Further Thought:

 The story of the exorcists misusing the names of Jesus and Paul (Acts 19:13-20; see Sunday’s study) helps explain why Paul uses so much language about power in Ephesians.

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Some new believers, under fresh conviction of the sovereignty of Jesus, throw their expensive magic manuals into the flames. Thanks to the discovery of some 250 papyri dealing with magic as well as other finds, we have ample illustrations of rituals, spells, formulas, curses, etc., similar to those likely featured in these manuals of magic. The volumes had advised believers how to conduct such rituals to persuade gods, goddesses, and spirit powers to do whatever they would ask.

Luke tells us that these volumes were worth 50,000 silver coins, or 50,000 days of wages. (In today’s setting, if you allow for $80/day of wages for a skilled laborer, this amounts to $4 million!). This detail demonstrates the importance and centrality of these volumes to their everyday lives. “It took the sovereign intervention of God for them to be sufficiently convicted that they should completely repent of their ongoing utilization of amulets, charms, invocations, and traditional means of gaining spiritual power.” — Clinton E. Arnold, Ephesians (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2010), p. 34.

We come to understand that Ephesians was written to believers who needed instruction about “how to cope with the continuing influence and attacks of the sinister cosmic ‘powers.’ ” — Clinton E. Arnold, Power and Magic: The Concept of Power in Ephesians (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1992), p. 165. Paul’s response is the Epistle to the Ephesians, in which he points to Christ as the One who has been exalted above every power (Ephesians 1:20-23) and emphasizes the superiority of the strength that God provides to believers (Ephesians 2:15-19, Ephesians 3:14-21, Ephesians 6:10-20).

Discussion Questions:

<–Thursday

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How does Paul announce the theme of his letter? Ephesians 1:9-10.

How can the message of Ephesians be summarized? From prison, Paul sets forth a vision of God’s Christ-centered plan for the fullness of time and the church’s role in it.

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God has acted in Christ to initiate His plan “to unite all things in him [Christ], things in heaven and things on earth” (Ephesians 1:10, ESV), and He did so by creating the church as an entity composed of one new humanity of both Jews and Gentiles (Ephesians 2:14). Believers are called to act in concert with this divine plan, signaling to the evil powers that God’s ultimate purpose is underway (Ephesians 3:10).

As Ephesians 1:9-10,  proclaims, the unity God has in mind is centered in Christ. So it is no surprise to discover that Ephesians is a Christ-drenched letter that everywhere praises the actions of God in Christ and celebrates the access of believers to the spiritual resources offered them in Christ. Paul employs the phrase “in Christ” and similar phrases more than thirty times, and everywhere lifts up Jesus. As you read the letter, watch for these phrases and stay alert to the many ways Paul focuses on Jesus.

Paul seeks to reignite the spiritual commitment of believers in Ephesus by reminding them that they are part of the church, which is at the heart of God’s plan to unify all things in Christ. When he uses the word “church” (Greek, ekkl�”sia) in the letter, he means the “universal” church or the church at large (rather than a local congregation).

A principal strategy he uses is to talk about the church, and he does so using vivid metaphors, four of which he develops in some detail:

1. The church as a body (Ephesians 1:22-23; Ephesians 2:16; Ephesians 3:6; Ephesians 4:1-16, Ephesians 4:25; Ephesians 5:23, Ephesians 5:29-30).
2. The church as a building/temple (Ephesians 2:19-22).
3. The church as a bride (Ephesians 5:22-27).
4. The church as an army (Ephesians 6:10-20).

Each one of these images, in its own way, reveals what God’s purpose and intention for His church is.

<–Wednesday Friday–>

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Join It Is Written Sabbath School host Eric Flickinger and this quarter’s author, , as they provide additional insights into this week’s Sabbath School lesson
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYKLlTsOmkQ&w=560&h=315]

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You can view an in-depth discussion of Paul and the Ephesians in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris. Click on the image to view: [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnQvlt8k9Tg]

With thanks to

Hope Channel – Television that will change your life.

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How does Paul begin and end his letter to the believers in Ephesus? What do we learn about his deepest desires for them? See Ephesians 1:1-2; Ephesians 6:21-24.

At the outset of the letter, Paul identifies himself as the author (Ephesians 1:1). Near the middle of the letter, Paul again identifies himself by name, labeling himself “the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles” (Ephesians 3:1, NKJV), which introduces a personal reflection on his work as an apostle (Ephesians 3:1-13).

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Near the end of the letter, he again refers to his imprisonment (Ephesians 6:20) and concludes with personal words (Ephesians 6:21-22). While some scholars deny that the letter was written by Paul, it is important to note that the epistle clearly lays claim to Paul as its author. Most Christians accept, and rightly so, Paul as the author.

How does Paul worry about the effect his imprisonment will have on believers in Ephesus? See Ephesians 3:13.

Ephesians seems to share the same general timing and circumstances with other letters Paul writes from prison, Colossians (see esp. Colossians 4:7-8) and Philemon. Also, considerable time seems to have passed since Paul’s ministry in Ephesus (Ephesians 1:15; Ephesians 3:1-2). Paul probably composed Ephesians in a prison in Rome about A.D. 62.

In Ephesians, Paul offers few specifics about the situation of his audience in Ephesus. The scope of his attention is wide. He deals with a grand span of time, beginning with God’s decisions made “before the foundation of the world” (Ephesians 1:4), and reflects broadly on grand themes of God’s salvation offered in Christ. In doing so, the letter exhibits an exalted, literary style, with long sentences, repetitive expressions, and developed metaphors. Paul can use such a style elsewhere (e.g., Romans 8:31-39), but it is concentrated in Ephesians, which features a great deal of praise, prayer, and worship language (Ephesians 1:3-14, Ephesians 1:15-23, Ephesians 3:14-21) and offers carefully crafted, highly rhetorical passages (e.g., Ephesians 4:1-16, Ephesians 5:21-33, Ephesians 6:10-20).

<–Tuesday Thursday–>

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