Category Archives: Ephesians

Day 7

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Ephesians 3:14-21

14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family[a] in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Given what God has done for humans – vertically and horizontally – Paul turns to him in prayer; after all, as the ‘Father’ of the household, who else is the household dependent upon? Paul’s prayer is first for God to work in the lives of his people, to strengthen them by his Spirit and to enable them to accept the new landlord in their lives – Jesus (vs.16-17). 

Secondly, Paul’s prayer is for the Ephesians to grasp the magnitude of God’s love; the very same love that moved them from corpse to Christian (vs.17-19). The whole point of this prayer is so that God’s mob can display God to the world (vs.19). The prayer is so big that we need to be reminded of the bigness of God – he can do so much more than anything we can imagine (vs.20-21). 

Question:

Take a moment to just read, and re-read, this prayer a few times. Compare it with so many prayers we offer and hear. Ponder again how immense it is!

Prayer:

Father, you know where we live and what aches our bones and what we eat for breakfast, and you exercise power to raise Jesus from the dead so that we can have life we do not deserve. Please use that same power to make Jesus our landlord, to enable us to grasp your love, and to display your fullness to this world. Amen.

Day 6

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Ephesians 3:1-13

The Mystery of the Gospel Revealed

3 For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles— 2 assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3 how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly. 4 When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. 6 This mystery is[a] that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

7 Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace, which was given me by the working of his power. 8 To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in[b] God, who created all things, 10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him. 13 So I ask you not to lose heart over what I am suffering for you, which is your glory.

A friend of mine recently spoke about being on ‘the wrong side of history.’ It is a phrase we hear often, and it is used to paint someone opposed to you as someone who will be revealed as misguided, even wrong in their understanding of events. Paul could have been accused of this; after all, by now he was under house-arrest in Rome and seemingly doomed. And, yet, as he writes this little excursus on his life, he makes very clear that he is very much on the ‘right side of history,’ despite all appearances (vs.7). 

You see, history is about God’s plan to bring all the world to right standing ‘in Christ.’ That includes people from every nation, tribe and tongue reconciled to God and each other, ‘in Christ.’ When this happens in the church here and in the future, what is God shown to be (vs.8-12)? Unbelievably wise! In this sense, despite appearances, there is no need to be discouraged!

Question:

Ponder the mob of people you meet with at church – how do you display the ‘multi-faceted wisdom of God’?

Prayer:

Father, when I gather with your people, I am amazed by your wisdom – that ‘in Christ’, you have dealt with our sin, given us peace with you and each other, and so displayed to the world that you have defeated the rule of sin. Please grant me, and us, great delight and contentment in your wisdom. Amen.

Day 5 of Ephesians

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This past Sunday, Pastor Earl began a six week study on the book of Ephesians. He suggested that members of the congregation go ahead and read through Ephesians so that they are prepared for the next six weeks. Today, we’ll start a 14 day journey going through the book of Ephesians, to better prepare ourselves for what Pastor Earl will be sharing in the next six weeks.

This study comes from the YouVersion Bible App…and can be downloaded to your phone. https://www.bible.com/

We all live life vertically and horizontally, that is how our identity works. Vertically, our identity describes where we stand in relation to God. Horizontally, our identity describes where we stand in relation to other humans. Vertically in Christ, Christians are now able to dwell with God. This means, horizontally we are able to dwell uniquely with other humans; in particular, others ‘in Christ’. 

In Ephesus, this was seen in the remarkable truth that enemies (Jews and Gentiles) could now live in peace (vs.14). This was unheard of in those days. But it is the reality of God’s people; those naturally divided by human markers are now united to each other in a new humanity with no divisions: no divisions of colour, education, class, employment, geography. Why? Because we are both ‘in Christ;’ the same in sin and the same in salvation!

Question:

Think about God’s people – how might we best express what this ‘new humanity’ looks like as we meet together?

Prayer:

Dear Father, you have created for yourself a new household, one where there is no division. Thank you that this household is created, organised and run by Jesus. Amen. 

Ephesians 2:11-22

11 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— 12 remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. 17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens,[a] but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by[b] the Spirit.

Day 4 of Ephesians

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This past Sunday, Pastor Earl began a six week study on the book of Ephesians. He suggested that members of the congregation go ahead and read through Ephesians so that they are prepared for the next six weeks. Today, we’ll start a 14 day journey going through the book of Ephesians, to better prepare ourselves for what Pastor Earl will be sharing in the next six weeks.

As we are doing this study, we will skip Saturday and Sunday, and pick back up again on Monday.

This study comes from the YouVersion Bible App…and can be downloaded to your phone. https://www.bible.com/

God’s power in raising his Son from the dead can seem to be distant at times: when the land is dry, when you are dry, when life is dry. But Paul wants his readers to know how this power has worked to give them new life in an incomparably wonderful way. 

The language here is quite stark; literally, humans (all humans) are ‘dead-men walking.’ We are corpses who have no prospect of life (vs.1-3). It is the intervention of God – out of his will, his character of mercy and love – which exercises our resurrection. It is not a rescue, but a resurrection (vs.4-7). In Jesus (there is that postcode again) God deals with the judgment of our sin, and raises us to be acceptable to sit in his presence. From corpses to living people ‘in Christ,’ it is all God’s doing in Christ, as a gift, received by trusting him at his word (vs.8-10). The change is so significant that it affects how we walk, from ‘in sin’ to ‘good deeds’. What power! What a humbling gift!

Question:

What is so significant about how Christians have been changed from ‘corpses’ to people ‘holy and blameless,’ able to sit in God’s presence?

Prayer:

Dear Father, only you have the power to take a lifeless, sinful corpse and make it fit to dwell in your presence. Thank you that you have done all this in Jesus, whose perfect life is now mine, whose death paid my debt, whose resurrection shows your mercy. Help me to walk in this new life. Amen.

Ephesians 2:1-10

2 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body[a] and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.[b] 4 But[c] 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. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Day 3

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This past Sunday, Pastor Earl began a six week study on the book of Ephesians. He suggested that members of the congregation go ahead and read through Ephesians so that they are prepared for the next six weeks. Today, we’ll start a 14 day journey going through the book of Ephesians, to better prepare ourselves for what Pastor Earl will be sharing in the next six weeks.

This study comes from the YouVersion Bible App…and can be downloaded to your phone. https://www.bible.com/

Sometimes all we can do as God’s people is pray; it expresses who we are (dependent upon him) and it displays who he is! Paul can do little else in jail. But, more than this, his prayer focuses on the Ephesians knowing the one who has given them a new identity, that is the ‘title’ of the prayer in verse 17. And only God can reveal God. 

This knowledge has three parts: the hope of God’s calling (vs.18), the identity of God’s people (vs.18), and how significant God’s power is (vs.19). If there is any doubt about whether we can know this God, just look at what he has done in history through Jesus (vs.20-23). 

Now, prayers can often seem a little distant from the substance of everyday life. How might this prayer affect the way you consider yourself, as you drive home from work, see the family, eat dinner, and wake up?

Question:

How might you use the content of this prayer to pray for three people you know this week?

Prayer:

Dear Father, thank you that you reveal yourself by your Spirit, in your Son and in your Word. Help me to know you more deeply, know my identity more completely, and appreciate your power more fully. Amen.

Ephesians 1:15-23

15 For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love[a] toward all the saints, 16 I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Day 2

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This past Sunday, Pastor Earl began a six week study on the book of Ephesians. He suggested that members of the congregation go ahead and read through Ephesians so that they are prepared for the next six weeks. Today, we’ll start a 14 day journey going through the book of Ephesians, to better prepare ourselves for what Pastor Earl will be sharing in the next six weeks.

This study comes from the YouVersion Bible App…and can be downloaded to your phone. https://www.bible.com/

“Eulogy’ means a ‘good word’. Paul starts his letter to the Ephesian Christians with an eulogy to God – he wants people to know that ‘God is good!’ 

First, he is good because he ‘approves’ (vs.3-4), that is what ‘bless’ means. God approves people like Paul – a murderer turned messenger – to dwell with him. How is this possible? 

Well, secondly, God is good because he chooses to deal with human sin (the attitude and action that says, ‘I am God and God is not’) (vs.5-8). He does this through the life, death and resurrection of his Son, Jesus. 

Third, God is good because this has always been his plan (vs.9-10); to make sense of this world through Jesus. That means that the goodness of God is experienced best, and most fully, by being connected to Jesus (‘in him’ – vs.11-14). How good is God!

Question:

How have you experienced ‘God is good’ as Paul outlines here?

Prayer:

Dear God, you are good because you take sinners and approve them to be ‘holy and blameless’ in your presence. Thank you that this has always been your willing plan in Christ Jesus. Thank you that I have experienced that goodness. Amen.

Ephesians 1:3-14

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love 5 he predestined us[a] for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 making known[b] to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ 10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

11 In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, 12 so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. 13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee[c] of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it,[d] to the praise of his glory.

Ephesians

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This past Sunday, Pastor Earl began a six week study on the book of Ephesians. He suggested that members of the congregation go ahead and read through Ephesians so that they are prepared for the next six weeks. Today, we’ll start a 14 day journey going through the book of Ephesians, to better prepare ourselves for what Pastor Earl will be sharing in the next six weeks.

This study comes from the YouVersion Bible App…and can be downloaded to your phone. https://www.bible.com/

7/13/2021 Devotional

How do you define yourself? How would you describe your identity? Paul is writing a letter to a group of Christians he had helped establish in Ephesus, about seven years earlier. It is 60-62AD. He is under house arrest in Rome. They live in a bustling cosmopolitan port town, with many different pressures on their identity: the temple on the hill to the Greek goddess Artemis, the Roman currency in their possession, their birth family. Paul lays before them two ideas that trump all these: ‘God’s will’, which drives the whole universe (just think of Paul’s conversion in Acts 9!); and being ‘in Christ Jesus’, the most desirable postcode in the world. In laying down these two identity-markers, Paul wants his readers to consider deeply who they are. How do you define yourself?

Question:

In thirty words (the same number of words Paul used in the original Greek), try to write down your identity…

Prayer:

Dear God, thank you that you intervene in this world, that your actions affect our identity. Thank you that your actions give us peace and grace. Amen.

1Paul,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.

Ephesians 1:1-2