15 Ephesians

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THEGLORIOUS CHURCH

A Study of Epbmhns


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B I B L E S T U D Y T E X T B O O K

THEGLORIOUS CHURCH

A Stvdy of Epbesiansby

Wilbur Fields

College Press, Joplin, Missouri


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Copyright0 1960College Press Publishing Company

First printing- 960Second Printing- ecember 1966

Third Printing- ctober 1972Fourth Printing- eptember 1975Fifth Printing -July 1979

Sixth Printing- ugust 1983Seventh Printing -January 1992

Printed and Bound in theUnited States of AmericaAll Rights Reserved

International Standard Book Number: 0-89900-040-1


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TOMy Mother


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THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C HC O N T E N T S

Introduction ,...... . . . ...,. . . . .I. Can You Answer These Questions ?........................

11. The Glorious Church in Ephesians........................111. Ephesus ....................................................................IV . Diana of the Ephesians...........................................V. Pauls Work at Ephesus....................... ~ ..I...............

V I , Vital Facts About Ephesians..................................VII. Was Ephesians Really Written

to the Ephesians ?.......................... ~ ..........................VIII. Did Paul Write Ephesians ?.......................................

I.X. Outline of Ephesians................................................

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1IROI)UCTION

Th ere a re several features in this book tha t will make it helpfulto you.(1) The entire text of Ephesians is given in the AmericanStandard Revised Version of 1901 A,R,V, This is a very accu-rate translation of the original Greek tex t.( 2 ) Outlines and charts on every chapter and many smallersections are included. These will be very he lp fu l in teach ing thebook and in studying it.(3) Numerous illustrationsare included tha t will help to m akethe message of Ephes ians more vivid,( 4 ) Over (our hundred thowght questions on the text aregiven. By the aid of these questions, you should be able to thinkout the meaning of nearly every verse and important thought inthe book, Most of these questions can be answered with n o help

except for the Bible itself,( 5 ) A paraphrdce of every verse is given, These serve as abrief com mentary, and show the connection of nearly every versewith the verses preceding it, Often reading the paraphrase alonewill bring out the meaning of the verse in a vivid w ay.( 6 ) The notes are brief and concise, They are designed tohelp both the advanced student of the Bible, and the averagechurch worker. There is a lot of ammunition for teaching andpreaching.( 7 ) There are 340 f a c t questions, which are mainly preparedto check your knowledge of exactly what th e tex t says.Th e study of Ephesians will be very rew arding t o you. T hi sbook will guide you to an understanding of the glorious chu rch

about which Paul wrote in Ephesians. It will be a means fo r o u rperfec ting unto the work of ministering, u nto the building up ofthe body of Christ.

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TH E G L O R I O U S C H U R C HI, CAN YOU ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS?1, Exactly what is it that is so wonderful about Christianity?

2. How can living people be dead in sins?3. What are the seven things upon which the Spirit has unitedthe church ? (4 :4-6)4, What are the duties of wives to husbands, and husbands towives ? ( 5 :22-23)5 . How can a Christian stand against the tricks of the devil?(6:ll)These questions, and many others, will be answered in ourstudy of Ephesians.Ephesians is one of the divinest compositibns of man(Coleridge) ,Ephesians is a letter about heaverlly things. (1 :3, 20; 2 63 :lo)Ephesians has more to say about the church than any otherNew Testament epistle. (See Section I1 below, The Glorious Church

in Ephesians.) Ephesians has been called T he Le tter About theChurch, For this reason, this book is entitled T he G l o r i o u sChurch,The Ephesian converts publicly burned their books of magic,in value 50,000pieces of silver (Acts 19:19). Truly, they werewell recompensed when they received this letter, not to lead theminto magic and sorcery, but into the mystery of Ch rist, and thehidden wisdom of God. They burned evil and superstitious vol-umes, and then obtained a letter which cannot be valued in silverand gold, an epistle of wonderful breadth and power, fu ll of richesof the mind and the warm flow of B iiiaater spirit,Fact Questions1. Ephesians is described as a letter about what?2. About what subject does Ephesians have more to say thanany other New Testament epistle?

11 THE GLORIOUSCHU RCH IN EPHESIANSThe church is the most precious institution on earth today.Ephesians has more to say about the church than any other NewTestament letter. W e need to picture th e chu rch in ou r minds asthe glorious church described in Ephesians.The word church occurs nine times in the letter (1 :22 ; 3 ;lo,21 ; 5 :23,24, 25, 27,29, 32). The term body (referring to thechurch) occurs nine more times ( 1 2 3 ; 2:16;3:6; ;4, 12, 16(twice) ; 5 23,30). 1 1

(1 :18; :17-18) (2 1)

(Fraser) ,


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T H E GLORIOUS C H U R C HConsider the glorious church described in Ephesians :Christ loves her. 5:23. Men may despise an d belittle her,

but Jesus Christ loves her.The church shall be presented to Christ. 527. What wi l lthe people who are not in the church do then?Gods wi sd o m is demonstrated by the church. 3:lO. If youa re not in the church, God sent Christ to die all in vain, asfa r a s you are concerned. You make Gods mercy to appearto be foolishness.God is glorified in the church. 320 -21. O ut in the worldyou cannot glorify Him.There is one body, one church. 4 4. Because of the divisionsamong those who believe in Christ, the world does not be-lieve that God sent Him. John 17 20 -21 . Pra y to God thatmen will abandon their loyalty to denominations and sectsand be members only of that glorious church to which Godad ds all saved people, Acts 2:47.Christ is the Head of the church. 5 :23;1 :22. Our opinionof the chu rch will be ju st a s high as ou r opinion of Christ.T he church is the fullness of Chr ist. 1:22-23. If we loveChrist, we shall love the church, for it is filled by Christ.Christ is the Savior of the body. 5:23. All saved people ar emembers of the church, You cannot be saved and not be amember of the Lords church.She shall be holy and without blemish. 5:27. No man canexcuse himself by saying, There are too many hypocrites.T he church is the beloved bride of Christ. 5:31-32. Dontyou want to be married to Jesus? What will the Lord do tothose who hate and hurt His bride?

111. EPHESUS

1.2.3.

4.5.

6.7.8.

9,10.

In Pauls time, Ephesus was religiously like Rome, and com-mercially like New York.T h e city lay in the Rom an province of Asia, on the west end

of what is now Turkey, about three miles from the coast, nearthe mou th of the Cayster River. It stood on the sloping sides oftwo hills and in the river valley between them.A little city grew on the site in ancient times. Legend saidthat the mother-goddess of the earth was born there. And thereher temp le was built. T h e temple was burned and rebuilt seventimes during the centuries, each time on a grander scale. RichKing Croesus even helped build one of the temples. In 356 B.C.,12


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THE G L O R I O U S CHURCHthe night Alexander the Great was born, the temple burned, Itwas rebuilt to be one of the seven wonders of the world, and WB Sthere when Paul came to Ephesus.The Cayster River valley extended far inland toward the eastfro m Epbesu s, I t was connected by highways to th e chief citiesof the province. A t Ephesus itself an artificial ha rbor was built,accessible even to the largest ships, Thus, Ephesus was the mostaccessible city of Asia, both from land and sea.

As ships came up the canal into Ephesus from the seacoast,the city could not be seen from a distance because of i ts positionin the valley. But a t a certain point, the city ap peared, spread outbefore them, with its theater (seating 24,000) on the hillside andthe temple of Diana on the lowlands.Even in ancient times, however, engineers had trouble keepingthe harbor and canal dredged of silt from the river.Commerce flourished in Ephesus. Priscilla an d Aqu ila mayhave left Corinth for Ephesus (Acts 18:1, 2, 26) because Ephesus

was famous for the manufacture Qf luxurious tents and marquees,as well as to prepare the way for Pauls minis try the re,Pauls labors in Ephesus turned many of the Ephesians fromDiana, A substantial church flourished there. Tim oth y an d th eapostle John (probably) preached there, In 262 A.D. when thetemple of Diana burned again, the influence of Diana had so weak-ened that it was never rebuilt again, A church council was heldthere in 341 A,D. The city declined, Many of its stone buildingswere in ruins, and the stone was used elsewhere, some even in SantaSophia church in Constantinople,T he Tu rks captured the city in 1308,murdering its inhabitants,destroying its remaining buildings, T he Cayster River, overflow-ing its banks, buried the site of Dianas tem ple an d th e low p ar tof the city under many feet of silt. There is no city at all on thesite of Ephesus today. A Turkish village named Seljuk is abouta mile from the site. Most of the buildings of Sel juk are made

o f stone from the ruins of Ephesus.A most interesting account of a modern visit to Ephesus canbe found in H , V . Mortons Itt the Steps of St. Paul.Fact Questions

3. Where is Ephesus located? By what river?4. What religious legend helped the growth of Ephesus?5 . Why was Ephesus a most accessible city?6. What is the status o f modern Ephesus?13


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TH E GLORIOUS CHURCH

A Map Showing Ephesus andSurrounding Territory14


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THE GLORIOUS CHURCHIV, DIANA OF T H E EPHESIANS

At some time in the remote past the Assyrians or Babyloniansin their vain imaginations conceived of a female deity, a mothergoddess of the earth, They called her Ishtar. Other tribes andnations adopted the idea and borrowed some of the legends con-nected with her. Bu t they often gave the goddess the ir own namesand developed forms of worship and traditions of their own. Al-ways, however, the worship was of mans own invention (notfrom God) and very vile, Her rituals included sacrifices andceremonial prostitution .

The Cappadocians called her Ma, the Phoenicians, Astarte,the Phrygians, Cybele. In Egypt, she was Isis; in Asia (the prov-ince containing Ephesus) she was called Diana, o r Cybele. T h elegends were started that (1) she was born in the woods near Ephe-sus! and that ( 2 ) there her image (of ebony wood) had fallen fromthe sky from Jupiter (also called Jo v e or Dios ) . Some speculatethat originally she was a meteorite.

Later Ephesus fell to the Greeks, and the Greek and Asiaticcivilizations blended. T he Greeks believed in a virgin goddesscalled Artemis, the swift twin sister of Apollo, the goddess ofchastity, the woods, and the hunt, T he Greek name of Artemiswas given to the dark Asiatic goddess. I n fact, her name in theGreek New Testament is actually Artemis. Some of the Greekcolonists in Asia represented the Ephesian Diana as Greek ontheir coins.

A t first, the figures of Diana were crudely carved of wood,111 later times, metal images were made, show ing her with a head-dress representing a fortified city wall. T h e up pe r pa rt of herbody was covered with breasts to sh6w that she was the mothero f all life. (H ow ev er, Sir William R am say believed th at thesebreasts actually represented the ova of bees. T h e bee was th esymbol of Ephesus, and is found on most of its coins. T h e tem-ple staff included a crowd of priests or drones who dressed likewomen. Also there was a crowd of priestesses known as Melissai,who represented the worker bees, The goddess was the queenbee.) T he lower pa rt of her body was wrapped up like an Egyp-tian mum my, Later images show her with sta gs or lions, possibly

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THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C Hbecause some associated her with the Greek goddess Artemishunting. On most coins showing the goddess two lines run fromher hands to the ground. These probably represent rods whichwere necessary to keep her in an erect position, because of hertop-heavy shape.

T h e temple of Diana was one of the seven wonders of theancien t world. It was built on marshy ground, but uncommonpains were taken to give it a good foundation. I t was 220 by 425feet, with its roof supported on 107 pillars, each 60 feet high. I twas nearly 220 years in the process of completion.T h e temple of Diana was not only a place of worship, but amuseum of the best statuary and painting. I t owned valuablelands and con trolled the fisheries. It s priests were the bankers ofits enormous revenues. Because of its resources, the people storedmoney th ere for safe-keeping. I t became to the ancient worldpractically all that the Federal Reserve system is to the UnitedStates.An annual feast, called the Artemisia, attracted thousands of

pilgrims to Ephesus from all parts of the world. N o work wasdone for a month, while great crowds enjoyed a daily program ofathletic games, plays, and sacrifices. Thousands of shrines ofDiana were purchased by the visitors to take home as souvenirsor objects of veneration (Acts 19:24). These shrines were crudemodels of the temple with a female figure inside. Th ey weremade of clay, marble, or silver.T h e wo rship of Diana may have contributed to the st ar t of the

worship of the Virgin Mary. I t is a remarkable coincidence thatone of the earliest churches in honor of Mary w as built a t Ephesuson the site of the famous temple of Diana, and that in th at samecity a synod (council) was held in 431 which first designatedMary as Mother of God.A frog pond now covers the site of Dianas temple, and asiiowy water weed fills the pond. T h e site was discovered andexcavated by J. T. Wood in 1870.When we know something about dark Diana, we can betterunderstand why Paul wrote to the Ephesians, Walk not as theothe r Gentiles walk, in the vanity of the ir mind, having the under-standing darkened, being alienated from the life of God throughthe ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of the irheart : W h o being past feeling have given themselves ove r untolasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. Bu t yehave not so learned Christ Eph. 4 :17-20.

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THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C HF a d Questions

7, What nationalities were the first to worship a Diana-typemother goddess 78. What were the two legends about Dianas relationship toEphesus ?

9, Who was the Greek goddess that became associated withDiana 710, Approximately how large was Dianas temple?11, Describe the shrines of Diana that were sold,12, Why might we think that the worship of Diana contributedto the start o f the worship of M a r y ?

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THE GLORIOUS CHURCH

Site of Epbesne.

Coin of Ephesus, exhibiting the head of Nem and tho Tem-ple of DlmaThe same word , neokoros, is used on this coin to de-scribe Ep h es u s as is used in Acts 19:35,where i t is t rans-lated ( in A . R. V.) "temple keeper".

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T H E G L O RIO U S C HUR C HV. PAULS WORK A T EPHESUS(Read all Scriptures)

1, Brief visit during the closiiig portion of his second missionaryjourney ( A D . 53) Acts 18:18-21,2, Main ministry in Eplzeszls: (lasted three years, A,D, 54-57)I , Paul baptizes twelve disciples. 19 :1-7,2, Pau l preaches three months in the synagogue, 19:8.3, Paul preaches in the school of Tyran nu s. 19:9-10a,4, All Asia hears the word of God, 19 : lob ; cp. Rom. 16 : 5 .5, P au l works special miracles, 19.11-12.6, The sons of Sceva fail to duplicate Pauls miracles,7. Magic books are burned and the W o rd prevails. 19:18-20.8. I Corinthians and possibly Galatians written at Ephesus,9. Paul sends Timothy and Erastus to Macedonia. 19:21-22.10, Demetrius stirs up the silversmiths against Paul.

11. Riot at the thea ter. 19 :29-34.12. The town clerk quiets the riot, 19:35 -41.13. Paul departs. 20:1,

Acts 20:31 ; 19 :1-20 :1,

19~13-17.

19 :23-28.

3 . Farewell message t o the Ephesian elders (a t Mi le tus) , ( A . D .58, closing portion of the third missionary journe y.) ActsPaul was arrested at Jerusalem (A.D. 58) when Jews from20 : 7-38.Asia (Ephesus probably) falsely accused him. Acts 21: 27-29.

13.14.15.16.17.18,19.20.

Fact QuestionsOn what missionary journey did Paul first visit Ephesus?How long did he remain there on that occasion ?On what missionary journey did Pa ul spend m ost. of his timein Ephesus?How long was Pauls main ministry in Ephesus?W hat was the extent of Pauls success in A si a?What writings did Paul write at Ephesus?Who stirred up the riot against Paul in Ephesus?At what place did Paul give his farewell message to theelders of Ephesus?

VI. VITAL FACTS ABOUT EPHESIANS1. Who wrote Ephesians ? Pau l the apostle,2. To whom was it sent?

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TH E GLORIOUS C H U R C H(1) T o the saints at Ephesus.( 2 ) T o the faithful in Christ Jesus.3. Where was it written? Rome.4. When was it written? About A.D. 63, during Pauls firstimprisonment.5 . Who delivered the letter ? Tychicus (pronounced TICKY-kuss ) .Evidently Tychicus delivered the epistle to the Colossiansa t the same time. Col. 4 7. He traveled with Onesimus (Oh-NESS-i-muss), whose master, Philemon (Fy-LEE-mon),lived at Colossae (KO-LOSS-ee) : see Colossians 4 :7-9; Phil-emon 2. Onesimus bore a letter to his master Philemon.

Memory Work.Ephes ians is a lofty letter, full of inspiration and grandeu r.The entire epistle deserves to be memorized.Passages that should by all means be committed to memorya re 1 :22-23; 2:8-10, 20; 3 : lO ; 320-21 ; 4:4-6, 2; 5:25-27;6:lO-17.

Fact Questions21. W h a t was the date when Ephesians was wr itten?22. W h o wrote Ephesians ?23. W here was Paul when he wrote i t ? W h a t w er e h i scircumstances ?24. W h o delivered the letter ?25. W h a t other letters were dispatched at the same time?

VII. WAS EPHESIANS REALLY W RIT TENT O TH E EPHESIANS?There has been much discussion among scholars for manycentu ries over whether Ephesians w as actually w ritten t o theEphesians, or whether it was a circulating letter sent around toall the churches in the province of Asia.Actually, th e first verse of th e letter answ ers the question.It was sent BOTH to the saints which are at Ephesus AND tothe faithful in Christ Jesus. Obviously it was primarily and firstsent to Ephesus, but was intended to be circulated around to thebrethren elsewhere. This simple explanation clears up all thequestions that have been raised about the matter.There are practically no personal references in Ephesians,such as ar e common in Pauls other epistles. Th ey a re omitted

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T H E G L O R I O U S C HUR C Hbecause those who read (or heard) the letter, but did not knowPaul personally, would not be interested in the personal refer-ences, Those who did know Paul could find out froin Tycbicusall about Pauls affairs, In fact Tychicus was sent with the letterfo r that very purpose (E ph , 6:21-22).

It appears to us that the Epistle to the Ephesians was indeedfirst sent to Ephesus, Then a number of copies seem t o have beenprepared to be circulated around, In some of these copies thewords a t Eplzesus ( in 1 : I ) were omitted; conceivably the nameof other cities could have been inserted,Thus in the Vatican and Siiiaitic manuscripts of the Bible(f ou rth century) and Papy rus 46 (third centu ry) we do not findthe words at Ephesus in 1:1. Basil (about 370 A,D.) tells us thatthe text without the words a t Ephesus is the way it was handeddown to us by our predecessors, and so we ourselves have foundi t in the old copies. Origen (about 225 A.D .) w ro te: I n th eEphesians alone, we find the expression, To th e sain ts which are ,

and we ask, unless the phrase which are is redundant, what cani t mean? It is most improbable that Paul would write to thesaiitts wlziclz are without adding the name of some place. B u tthus the phrase stood in the copy seen by Origen.However, when all the ancient manuscripts of Ephesians arechecked, we find that the majority of them include the wordsat Epheszrs. Also all of the ancient translations of the Bible (Lat-in, Syriac, etc.) have the words at Ephesws, and these translations

must have been made from manuscripts older than any we nowhave, Fu rth ermore, many of the Christian scholars of th e firstfour centuries quoted f rom Ephesians, indicating that that wasthe title by which they were familiar with the epistle. D if fe rentpeople had simply seen different copies,Some have speculated that the epistle f rom Laodicea (men-tioned in Col. 4:16) may have been a copy of Ephesians. Thiscan never be anything but a guess (and a very doubtful guess in

our opinion). Tertullian (abo ut 190 A .D .) said, I say nothinghere about another epistle which we have under the heading t othe Eplzesiaits, but the heretic (Marcion) to the Laodiceans ..kcording to the true belief of the cburch we hold this epistle tohave been dispatched to the Ephesians, not to the Laodiceans;but Marcion had to falsify its title, wishing to make himself outa very diligent investigator,(Ilzternational Staizdard Bible Eizcyclopedia).21


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T H E G L O R IO U S C H U R C HFact Questions

26. To what two groups of people is Ephesians addressed?27. Why are there few personal references in Ephesians?28. How can we account for the fact that some ancient manu-scripts omit the words ut Efihesus from 1: l?29. Is the epistle from Laodicea (Col. 4:16) the same asEphesians ?

VIII. DID PAUL W R ITE EPHESIANS?All the ancient manuscripts and versions of the Bible agreein stating that Paul wrote the Epistle to the Ephesians. All the

Christian w riters of the early centur ies agree to this.However, down through the years some critics have dared to

asse rt tha t Paul did not write it. O ne recent doubter is F. W.Beare in the InterpretersBible. T h e arguments advanced by Mr.Beare against Pauls authorship are not arguments based upon ex-tern al evidence. Th is is all in favor of Pau l. They are based uponhis own conceptions of what Paul believed and could have writtenor not written.

How could any man living in the twentieth century be betterqualified to be a judge of what Paul could have written in thefirst century than the Christian scholars who lived in the centuriesnear to the time of Paul? These men had no doubts that Paulwrote Ephesians. Do we know Paul better than they? It is mostunlikely.

To assert that Paul did not write Ephesians leads to somefar-reaching conclusions. If Paul did not write it, it is a forgery,even if it be called a pious forgery. A forgery is a form of lie.If, then, Ephesians contains a lie as to who wrote it, it cannot beinspired of God, for God cannot lie (Titus 1 :2) . If Ephesiansis not inspired of God, it is only human wisdom, and is just aslikely to contain untruths as any other book written by humanwisdom alone. This we cannot accept for one second.

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THE G LO RIO U S CI - IU RCI Icause it contains a vocabulary foreign to him, I this line ofreasoning could prove that Paul did not write Ephesians, it wouldalso prove that he did not write Romans (which has a hundredwords not used by P aul elsew here ), or Colossians (w hic h ha sthirty-eight), (Fig ures from Gerstner.) P au l used differentwords in Ephesians simply because he was writing about differ-ent subjects than lie wrote about elsewhere.

It is also alleged that in several places ( 1 15; 3 : 2 ; 4:20-21)the writer of Ephesians indicated that he did not personallyknow those to whom he was writing, but had only he ard of the irfaith. I t is assumed that Pau l, who ha d labored thre e years inand around Ephesus would have written as if he knew his readersintimately and not just by hearsay. But this objection has littleweight. Pa ul had been away from Ephesus f o r six ye ars whenhe wrote this letter. Any minister who has been absen t from afield of his labor for six years would not write back to them andspeak as i f he persoiially knew all of them. Many changes andadditions wodd have occurred in the membership during thatti iiie,

Furthermore, Paul wrote to Philemon, whom he knew well,indicating that he had heard of his faith and love (Phil. 5 ) . T h emere f ac t that Pa ul said he had Izeard of the faith of the Eplie-sians does not even suggest that he had never been with them.The many similarities between Colossians and Ephesians haveled some people to suggest tha t the w ri te r of Ephesians bor-rowed freely f rom Pauls expressions in Colossians, Any per-son who has written several letters at the same time to differentpeople knows how often one will use the same expressions inseveral letters. If the similarities between Colossians and Ephe-sians prove anything, they help to prove that Paul did write Ephe-sians at the same time he wrote Colossians.

Fact Questions30. What external evidence indicates that Paul did not write

23Ephesians?


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T H E G LO RIO US C H U R C H31. To w ha t conclusions a re we driven if Pa ul were not the actualauthor of Ephesians ?32. W ha t does the fact that Ephesians has 82 words in it that arenqt used in Pauls other writings prove?33. * Does the fact that the writer says he had heard of the faithof the Ephesians prove, that Pa ul did not write the epistle?W h y or why not?

IX. OUTLINE OF EPHESIANSGreeting ;1 :1-2.I. D O C T R I N E S- hapters 1, 2, 3.

A. Blessings we have in Christ from Cod. 1:3-14.B. Pauls prayer for our enlightenment. 1 :15-23.C. Once dead, now alive with Christ. 2:l-10.D. Once aliens, now fellow-citizens with the saints.2 : l l - 2 2 .E. Pauls prayer o r our strengthening . 3:1, 14-19.Parenthetical discussion of Pauls ministry. 3 :2-13.F. Doxology. 3:20-21.

11. D U T IE S -Chap te rs 4, 5, 6.A. Keep the unity of the Spirit. 4:l-16.B. Walk as becometh saints. 4:17-5:20.C. Subject yourselves one to another. 5 21-6:9.

1 . Wives and husbands. 5 :22-33.2. Children and fathers. 6 : l - 4 .3. Slaves and masters. 6:5-9.

D. Put on the whole armor of God. 6:lO-20.A. Tychicus sent. 6:21-22.B. Benediction. 6 :23-24.

Conclusion. 6 :21-24.

(More detailed outlines precede the notes on each section.)Fact Questions34. W ha t a r e the two main divisions of Ephesians, and what ar e

their Scriptu re limitations ?35. Name the six topics in the first half of Ephesians, and tell

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T H E GLORIOUS C H U R C H

EPHESIANS ONETHE BLESSING CHAPTER

GREETING- :l-2BLESSINGS W E HAVE IN

CHRIST- 1:W41. Chosen-42. ForeordainedToAdoption-3. Grace Bestowed-4. Redemption-5. Gods Will Revealed-6. Made a Heritage- 17. Sealed With TheSpirit- 3-14

PRAYER THAT WE BEENLIGHTENED ABOUT

OUR BLESSINGS- :15-2325


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T H E G L O R IO U S C H U R C HEPHESIANS ONE

W e can well call this chap ter th e blessing chapter of theIn this chapter there are M A N Y wonderful answers to theBible.question, Exactly what is so wonderful about Christianity ?

Previewing in Ozltline Form (1: 1 4 )G ree ting ; 1 :1-2.

1. By Paul . 1 :1.2. T o the saints at Ephesus.3. T o the faithful in Christ Jesus.4. Grace and peace requested for them. 1 :2.A. Blessing we have in Christ from God. 1 :3-14.

1. God blessed for bestowing spir itua l blessings. 1:3.2. Blessings listed. 1 :4-14.a. H e chose us in Christ. 1 4.( 1 ) Chosen before the foundation of the world.

(2) Chosen to be holy and without blemish.b. H e foreordained us unto adoption as sons. 15-b.( 1 ) Done according to H is good pleasure.(2) For the praise of the glory of H is grace.c. H e bestowed grace ( f a v o r) upon us. 1 :6, 8.( 1 ) Bestowed upon us in Christ, the Beloved.( 2 ) Grace made to abound in wisdom and prudence.1 :8.d. W e have redemption in Ch rist. 1 :7.(1 ) Through Christs blood.(2) Redemption is the forgiveness of our trespasses.e. H e made known to us the mystery of His will. 1 :9-10.(1) Made known according to the good pleasurewhich He purposed in Christ.

(2) Made known unto a dispensation of the fulnessof times. 1 :lo.( 1 ) Having been foreordained according t o the pur-pose of God. l :11.(2) Tha t we be unto the p raise of H is glory.

g. In Christ we were sealed with the Holy Spirit.(1) Sealing follows hearing the W o rd . 1 13.

1 :6a.

1 :9.

f . In Christ we are made a heritage. 1 11-12.

1 12.1 13-14.

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THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C H 1:1, 2(2 ) Sealing follows believing the Word.( 3 ) T he Holy Spir it is an earnest of ou r inheritance.

1 :14. Text (1:1, 2 )Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, tothe saints that are a t Ephesus, and the faithful in Christ Jesus:

2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the LordJesus Christ.

Thought Qut~t ions (1 : - 2 )1. W hat does Pau l imply by saying that he was an apostle throzcghthe will of God?2, This letter is addressed to the sailzts, A re all Christians sa ints?Is there any distinction between the suilzts and the faithfulwho are mentioned in the next phrase?3. What do you think that grace is ? Look up the meaning of thisword in a dictionary. W hy do we need g ra c e ?

Paraphase1. Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God (andnot of m a n ), to the holy ones (the sa ints ) tha t ar e in the cityof Ephesus, and to the faithfu l souls in Christ Jesus elsewhere,2. May divine favor and peace be given unto you from God ourFather, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, through Whom theFather dispenses His blessings.

notes ( 1 : l - 2 )1. Paul, who wrote this letter (see Introduction, section V I I I ) ,was an apostle through the will of God. H e was no imposter.His life history, his power to work miracles, and his completededication to Christ all prove that he w as a tru e apostle. SeeGalatians, chapters 1 and 2, f o r P a u l s d e f e n c e of h i sapostleship.2. Paul addressed the brethren at Ephesus as saints. All Chris-tains ar e saints. Th e word saint means a holy one, All Chris-tians must be holy.3 . Notice that the letter is addressed to the saints at Ephesus,and to the faithful (o r believing ones ) in Christ Jesus, W eunderstand that this epistle was sent to Christians in otherplaces as well as to those in Ephesus. (Se e Introduction,section VII.)

I Pet, 1 :16.

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1:1, 24. Grace is Gods undeserved favor. T h e teaching that we aresaved by Gods favor, and not because we deserve it, is a cen-tral doctrine in Ephesians and throughout the New Testament.5 . Grace and peace were meaningful wishes for the saints inan age of wholesale massacres of the saints by Caesar.

T H E G L O RIO U S C H U R C H

Fact Questions36. Through what was Paul an apostle?37. W h a t a re saints?38. To what two groups is the epistle addressed?39. What two things did Paul wish for the Ephesians?40. What i s grace?41. From Whom do grace and peace com e?

Thought Questions (1:3-14)4. Count how many times the text says (in 1 3-14) that ourblessings are given through Christ, or in Christ, or inHim (C hri st), or uses other such phrases referring to Christ.W h a t does this indicate to you about the need for Ch rist?(N ot e: Such phrases as in Christ occur 164 times in thewritings of Paul.)5 . Count how many times such phrases as to the praise of H isglory occur in 1 :3-14. What does this indicate to you aboutthe necessity for praising God?

Notes (1 3-14)Note the pu rposes of the blessings as stated in the tex t:(1) That we should be holy and without blemish (blame) beforeGod. 1 :4 ;5 :27.God wants us t o be in H is presence in heav-en foreve r. But H e does not want people there whose livesa re spo tted, blemished, and unclean with sin. H is goodnessin giving us these blessings should cause us to repent of sins(Romans 2 :4).( 2 ) That we should be t o the praise of his glory. (1:6, 12,

14). W e must, therefore, praise God with psalms, songs,testimonies, and p rayers. He aven will be a place of per-pe tua l praise. If we d o not praise God, we disappoint Godand resist His purpose in giving us the blessings.(3) That he might gather together in one all things in Christ,bo th the things that are in heuven and that are on earth; 1:lo.Sin has broken up and disunited mankind, and also the an-gels in heaven (Jude 6 ) . But now through Christ, God is

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THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C H 1:3working toward an age (dispensation) when He shall bringtogether again for Himself one great harmonious universein Christ, Sin ners shall be cast out, but all who will receivethe blessings shall be saved, and gathered into one greatfellowship in Christ. Dont you want to be a pa rt of th at on egreat body that will be gathered together in Chris t?

Fact QgestionsText (1:3)

42, Name the three purposes for which God has blessed us.

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, whohath blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlyplaces in Christ:Thought Questions (1 )

6, What is the reason for which Paul blessed God in this verse?7, Can Christ be equal with God, and yet call God H is G o d ?8. With what type of blessings have we been blessed? Are thereno material blessings attached to the gospel of Christ?9. What are the lzeaveidy places? Does this refer to heaven?or to the church? or to both? or to something else?10. In whom are these blessings bestowed?Paraphrase

3, Praised be the God and Father of ou r L o rd Jes us Christ,who with every spiritual blessing has blessed all of us whoare in the heavenly places in Christ, tha t is, in the church.

Notes (1:3)1, Truly the Father God deserves to be blessed and praised forblessing us with every spiritua l blessing. Of course, we knowthat He has blessings beyond measure yet in store for Hissaints in the life to come.2, The Ephesians doubtless felt that they were more highlyblessed than any other people, because the great image ofDiana was in their city (bringing gr ea t wealth w ith i t ) , Godwanted the Christians to know tha t H i s blessings c a m et l z~ouglz csus Christ, not Diana (or even the law of Moses).For that reason, God inspired Paul to write this section. Anyone of these blessings is enough to make Christianity won-derful. But Christians have ALL of these blessings,

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1 :3 T H E G LO R IO U S C H U R C H3.

4.

5 .

43.44.45.46.47.48.49.

By a relationship too deep for human understanding, Christis said to be equal with God (Phil. 2 : 6 ; John 5:23), and yetto honor God, the Father, as His God (Eph. 1:17; John20 :17).T h e L a w of Moses promised many material blessings (Deut.7 :12-16). The gospel contains some material promises (M att .6:33 ; Phil. 4:19), but its promises are mainly spiritual.Therefore the appeal of the gospel is not to the carnallyminded, but t o those wh o seek the abiding things of the Spirit( I 1 Cor. 4:18).The word places in the phrase heavenly places is not in theoriginal Greek text. (T he re fo re it is written in italics in ou rtext.) T h e expression is just the heavenlies.

T he term heavenly places refers to Heaven itself in Eph.120. n Eph. 3 :10 and 6:12 it seems to refer to the regionof the air, the atmospheric heavens.However, here in 1 :3 and in 2:6, it seems to refer plainlyto C hrists church. Thi s glorious institution is certainly a

heavenly place. I n the church our citizenship is in heaven.Phil. 3:ZO. The church is called the kingdom of heaven oftenin the parables of Christ.If we say that the heavenly places in this verse (1:3)refe r to H eaven itself, we will also have t o say tha t God hasno more spiritual blessings in Heaven than what he has givent o us. (For God hath blessed us with every spiritual blessingin the heavenly places.) Anyone will admit that God has som espiritual blessings he has not yet given to us. Therefore wehave to interpret the phrase hea7~edvplaces as referring tothe church, in which God has blessed us with all of thesespiritual blessings.

Fact QuestionsW h a t is the title of the section (1 :3-14) in the outline?W h o is praised (or blessed) in 1 3?W hy is H e blessed?W h a t kind of blessings ar e giv en?In what places are the blessings given?T o what does the phrase heavenly places refer? Give reasonsfor your answer.Through whom (or in whom) do the blessings come?

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THE G L O R IO U S C H U R C H 1:4-6Text (1:4-6)

4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world,that w e should be holy and without blemish before him: in love5 having foreordained us unto adoption as sons through JesusChrist unto himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,6 to the praise o f the glory of his grace, which he freely be-stowed on us in the Beloved:

11,

12.13.

14,15.16.17.

4.

5 .

6.

1.

Thought Qqestions (1:4-6)In Whom did God choose u s ? When did God make thischoice? Did God choose us as individuals, or as a class ofpeople ? Exactly what did God choose concerning us ?The Jews had the adoption in Old Testament times (Rom.9 :4 Ex, 4 :22), W ho has that honor now ?Did God choose us to be before Him in love? Or, did He inlove foreordain us unto adoption as sons? Either reading ispossible. Which seems better to y o u ?What does foreordaiqz (o r predestinate) m e a n ?Did God foreordaiii US because we deserve it, or accordingto some other reason? Read the text (v. 5 ) carefully to see.What purpose did God have in mind for choosing and fore-ordaining u s ? (v . 6)W ho is the Beloved? See Matthew 3:1 7. W h a t did Godfreely bestow upon us in the Beloved?

ParaphraseGod has truly blessed us with every spiritual blessing, evenas He, before the world was created, chose us who are inChrist to be in His presence holy and without blemish,having in love foreordained that we should be adopted assons unto Himself through Jesus Christ , and this H e did ac-cording to the bepevolence of His own disposition towardsmen of all nations,in order that praise might be given unto H im for that gloriousdisplay of H is grace, which H e bas so graciously bestowedupon us through Christ the Beloved one. (Epli. 2 :7,)

Notes (1 4-6)Long ago, even before God created the world, God decided,The people who accept My son Jesus Christ shall be Mychosen people. God did not choose cer tain ind ividuals to goto heaven and others to go to hell. W hosoever will may ac-

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1:4-6 T H E G L O RIO U S C H U R C Hcept Christ (Rev. 22:17) . But God chose a class of people.He chose those who are in Christ to be His people.

2. Our being holy and without blemish is the consequence ofbeing chosen, and not the condition of it. We cannot say toGod, I am holy and without blemish. You have to choosem e ,a s on e of your people. Rath er, God says to us, Youare sinners. But I have chosen you because you have ac-cepted Christ. Now be ye holy and without blemish.3. As sinful as we have been, it would be a favor to us if Godpermitted us to scrub the floors of heaven . But God, in love,

honors us by adopting us as His children, W ha t more couldGod do for u s ?4. We prefer to put the phrase in love with the words that fol-low it. I n love is an unnecessary additional description of usif we a re holy and without blemish before th e Lord. But itmakes good sense to think that God has in love foreor-dained us to be adopted as sons unto Himself. There is noother reason why God would have decided to d o such a great

thing for us, if it were not done in love.Back before the world existed, God said something to thiseffect; I do make this decision and law now, even beforeman is created, that those who accept My son Jesus will beMy chosen people, and they shall receive adoption as Mychildren.5 . We have listed hath chosen and having predestinated zts assep arate blessings in the outline. T h e expression having pre-destinated (foreordained) zts may be subordinate to chose?tin v. 4. The choosing and foreordaining were acts done atthe same time, and are closely related to each other. But still,they were separate decisions and plans made by God. There-fore, we have listed them separately in the outline.6. T h e expression freely bestowed (v . 6 ) comes from the sameroot as the word grace. Rotherhams translation of v. 6 bringsthis ou t very clearly: (Unto the praise of the glory of H isfavour (grace), wherewith he favoured us in the BelovedOne. T h e expression means to pursue u$th grace, compasswith favor, honor mathblessings. The King James transla-tion of v. 6 is not good.7. The idea of being saved by GRACE (favor) is completelystrange to most people in ou r self-righteous age. Th ey do notconsider themselves to be sinners. Th ere fore, they do not feelth at they need grace to be saved. T hey protest the treatment.

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TH E GLORIOUS C H U R C H 16-8they get from the world around them, but not one in fiftyseems to have the slightest consciousness of sin, But t r ueChristians will be conscious of their sinfulness, and praiseGod for the glory of H is grace.

Fact Questions50. Whom did God choose to be His people?51. When was the choice made?52. What two characteristics did God desire us to have when weare before Him ?53. Unto what did God foreordain those who a r e in C hr ist ?Text (1:7, )7 in whom we have our redemption through his blood, the for-giveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,8 which he made to abound toward us in all wisdom andprudence,

Thought Questions (1:7- )18. What is rcdeinption? From whom or from what are weredeemed ?19. What is the relationship of redemption to the forgivenessof our trespasses ?20. How freely has God dispensed His grace toward u s ? (v . 8)21. W hat is the value of God granting grace to us in wisdomnnd prudence?7. In Whom (Christ) we have the ransom through His blood,namely the forgiveness of our sins. This redemption is pro-vided unto us according to the wealth of His favor,8. that favor of which He has poured out in abundance (evensuper-abun dance) unto us, but in so doing has alw ays bestow-ed it with all wisdom and understanding.1. Thank God for the blood of Christ. To those who under-stand its power and the need for it, it is the most valuablething in the universe.Many persons have a great objection to th e w ord blood,and I hav e a grea t objection to those persons, If we take outthe blood of Christ, we leave the New Testament without atheme and without a purpose, (Joseph Parker)

Paraphrase

Notes (1:7-8)

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1:7-10 THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C H2.

3.

4.5 .

54.5 5 .56.57.

Redemption is a releasing effected by the payment of aransom. This idea is an offence to many. Nevertheless, thetruth remains that when we sin, divine, immutable justiceis offended. The just law of God condemns us to death. Somepayment must be made, or the sinner will perish.T h e blood o f Christ washes away sins. W hen this takesplace, the Law of God has no more claim against us. Thuswe ar e redeemed from the jus t claims of the Law of Godagainst a guilty soul. God does not pay the redemption priceto the Devil. All souls belong to God, even the souls of sin-ners, and God alone judges and sentences them.The forgiveness of sins (in 1 :S) refers to the same thing asredemption, except that in the case of redemption our help-less condition in sin is primarily in view, whereas in the termforgiveness our own personal responsibility and guilt is thrustforth for us to behold and at which to shudder.W e obtain this redemption a t ou r conversion, and it is avail-able unto us every day thereafter.God has showered grace upon us so freely that it abounds,There is almost more grace than there is power t o use it. Butin all things, God bestows His grace with prudence and un-derstanding, so that it will do the most good,

Fact QuestionsWhat does the word redemption m e a n ?W h a t is the relationship between redemption and forgive-ness of sins?T o what degree has God extended grace toward u s ?With what two good provisions has God regulated the wayH e gives grace to u s?

Text ( 1 : 9 , l o )9 making known unto us the mystery of his will, according tohis good pleasure which he purposed in him 10 unto a dispensa-tion of the fulness of the times, to sum up all things in Christ,the things in the heavens, and the things upon the earth;

Thought Questions (1: - 1 0 )22. Why would Gods will be called a mystery? We are told inI1 Cor. 11 :3 that there is simplicity in Christ. How can thegospel of Christ be a thing of simplicity, and a mystery too?

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THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C H 1:9,10What is a dispensation? Do some research on the meaningof this word.W hat age or time is the dispensation of the fuulness of times?Could this be the present Christian dispensation ?What does it mean t o sum up all things in Christ? Does thisteach that everyone will eventually be saved ?What do you think the things in heaven a r e ? Is Christ thehead over heavenly beings, as well as redeemed humans?

ParaphraseGod has made grace to abound tow ard us, having m ade knownunto us (th e apostles) the sacred secret (R oth erh am trans-lation) of H is will, in a manner according to H is benevolentpleasure which H e purposed within Himself ;And this mystery He did make known in order to bring allthings unto a dispensation (adm inistration ) of t he fuln essof the times, in which dispensation H e now plans to brin g allbeings hitherto disunited by sin under one head in Christ,both the things in heaven and the things upon the earth.

Notes (1:9-10)Having made known (K ing James Version ) is a more accu-rate translation than making known, given in the AmericanRevised Version. Christ made known all tru th to the apos tles.H e is not making known additional truths to anyone.In the New Testam ent the word mystery is often used to referto some hidden or unrevealed inform atio n which God hasnow made known. One of these mysteries was Gods planof salvation for men through Christ, This plan was oncehidden, but it is now revealed, You might say it is not amystery any longer. Bu t it was an unrevealed mystery fo rmany ages. (S ee Ephesians 3 :3-6.)Down through all the ages men have invented all kinds ofreligions and philosophies in an effort to discover what isreally the tru th . Gods final tr u th w as not revealed untilChrist made it known. Previous to tha t time men could onlyguess about Hi s law and promises. But now the myste ry hasbeen cleared up. W e oug ht to thank God fo r malting knownthis mystery of His will.When God planned out His purpose and program for theages, H e planned toward a dispensation of the fu lness of the

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23.

24,25.26.

9.

10.

1.

2.

3.

4.


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1 :lo-12 T H E G L O R I O U S C H U R C H

5.

6.

7.

8.

58.59.60.

times, when all things would be summed up in Christ. W eare thankful that God is now working out this purpose in allhuman affairs.Th is dispelzsation of the fulness of the times obviously refersto our present Christian age, Fo r it is during this age tha tGod is endeavoring to bring all things under the headship ofChrist.T o sum up means to gather under one head or to sum up asone might sum up the main points of a speech in a fewstatements. W hat a glorious universe this will be when allthings are under the headship of Christ.Verse 10 does not teach that eventually all men, angels, andother creatures will be saved. Paul plainly teaches in thisletter that sinners will perish. (See 5 :5-6.) Sinners will becast out, and then Christ shall be head over all.No mere human being knows what all are described by thewords the things in the heavens am? the things upon the earth.We do know tha t Christ is Lord of angels as well as of men(I Pet. 3 . 22 ) . He is Lord of the dead a s well a s of the living.Gods plans for the whole universe are all designed to glorifyChrist.

Fact QuestionsWhat has God made known to us through Christ?Why is Gods will called a mystery?What purpose does God have in mind for our sin-disuniteduniverse ?

Text ( l : l l , 12)in him, I say, 11 in whomalsowe were made a heritage, havingbeen foreordained according to the purpose of him who workethall things after the counsel of his will: 12 to the end that weshould be unto the praise of his glory, we who had before hopedin Christ:

Thought Questions (1:11-12)27. W h a t is a heritage?28. W h o or what is Gods heritage at the present time?29. W hose plan was it that we would be a heritage?30. What people are those who had before hoped in Christ?

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1 1 ,

12,

1 ,

2,

3,

4,

THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C HPa r a pha s e

1:11, 12In Whom (Christ) we Jews, as well as you Gentiles, weremade a heritage, a private possession for God, having beenforeordained to this honor not by virtue of Abraliamic descentand the law, but according to that pre-planned pro gram whichGod, who does all thing according t o the counsel of H is will,laid out in Christ;In foreordaining us to be His heritage, God was workingtoward the purpose that we would be a people devoted topraising His glory, we, the Jews, who in ages before havebeen the first to have hoped in the Messiah (o r Chris t ) .

Notes (1:ll-12)The we of v. 12 re fe rs to Jewish C hristians such as Pa ul .The ye of vs. 13 re fe rs to Gentile believers, like most of theEphesians. F o r centuries the Jews had been told of th e com-ing of the Messiah (o r Chr ist) , and had hoped in H im . T h eGentiles for the most part never heard of the Messiah untilafter the church was established on the day of PentecostActs 2) , indeed not until a f te r the conversion of Cornelius(Acts IO).T he reading of 1 :11 in the King James Version, W e haveobtained an inheritance, is not a good translation. T h eAmerican Revised Version is correct here. I t is tr ue tha t wehave obtained an inheritance. But we shall not fully receiveit in this life , (S ee I Pet. 1 :4,)A h e r i t a g c is a possession that one owns by right of inheri-tance. In the ages before Jesus came, the Jewish people wereGods portion, His heritage, (See Joel 3 :2 ; Ex.4 :22.) Butnow God has broken this arrangement with the Jews, andChristians have become His heritage. T hi s was no af te r-thought, but was Gods plan and purpose from the beginning.The Jew had come to feel that it was his particular privilegeto be Gods heritage; but God had not so foreordained itfrom the beginning, God had foreordained t h a t t h e J e wwould be a part of His heritage along with the Gentiles whenboth were in Christ.The people of Old Testament times certainly offered muchpraise to God. But it is noteworthy th at the Jews w ere madeto be Gods her itage I N C H R I S T , so tha t they would be untothe praise of His glory. W e cannot really praise G od unlessthat praise is offered in Christ,

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1:12-14 THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C H5.

61.62 .63.64.65.

1 3

Notice the word purpose in 1:11 (and see also 3 : I l ) . Godsworkings are not the result of chance or impulse. Befo re timebegan God laid out in His mind a program (prothesis, orpu rpo se) for the ages. Ch rist was a t the heart of this pro-gra m . W e who are in Ch rist can thank God tha t we are theones w ho are called according to H is purpose. (See Romans8 :28.)

Fact QuestionsW h a t have we been made to be for G od ? ( 1 :11)When did God decide that those who are in Christ would beHis heritage ?F o r w hat purpose were we foreordained to be Gods heritage?W ho are the we who had before hoped in Christ?According to what were we foreordained and made aheritage ?

Text ( 1 : 1 3 , 14)in whom ye also, having heard the word of the truth, the

gospel of your salvation, -in whom, having also believed, yewere sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 which is anearnest of our inheritance, unto the redemption of Gods ownpossession, unto the praise of his glory.

Thought Questions (1: 3-1 4 )31. W hat people are addressed as ye also in v. 13? With whom

ar e they contrasted? (S ee v. 12.)32. What two things does Paul say had been done before the

Ephesians were sealed with the Holy Spirit? Does this in-dicate that they were saved as infants?

33. What is an earnest? The dictionary will give you a gooddefinition of this term.

34. W h at is the earnest of our inheritance? Why is this a mostappropriate and befitting earnest ?

35. W ha t does ye were sealed mean? How is a document sealed?W h y ? How are we sealed with the Holy Spirit?

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TH E GLORIOUS CI-IURCI-I. 1 13, 1436, If we already have redemption (v , 7 ) , why must we be satis-

fied with an earnest unto (or until) the redemption? Arethere two meanings of the word redewtption? If so, whatdoes it mean h ere ? (Compare Rom, 8:18 -23,)

37. What (or who) is Gods own possession?Paraphrase

13. In Whom (Christ) you Gentiles also, having first heard theword of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and having alsobelieved in Christ, were stamped and sealed as being Godsown possession with the Holy Spirit which was promisedunto us,

14. Th e Holy Spirit is the earnest, the advanced portion, of ou rinheritance; and we shall enjoy this earnest of the Spirituntil th e redemption of Gods possession, Le,, un til th e timewhen the people who are Gods own throu gh Christ a r e raisedfrom the dead unto eternal life, and all this shall redound tothe praise of His glory as Saviour,

Notes (1:13-14)1. Official papers ar e often stamped with a seal. This seal proves

that the document is approved by the proper authorities.Seals have been used since ancient times. Cylinder-shapedseals, or seals carved on rings were used to make official im-pressions on clay tablets.

When we (1) heard the Word of truth, the gospel, and( 2 ) believed it (and, of course, w ere baptized ; Gal. 3 :26-27),God gave us the gift of the Holy Spir it (Acts 2:38) . T heHoly Spirit produces in us holiness and many good fruits,(See Gal. 5 :22-23.) Thus the Holy Spirit in the Christianstamps and seals him as being Gods property. It oughtto be obvious to anyone who associates with a Christian thathe is sealed with Gods Spirit.

2. The Holy Spirit is an earnest of our inheritance until thecomplete redemption of the purchased possession. An ear-

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1 :13, 14 T H E G L OR IO U S C H U RC Hnest is money which is given when a bargain is made, as apledge that the full price will be paid later. Right now weCh ristians have the earnest of the Holy S pirit. Th is bringsto us love, joy, peace, etc. These joys are an earnest of theboundless joys we shall have when Jesus comes back, andthe dead are raised, and sin is destroyed foreve r. T h e joywe have as Christians now is only a sampling of the greaterjoys in store for us.

3. T h e H o l y Spirit of promise means the promised Spirit (Zech.12 : lO ; I sa . 32:15).

4. The redemption of 1:7 refers to our redemption from sin.T h e redemption here in 1 14 refers to our redemption fromhuman frailty and from the curse. (See Genesis 3 17-19.)This will occur when our bodies are raised from the grave.(See I Cor. 15 :43-44, 51-55.)

Fact Questiovts66. W h at tw o acts did Pau l say had been done before y e weresealed?67. W ith wh at are we sealed ?68. W hat is the earnest of our inheritance?69. Ho w does the H o l y S p i r i t serve as an earnest of o u r

inheritance?70. W h a t is the redemption referred to in 1:14?

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THE GLORIOUS CHURCH

The Ephesians burn their books of magic when they learn of the blessingsChrist. Acts 19:19

(Picture copyright, Standard Pub, Co.)41


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THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C HPreviewing in Outline F orm (1: 1-23)

B. Pauls prayer for his readers enlightenment. 1 15-23.1. Basis of the prayer. 1 :15.a. T h e blessings of 1 3-14.b. Having heard of the Ephesians faith.c. Hav ing heard of their love tow ard the saints.2. T ha nk s given always. 1:16.3. Requests . 1 :17-23.a. That God would give them a spirit of wisdom andrevelation. 1 :17-18a.

1) Based in the knowledge of Him self. 1:17b.2 ) Having the eyes of your heart enlightened. 1 18a.1) The hope of Gods calling. 18b.2 ) The riches of th e glory of H is inheritance in thesaints. 18c.3 ) The exceeding greatness of H is power toward us.

a ) Th is power used to raise Christ. 1 :20a.b ) Th is power used to exa lt Christ. 1 :20b-21.c ) This power used to subject all things to Christ.1 22a.d ) This power used to make Christ head over thechurch, 1 :22b-23.The church is His body.The church is His fulness.

I n the foregoing section ( 1 :3-14) we found a marvelous listof spiritual blessings that God has given us. But often Christiansdo not apprec iate these spi ritua l blessings. Many church membersactually appreciate material blessings (such as money) more thanthey d o thei r spiritual blessings. Bu t actually the spir itua l bless-ings are greater than all others because they have the promise ofboth the life that now is, and th at w hich is to come ( I Tim. 5 :8;I1 Cor. 4:18) . No person w ho seeks first the kingdom of heavenwill lack any necessary thing in this life. And only those whoseek first the spiritual things have the promise of salvation inthe life to come.In this section we therefore find Paul praying that his readersmig ht know and appreciate the spiritual blessings. Paul prayedevery day f o r this. Many chu rch members today a re lukewarm,unconcerned, and unmindful of spiritua l things. W e should prayfo r such people, even a s P aul did.42

b. T h a t they would know these things. 1:18b-23.

1 :19-23.

1:23a.1 :23b.


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THE G L O R I O U S CHURCHFact Questions

1 15, 1671, What is the title of the section (1 15-23) ?72, Why are spiritual blessings greater than material blessings ?73, What three things did Paul pray that we would know?

Text ( l : l j , 16)1 5 For this cause I also, having heard of the fsith in the LordJesus which i s among you, and the love which y e show towardall the saints, 1 6 cease not to give thanks for you, making men-tion o f you in my prayers;

38,39,

40.41.42.

15.

16.

1.

Thougbt Questions (1:1 -16 )For what cause was it that Paul did not cease to pray forthem ?Would you infer from the fact that Paul said he had heardof the faith of the Ephesians that (1 ) either Paul did notwrite the epistle, or (2 ) that it was not actudly written tothe Ephesians? Why or why not?What was the attitude of the Ephesians toward all saints?How regularly did Paul pray for the Ephesians?Did Paul pray for them by name? Give a reason for youranswer.

ParaphraseFor this reason, that ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit,and made recipients of many other blessings, I also, havingheard of the commendable faith in the Lord Jesus whichcontinues among you, and the love which YOU have towardall the saints, both Jew and Gentile,do not cease to be giving thanks in behalf of you, maltingmentiop of you by name in my daily prayers.

Notes ( l : l J - l 6 )The Interpreters Bible says about Ephesians 1 15 that thesewords belong to the literary fiction by which the epistle isrepresented as a message fro m Pa ul. Su ch conclusions ar enot supported by any evidence, only by personal opinion.T he mere fact that P aul said that he had heard of thefaith of the Ephesians, does not prov e th a t he had never beenwith them , H e wrote the same way to Philemon (4, ), andsimilarly to the Thessalonians ( I Thessalonians 3 : 6 ) , Cer-

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1 :16, 17 T H E G L O RIO U S C H U R CHtainly Pa ul knew these people intimately. (S ee Introduction,sec. VI11 for further information.)

2. Paul was glad to hear (perhaps from Tychicus) about thefaith which the Ephesians had steadfastly held in the LordJesus, an d their love for one another. T h e church at Ephesuswas unusual in that it had both Jews and Gentiles in it, andthey really loved one another. But Pa ul still prayed for them,thanking God for them, and asking God to further enlightenthem.

Fact Questions71. W h at tw o things had Paul heard about the Eph esians?

Tex t (1:17)17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory,may give unto you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in theknowledge of him;

Thought Questions (1:17)43. W h at does the phrase, the Father of glory, mean?44. Did Paul pray that God would reveal His truth directly tothe Ephesians ? Would not such a prayer contradict 3 :3-4?What exactly did Paul want them to have that he calls a

spirit of wisdom and revelation?45. W h y is a sp irit of wisdom and revelation needed by the saintswho have all already accepted Christ ?46. W h a t is the significance of the spiri t of wisdom and revela-tion being in the klzowledge of Him? Who is the Him?17.

ParaphaseRequesting that God, the glorious Father in heaven, who isadored as God even by o ur L o rd Jesus Christ, and who origi-nates both the glory we now enjoy and that greater glory weshall have hereafter, that H e may give unto you a w ise spiritan d a sp iri t of revelation, th at is, a disposition which willmake you able and ready to receive that which He has re-vealed concerning the precise know ledge of Himself.

Notes (1:17)1. Se e notes on 1:3 concerning the expression, God of our Lord

Jesus Christ. 44


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THE G L O R IO U S C H U R C H 1 17-192. The apostle did not pray that God would give to all theEphesians the l


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1:17-19 T H E G L O R IO U S C H UR C H48. So the heart has eyes! What is this heart that has eyes?49. W ha t is the hope of his calling that we are to know? Who

is being called? By wh om ? H o w is the calling done? Doesntevery person who knows enough to accept Christ know thehope of His calling?50. W ho has an inheritance in the saints ? W ha t does H e inhe rit?Why does this inheritance contain riches of glory?

51. W h at will be the benefit of knowing the exceeding greatnessof Gods power toward u s?

Paraphrase18. I pray that you may have a spirit of wisdom and revelation,

so tha t the eyes of yo ur hea rt (m ind and understanding) maybe enlightened with lasting illumination. Being thus enlight-ened, you may know what blessings are contained in the hopeto which God has called you by the Gospel, and may knowwhat a re the riches of the glo ry of Gods inheritance, whichis His saints,

19. and that you may also know what is the exceeding greatnessof the power which God employs toward us who believe, thatpower which is so great that it can be described only by say-ing that it is according to the working of the power of Hisstrength.

Notes (1:18-19)1. There is a great need for all of us to have the eyes of our

hearts (understanding) enlightened. Many people are likeAd am and Eve. They have had their eyes opened to sin bydisobeying God. Bu t it is usually much harder to have oureyes opened to good than to evil. W e must learn fully aboutGods promises, glory, blessings, etc. T hen we must live bywha t we know. Head knowledge without heart enlighten-ment is not good enough.2. Paul lists three things we need to know through having theeyes of our heart enlightened :1) Th e hope of His calling. This refers to that living hopewhich we have in Christ of a heavenly inheritance that

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THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C H 1 17-19fades not away (1 Peter 1 :3-4), God called us by thegospel, that good news about Christ which was preachedto us (I Thess. 2:1 4). Some people accept Chri st muchas they buy fire insurance, as a matter of protection.Christ is tru ly your protection. Nonetheless we do notfollow Christ ju st because we m ust , bu t because we cher-ish and seek after the hops of His calling.The riches of the glory of His (Gods) inheritance inthe saints.

As stated in 1:11, the saints (C hri stia ns) a re Godsinheritance, H is heritage. N atu rally this brings grea tbenefits to the saints, as well as pleasure to God. I t is arich and glorious arrangement, Christians can well applyMoses words to themselves :The eternal God is thy dwelling place,And underneath ar e the everlasting a rm s ;Happy art thou, 0 Israel (0 chu rch of G od ) ;W ho is like unto thee, a people saved by Jehovah?

(Deut . 33 :27, 29)3 ) Tho cscecding greatitess of His power toward zts thatbelieve.

Gods people often act like they think that God can-not or will not do anything for them, We need the eyesof our heart enlightened to grasp the trut h t ha t the samepower that God used for Jesus, H e can and does put towork for us. This thought almost staggers the iniagina-tion. But it is true, Study the notes on l :20-22 to seehow God used H is power in the life of Jesus, an d remeni-ber that this is a n illustration of the power he uses todeliver us from evil, rule providentially in our lives, andto raise us from the dead,

Eact Questiom75 , According to 1 :18, what needs to be enlightened?76, What are the three things Paul prayed that we would know?77, In what is Gods inheritance?

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THE GLORIOUS CHURCH

EPHESIANS 1:18, 19PAUL PRAYED THATWE WOULD KNOW-

1. THE HOPE OF GODS CALLING.2. THE RICHES OF THE GLORY OF HIS

INHERITANCE IN THE SAINTS.

3. THE GREATNESS OF HIS POWERTOWARD US.DO Y O U KNOW THESE THINGS?

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THE G L OR IO U S C H U R C H 1~20-23Text (1 :20-23)

20 which he wrought in Christ , when he raised him from thedead, and made him to s i t at his r ight hand in the heavenlyplaces, 2 1 far above al l rule, and authori ty , and power, anddominion, and every nam e th a t is named, not only in this wor ld,bu t also in that which is to come; 22 and he put a l l th ings insubjection u nd er his feet, and gave him t o be head ov er all thingst o the church 23 which is his body, th e fulness of h im th a t fill-eth all in all.

52,53.54.55 .56,

57.58,

59,60,

20,

Thought Questions (1:20-23)What is that which God zwrozl.ght in Christ? (See 1:19),Why is the mighty power which God wrought in Christ de-scribed here ?What is shown about Gods power by the fact that his powerraised Christ from the dead?Who will have the most honored name even in the worldthat is to come?How can God have put all things in subjection under Christsfeet when the majority of humankind are in rebellion againstHim? (Psa lm 2 can help answer this question.)Note tha t Christ is head over all things to the ch urc h. Nam ethree areas of church affairs over which Christ is head.W ha t is the implication of the fact tha t the chu rch i s Christsbody ? Does that suggest that the churc h exercises the au tho r-ity of Ch rist? O r that the church is subject to Ch ris t? O rthat it is intimately joined to Christ?To whom does this refer: Him that filleth all in all (1 :23 ;cf. 4: 10)?What does the fact that the church is the fulness of Christmean?

Paraphase(praying that you may know) that power which God putto work in the life of Ch rist, and will employ to w ar d us thatbelieve, when He raised Christ from the dead, and gaveHim the honor of sitting at His own right hand in heaven aschief governor of the universe,

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1 2 1 , 22 THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C H21. having seated Christ there by His power in spite of the efforts

of wicked men, the devil, and death itself to destroy Christ.T h e re Christ was seated fa r above all the ranks of authorityheld by men or spiritual creatures, whether they be firstrulers, or authorities, or mighty powers, or lordships, yeaabove every name that is named, not only in this world, buteven in that which is to come ;

22. and fur the r dem onstrating His grea t power in the life ofChrist, God did subject all things in the universe under hisfeet, and appointed Him supreme Lord and head over allthings pertaining to the church,

23. which (t h e church) is H is (C hrists) body and His fulness,that which is filled by Him who verily filleth all things in allplaces.

1. Verses 20-23 are an elaboration of v. 19. Paul prayed thatwe would know what is the exceeding greatness of Godspower toward us. This power is described as being the powerth at G od used for Jesus. I t is almost staggering to thinkthat we have available unto us the same power that God usedfor Christ. But that is true. Note wha t God did for Jesus :1 ) H e raised Him from the dead. 1 :20. If we bklieve that

God raised up Jesus from the dead, we ought to havestron g confidence, for God will use this same great powerby which He raised up Jesus to help us.

2 ) God exalted Jesus by seating H im a t His right hand inheaven (M ark 16 :19 ; Psalm 110 :1 ), God exalted Jesusfa r above all principality, power, might and dominion, andevery name that is named, not only in this age, but in thatwhich is to come. T h e principalities, pow ers, might, anddominions mentioned here seem to refer to ranks anddegrees of power among angels and sp iritual beings, bothgood and bad (Col. 1 16; Eph. 6: 12 ) ,

3 ) God pu t all things beneath the feet of Chr ist ; H e isLord of all- eaven, earth, hades, hell, angels, govern-ments, and all (Matthew 28 :18) .

Notes (1 20-23)

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THE GLORIOUS C H U R C H 1:234) God made Christ to be head over all things to the church,which is H is body, the fulness of H im that filleth all

things in all places,The word fzllness etymologically has a passive sense(T ha ye r) , s ignifying that which is filled, This is a won-derful thought, The church is filled (not just allotted asample) by Christ with blessings and salvation. Thechurch is to be filled fo r Christ with holiness, service, andworship.

Note that there is only one head over the church, andthat Christ is that head. H e is head over a l l things to thechurch-its worship, its laws, its plan of salvation, itsnioral standards, etc, No pope, bishop, church council,convention, synod, prophet, preacher, or anyone elsedares to rob Christ of any of th e authority God gave toHim.Note that the church is Christs body. In the contexthere the principal suggestion is that Christ is the ruler(o r head) over the church. H e directs the church as ahuman head directs the body beneath it.

Christ has only one body, one church . Can you imag-ine it freak with one head, but a hundred bodies attachedto the head? Surely such a monstrosity could not inalceany progress in any direction. Y et we must assunie tha tsuch a nionster exists today, i f we assunie that all thedenominations are divine. Christ has only one church,(See Eph. 4:4 . )

2, There have been false applications made of the fact that thechurch is the body of Christ. It would be wrong to reasonthat since the church is the body of Christ, and is in a sensean extension of Christ Himself, tha t the church the refo reexercises the authority of Christ on earth. Th is is the RomanCatholic position.

Ephesians 5 2 4 Inalces it very plain that the relationshipof the body to the head is that of SUBJECTION. The

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1 2 3 THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C Hchurch is subject to Christ the head in everything, and doesnot exercise authority for the head. T he church cannot makelaws for Christ. Neither can it accept nor reject any personswhom Christ has rejected or accepted.

3. Concerning the heavenly places, see note on 1 :3.4. W e o ug ht to pray, as Paul did, that we ourselves and all our

breth ren may have the eyes of our heart enlightened aboutthese things.

Eact Questions78, Nam e the four things Gods power did for Christ.79. W hy a re these demonstrations of Gods power in the life of

Christ mentioned ?80. W hat a re the rule, authority, power, and do.minion of v. 21 ?81. What is the sense and meaning of the term fulness?82. W h at is the body of C hri st?83. Who is the head of the church? Over what things in the

church is He the head?84 . W hy does the fact that the church is the fulness and body of

Christ not give it the authority of Christ on ear th?

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THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C H

A DOUBLE-BARRELLED BLESSINGFOR GODS SAINTS

I . ONCE DEAD- OW ALIVE2:1-101. Before Conversion- ead- :l-32. After Conversion -Alive - :4-10

II. ONCE ALIENS- OW FELLOWCITIZENS with the Saints-2: 11-221. Before Christ -Aliens - :12

2. After Christ- ade Nigh- :13-183, Grand Summary- :19-22

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T H E G L O R IO U S C H U R C HPreviewing in Outline Form ( 2: -1 )

C. On ce dead, now alive with Christ. 2:l-10.1 . Before conversion, dead throu gh trespasses a nd sins, 2: l -3 .a. Ye were sinful yourselves. 2:2.1) Walked according to th e course of this world.2 ) Walked according to the Devil.a ) T he prince of the power of the air.b) T he prince of the spirit tha t now w orks in thesons of disobedience.

b. You associated with sinners. 2 :3a.1 ) In the lusts of the flesh,2 ) Doing the desires of the flesh and mind.c. You were liable to suffer Gods wra th because of sin.2 :3b.2. A fte r conversion, made alive with C hrist. 2:4-10.

a. Made alive because God was rich in mercy, 2:4.b. Made alive though dead through trespasses. 2:s .c. Two blessings following being made alive. 2:6.1 ) Raised up with Jesus.2 ) Made to sit in heavenly places.d. Made alive that God might show the riches of Hisgrace in the ages to come. 2:7.e. Made alive (sa ved) by grac e throu gh faith. 2:9-10.1) Not saved by ourselves.

2 ) Saved by the gift of God.3 ) Not saved by our works. 2:9-10.a ) W e are Gods workmanship. 2:lO.b) However, we were created for good works.2 :lo.In this section we find the answer to the question, Howcan living people be DEAD in sins ?Strictly speaking, 2 :1-10 is a continuation of Pauls descrip-

tion of Gods gre at power toward us (1 :19-23). Certainly Godspow er is demonstrated gloriously in the way H e made us whowere dead because of sins to be alive with Christ.However, because the section is lengthy and is a well-definedparagraph in itself, it helps us to remember the contents of thechap ter if we list this section as a sep ara te top ic in the outline.T h is we have done under the heading, O nce dead, now alive withChrist.

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THE G L O R IO U S C H U R C H 2 :1-3Pact Questions

85, What is the title of this section (2:LlO) ?86, What are i ts two main subdivis ions and their Scripturelimitations 7

Text (2:1-3)And you did he make alive when ye were dead through yourtrespasses and sins, 2 wherein ye once walked according to thecourse of this world, according to the prince of the powers ofthe air, of the spirit that now worketh in the sons of disobedi-ence; 3 among whom we also all once lived in the lusts of ourflesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were bynature children of wrath, even as the rest:-

Thought Questions ( 2 : -3 )61. What does qznicheited (King James Version, v. 1) m e a n ?62, A re we dead because of some original sin we inherited fromAdam, or through some other m ean s? (R ea d v. 1 carefully

for the answer,)63, Do those who are dead in sins have to be inactive, like thosein the grave? Are the dead necessarily unconscious, tisleep,or annihilated (L uk e 9 : 6 0 ;Rev. 6 :9-10) ?64, A t wh at occasion were we made alive a f te r being dead intrespasses and sins (Col. 2 :12-13) ?65, Can- you make any distinction between t-respasses and sins?Try .66. W hat is the character of the course of this world ?67. W ho is the prince of the power of th e a i r ? W hy is he calledthat ? (S ee Rev. 12 :9, 12 ; Eph. 6 12)68. The word priiace has tw o prepositional phrases tha t follow it.W h a t is the second one?69. W ha t are sons of disobcdieizce? W h a t kind of a spiri t worksin them ?70. W ha t are claildreo of wrath? Whose wrath is referred to ?

What relationship do the children have to wrath ?71. W ha t does it mean tha t we were by natznre children of w r a t h ?Is this some natu re that we have inherited from A d am ? O r isthis some na ture th at w e have cultivated ourselves ?Paraphrase

1. Even as Gods great power did raise up Chris t ( 1 :20) , H edid also make you Ephesians alive when you were dead (cut55


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2 :1-3 T H E G L O R IO U S C H U RC Hoff from God) because of your trespasses and sins.2. Before your conversion you did walk in these trespasses andsins, according to the present sin ful age of the world, accord-ing to the Devil, the ruler of the power of evil which hasits residence in the air, and also the ruler (o r author) of thatrebellious spirit which now works in those who disobey God.

3. Am ong these children of disobedience we all, Jews andGentiles, at one time lived our lives, interested only in thedesires of the flesh, following the inclinations of the fleshand of our corrupt minds, until evil had become part ofour nature, and we had become, without ever realizing it,children doomed to suffer Gods wrath, just like the restof humankind.

Notes1. T he w ords in v. 1 th at a re in italics are , of course, not in theoriginal Greek text, They are supplied from 2:5 to makethe sense more apparent, and are a helpful addition at this

place. Quickened in the King James Version means madealive.2. T h e person who is a sinner is dead as far as God is concerned.In the Bible death does NOT imply unconsciousness, orannih ilation, or going ou t of existence. Both the good andevil ar e still conscious af te r physical death (Rev . 6:9-10;Luke 16:22-24; Isa. 14:9-10). Death is simply a completechange of relationships, or a separation from former rela-

tionsh ips. When people are alive he re on earth, we can talkto them and deal with them. W he n they die, the relationshipsare changed. W e can no longer talk with them and dealwith them . Bu t they can then see and be with others whohave died, and with the angels and the Lord Jesus (if theyare saved) .Now when a person is dead in sins, he can still walkarou nd among us. But he is as cut off from God as a man inthe grave is cut off from us. God cannot bless such a deadperson, or answer his prayers, o r take him to heaven. I t wasin this way that Adam and Eve died on the very day theyate the forbidden fruit (Gen. 2:17). (Of course, theyobviously received pardon afterwards through the offeringof sacrifices in anticipation of the death of Christ.)There is hope, however, even for those who are dead insins. Jesus said, The hou r is coming and NOW IS, when

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THE G L O R I O U S C H U R C H 2:2, 3the dead (sp iritually ) shall hear the voice of the Son of God ;and they that hear shall live (John 5 :25 ; cf. Jn. 2 :28-29).When we hear the gospel, believe in Christ, repent, and arebaptized, our relationships change again. W e are no longerdead I N sins, but we are dead TO sin and aliae unto God(Romans 6 : l l ) .

3. Tresjass may refer to a willful sin. Sin means missing thetrue mark of life, and is a general term for sin,4. The Greek text does not say that we are dead in trespasses

and sins, but because of or b y o r through trespasses and sins.5 , Note that sinners walk according to two things :1 ) Accord ing to the course of this wo rld .2) Accord ing to the prince of the pow er of the a i r (Sa tan) ,who is also the prince (or author) of the wicked dis-position that now works in those who disobey God.Most sinners would deny emphatically that they aredirected by any outside influence. They pride themselves

on being so emancipated that they can d o wha t theyplease, not realizing that this is Satans method of direct-ing their lives, and that Satan is the prince of the spiritthat directs their life.6. Prince of the power of the air, Satan apparently dwells inthe a ir (and W H E R E do we not contact the a i r ? ) , H e hashis angels organized into an efficient power.Paul plainly teaches the existence of a real devil in theseverses, and we believe it. Some modern in terp rete rs denythat there is a real Devil. Fo r example, it is state d in theZnterprctms Bible that the idea of a personal Devil is allbut unimaginable to the mind of ou r times, an d is capableof interpretation only as a personification of the externalforces of evil which play upon human life. Su ch adiabolismmust am use his majesty, Prince Sa tan. H e is not the leastoffended when people deny his existence, In fac t, it is mostgratifying to him.7. We who are now Christians all once lived as disobedientchildren, just like the people who live around us. Conversa-

tioii (King James Version, v. 3 ) means manner of life. W edid whatever the lusts (or desires) of our flesh craved andwhatever our minds (of ten lazy, filthy, and s c h e m i n g )thought of. W e were by nature children of wrath, even as therest of humankind. W e were not relatives of w rath, but the57


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2 :1-5 T H E G L O RIO U S C H U R C H

8.

87.88.89.90.91.92.93.94.

very children against whom Gods wrath was directed becauseof our sins.The fact that we were by nature children of wra th does notimply that we were born into the world with Gods wrathupon us because of some guilt we inherited from Adam.Nature here refers to conduct practiced so long and habit-ually th at it has become our na tu ra l way of living. T heapostle speaks of men being by na tu re children of wra th a sthe effect (ra the r than the cause) of our trespasses and sins.The quibble advanced by some theologians that, We arenot sinners because we sin ; we sin because we are sinners,lays all the blame for our sins upon Adam (or upon G O D )instead of upon ourselves where it belongs. Num erous pass-ages teach that children are not born condemned and subjectto Gods wrath (Matt. 19 :14; Rom. 5 :18; tc.).

Fact QuestionsFrom what verse are the words did H e make alive suppliedinto v. 1 ?W h a t is the condition of the sinner as far as God is con-cerned (2 :1) ?How is death defined in the notes?Explain how living people can be dead in sins.According to what two things did we walk before our con-version (v . 2) ?What does the word conversation (used in the King JamesVersion, 2 3) mean ?T h e desires of what tw o things ar e done by the children ofdisobedience ?Now that you have studied the lesson, go back and reviewthe thought questions.

Text (2:4, 5 )4 but God, being rich in mercy for his great love wherewithhe loved us, 5 even when we were dead through our trespasses,made us alive together with Christ (by grace have ye beensaved),

Tbmght Qzcestims (2:4, 5 )72. I s the re reason for which we deserve to be treated withmercy by God?73. What was i t that made God be merciful to u s ?

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TI-IE G L O R IO U S C H U R C H 2 :4-774, With whom were we made alive? What kind of a resur-rection was this? Does 2 : 5 imply that Christ was spiritually

dead ? Paraphrase4. But though we were children who deserved to suffer Godswrath, God was rich in mercy toward us on account of thesurpassing love He had toward US,5, Therefore, even though we were dead (cut off from H i m )through our trespasses, He did make us alive together with

Christ , Thus it was by grace we were saved with a lastingsalvation, It i s a favor which we do not deserve,Notes

1. Oh the soul-thrilling meaning in that word, b u t , Because wehave all at one time walked according to the Devil, it wouldbe natural for the next verse to say, AND God smote youin His wrath, But such is not the case, praise God!2, God was merciful to us because of the love H e had fo r us,The expression, love wherewith H e lowed us, is a Hebrewway of describing the greatness of H i s love. W e marve l tha tit could be that God was not just merciful to us, butL O V I N G ,3 . Only through an out-and-out favor from God have webeen saved. T he word saved is in the perfect tense, whichindicates a past action with continued efforts.4, The fact that we have been made alive with Christ (Col.2:13) does not indicate that Christ was sp iritually dead . H ewas, and is, alive; we have been made alive with Him.Fact Questiolzs95. Why did God make LIS alive with Christ?96. By what have we been sav ed ?

Text ( 2 : 6 , 7)6 and raised u s up with him, and made us to sit with him in theheavenly places in Christ Jesus: 7 that in the ages to come hemight show the exceeding riches of his grace in kindness towardus in Christ Jesus:

Thought Questions ( 2 :6-7)75. W ha t similarities ar e there between wh at G od did fo r C hrist(1 :20), and what God has done for us (2 5-6)

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2 :6-8 THE G L O R IO U S C H U R C H76. What a re the heavenly places in which we sit? (See thenotes on 1:3.)77. How long will praise be offered to God for His grace towardus ? (Compare Revelation 7 :9-12 ; 15 :3-4.)78. In (or by) what does God demonstrate the exceeding richesof H is gra ce?

Paraphase6. And God has raised us up from the state of death in whichwe existed before our conversion, and has made us alive

together with Christ, and has made us to sit with Him in theheavenly places that are in Christ Jesus, that is, in theChristian church.7. God has done this so that He might show throughout theages which are to come the exceeding riches of H is favortoward us by the kindness which H e has extended unto usin Christ Jesus in making us spiritually alive and giving usa glorious and heavenly standing in the church.

Notes ( 2 :6-7)1. Not only did God make us alive together with Christ, but Hehas also ( 1 ) raised us up spiritually with Christ, and (2)made us to sit with Christ in the heavenly places, the church.T h e heavenly places mentimed here cannot refer to heavenfor we do not sit bodily in heaven as Jesus does (1 :20), Buta re members of the church of Ch rist, which is a heavenly

institution.2. God desires the praise due unto H is name. God has favoredus very greatly because of H is love. Bu t H e has also favoredus because H e desires the sincere praise of loving souls. Inall the ages to

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15 Ephesians