Sermon Central
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Ephesians (Revised 2025)
Contributed by Garrett Tyson on Sep 2, 2025 (message contributor)
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1. We Bless The God Who Blesses Us (Ephesians 1:1-14)
Contributed on Sep 2, 2025
Paul's whole letter, and our whole lives, start right here, at a place of gratitude and praise toward God, for what He's done for us "in Christ."
An opening note for my readers of this series: Roughly 8 years ago?, I wrote a series of sermons on Ephesians. I wrote them at a time of "almost." Academically/exegetically, I was "almost" comfortable with discourse analysis (Steve Runge style), but I had little idea how to ...read more
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2. A Prayer For Spirit Enlightenment (Ephesians 1:15-23)
Contributed on Sep 3, 2025
Enlightenment about God's cosmic plan is something God will give, if we ask. God's plan is far bigger-- cosmic-- than we often realize, and we have been empowered, potentially, more than we think.
Let's start today by reading part of last week's passage. I'll read from my translation, but feel free to follow along however you'd like. Let's turn to Ephesians 1:7, and we'll read through verse 10: (7) In him (=Jesus) we have the freedom/release through his blood-- ...read more
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3. God Offers Grace To All (Ephesians 2:1-10)
Contributed on Sep 5, 2025
And that grace is offered to all people, Jew and Gentile, through Jesus, not Moses, to be received by faith in Jesus, not by commitment to the Mosaic covenant.
Today, we have the privilege of working through Ephesians 2:1-10. But let's start by rereading a little bit from last week. Ephesians 1:22-23: (22) And all things/beings He subjected under his feet, and him He gave as head over all things to/for the church, (23) which is his body--the ...read more
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4. Gentiles, You Aren't Second Class Christians (Ephesians 2:11-22)
Contributed on Sep 13, 2025
Paul draws an application to his Gentile-by-birth readers, from his Eph. 2:1-10 starting point.
Today we have the privilege of working through Ephesians 2:11-22. Let's turn there, and read just the first word. "Therefore." What "therefore" signals, is that Paul is going to draw some conclusions, and an application, from everything he's just said. But it's ...read more
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5. Paul, A Truly Blessed Man (Ephesians 3:1-14)
Contributed on Sep 15, 2025
How great a privilege it is, Paul thinks, to get to tell people the gospel.
Over the last few weeks, we've read what Paul has to say about this huge, cosmic plan that God has for the world. Before God sent Jesus, this cosmos was a terrible mess. There was a dividing wall of sin that existed between God and people. There was a dividing wall that separated out Jew ...read more
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6. A Prayer For Spirit-Empowerment (Ephesians 3:14-21)
Contributed on Sep 22, 2025
God will help his people live faithfully, by empowering them through his Holy Spirit, if they ask. So ask, for yourselves, and for your church. Empowerment isn't just about "charismatic" things. It's empowerment for faithfulness also-- and probably faithfulness first.
Over the past few weeks, we've read about how God is now revealing to his church something that was a closely guarded secret for centuries. God had this hidden, master plan to bring all things together, in heaven and on earth. And what that looks like on earth, is that God is making one ...read more
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7. Worthily, Walk Of God's Calling (Ephesians 4:1-6)
Contributed on Sep 22, 2025
If God is making one body, one temple, one family who will live in peace with Him and with each other... we need to walk worthily of our calling to live that way.
Over the past few weeks, we've spent a lot of time talking about God's once-mysterious plan for the entire created order. This plan can be understood in a couple different ways. One, would be that God is creating one family, made up of all different types of people, who live in peace with ...read more
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8. Each Of Us Has A Grace-- A Ministry (Ephesians 4:7-15)
Contributed on Sep 22, 2025
We are one body, but we are not all the same. Jesus has set it up so that each of us builds up the church in our own unique way.
Today we have the privilege of working through some of the most complicated verses in the entire book of Ephesians. Before we dive in though, we should remind ourselves of last time's verses. Are we feeling a little rusty, when it comes to Ephesians? Paul, up to this point in the letter, has ...read more
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9. Choose The Right Outfit (Ephesians 4:17-24)
Contributed on Sep 22, 2025
Every day, we wake up, and choose whether we will put on our old way of life-- the ratty, stained, lifestyle-- or if we'll put on the new clothing of righteousness. Choose the clean clothing.
I'd like to start today by giving a quick overview of Paul's letter to the Ephesians, up to this point. At this point in history, God has now revealed his once secret plan for all of his creation. Paul describes this plan using three different metaphors. The first, is that God is ...read more
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10. 4 Aspects Of The New Way Of Life (Ephesians 4:25-5:2)
Contributed on Sep 23, 2025
Paul gives four examples, illustrative, not exhaustive, of what this new life/shirt/road in Christ looks like. Specifics, of what God is looking for in a worthy walk.
Over the last couple of weeks, we've seen Paul starting to pull his entire argument in Ephesians together. God is in the process of creating one holy family, who will live in peace with Him and with each other. Or we can say, God is in the process of creating one holy body-- one person-- with ...read more
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11. Spiritual Zombies, Arise! (Ephesians 5:3-14)
Contributed on Sep 29, 2025
When we are saved, we move from death to life. When we go back to our old way of life, we become as a people who are dead, living in the dark. Paul urges, rise from the dead, and let Jesus' light shine on you again.
This week, we continue our Ephesians study, and we find ourselves picking up midstream in Paul's argument. What we've seen up to this point, is that God is a good and loving God, who acts rightly toward his people, showing them grace and kindness. And God is the process of creating one ...read more
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12. Be Filled With The Holy Spirit... Submitting To One Another (Ephesians 5:15-24)
Contributed on Oct 1, 2025
Focus is on being filled, and on what it means to "submit to one another"-- we all "put ourselves under" one another.
Today's verses build directly off last weeks, so I'm going to go ahead and start reading from 5:3. Hopefully, as I read them, you'll find yourself thinking, "Hey, I understand these verses." (3) Now, sexual immorality and all uncleanness or greediness must not even be ...read more
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13. Wife, Respect Your Husband (Ephesians 5:15-33)
Contributed on Oct 7, 2025
Key points: "submission"= treat with respect; "head" is a metaphor, and doesn't mean "ruler"; husbands love/cherish/sacrifice for their wife-bodies, which is why wives submit.
Today, we have the privilege of starting to tackle one of the more heated and debated passages and topics in the Bible. It's about how husbands and wives should relate to each other. With respect to this topic, and this passage, there are three main questions that are debated among ...read more
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14. Husband, Love Your Wife-Body (Ephesians 5:15-33)
Contributed on Oct 9, 2025
Husband, you love your body. Your wife is your body. Love your wife. We focus on the head; Paul's interested in the head-body metaphor. Love by sacrificing, cherishing, providing.
Today, we continue our series on Ephesians, and we continue to talk about husbands and wives, Christ and the church. Last week, I focused on wives, because that's where Paul starts. We saw that what it means for a wife to submit to her husband primarily revolves around the idea of treating ...read more
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15. Husbands And Wives, Heads And Bodies (Ephesians 5:15-33; 1 Corinthians 11)
Contributed on Oct 11, 2025
A follow up, summarizing, clarifying paper/sermon, addressing "head-body," "submission," and husbands and wives. For those who wanted more.
A note to my readers: I wrote this in preparation for the past two sermons, (1) as a way of collecting my own thoughts, (2) to make a resource for those who wanted more, (3) to link it to my earlier study of 1 Corinthians 11, and (4) to pull the arguments all together from three separate sermons on ...read more
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16. Children And Parents (Ephesians 6:1-4)
Contributed on Oct 15, 2025
Children obey, and parents (not just fathers) are to instruct in a way that doesn't make their kids angry. Is that even possible? Also: fathers are not the spiritual heads of the house.
Today, we get to continue our Ephesians study by reading about what Paul has to say to one additional pairing in the typical Roman household. Paul addresses children, and parents. The last two weeks, we focused on husbands and wives. We saw that when Paul addressed husbands and wives, he did ...read more