EPHESIANS Week 1 God s mission to restore everything: inheriting the promised world Riverview Church February 2014 Page 1 of 8
Orientation to Ephesians (1:1-2) Is Ephesians a favourite for you? It s so encouraging and uplifting. Reading Ephesians is like taking a helicopter up to a great height where you can see the whole plan of Scripture coming together. What a view! But before we dive into this amazing letter, let s get our bearings. Who wrote this letter, and to whom? Who wrote this letter? (1:1) Eph 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To God s holy people [in Ephesus], the faithful in Christ Jesus So, it was written by, to believers at. But there s a problem. Paul established the church in Ephesus (Acts 18:19). He lived there for several months (Acts 19: 8). He revisited the leaders later (Acts 20:17), with a teary farewell (20:37). He knew them well. In some letters (e.g. Rom 16, 1 Cor 16), Paul spends an entire chapter greeting people he knew, yet he never mentions a single associate in this letter. It reads as if he doesn t know them: Eph 1:15 I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints Eph 3:2 assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God s grace that was given to me Some commentators conclude this letter cannot have been from Paul. But there is another possibility: that Paul wrote this letter with several churches in mind, not just Ephesus. That would explain why he doesn t mention personal names, and why some would not know him. There is actually good evidence for this suggestion. These letters were copied by hand (no printing presses), and the words in Ephesus do not appear in the oldest surviving copies: Our oldest copy is a papyrus manuscript called p46, dated around AD 200. It doesn t have the words in Ephesus. The copies from the 300s (manuscripts called א and B) have in Ephesus added in the margin. It s not in the original text. The oldest copies with in Ephesus in the text are from the 400s (manuscripts A and D). Many commentators therefore treat this letter as an encyclical, copies being sent to various churches, of which that at Ephesus was chief. 1 If that s right it would also explain something else. Most of Paul s letters address errors in the beliefs or practices of the church he s writing to. That s the heart and soul of some letters, such as Galatians and Corinthians, yet Ephesians contains none of this. Of course, that makes perfect sense if Paul wrote this letter as a circular, without a particular church and its problems in mind. 1 Bruce Manning Metzger. A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament, 4th Ed. London: UBS, 1994, 532. Riverview Church February 2014 Page 2 of 8
Who is it to? (1:1) The letter is therefore addressed: To God s holy people, the faithful in Christ Jesus. These are not random phrases: it is very similar to way the letter to Colossae is addressed: To God s holy people in Colossae, the faithful brothers and sisters in Christ. (Col 1:2). These phrases have their background within the Scriptures the Old Testament narrative of God s people. Paul believes that narrative is finding its fulfilment in Jesus. The Israelites were the people whom God had chosen to represent him among the nations. As his representatives, they were called to be God s holy people, because God is holy. Be holy, for I the LORD am holy is the Torah theme that defines God s people (Lev 11:44-45; 19:2, 24; 20:7, 26; 21:6, 8; Num 15:40; Deut 23:14). That s why the Old Testament regularly refers to Israel as the holy people (Psa 16:3; 30:4; 85:8, etc). They are holy (devoted to God) when they remain faithful (committed, obedient) to God. The faithful people (Psa 12:1 etc) is therefore a synonym for the holy people. And God is faithful to the faithful (Psa 18:25; 25:10;31:1, 23 etc). But what if his people are not faithful? Does that mean that all God s plans to make himself known through Israel have failed that the world will be lost forever? That was how things seemed many times in the centuries before Jesus. Because of their unfaithfulness, Israel had lost everything: the Land that God had given them, the temple of God s presence, and the Davidic kingship of God s reign. Had God s plan failed? No, says Isaiah. God is the Holy One of Israel (Isa 1:4; 5:19, 24; 10:17, 20 etc). That means God is devoted to Israel, even when Israel is not devoted to God! God remains faithful to them, even when they are unfaithful to him. When the faithful city behaves as a prostitute (Isa 1:21), they experience a painful separation (exile to Babylon), but God does not divorce them (Isa 50:1). He is faithful: Isa54:10 Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed, says the LORD, who has compassion on you. What is needed is a faithful Israelite one who is wholeheartedly devoted to God (holy), truly fulfilling Torah (faithful), perfectly representing God. They waited for this anointed leader (Messiah / Christ) of God s people. His name is Jesus. He is the faithful one who saves God s people from their unfaithfulness! In fact, Paul believes that this Jesus is the saviour not only for the nation of Israel but also others like those who live near Ephesus. Messiah Jesus has caught them up in what he has done also, so that they can be said to be in Messiah Jesus. Jesus is the holy one, the one who has been faithful to God. If these gentiles are in him, then they have also become God s holy people, God s faithful people, because they are in the one who is holy and faithful. Riverview Church February 2014 Page 3 of 8
And that, my friends, is what the Book of Ephesians is all about! It s about the Holy One being faithful to his promises in the person of his anointed Messiah Jesus who restores not just Israel but the whole world into God s care and management. And that is the background story we must hold in mind as we read Ephesians. Everything even bits people find hard to understand becomes transparently clear when we read it within this narrative. That s the story of grace and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (Eph 1:1). God s faithfulness even when humans were unfaithful that s grace (Eph 2:8-10)! And that s how God made peace with humans, breaking down the barriers and making one new humanity in the resurrected Jesus (Eph 2:14-22). Greeting (1:2) Paul uses grace and peace as his standard greeting (Rom 1:7; 1 Cor 1:3; 2 Cor 1:2; Gal 1:3; Phil 1:2; Col 1:2; 1 Thes 1:1; 2 Thes 1:2; 1 Tim 1:2; 2 Tim 1:2; Tit 1:4; Philem 3). So do Peter (1 Pet 1:2; 2 Pet 1:2) and John (2 John 3). This greeting may be based on the Aaronic blessing (Num 6:22-27) where it consists of putting the LORD s name (YHWH) on God s people. The Lord is now understood as the Lord Jesus Christ in conjunction with God the Father. God s astounding plan (1:3-14) Read Eph 1:3-14. This letter was originally written in Greek. These twelve verses are all one sentence in that language! Excitement about God and his plan to redeem creation just bubbles out of Paul like an effervescent spring. What are the main things you see in these verses?...... Are there any things in these verses that you find difficult?...... Election and predestination For some readers, this sentence raises questions about whether God chooses some individuals to be saved, and therefore (by implication) the rest to be damned. It says: he chose us (v.4) he predestined us (v.5) we were chosen, having been predestined (v. 11). Does this mean we have no choice in the matter? Is it all God s choosing: in accordance with his pleasure and will (v.5), by his will according to his good pleasure (v.11), in conformity with the purpose of his will? Calvinists interpret this to mean that humans are totally depraved, with no will to respond to the gospel, so it s all about God s choice Riverview Church February 2014 Page 4 of 8
(election) of who will be saved. The rest (those whom God did not choose) are therefore damned, though some Calvinists find that implication (called double predestination) unpalatable. It s not about you as an individual One of the most common mistakes we make when reading Scripture is to think it s a story about us and whether we are saved. In fact, it s a story about God and his amazing character. The doctrine of election has its roots in the Old Testament. God chose Abraham s descendants to be his representatives among the nations. They were not chosen as the only ones to be saved. Rather, they were chosen as the ones through whom God s blessing would be restored to the nations (Gen 12:3; 18:18; 22:18; 26:4; 35:11 etc). In James Cameron s movie, Sanctum, a group of cave explorers are trapped underground, injured and in danger of drowning. They choose someone to attempt the trip to the surface to get help. This girl was not chosen to be the only one to be saved. The whole idea was to get help for the others as well. At times Israel behaved as if they were the God s chosen people and the gentiles were only created to feed the fires of hell, but that is not how election works. From the very beginning, God s plan was that through one of Abraham s descendants Jesus God would save his world. This was always God s design his will. Even as God created the world, he knew how he would bring his creation back to himself again. Being reconnected with God was always the destination God had in mind: it was where creation was pre-destined. We have not arrived at that destination yet. God never planned that he would do the whole thing himself. From the very beginning, he chose to involve us in announcing the good news to the nations. He didn t choose us so he could damn the rest of humanity: he chose to involve us collectively, for a role like Israel s: representing God to the rest of the world and announcing the good news. So this Scripture is not saying God chose us individually for salvation. It s saying God s original plan always involved us representing him to the world. In fact, he will go on to describe our role as being the body of Christ (1:23) the people through whom he works. How does this corporate understanding of God s amazing plan of restoration sit with you? Is this the way to read these verses, rather than making them about God electing some individuals to be saved? It s about Jesus what God is doing in him. Now that we understand that God s plan (will) wasn t focused on you individually, we can see where it was focused on Jesus. Humans were resurrected out of death in him. In fact, everything God has provided to us comes as a consequence of being in him. That s what this letter focuses on. You keep coming across the phrase in Christ or in him: Eph 1:1, 3, 4, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 20; 2:6, 7, 10 etc. God s project in creating the world is so much more than individual salvation. His ultimate goal is to restore harmony to everything he Riverview Church February 2014 Page 5 of 8
created, by reconnecting heaven (God s space) and earth (our space) through the one he anointed to reign (Christ): Eph 1:10b to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. So let s paraphrase how Paul sees this playing out (verses 11 14): v.11 We have been chosen to work with God towards this goal the destination he envisaged (predestined) in the amazing plan he put into operation in the Messiah. v.12 The first-century Christians (we) anticipated (hoped) the restoration God would fulfil in Christ, and their immediate role of bringing honour to the one who will fulfil what he has begun. v.13 In Messiah, God included not just those who were previously his people (Jews) but gentiles from Turkey (Ephesians). That happened when Paul told them the reality of what God has done (message of truth), i.e. the good news (gospel) of God making humans whole (salvation). When they trusted what God had done (believed), God marked them as his own people (sealed) by giving them the Holy Spirit. v.14 Remember, God s goal was to reconnect heaven and earth, so that God lives among humans. This is already happening when the Holy Spirit is dwells within humans who are restored in Christ. Holy Spirit is the first step (deposit), a taste of being completely restored into God s care (redeemed as his possession). We (restored humans) are a symphony revealing God s character (praise of his glory). See where it s going? (1:15-23) Paul s prayer v.15 Key indicators that Holy Spirit is present and working in us: faith: trusting where Master Jesus is taking humanity; love: expressing God s heart for his people in the way we treat each other. v.16 Paul s prayer consists of: thanks: because we are God s project in progress request: because we re not there yet. v.17 The request is for God to show us (reveal) what he s up to (wisdom), i.e. a deeper appreciation of who he is (know him better). v.18 Paul prays we will know the hope God has called us to, i.e. to live within the expectation of where God is taking his world. To put that in perspective, we need to back up a bit and get a sense of God s creational project. God s project (1:19-23) When God created everything (Gen 1), humans received special significance. We were designed to reflect (image) God s character, and entrusted with managing God s creation (Gen 1:26-28). Humans rebelled against God s reign, and then discovered that the rest of creation was (naturally) in rebellion too. Riverview Church February 2014 Page 6 of 8
So, God s world has been characterised by violence (Gen 6:11), fragmented and divided (Gen 10 11). That s when God chose Abraham s family to restore his blessing in place of the curse. But God s nation constantly struggled under oppression by evil rulers. Moses released them from Pharaoh and gave them the tabernacle where God dwelt among them. But then they struggled to take the Land under Joshua, and they were repeatedly oppressed in the time of the judges. King David brought them together under his reign, and Solomon gave them the temple of God s presence. But it all fell apart in the centuries that followed. It looked as if God s entire project had died, as if only evil survived. Jesus own life looked like this too: he was betrayed by his friends, handed over by God s nation, and slaughtered by their oppressors in the most humiliating death crucifixion. Jesus overpowered evil (1:19-20 This was the point when everything changed. The faithful God the one who had never given up on his creation stepped in and raised Jesus from the dead! God s power was at work. Evil was overruled! The authority over creation that God had entrusted to humans at creation was now entrusted to Jesus, who was suddenly raised above every other power: above the disciples who betrayed and abandoned him, above the family of Abraham who had disowned him, above the authority of Rome that had crucified him, and even above the power of death that had ruled in terror since human rebellion. No power can resist his reign: no Caesar, no king, no dictator, no terrorist, no evil demon. Not even death can stand against him. Jesus reigns through humans (1:21-23) Everything the entire creation is under new management, under his feet. His reign is destined to bring complete peace. In the meantime, it is as if Jesus is saying, I never intended to do this alone. The plan from the very beginning was to entrust the management of creation to humans. So, as a human, I regained control of creation. But the goal was always to have you humans as my agents. I m restoring you so you can be the agents of my reign. Wow! I mean, Wow! Jesus the human entered our death, so we were in him in his body when he rose from the dead. As resurrected humans, we now operate as his resurrected body the people through whom he cares for and manages his world in the way he intended from the beginning. Conclusion Anyone who thinks that faith is a private human experience has not understood the good news that, in Christ, God is raising crushed humans back to life and will demonstrate his care for the entire creation through them! It all comes together under Jesus. This is what God always intended: to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. (Eph 1:10b) Riverview Church February 2014 Page 7 of 8
Memory verse Eph 1:18-19a (NIV) I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. Recommended reading Wright, Tom. Paul for Everyone: The Prison Letters: Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. London: SPCK, 2004. Take home exercise Read Read the first two chapters of Ephesians. Each week we will ask you to read up on the chapter we will be examining next week, so this week you have two chapters to read. Expand your thinking Have you ever tried to design a house? There s quite a bit that goes into defining exactly where the weight-bearing walls go, using standard sized windows and doors and benches and ceiling heights, the plumbing and electrical outlets and What about something bigger? How about a business plan for company, with financial projections that handle numerous variables in a wide range of scenarios? How about something bigger still say developing mining projections for BHP Billiton for the next 10 years, with the uncertainty of demand in China and what the Australian dollar will do? Now think bigger again! What plans did God have in mind when he created the world? How far into the future did those plans go? What contingencies did he put in place in case we messed it up? Now you re thinking in line with the opening lines of the Book of Ephesians. Those are God s plans that are finally starting to bear fruit through the world s true leader, Jesus, as he restores humans to be he agents of God s loving management of his world. Respond How can you be what God designed you to be a human who cares for others and manages God s world in a way that reflects his character? Jesus dealt with the selfishness that characterises human rebellion, so now he has re-entrusted creation to us who are called to reign with him by investing ourselves in caring for each other and for his creation. How can you do that? You may already be doing that by caring for neighbours, sponsoring a child overseas, or genuinely taking care of people where you work. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your eyes to the possibilities of what you could do. Base your prayer on Eph 1:17-22. Riverview Church February 2014 Page 8 of 8