the workplace. Paul begins these commands regarding our relationships and roles with two significant points: First, (1) We are to walk in love as Christ loved and as He gave Himself for us in His atoning death and in His active obedience.

Ephesians 5:1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.

(2) We are to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ (5:21).

Ephesians 5:18-21 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Love and submission serve as the foundation to our roles as spouses, parents, children, employers, and employees. We are also kept from legalism by remembering the cross and our redemption as that which enables us to live the lives to which Paul calls us to. This is an example of what I mean. In Eph 5:25 – 27:

Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.

When Paul commands husbands to love their wives, Paul gives us a redemptive framework to do this. We are to love our wives, like Christ loved the church. I love her sacrificially not really expecting anything in return. I am loving her by submitting to Christ.

In closing, the message of Ephesians is, God has done all the heavy lifting. He made us alive when we were dead. In his great mercy He has reconciled us to himself and unites us to Christ and to each other. And this gospel transformation enables us to live the Christian life in response to the great mercy and grace.

Please pray with me.

Father, we are grateful for your God breathed Word, especially in this letter of Ephesian. Your great love for us before the foundation of time, and how you reconciled us to yourself and united all believers together in your church. Father, we pray in this New Year that we would know you better and love you with all our heart, mind and soul.