What Defines You? Ephesians 1:1-14

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1 What Defines You? Ephesians 1:1-14 September 19, 2010 Ephesus Most important city in Western Asia Minor (Turkey today) Intersection of eastern & western trade routes Had a harbor to Aegean Sea... located on most direct sea & land route to eastern provinces of Roman Empire Ranked with Rome, Corinth, Antioch and Alexandria It was the 2 nd largest city in the world after Rome with a population well over 250,000 people (about the size of La Paz) Temple of Artemis (Greek) or Diana (Roman) One of the 7 wonders of the ancient world City coins had the word Neokorus which meant temple warden City flourished with silver smiths who made images in the likeness of Diana City theater on the Slope of Mt. Pion could seat 50,000 people. In Acts 19 this is where we read of Paul escaping an angry mob. Tradition has it that John the apostle spent the final years of his life in Ephesus as the beloved bishop and last surviving apostle. Today the city of Ephesus is in ruins. The harbor silted up and became too shallow for sailing vessels. Today the ancient city lies in a swampy area 4-5 miles from the sea. The Apostle Paul First visit to Ephesus was brief (Acts 18:18-22) 1

2 Returned on his 3 rd missionary journey and stayed for 3 years Tentmaker during the day & lectured in the afternoons and evenings Controversial but effective ministry (Acts 19-20) Handkerchiefs touched by him were used to heal the sick (Acts 19:11-12) Demons were cast out by the name of Jesus (Acts 19:13-17) Pagan converts burned their books of magic (Acts 19:18-20) A city-wide riot broke out, let by silversmith Demetrius, because he accused Paul of posing a threat to the economic well-being of the local craftsmen who made their living from the worshipers of Artemis. After Paul left Ephesus, he later sent Timothy and then Tychicus to continue discipling the Ephesian church. The Letter to the Ephesians This letter was written by Paul from prison. It is one of four prison letters. The other 3 are Colossians, Philemon, and Philippians. Ephesians is unique in that it doesn t address a particular error or heresy. It also has no personal greetings (for example, Romans has 26 greetings to particular individuals). Because of this, scholars believe that this was a circular letter for all the churches and that it eventually came to reside at the church in Ephesus, the capital city of Asia Minor and the largest church in that region. This letter is an education letter to help new Christians mature and understand God s goals for the church. Scholars call is the Crown of Paul s writings, the Queen of his Epistles. Stylistically it is more poem than prose, more of a prayer than a poem. It is a matured, reasoned reflection written by a man who wasn t in a hurry. Paul was in prison and finally had time to expand on some of the themes he d mentioned in the other letters. The letter is divided into two sections. Chapters 1-3 are theological in nature Chapters 4-6 are the practical steps of how to live out your faith 2

3 This was a book for Christians to mature them in their faith journey! Read Ephesians 1:1-14 Verses 1-14 of Chapter One: The Trinitarian Blessing V are all one sentence in Greek: Paul was overcome with emotion at the glory and honor God has bestowed on us. (Share Marine Story.) Paul appealing to our need to be defined. He is attempting to capture the mystery of God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit in such a way that we are inspired and empowered by the message of God s love. God Jesus V 4 God Chose Us: God had a plan from before the beginning of time. God chose all of us, but he also never violates our free will. Joshua 24:14-18 reminds us that we still have the choice to choose God. V5 God Adopts Us: Explain Roman adoption. Father gives all rights, all his inheritance to his adopted son. When the adoption is final, the adopted son has all the rights of a legitimate son in the new family and completely loses all his rights in his old family. In the eyes of the law he was a new person. So new was he that even all debts and obligations connected with his previous family were abolished as if they had never existed. This, says Paul, is what God has done for us. He has removed us from the world of sin, through Jesus, and has adopted us into his family. God s adoption wipes out our past and makes us new. (Story of Carrie Anderson s adoption.) V6 God s Grace is Free: We can t achieve it through ourselves, there are no strings, no hidden agendas. No one had ever heard of a God like this before. V7 We are redeemed through his blood: Greek word to ransom... to free someone from the penalty of death, you don t deserve it. The Greek word used for ransoming a man who is a prisoner of war or a slave; for freeing a man from the penalty of death; the same word when God delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. It is the deliverance of a man from a situation from which he was powerless to liberate himself or from a penalty which he himself could never have paid. Forgiveness of Sin: ancient world haunted by sin. Life held at the whims of the gods. You tried 3

4 to be good enough, but was it ever enough? The gods could wipe you out at a moment s notice. Our world today is so far removed from idea of sin. Think we can be good enough or hear people say, I just make mistakes. Quote by C.S. Lewis: Try as hard as you can to be as good as you can for six weeks. Try to be perfect. Practice every virtue. Try really hard. You can almost deceive yourself for one week, but not for six. Only then will you discover how truly bad you are. But people are searching for meaning in their lives. What defines them? Jesus offers an answer. His blood ransoms us from slavery to sin. V8: Wisdom and Understanding: Greek words Sophia & Phronesis. Greeks said that if you had both of these, then you were perfectly equipped for life. Holy Spirit V13 Marked with a Seal: Where something came from and to whom it belonged. The Holy Spirit tells everyone that we chose God, and that we belong to God. V14 Deposit: The Holy Spirit is our deposit guaranteeing our future inheritance. Paul used a common Greek word often used in trade environments when businessmen made a deposit to guarantee the rest of a future shipment. The Mystery Revealed Why did Paul weave all of this together? Verses 9-12 are Key. Paul says that Jesus reveals the mystery of the will of God. What did he mean by that? If you were to study all of Paul s letters, you would discover that for Paul, the great mystery of God that is revealed through Jesus is this: The love of God is now available not only to the Jews, but also to the Gentiles. Jesus reconciles the world back to God. Love, mercy & grace of God for everyone. Paul says Everything is gathered into Jesus Christ What Defines You? Paul points each Christian back to his/her relationship with Jesus Christ He would stand before us, as future recruits of heaven, and recite this one sentence to awaken our hearts to all the possibilities God offers us through Jesus Christ. That is the majesty and mystery he calls us to consider. To let it permeate our hearts, to define us. 4

5 Share Closing Story of Juan Pedro Sources: Barclay, William. The Letters to the Galatians & Ephesians. Philadelphia: Westminster Press Pages Teamwork: Together in Christ. Serendipity Study on Ephesians. Littleton, Colorado Pages NIV Study Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Press Pages Bausch, William. A World of Stories. Willie Juan. Mystic, CT: 23 rd Publications Pages (Pedro story adapted from the story of Willie Juan.) 5

The Epistle of Paul to the Ephesians

The Epistle of Paul to the Ephesians Paul wrote this letter to the church in Ephesus to make them more aware of the riches they have in Christ and to motivate them to draw upon these spiritual resources