OVERVIEW
God has revealed His glory in the church of Jesus Christ which unites both believing Jews and Gentiles into one body by His grace. The understanding of the riches of the blessings which all saints enjoy should motivate us to live a transformed life that conforms to our high calling. By the power of the Holy Spirit we can now walk in unity, in love, in wisdom, in holiness and in the light. But we need the full armor of God to protect us from the attacks of Satan.
BIG IDEA
SINCE GOD DESIGNED THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST FOR HIS GLORY AND BLESSED IT WITH THE RICHES OF HIS GLORY, LET US WALK WORTHY OF OUR HIGH CALLING
Ephesians 3:21 “to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus“
Ephesians 4:1 “walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called“
BASIC OUTLINE
(1:1-2) SALUTATION — THE APOSTLE PAUL WRITES TO THE SAINTS
I. (CHAPS 1-3) THE DOCTRINE OF THE CHURCH — OUR WEALTH — OUR SPIRITUAL POSITION IN CHRIST
FOCUS ON OUR SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS
A. (1:3-14) THE FOUNDATION OF THE CHURCH — CHOSEN / PREDESTINED / REDEEMED
B. (1:15-23) THE HEAD OF THE CHURCH — WHICH IS HIS BODY
C. (2:1-10) THE SALVATION OF THE CHURCH — BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH
D. (2:11-22) THE COMPOSITION OF THE CHURCH — ITS UNIVERSAL SCOPE
E. (3:1-13) THE REVELATION OF THE CHURCH — MANIFESTING THE WISDOM AND PURPOSE OF GOD
F. (3:14-19) THE ENABLEMENT OF THE CHURCH — THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
(3:20-21) DOXOLOGY
II. (CHAPS 4-6) THE DUTY OF THE CHURCH — HOW WE SHOULD WALK IN CHRIST
YOUR LIFE SHOULD MATCH YOUR CALLING
A. (4:2-16) WALK IN UNITY
B. (4:17-32) WALK DIFFERENTLY
C. (5:1-2) WALK IN LOVE
D. (5:3-14) WALK IN THE LIGHT
E. (5:15 – 6:9) WALK WISELY
F. (6:10-17) WALK STRONG (IN THE ARMOR OF GOD)
G. (6:18-20) IMPORTANCE OF INTERCESSORY PRAYER
(6:21-24) CLOSING REMARKS AND DOXOLOGY
A. (6:21-22) CLOSING REMARKS
B. (6:23-24) DOXOLOGY
WHY STUDY THIS BOOK?
• To learn God’s purposes for the church of Jesus Christ which combines both believing Jews and Gentiles into one body for God’s glory
• To pursue the high calling we have as saints who have been blessed with all spiritual blessings
• To bask in the riches we enjoy by virtue of our relationship with Jesus Christ and inclusion in His church
• To connect to the power of the Holy Spirit who enables us to walk in Christian love
• To put on the whole armor of God so that we can withstand the attacks of the enemy
• To emphasize that both our salvation and sanctification depend on the grace of God by which God receives all the glory
NOTABLE QUOTES
David Malick: His Big Idea for the book – In view of the spiritual blessings with which God has enriched believers, and the deliverance which he has provided for individuals and the Gentiles from their godless position to one of unity with Him and one another, Paul exhorts the Ephesians to maintain their unified position by loving one another, and by resisting demonic attacks in accordance with God’s provisions for them.
Wil Pounds: — “Ephesians: Queen of the Epistles — The Mystical Body of Christ
Ephesians tarries largely among the heavenlies. It is characterized by dignity and serenity which is in harmony with the elevation of its thoughts. There is scarcely even an echo of the great controversies which ring so loudly in the Epistles to the Romans and Galatians.
It is ‘the divinest composition of man,’ wrote Coleridge. It has been called ‘the crown of St. Paul’s writings,’ ‘the Queen of the Epistles,’ and the ‘greatest and most relevant of his works.’ W. O. Carver said, ‘Ephesians is the greatest piece of writing in all of history.’ It may well be the ‘most influential document ever written.’
‘Paul has written nothing more profound than chapters 1 to 3 of Ephesians,’ writes A. T. Robertson. Stalker termed them the profoundest thing ever written. He sounds the depths of truth and reaches the heights. It is a letter written in the atmosphere of prayer. Most Christians have never prayed for some of the things which Paul prayed for in these two prayers.
Expositors observes: ‘It is the grandest of all the Pauline letters. There is a peculiar and sustained loftiness in its teaching which has deeply impressed the greatest minds and has earned for it the title of the Epistle of the Ascension.’”
John MacArthur: “In this book the word riches is used five times; grace twelve times; glory eight times; fulness, filled up, or fills six times; and the key phrase in Christ (or in Him) fifteen times. Christ is the source, the sphere, and the guarantee of every spiritual blessing and of all spiritual riches, and those who are in Him have access to all that He is and has…
Paul’s message throughout this epistle is that believers might understand and experience more fully all of the blessings granted by their heavenly Father and His Son and their Savior, Jesus Christ.”
William Hendriksen: Theme: The Church Glorious
I. Adoration for its
ch. 1 Eternal Foundation ‘in Christ’
ch. 2 Universal Scope (embracing both Jew and Gentile)
ch. 3 Lofty Goal
II. Exhortation describing and urging:
ch. 4:1-16 Organic Unity (amid Diversity) and Growth into Christ
ch. 4:17-6:9 Glorious Renewal
ch. 6:10-24 Effective Armor”
John Stott: The letter focuses on what God did through the historical work of Jesus Christ and does through his Spirit today, in order to build his new society in the midst of the old…
1. The new life which God has given us in Christ (1:3 – 2:10)
2. The new society which God has created through Christ (2:11 – 3:21)
3. The new standards which God expects of his new society, especially unity and purity (4:1 – 5:21)
4. The new relationships into which God has brought us — harmony in the home and hostility to the devil (5:21 – 6:24)
Guthrie: Throughout the letter, Paul insists that God is working out His great purpose for mankind by calling men to Christ and forming in Christ a new, redeemed society. . .
God now has a people in the world who belong uniquely to Him. In them His purpose of grace is being worked out, and through them He plans to effect His intention for the whole universe. Thus, the most comprehensive statement of the theme of Ephesians is this: the eternal purpose of God and the place of Christ and His people in that purpose. This concept is explained in the first three chapters of Ephesians; the last three chapters show its practical consequences for the Christian life.”
John Piper: Outline of Ephesians:
Chapters 1-3 The Glory of God in the Church
Chapter 1 The glory of God of God in Redemption
Chapter 2 The glory of God in reconciliation
Chapter 3 The glory of God in the revelation of the mystery of the church
Chapters 4-6 The Glory and Pleasure of God through the Church
Chapter 4 The glory of God in the unity and growth of the church
Chapter 5 The glory of God in the imitation of Christ by the saints
Chapter 6 The glory of God in victory of Christ