Ephesians 2:1-22
Step 1: Survey the Big Picture
Author: "Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God"
Recipient: "saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus." Predominantly meant for Gentile believers.
Historical Context: ~60 AD, possibly written from a prison in Rome.
Before and After:
Chapter 1 is all about the Spiritual blessings that we have through Jesus. God chose us and adopted us into His family. He redeemed us and forgave us through the blood of Jesus. We have received a spiritual inheritance including the Holy Spirit.
Chapter 3 is about how the Gospel has been revealed to not just the Jews but also the Gentiles. All are members of one body. Paul ends this chapter by praying that the believers would be spiritually strengthened by understanding the love of Jesus.
Step 2: Explore the Passage
This passage is basically Paul explaining the Gospel through telling the story of the Gentiles. He does this by describing their condition prior to redemption, the process through which they were redeemed, and their condition now as Christians. He goes through these steps twice: once in verses 1-10 and once in verses 11-22.
Condition prior to redemption:
"dead in the trespasses and sins"
"following the course of this world"
"following the prince of the power of the air" (following Satan)
"carrying out the desires of the body"
"like the rest of mankind"
"separated from Christ"
"having no hope and without God"
Process of redemption:
"God, being rich in mercy because of the great love with which He loved us."
"made us alive in Christ"
"by grace you have been saved"
"raised us up with him and seated us in the heavenly places"
"by grace you have been saved through faith; it is a gift of God"
"not as a result of works"
"He himself is our peace"
"reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross"
Condition as Christians:
"alive together with Christ"
"brought near to the blood of Christ"
"through Him we have access in one Spirit to the Father"
"no longer strangers and aliens"
"fellow citizens"
"members of the household of God"
Step 3: Discover the Big Idea
Summary about God:
God is rich in love and grace, so He took the steps to bring sinful humanity into a right relationship with Himself.
Summary about people:
We were dead to sin and living only for ourselves, but through Christ we can become members of God's household.
Summary about the Gospel:
We were sinful and undeserving of grace, but God loves us so much that he offers redemption and adoption through the blood of Jesus.
Step 4: Respond to Christ
Application:
I'd like to spend time each day consciously reminding myself of the Gospel and the points that Paul discussed. I was dead to sin, God did everything to save me, and now I'm living in His family. I'd like to think about this more often and preach it to myself daily. I'd also like to continue using this study method as I read the Bible and seek to learn from it.
No comments:
Post a Comment