EPISTLE TO EPHESIANS

Overview

Paul in prison (3v1, 4v1, 6v20), yet reaches the highest and noblest thoughts to describe the wonders of God's grace.   In the power of the Holy Spirit, in a situation less than ideal, he was enabled to rise above to reach the pinnacle of spiritual revelation.   This letter to Ephesians is a distillation of a lifetime of thinking by a man to whom God revealed secrets, that were the culmination of the Divine plan of the ages, and which now required clear exposition to all who would hear.   Laid aside for the purpose, and, freed from material and social considerations, this brilliant mind, forged in the crucible of Divine refinement, presents the "jewel in the crown" of all scripture writings.   The sweep of thought is breath-taking; it is the mount Everest of all biblical truth, it is the grand canyon of scripture.   Samuel Coleridge called it "the divinest composition of man".   Martin Lloyd Jones said it was "the sublimest and the most majestic expression of the gospel".   His own exposition of it is in 8 volumes!

He takes us into "the heavenlies".   Five times over he marks this position, 1v3, 1v20, 2v6, 3v10, and 6v12 (only in Ephesians is this found).   This is the unseen spiritual world, the world beyond our world, but which is very much involved in our world.   We are viewing things from the other side, we are seeing things from heaven's perspective.

• chapter 1v3        Spiritual blessings in heavenly places.
• chapter 1v20      Christ risen, ascended, exalted, glorified in heavenly places.
• chapter 2v6        Believers seated with Christ in heavenly places.
• chapter 3v10      Angel spirits in heavenly places.
• chapter 6v12      Demon spirits in heavenly places.

In essence it is God's view, and is the only one worthy of consideration.   In Colossians we are on earth looking up ( chapter 3v2...."set your affection on things above"...), in Ephesians we are in heavenly places looking down!   Paul sets for us heaven's perspective.   On the ground the world seems very large, but from 30,000 feet above in an aeroplane, it looks very small.   This is much more true in spiritual things.  His principal subject is the church ( 1v22-23, 3v10, 3v21, 5v23, 5v24, 5v25, 5v29, 5v32.)   Not the local church, with all it's feebleness, and failings, and faults; but the perfect church, the universal church, the church the body of Christ, the church as created by God.   This church is growing, not yet complete.   It is described in Hebrews 12v23 as "the church of the firstborn written in heaven".   (Later we shall learn that local churches should model themselves on this.)  

Paul had spent over three years at Ephesus.   He was well aware of the magnificent, but idolatrous, temple of Artemis, which dominated the city.   It was consecrated to the goddess Artemis, 220 years in the building, having 127 columns, 418ft.x239ft.x56ft, stood four times larger than the Parthenon in Athens, it was a magnificent structure, and a wonder of the world.  It became a centre for global trade, and through it's traffic in gods and statuettes and mementos and trinkets, and books, it achieved such levels of wealth that it became known as "the Bank of Asia".   It was also a centre of debauchery, practicing temple prostitution and the magic arts.   Did Paul have this in mind as he expounded the glorious church, the unsearchable riches, the holy temple in the Lord, and the habitation of God through the Spirit?   The greatest that man can build always ends in sin and self-gratification and injustice, and, worst of all, the wrath of God.   The temple of God is for the glory of God and for the good of all His people.   This is the letter to Ephesians!   The temple of Artemis lasted till 262 A.D.   The temple of Jesus Christ will last for all eternity "unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus, throughout all ages, world without end. Amen."

We are building day by day,
In our work and in our play,
Not with hammers blow on blow,
Not with timber sawing so —
Building a house not made with hands,
Following Jesus' perfect plans:
Little builders all are we
Building for eternity.            by Fanny J Crosby.