Ironside tells the story of a little boy who was asked, have you found jesus. Apr 15, 2020 bible journaling examples from the book of ephesians. F or a relatively short letter, ephesians has more than its share of passages that individual christians have turned to for spiritual inspiration, and various faith traditions have adopted for doctrinal support throughout the centuries. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against the spiritual forces of evil in heavenly places. The book of ephesians hits on a wide range of moral and ethical behaviors. The city of ephesus was a large commercial port city. I offer the following commentary and summary for ephesians in this article. Comprised of jews and nonjews, these followers form the covenant family god promised to abraham.
See more ideas about book of ephesians, bible and bible art. The church has been brought from death to life in christ. A quick dig into history with the book of ephesians bay. The author claims to be paul in the body of the letter in 3. Book of ephesians overview insight for living ministries.
The key personalities of ephesians are the apostle paul and tychicus. Watch our overview video on the book of ephesians, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. It is a letter from paul the apostle to a number of early christian communities in galatia. Paul is obviously as capable of this sort of literary artistry as the anonymous genius critics suppose are behind ephesians. Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind. Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the. Lets travel along with the apostle paul as he journeys through the book of acts, beginning with acts 18.
Therefore take up the whole armor of god, that you may be able to withstand on the evil day, and have done all, to stand. The book of ephesians clearly leaves its mark among other bible books by displaying the powerful impact of the gospel of christ jesus in the individual and corporate life of believers. Can you explain ephesians 612 in the bible spiritual. Ephesians summary we have detailed a brief summary of the book of ephesians for bible study or sunday school lessons. The book of ephesians hits on a wide range of moral and ethical behaviors, designed to ensure believers are living up to our heavenly calling.
Expresses truth in agreement with earlier scriptures. Overview of the book of ephesians reformed answers to. The letter abounds with statements in the first person d. Some time after pauls departure, apollos visited the city acts 18. God the father planned throughout history for jesus to create a multiethnic community of followers.
A book of strangers, dartmouth professor jeff sharlet takes a contrary course, letting the mundane and the overlooked have their full say. As a prisoner for the lord, then, i urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Paul intended that all who long for christlike maturity would receive this writing. It receives its meaning and significance from heaven, where christ is exalted at the. The book of ephesians tells how the gospel affects our. Carefully selected verses from the bible are organized chronologically and written in the form of a novel from genesis to revelation. The letter is addressed to the church in the city of ephesus, capital of the roman province of asia asia minor, modern turkey. The book of ephesians is held in great reverence by both biblical scholars and lay people. Ephesians, colossians and philemon interpretation is easy to get through and written on. The book of ephesians was very likely written between a. The book of ephesians is a survival manualit equips believers to thrive in a world that hates the message of jesus christ. Paul, whose original name was saul, was of the tribe of benjamin and probably was named after israels.
This summary of the book of ephesians provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of ephesians. Paul visited ephesus a short time on his way back to antioch from his second missionary journey acts 18. Third, paul noted that when they became believers they were sealed with the promised holy spirit. Enclosed within the book of ephesians is the discipline needed to develop into true. I have read over 15 books in the interpretation series and the series in general is very solid. This specific description of the holy spirit is only used in the book of ephesians here, and in ephesians 4. The author describes himself as one who has personally heard of the readers 1. Summary of the book of ephesians story of the bible. Gods people living in ephesus, that is, those who are trusting in the messiah yeshua.
The message of ephesians is scriptures recognized from the beginning. The key personalities of this book are james and persecuted christians. Paul stayed in ephesus on his third missionary journey for three years acts 20. The little fellow answered, sir, i didnt know he was lost. New book study background to the book of ephesians. Ephesians is one of those books which, like the god of whom it speaks, is beyond the grasp of the finite minds of men. The story is a dynamic, powerful, and rewarding experience for churches, families, small groups, and individuals the story is helping people everywhere experience scripture like never before.
Shaul shaaool, by gods will an emissary of the messiah yeshua. Even the best journalism must map the surface of its subject, probing deeper to choose elements that provide traction and color for a story. Some have taken the absence of the usual personal greetings and the verbal similarity of many parts to colossians, among other reasons, as grounds. Ephesians chapters wonderfully expound the gospel while ephesians chapters 46 provide a clear picture of how those doctrines change our lives. In the book of ephesians, we see how the gospel story affects believers everyday lives. The novel element in the vocabulary, that is the words used in ephesians but not found in the nine genuine letters, is mostly akin to works like lukeacts, i clement, i peter, and hebrews, written toward the close of the. Roberts is a unique contribution that offers a unified presentation of one of the most theologically significant pauline epistles. As we continue in our faith from day to day, month to month, and year to year, the temptation to get comfortable will always exist. Ephesians intro to ephesians biblica the international bible. The churches the apostles left behind, paulist press, 1984. Although the church is a new emphases in the letter, there is a clear background of pauline theology. The book of ephesians was written to gods holy people in ephesus ephesians 1. Described as an eloquent man and mighty in the scriptures, apollos was an alexandrian jew who had been instructed in the way of the lord, but knew only the baptism of john.
Paul gives thanks and prays for the ephesians ephesians 1. A seal was a mark indicating a letter or scroll was closed, or completed. He realized that christ came to unite himself with man, and unity was the core purpose of the book of ephesians. In most of chapter 6, paul is reminding the church at ephesus to be spirituallystrong. It was written to encourage believers to walk as fruitful followers of christ and to serve in unity and love in the midst of persecution. The epistle to the galatians, often shortened to galatians, is the ninth book of the new testament. It often takes several readings which is also a good thing to do to craft an outline of the book, titling the main sections with something that makes sense to. As with the other books in the series, this is not a wordforword technical commentary. This video provides the background to the book so we. Roberts is wellinformed and easy to read, and any lack of distinctive interpretive contribution is made up for in his keen ability to keep sight of the whole. A summary, synopsis or recap is a shortened version of the original.
Now, to really get a good understanding of this book, we need to know the story behind it, so this morning id like to take you on a little trip into new testament times. To teach the christians at ephesus the wonder and practical implications of being the church in christ. Because the name ephesus is not mentioned in every early manuscript, some scholars believe the letter was an encyclical, intended to be circulated and read among all the churches in asia. See more ideas about book of ephesians, bible verses and word of god. The book of ephesians clearly leaves its mark among other bible books by displaying the powerful impact of the gospel of christ jesus in the individual and.
The apostle paul was about fiftyone years of age when he set out upon his third missionary journey, destined to lead him seven years later to his first trial and acquittal before the emperor nero at rome. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faithand this not from yourselves, it is the gift of godnot by works, so that no one can boast. Once you know the main purpose of the book, it is extremely helpful to outline the book. Specific instructions for christian living ephesians 4. Ephesus was the most important city in western asia minor now turkey. Goodspeed 7 suggests to us that this book has proven to be greater than the minds of those who have studied it. Prayer for ephesians strength, praise to god ephesians 3. The book of james is a general epistle apostolic letter. Encounter ephesians, and get swept up into the story of jesus. The niv story the new international version niv bible read by millions was more than five decades in the making. The city of ephesus was a large commercial port city in asia minor present day turkey located at the. Ephesians 4 niv bible as a prisoner for the lord, then. E phesians is one of the most encouraging books in the new testament.
Hes the author of several books, including jesus, continuedwhy the spirit inside you is better than jesus beside you, gospel. The book of ephesians is a prison epistle letter written while in prison. The church has received wondrous blessings in union with christ. James the halfbrother of jesus wrote it approximately 4849 a. Based on the contents of the book, it appears as though pauls purpose for writing the book of ephesians was to remind the ephesian believers of their high calling in christ chapters and to exhort them to live up to that calling chapters 46. Greear is the lead pastor of the summit church in the raleighdurham area of north carolina. There was a man in bethlehemjudah named elimelech whose wife was named naomi, and their two sons, mahlon and chilion, and when there was a famine in the land of judah, they left their native country and went across the jordan and lived in a strange land called moab. Ephesians 5 commentary james burton coffman commentaries. The purpose of the book of ephesians was to warn the church elders about the false teachers that were teaching a false gospel and to maintain their first love that they held when. Andy is a professor of bible and theology at the college of biblical studies in houston. What started as one mans vision soon became a crossdenominational movement, uniting evangelicals around the dream of a trustworthy, accessible bible translation for the whole englishspeaking world. While paul was in ephesus on his third missionary journey several remarkable things occurred. It was likely the first new testament book letter to be written. Scholars have suggested that this is either the roman province of galatia in southern anatolia, or a large region defined by an ethnic group of celtic people in central anatolia.
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