June 18 – Ephesians 1 – “Gifts and Thanks” - We open Paul’s next letter, this time to the church at Ephesus. Having lived and worked there for 3 years, he was well-known and loved in the church. This would have been a much anticipated and revered letter even without its sublime content. Now I know I’ve just got finished touting Galatians as an alpha version of Romans, but it also had the job of responding to a rising problem in the church. This letter doesn’t address particular problems; instead it is intended to lay out the great doctrines of the Christian faith. The commentator Lloyd-Jones said of it "If Romans is the purest expression of the gospel (as Luther said), then Ephesians is the most sublime and majestic expression of the gospel." There’s a lot of excitement among commentators about this book! The letter starts by listing some of our gifts: being blessed in Christ (v3); chosen from before creation (v4) to be able to stand before Him holy & blameless. Intended for adoption as His children (v5); forgiven and redeemed by His blood through lavish grace (v7-8); given insight into His will (v9) and brought into His unity through Christ. As if that list weren’t enough, Paul moves on to another: not just saved and adopted but with an inheritance also (v11); we are created for the purpose of praising His glory (v12); are given the Holy Spirit and are sealed with the Spirit’s guarantee of our inheritance. The chapter ends with thanksgiving for the Ephesians and what they have been given, and noting that he continues to pray for them to be wise and understanding (v15-23). - S
Posted on: Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:10:28 +0000
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