Day 1: Ephesians 1:1-23
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Next Sunday, we are jumping into the book of Ephesians before completing the book of Acts. Comment what sticks out to you from the chapter(s) each day this week!
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Reading: Ephesians 1:1-23
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
To God’s holy people in Ephesus,[a] the faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Praise for Spiritual Blessings in Christ
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he[b] predestined us for adoption to sonship[c] through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he[d] made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.
11 In him we were also chosen,[e] having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
Thanksgiving and Prayer
15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit[f] of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18 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, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Footnotes
[a] Ephesians 1:1 Some early manuscripts do not have in Ephesus.
[b] Ephesians 1:5 Or sight in love. 5 He
[c] Ephesians 1:5 The Greek word for adoption to sonship is a legal term referring to the full legal standing of an adopted male heir in Roman culture.
[d] Ephesians 1:9 Or us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 And he
[e]Ephesians 1:11 Or were made heirs
[f]Ephesians 1:17 Or a spirit
Next Sunday, we are jumping into the book of Ephesians before completing the book of Acts. Comment what sticks out to you from the chapter(s) each day this week!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Reading: Ephesians 1:1-23
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
To God’s holy people in Ephesus,[a] the faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Praise for Spiritual Blessings in Christ
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he[b] predestined us for adoption to sonship[c] through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he[d] made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.
11 In him we were also chosen,[e] having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
Thanksgiving and Prayer
15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit[f] of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18 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, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Footnotes
[a] Ephesians 1:1 Some early manuscripts do not have in Ephesus.
[b] Ephesians 1:5 Or sight in love. 5 He
[c] Ephesians 1:5 The Greek word for adoption to sonship is a legal term referring to the full legal standing of an adopted male heir in Roman culture.
[d] Ephesians 1:9 Or us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 And he
[e]Ephesians 1:11 Or were made heirs
[f]Ephesians 1:17 Or a spirit
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The first thing that stands out to me is that Paul is addressing “the holy people of Ephesus”. I wonder, how it must have felt for them to be addressed in this way. How did they view themselves? Was Paul teaching them to view themselves differently?
What stands out to me in Ephesians 1 are the words used and the strength behind the word choice. (which makes sense since they’re coming from God through Paul to the Ephesians). What the spirit is telling me this morning is that I need to understand the word “grace” more. My Bible defines grace as “God’s free and unmerited favor for sinful humanity.” Which, let’s be clear, I knew that. But it’s hitting differently this morning. I wish I could add photos in the comments section on here to save typing lol but I have so many words and phrases highlighted randomly like “in love” (v.5) “in accordance with his pleasure and will,” “in accordance with the RICHES of God’s grave that he LAVISHED on us. LAVISHED! Like flooded and overwhelmed humanity with his love for us. That’s just good. He loves us so much and gives us what we SO do NOT deserve despite ourselves and how despicable we are. He just wants us. *swoon*
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nThe other thing that stuck out to me is verses 22-23: “ And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, THE FULLNESS OF HIM WHO FILLS EVERYTHING IN EVERY WAY.” That last bit just made me reflect on our church and think about our role in God’s Kingdom here on Earth. Are we relying on the Holy Spirit the way we should to make this statement true?
**GRACE** not grave… way to ruin a comment, thumbs..
The word that sticks out to me is “chose.” He chose us. In a moment of my own weakness and when the event was piling the weight of my past upon me and I felt worthless, God’s voice interrupted and said “I chose you, Becca,” and it’s crazy in a moment when you are overwhelmed by your own failures and insufficiencies to hear the creator of the universe say, “I chose you.” It’s a whole paradigm shift from my human understanding of things and I know that God is calling me to walk in that identity that he gave me: Chosen
As Paul is addressing this letter to his brothers and sisters in Christ, I’m noticing how many times in the next several verses Paul uses the terms “our”, “we” and “us”. I’m seeing Paul, as led by the Spirit of God, reminding them (and us) that all who believe are included. When reminded of our position in Christ, of all He has lavished on us, that He chose us to be holy and blameless in His sight and has sealed us with the Holy Spirit as our guide, how can we not give all the glory and praise to God our Father. May I be an encourager to those who need a reminder just as I do from time to time. God is so good!