Ephesians 1:1-14
Notes
Transcript
SERIES: CHOSEN
SERIES: CHOSEN
Introduction:
The Letter of Paul to The believers in Ephesus is a wonderful blessing to us believers today.
You know why?
Because it speak to us about the blessedness of the believers.
The blessedness in Christ:
We are blessed not because we deserved to be, but because God choose to bless us through His Son Jesus Christ (Doctrine of Election, Through the Mediation of Jesus)
The blessedness of being part of a a local church:
We are blessed because God has given us a spiritual family - where we are nurtured and it is where we used our gifts.
My prayer is that, as we go through our study on this letter, we will be encouraged to live for Christ with gladness in our hearts and to be united and useful in the Body of Christ, his Church.
Outline
I. Introduction
A. Paul’s Greetings (vv.1-2)
II. Chosen by God
A. God’s Work of Salvation (1:3-14)
B. Jesus Rule Over All Things (1:15-23)
Paul’s Greetings
Paul’s Greetings
I. Identification of the author (v1a)
I. Identification of the author (v1a)
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus:
Apostle of Christ Jesus
Apostle - Gr. apostolos, messenger, envoy, ambassador) - one who is sent out by and on behalf of God as his servant and ambassador.
by the will of God - His Apostleship is not a “decision” made by man but by God.
Identification of the Receiver (v1b)
Identification of the Receiver (v1b)
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus:
The saints at Ephesus
What or who is a saint?
Who determines when a person should be called a saint?
How did they became followers of Jesus?
Saints
The Greek word hagioi, refers to those who are set apart or who belong to God, not to the moral quality of being without sin.
We can say at least that this is an identity believers share; it is a result of their being in Christ.
saint - our new identity in Christ.
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus:
Faithful in Christ Jesus
a description of a genuine believer
what does the word faithful mean?
Faithful
πιστός (pistos). adj. trustworthy, faithful; trusting, believing. Describes a person or thing as characterized by trustworthiness or belief - LOYALTY.
Loyalty to JESUS.
Historical Background
Historical Background
The exalted reputation of ancient Ephesus lay primarily in its magnificent temple to Artemis. One of the seven wonders of the ancient world, it was about four times larger than the Parthenon in Athens, making it the largest Greek temple in the ancient world.
Poets praised its unmatched splendor, including Antipater of Sidon who, comparing the temple to the hanging gardens of Babylon, the colossus, and the pyramids of Egypt, declared
“but when I saw the house of Artemis that mounted to the clouds, those other marvels lost their brilliancy, and I said, ‘Lo, apart from Olympus, the Sun never looked on aught so grand.’ ”
Sadly today, all that is left of its former majesty is a single column providing a nesting place for birds.
The temple was so popular among pagans that Ephesus emerged as the religious centre of all Asia.
The temple of Diana had close links to local commerce and it was also a tourist centre. The temple cult involved worship of Diana as fertility goddess and as goddess of the woods and hunt.
Diana’s image represented the figure of a crowned woman with multiple breasts to signify fertility. In addition to the Diana cult, Ephesus was also known as a centre of occult arts and practices
The Birth of the Church in Ephesus:
The Birth of the Church in Ephesus:
how did they became followers of Jesus?
God sent Paul to plant a church in the City of Ephesus
1 It happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the upper country and came to Ephesus, and found some disciples.
10 This took place for two years, so that all who lived in Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.
The account of Paul’s sojourn in Ephesus (Acts 19) and stayed their for 2 years (Acts 19:10)
the apostle had conflicts with various branches of the pagan community. These conflicts were a direct result of Paul’s powerful ministry in the area:
In the Acts of the Apostles, Luke reports that God worked extraordinary miracles by Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them (19:12).
Paul’s impact on the practitioners of the occult resulted in a massive book-burning: A number who had practised sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas (Acts 19:19).
Luke’s comment about of the value of the books that were burned indicates the commercial crisis that was involved in Paul’s influence against paganism. The current value of the fifty thousand drachmas is close to $500,000
The riot at Ephesus was triggered by Paul’s teaching that ‘man-made gods are no gods at all’. Christianity makes no peace with idolatry. The scene at Ephesus was that of the triumph of the gospel over pagan idolatry.
Grace & Peace (v2)
Grace & Peace (v2)
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Grace to you and peace Paul’s typical greeting throughout his letters (compare Gal 1:3; Eph 1:2; Phil 1:2).
It summarizes his gospel message: God’s work through Christ (grace) brings people into a harmonious relationship with God and one another (peace)
The gospel begins with God’s work on people’s behalf and results in a transformation of their relationships with God and neighbor—from broken to whole.
PEACE or shalom carries the idea of wholeness.
Personal Wholeness - the reality of believers
Universal Wholeness - not yet but will be a reality of the 2nd coming of Jesus.
Chosen by God
Chosen by God
I. God’s Work of
Salvation (vv. 3-14)
I. God’s Work of
Salvation (vv. 3-14)
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
After the usual greetings, Paul begins with a benediction, a doxology, of praise and thanksgiving to God.
Paul praises God for what He has done through Christ and reminds believers of their status and privileges in Christ.
God our Father The word “our” indicates that Jews and Gentiles (non-Jewish people) are equal and united before God because of Christ. False teachers may have claimed that the Gentiles were not equal because they did not participate in circumcision.
With every Spiritual Blessing - fullness of Spiritual Blessings (Immaterial blessings)
we may lack physical and materials things, but not Spiritual. The Spiritual blessings (gifts) in Christ are available for us - spiritual Salvation and The Holy Spirit.
heavenly places A reference to the spiritual world to which believers now have access through Christ. In this realm believers experience spiritual blessings and share in Christ’s authority over evil forces (compare Eph 1:3; 2:6; 3:10)
6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
10 so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
in Christ Refers to the believer’s union and identification with Christ. Paul repeats this phrase throughout the letter to emphasize the work of Christ and the blessings that believers obtain through Him.
The Divine
Election
The Divine
Election
4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love
Truth:
God chose us in Him (Jesus Christ)
How - In Jesus Christ
When - before the foundation of the world (before your birth)
he chose Here Paul applies to believers a concept that formerly applied to Israel alone Deut 7:6–8compare Rom 9:11 and note; 2 Thess 2:13 and note).
6 “For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for His own possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.
10 And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac;
11 for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls,
Just as God chose Israel as His treasured possession, He now elects believers to receive the blessings mediated through Christ.
God’s purpose in Election
God’s purpose in Election
To be Holy
- ἅγιος (hagios). adj. holy, set apart, consecrated, dedicated, saints. Refers to the quality of God who is transcendently distinctive, unique, majestic, perfect, and pure.
To be Blameless
- ἄμωμος (amōmos). adj. unblemished, blameless. Refers to being without defect, either physically or morally.
NT passages portray Christ as an unblemished (amōmos) sacrifice (e.g., Heb 9:14). Other passages describe the Church or Christians as being made or kept amōmos (“unblemished, blameless”) through the work of Christ
27 that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.
22 yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach—
Again, it may be that 1:4 describes the future of believers, as ones holy and blameless.