Another title for this book besides the convoluted one listed above is Ephesians, but if you didn't know of the existence of a town called Ephesus then Ephesians has little meaning, so the convoluted title above may be of some use after all.
I'm going to try really hard not to tell you what Ephesians is about but rather to help you figure out what it is about for yourself. The intent is that you would read a passage consider a question, read another passage consider another question and so on. We will be doing this in our house church. Feel free to use this in whatever setting you like and you can post comments, questions, start conversations, etc here on the blog.
Where's Ephesus? Ephesus was a coastal city located on the East coast of the Aegean Sea in the Mediterranean.
It is near the present day city of Kusadasi in Turkey.
I don't claim to know much about Ephesus. I do know that their patron deity was Artemis a feminine deity.
Her temple was located in Ephesus and was considered one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world. Artemis was a fertility goddess among other things which explains her being covered with breasts! In Acts 19 Paul almost gets lynched by a mob in Ephesus at the theater because he supports a god other than Artemis. The crowd is chanting "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!" Kind of like being anything other than a Husker here in Nebraska. We chant "Go Big Red!" Demetrius a metal worker who makes Artemis statues for a living whips the crowd into a frenzy when he believes Paul is turning so many people to Christ and away from Artemis that his
business may go under! WOW way to go Paul! I mean look at that temple! Artemis must have had quite a following. Ephesus at any rate seems to be a very Greek(non-Jewish) city. It also bears mentioning that Ephesus is one of the seven churches addressed in Revelation 2 & 3. It was a personally convicting little letter.
As you start to read Ephesians keep a couple things in mind.
Try to figure out what the make up of the group of believer at Ephesus was by what you read. Was Paul writing to Jews primarily, Greeks primarily, a mix?
In Ephesians Paul talks about "the church" a lot. We can sometimes cut and paste our understanding of "church" (programs, buildings, staff) where Paul speaks of "the church". The word for church is literally "the assembly." Try out reading or thinking "assembled believers" whenever you see the word "church" and see if that changes the way you understand any of the passages.
Also Paul addresses nationalism and exclusivity so being reading with that in mind.
Ephesians 1 Study
Compare how Paul identifies himself to the reader in Ephesians 1:1 and other books of the Bible.
Eph1:1 an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God
Col 1:1 an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God
2 Tim 1:1 an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God
1 Cor 1:1 called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God and our brother
Sosthenes
2 Cor 1:1 an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God and Timothy our brother
Rom 1:1 a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the
gospel of God
Gal 1:1 an apostle sent… by Jesus Christ and God the Father
1 Tim 1:1 an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God
Titus 1:1 a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ
Phili 1:1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus
Phile 1 a prisoner of Christ Jesus and Timothy our brother
1 Thes 1:1 Paul, Silas, and Timothy
2 Thes 1:1 Paul, Silas, and Timothy
Why does Paul introduce himself in this way? Is he pulling rank?
Does the way he introduces himself give away anything about his intended audience? Why be so explicit?
Can you tell the order that these letters were written in from his introduction?
Paul then says who the letter was written to - saints in Ephesus. It should be noted that the word Ephesus in this verse is missing in some early manuscripts. Since earlier manuscripts are closer chronologically to the original they are often considered more reliable to the original writing of Paul. This has led some to postulate that the letter was written to go to many different churches and not just Ephesus.
Verse 2 sounds kind of flowery. What do you think it means? Is it just an empty salutation like "how are you doing?"?
Verses 3-12 sound kind of presumptuous and prideful to my ears. Such thorough statements about our favorable position in God’s eyes and the high position and gifts he has given us can begin to sound like the evil kind of self-justification that has driven men to kill in God’s name through out history. How can we understand these passages? Or what aspect of God’s character would such a genecidal understanding of this passage be overlooking?
The statements made in 3-12 have a “He (did something for) us” format. All the great claims made in this passage are made in that format. Where does that turn the focus?
Make a list from 3-12 of what God has done for us.
What do verses 9-10 establish as God’s will? Has this been fulfilled yet?
Verses 13-18 switch from the “He…us” format to a plural “you” format, that is to say that the “you” used in these passages is a “you all” not an individual you in the original Greek. As you read through these passages try to picture Paul speaking to the group of believers in Ephesus or your own group of believers rather than you as an individual. Does this change the way you have understood these concepts?
According to 17-18 what might Paul think the Ephesian believers lack?
What is the hope to which we are called?
What is Paul trying to communicate about God in this chapter?
What end is God moving things towards?
What passages in this chapter support a Trinitarian view?
The promise of the Holy Spirit may be referring to Jesus’ statement in Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” What is the Holy Spirit?
