Ephesians 1:1-14

Introduction

What are you more likely to do each morning: list everything you’ve got to do, review your problems, or count your blessings? Why?

We should stop and count our blessings each morning.  As believers we are the most blessed individuals on the planet. Paul wrote to the Ephesians to give them specific ways to live out their salvation. But, before Paul addressed matters of unity and ethics, he recounted the marvelous blessings of salvation.  When we understand what we have in Christ paves the way for us to live like who we are in Christ.

People who have a goal for their lives and follow a clear plan for accomplishing that goal fascinate us. Everything they do appears to be tied to that goal. We admire their determination and focus. At the same time, we forget that God has a goal or purpose for His creation, and He is focused on that goal. God does not work randomly but is moving His creation to fulfill His purposes. Paul explained that believers are the benefactors of God’s purposes, as He chose to bring us salvation through His Son.

The City of Ephesus was located on the mouth of the Cayster River on the west coast of Asia Minor.  Ephesus was the capital of the Roman providence of Asia.  the population of Ephesus was more than 300,000 people. It was a trading center with a beautiful and accessible harbor.   It was a beautiful city, very sophisticated, wealthy, and pagan.  Ephesus was not only a trade center but was also a center of cult worship. The city was built near the site of a shrine to an old Anatolian fertility Goddess. The temple to Diana had become one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and Paul’s preaching of the gospel had threatened this powerful cult. (See Acts 19:23-41.)

Paul penned the letter while in prison. Disagreement exists concerning whether Paul was imprisoned in Caesarea (Acts 24:22) around AD 57–59 or in Rome (Acts 28:30) in about 60–62 when he wrote this letter. Paul most likely wrote Colossians, Philemon, and Philippians during the same imprisonment. Tradition suggests that Paul wrote the letter from Rome around 60–61, which would have transpired while Paul was under house arrest in guarded rental quarters (Acts 28:30).

It is a widely held belief that the words of Paul in this writing were meant for a wider audience than just the believers in Ephesus. The only reference to the Ephesians is found in (1:1), and this phrase, “to the saints in Ephesus,” is not found in the two oldest Greek manuscripts. The letter was probably a “circular letter” sent to many churches and assemblies of believers in Asia Minor. As the letter was delivered from church to church, each one could insert its own name in (1:1) because it was applicable to such a broad range of believers. This fact adds to its relevance to every Christian today.

Rejoice: You were Chosen Eph 1:3–6

When and why did God choose to bless those who trust in His Son?

Paul begins his letter in the form of a Jewish benediction. In the New Testament the Greek word for blessed (eulogētos) is used only of God. He alone is worthy of being blessed. People are blessed when they receive his blessings; God is blessed when he is praised for all that he freely bestows on humanity and on his world. Above all he is blessed as the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ; for he is revealed to us supremely in Christ who, as Son, is the perfect image of the Father. The source of the believer’s blessing is in a relationship with God through Jesus Christ, who is sitting at the right hand of God the Father in heaven.

Can you remember when you were chosen for special recognition? Do you remember the joy that came knowing that we have be chosen above others for something special?  That joy cannot compare to the joy of knowing that as believers we were chosen by God before the foundations of the world.

God chose us for adoption before the foundation of the world. God had begun to make provision for sin before man had even sinned. He took the initiative in reaching down to sinful humanity, and if He had not done so, nobody would be saved. This doesn’t preclude the necessity of faith. Tony Merida stated, “Election and faith belong in the same sentence, and it is a sentence only God could write.”

Chosen raises the question of election or predestination, a deep and profound mystery which must be handled carefully. The Bible in some places seems to teach that God chooses those who will be saved and at least implies that he does not choose those who will not be saved. On the other hand, some verses seem to teach human freedom and responsibility. This is one of those mysteries that our finite minds have a hard time understanding. What we need to understand is that even though God chose us before the foundations of the world we still have to make the choice to repent and ask for forgiveness. God is seen choosing people throughout the scriptures for his purpose but, never choosing to send someone to Hell…Man does that on his own.

“For me, the key is divine foreknowledge (1 Pet 1:2), which I do not believe is synonymous with predestination. As in Romans 8:29, it is “those whom God foreknew” that he “predestined.” God knew who would respond with a faith decision to the Spirit’s convicting work and chose them to be “conformed to the image of his Son.” I believe God’s elect will and human choice work together, with God uppermost in the process.

D. L. Moody made a statement with which I concur heartily when he said, “I’m so glad God chose me before I was born, because I don’t think He would have chosen me after I’ve lived!”

Paul uses the image of adoption through Christ here with its Roman overtones of breaking all former bonds to a natural father and coming under the domain of a new father. In this respect, adoption is not simply God’s gracious act: it bespeaks the comprehensive and total transfer of one’s passions, love, and allegiance from the world to God. Finally, we only obtain our share in this adoption through the true son, Christ.

Rejoice: You are Redeemed Eph 1:7–12

What makes redemption such an incredible blessing?

Redemption was the term used for the payment for a slave’s freedom. This payment was made according to the riches of God’s grace. It was neither deserved nor earned. Redemption came through the blood of Jesus. His blood paid the penalty of the sin debt that gripped sinners. Since all people are sinners (Rom. 3:23), all are enslaved to its effects. But through Christ, redemption is linked with three important concepts.

Redemption is linked with three important concepts: 1) Redemption brings forgiveness of sin; 2) Redemption is only possible by the Grace of God and 3) Redemption brings with it the wisdom not only to know God but how to live in the light of our redemption.

Its only by the grace of God that we can be redeemed from sin. After salvation God blesses us with wisdom and understanding. The word “wisdom” (sophia) means seeing and knowing the truth. It is seeing and knowing what to do. It grasps the great truths of life. It sees the answers to the problems of life and death, God and man, time, and eternity, good and evil—the deep things of God and of the universe.

When we are saved, we are adopted by God as His child.  Because we are adopted, we will receive an inheritance. Natural born heirs and adopted heirs receive the same inheritance. In addition to forgiveness ( Eph 1:7) and insight (Eph 1:9), those adopted in God’s kingdom receive an inheritance that is worthy of praise to the Father.

Believers should rejoice in the knowledge that they have been redeemed by the blood of Christ.  That redemption allows us to be adopted into the family of God and have a restored personal relationship with the creator of the universe.  Not only are we adopted, but we inherit eternal life.

Rejoice: You are Sealed Eph 1:13–14

How can we be certain we will obtain our inheritance?

Believers can be assured of their inheritance because we are sealed by the Holy Spirit.  When a person becomes a believer in Christ, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in their life.  Life in Christ is different because of the Holy Spirit’s living within.   It is this indwelling of the Holy Spirit that seals the believer.

The sealing of which Paul speaks here refers to an official mark of identification that was placed on a letter, contract, or other important document. The seal usually was made from hot wax, which was placed on the document and then impressed with a signet ring. The document was thereby officially identified with and under the authority of the person to whom the signet belonged.

Though salvation begins at the moment a person believes, it is not completed in its entirety until after death or the return of Christ. The seal of the Holy Spirit signifies God’s ownership and protection to complete what He has started in the life of the believer.

Though believers have received the forgiveness of trespasses (Eph. 1:7) and the seal of the Holy Spirit (Eph 1:13), they are still a work in progress. So, is there any hope that our salvation is secure? That hope comes from everything Paul mentioned in this passage. The Father chooses us. The Son redeems us. The Holy Spirit seals us. All of these were acts of God’s gracious character. If salvation is not a work of man, then neither is keeping salvation a work of man. As the seal and the down payment, the Holy Spirit guarantees the salvation of all believers, giving us confidence that God will finish what He started in us. Again, this fact magnifies God’s glory. In a culture where people could choose whatever god they wanted and as many as they wanted, Paul highlighted reasons to rejoice. God had chosen them, and Jesus had redeemed them. And now the Holy Spirit had put His seal upon them, pledging to hold them and keep them until the redemption project was complete. The Ephesians had experienced many blessings of God in salvation, and they had reason to rejoice.

Summarize & Challenge

What are logical responses to God’s blessings of salvation?

• Out of His infinite grace and sovereignty, God chose to provide salvation through Jesus’ sacrifice.
• Respond with humility. God chose us to be His, not because of who we are or what we’ve done, but because of who He is.
• Adoption gives us privileges and duties as God’s children.
• Ephesians teaches us how to lead lifestyles that reflect our spiritual blessings.
• The last verse of each section (vv. 6,12,14) indicates that a faithful response to God’s blessings is to rejoice and give God praise.

Personal Challenge: What are you doing with God’s blessings? Do you think on them? Take them for granted? Think you’re superior because you have them? Marvel and rejoice at what God has graciously chosen to bless you with in Christ? Begin each day recounting your blessings of salvation in Christ and go out in the world rejoicing in your gracious God.

Selected Bibliography  

• David O. Dykes, General Editor, Explore the Bible: Leaders Guide, Fall 2019 (Nashville, TN: LifeWay, Christian Resources, 2019)
• Holman Bible Staff, CSB Spurgeon Study Bible, (Nashville, Tennessee.: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017)
• Disciple’s Study Bible, (Nashville, Tennessee: Holman Bible Publishers, 1988)
• Francis Foulkes, Ephesians: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 10, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1989)
• Max Anders, Galatians-Colossians, vol. 8, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999)
• R. C. Sproul, The Purpose of God: Ephesians (Scotland: Christian Focus Publications, 1994)
• Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, (Chattanooga: Leadership Ministries Worldwide, 1991)
• John MacArthur, Ephesians, (Chicago: Moody Press, 1986)