Ephesians

Order of Service

• Sunday School Lesson — Ephesians 1:1-2
• Prayer of Dismissal to Worship

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Sermon Title: Introduction to Ephesians — Who We Are in Christ

Scripture: Ephesians 1:1-2

I. Background and Purpose of the Letter

A. James Montgomery Boice's expositional commentary will be the primary study resource

1. Boice was pastor of Tenth Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, from 1968 until his death in 2000
2. The church had only six pastors from its founding in 1829 to 2000

B. Ephesians described by commentators as "the queen of the Epistles" and "the Grand Canyon of Scripture"

1. Contains 27 different doctrines across six chapters, none unique to Ephesians alone
2. Its greatest attribute is clarity — presenting doctrine in a practical and winsome way

C. John Stott describes the letter as a magnificent combination of Christian doctrine and Christian duty — what God has done through Christ and what we are to do in consequence

II. The City of Ephesus

A. Located in present-day Turkey on the western coastline, near the Aegean Sea, east of Athens

1. A major port city on the Caÿster River, a crossroads between Rome and the East
2. A cosmopolitan melting pot of Greeks, Romans, Jews, and Gentiles

B. Home to the Temple of Artemis (Diana), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World

1. Approximately 425 feet long, 220 feet wide, with 127 columns each 60 feet tall
2. Far larger than the Parthenon; served also as a major banking center
3. Acts 19:27 — Demetrius the silversmith warns that Paul's preaching threatens the worship of Artemis

C. Paul spent two years in Ephesus on his third missionary journey (Acts 19:10)

D. The letter is likely a circular letter intended for multiple churches planted from Ephesus throughout Asia

1. The words "in Ephesus" are absent from three of the oldest Greek manuscripts
2. No personal greetings, unusual given Paul's two-year relationship with the church
3. Colossians shares approximately 35 verses with Ephesians and references the practice of circulating letters

III. Paul as Author — An Apostle by the Will of God

A. An apostle was appointed by the Lord as a recipient and authenticator of New Testament revelation

1. 1 Corinthians 2:13 — Paul spoke in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit

B. Paul introduces himself not by his résumé or accomplishments but by how he became an apostle — by the will of God

1. His encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus transformed him from a persecutor of the church
2. Points forward to the theme of Ephesians: God's sovereign and efficacious call in the lives of his people

IV. Three Definitions of a Christian in Verse 1

A. Saints — those set apart for holy purposes, completely independent of human merit

1. Not the Roman Catholic process of canonization requiring miracles and ecclesiastical judgment
2. Illustrated in John 17 — Jesus consecrated himself so that believers could be sanctified
3. Every Christian is a saint and every saint is a Christian; we are separated from the world but not removed from it
4. Ephesians 2 — saved by grace alone, not by works, but created in Christ Jesus for good works
5. Boice: "We are saved by faith alone, but we are not saved by a faith that is alone"

B. The Faithful — those who exercise and continue in faith

1. Faith encompasses three components: intellectual knowledge, emotional realization, and volitional commitment
2. All three are illustrated in the account of doubting Thomas (John 20) — "My Lord and my God"
3. Matthew 10:22 — "He who stands firm to the end will be saved"

C. Those In Christ — joined to Christ in one spiritual body so that what is true of him is also true for us

1. Paul uses "in him" or equivalent phrases at least 9 times in Ephesians 1:3-23 and 164 times across his writings
2. Ephesians 2:6 — God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly places
3. Further illustrations: union of vine and branches (John 15), husband and wife (Ephesians 5), temple with Christ as cornerstone (Ephesians 2), head and body (1 Corinthians 12)
4. John Murray: "Union with Christ has its source in the election of God the Father before the foundation of the world and its fruition in the glorification of the sons of God"

V. Grace and Peace — Verse 2

A. The Ephesians had two homes — one in Ephesus, one in Christ; so do we

B. Without God's grace there is no new nature, no new creation, no new home

C. Because of God's peace, nothing touches us that does not come through the fingers of God — we live here with purpose, to the praise of his glory