Eph 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus:
Eph 1:2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Outline of the first 14 verses
1-2) Salutation = Dear Whom ever, it’s a greeting.
(A) The doctrine of predestination, and its design, (3-7)
3)A praise to God because of what he has done in Christ.
4) Christians chosen from the begging of time to be holy and blameless.
5)Through Christ, because of Gods kind will, we have predestined to be Children of God
6)The ultimate reason is Gods own glory his grace which is a gift put on us.
7)What Christians have in Christ because He’s is rich in grace.
(B) The benefits of the plan of predestination to those who are chosen, (7-14)
8)God grace is lavished on Christians.
9)More of God’s plan is reveled more plainly to us in Christ
10)All things summed up in Christ.
11)Threw His will we have been predestined to obtain and inheritance.
12)The ultimate reason is Gods own glory
13-14)Believers in Christ are sealed with the Holy Spirit as a pledge for God own possession,
The ultimate reason is Gods own glory
1.)
Paul author of this epistle who was formally know as Saul a mighty persecutor of the Church. He is an apostle by the will of God and that is the prevailing content of these first 14 verses.
Paul is writing this letter to the faithful saint in Christ Jesus.
2.)
This are “the irreducible minimum of what constitutes a Christian.”
1.Saints 2.Faithful 3.In Christ.
John Murry
“Union with Christ has its source in the election of God the Father before the foundation of the world and it has its accomplishment in the glorification of the sons of God. The perspective of God’s people is not narrow; it has the expanse of eternity.
Eph 1:2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3.)
Those are not separate and distinct sources but two manifestations of the same Source. The “and” in this verse indicates equivalence, and indicates that Jesus is deity just like God our Father.
Grace is the fountain of Peace. Grace from God brings peace from God. We have peace with God and it is the peace of God.
Php 4:7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Boice says
“from the very begging of this epistle there is no mystery about how we are to be Faithful Christian- by the will and strength of God, who alone can help us. We have no other Strength, but by His grace we can triumph
The statements at the beginning of this letters are not just a sign in, he will emphasize these themes many times throughout out the rest of the book.
Please feel free to comment
Grace and peace
LT
What an awesome day at Church. We have an amazing group of people dedicated to the Lord King Jesus. We did a big review as we went through the book of Ephesians today. It was nice to see so many faces in the seats all eager to learn the word of God. Thank you all for coming and participating so well.
