Tuesday: Hearing the Letter to the Ephesians

Paul wrote Ephesians to be read aloud in the house churches of believers in greater Ephesus. In the intervening years since Paul’s departure, the Christian movement in Ephesus had grown, and the number of house churches had multiplied. For those early believers, it would have been an important event to have Tychicus, the personal representative of the founding apostle Paul, stand among them and share a letter from him. As suggested by the epistle itself, the assembled group likely included members of the host household — father, mother, children, and slaves (Ephesians 5:21-6:9). At the time, a household included others as well — clients (free persons who depended on the householder for support) and even customers.

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So these may be present too, as well as members of other households.

In conjunction with the outline of the letter below, read through the entire epistle, preferably out loud (it will take about 15 minutes to do so). What themes echo through the letter as a whole?

I. Opening Greeting (Ephesians 1:1-2)
II. Introductory Blessing (Ephesians 1:3-14)
III. Praying for Believers to Receive Christ-Focused Wisdom (Ephesians 1:15-23)
IV. Once Spiritually Dead; Now Exalted With Christ (Ephesians 2:1-10)
V. Christ’s Creation of the Church Out of Jews and Gentiles (Ephesians 2:11-22)
VI. Paul as Preacher of Christ to the Gentiles (Ephesians 3:1-13)
VII. Praying for Believers to Experience the Love of Christ (Ephesians 3:14-21)
VIII. Hold On to the Spirit-Inspired Unity of the Church (Ephesians 4:1-16)
IX. Live the New, Unity-Nurturing Life (Ephesians 4:17-32)
X. Walk in Love, Light, and Wisdom (Ephesians 5:1-20)
XI. Practice Christ-Shaped Life in the Christian Household (Ephesians 5:21-6:9)
XII. Stand Together: The Church as the Army of God (Ephesians 6:10-20)
XIII. Closing Greeting (Ephesians 6:21-24)