An Exposition Of Ephesians Chapter 1 Series

1) The Witness In Ephesus. But in the garbage can there was a gardenia - the little band of God’s people. Whenever we become discouraged at the sin around us and think it is impossible to be a Christian in the modern world, remember that some of the greatest victories of grace were won in the city of Ephesus. In fact, that’s where we shine the best and are needed the most. No wonder Paul spent more time there, three years (Acts 20:31), than anywhere else we know of. He was like the missionary who said: Some like to do their work/In sight and sound of chapel bell/I want to run a rescue shop/Just outside of hell

2) The Warning To Ephesus. The church at Ephesus gives us not only a witness but a warning. Paul labored there for three years with great success. He planted seeds there in this letter which gave the church power and guidance to serve God. Tradition has it that John the Apostle became the spiritual leader of Ephesus and pastored there in the closing and crowning days of his ministry. Yet when Pastor John, exiled for his faithfulness to Jesus, wrote the Book of Revelation, Jesus spoke through him to the Church at Ephesus and said, “You have lost your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen. Repent and do the things you did at first” (Rev. 2:4 - 5). How easy it is for us to work hard for God and yet do it more out of duty or fear than love. Vance Havner says of Ephesus, “The honeymoon was over.”

2. The Churches of Asia.

Most of the evidence, however, indicates that Ephesians was not written exclusively for the Church at Ephesus. The omission of the name “Ephesus” is only one of the reasons. Another is its impersonal, formal character. There are no personal remarks, no terms of endearment such as “brothers, friends, etc.” It is the most impersonal letter Paul ever wrote. This is strange since he spent three years there and his weeping goodbye to the church leaders of Ephesus (Acts 20) is one of the most personal touching scenes in the Bible. In Col. 4:16 Paul tells the Colossian Church to “read the letter from Laodicea.” It could well be that Ephesians was being passed around by the churches at this time. This was a doctrinal tract on the wealth, walk and warfare of the Christian as he tries to make peace in a divided world. It is a letter for all churches of all times, in all situations.

VII. AN INSPIRED LETTER

Like all sixty-six Books of Scripture, Ephesians is inspired by God. The English term “inspire”, from the Latin is not a good one. When the Bible says, “All scripture is inspired by God.....” (2 Tim. 3:16), the Greek word “theospneustos” literally means “God breathed.” The idea is not inspiration (to breath in) as though God breathes into the writings and gives them power. It is EXPIRATION. God breathed the Scriptures OUT. They all came from Him.

Text: Ephesians 1:1-2 Sermon 2

FAITHFUL SAINTS

The “Queen Of The Epistles” opens on royal ground. In this short introduction Paul teaches us about the authority of an inspired apostle, the blessings and responsibilities of being saved and the pathway to true peace.