Daily Bible Reading 31st August 2024 // Ephesians 1:1-12
1 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.
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 for adoption 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 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.
Some introductory observations are necessary when beginning a new study, the first being a comment on our method of study. It is, of course, possible to go into Ephesians in great detail. However, we are not concerned to spend so much time on detailed study in these Notes, but hope rather to deal with the salient doctrines unfolded in the letter in such a way as to give a fair idea as to what the Apostle is saying to the church at Ephesus - and also to us - and perhaps give indications for further study of it in the passing.
'Ephesians' is one of Paul's 'Prison Letters', along with Philippians, Colossians and Philemon, written during the time he was a prisoner in Rome. In many of the ancient manuscripts 'Ephesus' is not mentioned, and some scholars think this may indicate that it was a circular letter, meant for other fellowships as well as Ephesus. This may be a clue to the identity of the letter referred to in Colossians 4:16 as that to the Laodiceans, an epistle not mentioned elsewhere than here.
This epistle is the expression of the maturity of Paul's spiritual experience, with his missionary journeys behind him, with the end of his active service, and indeed his life, not all that far ahead. There is an 'October mellowness' in its teaching. With regard to the possibilities of interpretation, the noted scholar F.F. Bruce's view is that chs 1-3 give a declaration of the eternal purposes of God in Christ wrought out in His church; and that chs 4-6 give us the practical consequences for the Christian of these purposes. Another - similar - suggestion is that chs 1-3 describe the nature of the new life in Christ and that chs 4-6 show how that life is to be lived out. Following from this latter, the theme of the epistle may be taken as the reality of the two worlds, 'in Christ' and 'in Ephesus', and their interpenetration, not to say collision. In this regard 'in Ephesus' means two things: a) 'in the world', among the pagan atmospheres (2:1-3, 2:11, 12, 4:17-19, 5:3-7); b) 'in the flesh', ordinary human existence (cf 5:22-6:9 - homes and families, family relationships, daily work). Such is the sphere in which we are to live the new life and in which it is to shine forth. On the other hand, 'in Christ' also introduces us to two realities: a) the wealth and riches that are ours in Him; b) the reality of the world of spirits arrayed against us 'in the heavenly places'. If this is a key to the interpretation of the epistle, in terms of Ephesians 6:10ff, then Paul's concern is:
(a) to proclaim Christ's victory over all dark powers;
(b) to relate that victory and its realisation in the lives of believers (
c) to speak of 'the perfecting of the saints' in effective warfare with these dark powers.
This last may be borne out by a consideration of Acts 19 and the account of the turbulent time that Paul had at Ephesus during his extended visit there.