Ephesians: How to live the Christian life Theme: o Unlike most of Pauls epistles, Ephesians is not written Prison

n Epistle in response to some controversy. Paul praises the Epistles (Eph., unity and blessings shared by all believers in Christ. Phil., Col., & o He emphasizes the church being the body of Christ. Philem.) written o The Temple of Diana (Artemis) was the center of the by Paul from a Roman prison. Ephesians pagan life. Paul wrote to say that Christianity was not a religion composed of material things (such as temples and trinkets), but a relationship between God and His people. Type of Epistle: Ephesians is a Prison Epistle of Paul. Quick Facts: o Of the 155 verses in Ephesians, the content in 78 of them is repeated in Colossians, which is why both are called Twin Epistles. Author: Paul Date: 59-63 A.D. (Early 60s) Key verse: Ephesians 1:3? History: o The city was first colonized by the people from Athens, Greece. o It was then conquered by the Persians, the Macedonians (from where Alexander the Great comes), and the Romans. o It was both the chief port and the capital of the Province of Asia Minor (add picture to show where Asia Minor is). o It had a 25,000 seat theater, a race course, and Temple of Diana (one of the seven wonders of the ancient world). At this temple, Paul tried to preach the gospel, but was driven out of town due to the fact that the Ephesians loved the temple a lot. o During Pauls time, Ephesus was the third largest city in the Roman Empire. o Today, Ephesus is a little more than a tumble of rocks. It is in ruins. Outline: o Heavenly blessings (Ephesians 1:1-23) The work of the Trinity: the Father chose us, the Son redeemed us, and the Holy Spirit sealed us.

The gift of the Spirit is Gods guarantee that He will complete our salvation when Christ returns. Divine Grace (Ephesians 2:1-3:21) To help the Ephesians appreciate Gods grace more, Paul contrasts sins domination in their lives before conversion and their freedom from it after conversion. He also stresses that salvation does not come by mans good works, but by the grace of God and faith. Good works are the result of Gods action. We see His grace in the conversion of the Gentiles from paganism and that they are now equal with Jews. The dividing wall between Jews and Gentiles was destroyed by Christ. The temples wall, past which Gentiles could not go, symbolized the previous wall between the two groups. Unity and Diversity (Ephesians 4:1-16) Practical instructions begin with a call for outward unity. There must also be diversity in function within the unity. Each believer has some sort of function. Instructions for Christian Living (Ephesians 4:17-5:14) Paul instructs the Christian Ephesians to no longer live like the pagan Gentiles, because their hearts are hardened. We are to live according to Christian principles, such as these: Stop growing corrupt in deceitful lusts Be renewed in the spirit Dont lie, instead speak the truth Dont be anger Dont steal, instead work to give to those in need Dont talk trash, instead speak with grace to spiritually build-up those who hear Dont grieve the Holy Spirit, by whom we were sealed for the day of redemption Dont be bitter, angry, evil speaking, person of hate, instead be kind to one another Be tenderhearted, be forgiving just as God in Christ forgave us The Filling with the Spirit Paul instructs Christians to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

Being filled with the Spirit will be seen in joyful singing, witnessing to others, and submission to one another. The Church being submissive to Christ, wives to the husbands, children to their parents, servants to their masters. Those, to whom people submit to, must deal with them reasonably. Just as husband and wife become physically one, so Christ (the groom) and the Church (the bride) are also one. Christ is the head, the Church is the body. o The Armor of God (Ephesians 5:15-6:24) Christians are to put on the spiritual armor of God to combat the satanic forces that dominate the world. Paul might have likened the armor of God to the armor of the soldier while being in prison and seeing soldiers daily. The Armor of God Belt = Truth (Satan fights with lies, even lies that sound like the truth, but believers who know that truth can tell what is a lie and what is truth) Body armor = Righteousness (The armor defends our heart from the attacks of Satan) Shoes = Readiness to spread the gospel (The shoes are our motivation to spread the Word, even if Satan tries to dissuade us from proclaiming it) Shield = Faith (With Gods perspective on any given situation, we know that the ultimate victory is ours) Helmet = Salvation (The prevents us from doubting God in our minds) Sword = Word of God (The sword is our only offensive weapon in getting to people and fighting Satan) Pauls main purpose: It was written to explain nature of the universal church, the body of Christ, and its eternal purpose. This book also serves to encourage the members of the church to proper conduct toward each other, the world, God and members of their own earthly families. Finally, it was written to warn members of the church to be prepared for the spiritual conflict that results from putting the principles of Christianity into practice.

Study Questions: o What type of epistle is this? A prison epistle. o Ephesians and __________ are known as the Twin Epistles. Colossians o Who broke the dividing wall between the Jews and the Gentiles? Jesus Christ. o Do good works alone lead to salvation? No. o Name five of the instruction Paul had for the Ephesians to live Christian-like. (1) Stop growing corrupt in deceitful lusts. (2) Be renewed in the spirit. (3) Dont lie, instead speak the truth. (4) Dont be anger. (5) Dont steal, instead work to give to those in need. (6) Dont talk trash, instead speak with grace to spiritually build-up those who hear. (7) Dont grieve the Holy Spirit, by whom we were sealed for the day of redemption. (8) Dont be bitter, angry, evil speaking, person of hate, instead be kind to one another. (9) Be tenderhearted, be forgiving just as God in Christ forgave us. o Name items that make up the Armor of God. Belt, body armor, shoes, shield, helmet, and sword.

Information based of Survey of the New Testament, 3rd Edition by Robert H. Gundry
Colossians Christ is the head of the Church Warns against false doctrine Picture links: Ephesians Emphasizes Church as the Christs body Expresses praise for the unity in believers

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Celsiuslibrary-DK.JPG http://www.livius.org/a/turkey/ephesus/ephesus_theater02.JPG http://www.abrock.com/Greece-Turkey/ephesus18T.jpg http://wikitravel.org/upload/en/1/1c/Ephesus_tr.jpg http://abagond.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/7temple.gif (Temple of Diana)