Ephesians: Chapter 1

This book is filled with wisdom, encouragement, and practical teaching about what it means to be a True Christian and how we, the Believers, identified as the church, should operate. Yet it gives us the clear message of how deeply God loves us and how we can receive and enjoy His love, and daily become more strongly established as a Follower of Jesus Christ. It reveals our spiritual blessings, our position of responsibility and authority in Christ, the mysteries of God, our need to walk in love and in His light, and the importance of unity among Believers. In addition, family and personal relationships, how to deal with anger and how to war against the evil powers of the spiritual realm are all covered. It is our prayer that as you study this book, you gain a deeper, richer, personal depth of understanding of God’s incredible unconditional love for you. Seeking to more clearly discover your life’s purpose that He ordained for you before the foundation of the world! We pray you daily seek His Wisdom through His Word and the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within you.

1:1

Paul, identifies himself as an apostle, a messenger, of Jesus Christ; literally, Jesus the Messiah. He was chosen by the Sovereign will of God. The letter was to the saints (believers) at Ephesus and to all the faithful believers in Christ Jesus. The “saints” were chosen by God and were the true believers. The reference to “Jesus Christ” emphasized his Title meaning Messiah. Notice that this letter was to be circulated to all the churches, just as were the Seven letters to the Seven Churches in Revelation. Paul was originally named Saul, after King Saul, who was also a Benjamite. The Benjamites were known for their warrior temperament: feisty and tough. That certainly described Paul! Paul was born in Tarsus as a free-born Roman citizen; he was educated in Hellenistic culture and had Pharisaical training by Gamaliel himself. He was born of privileged Roman citizenship and had a superior education. He was no doubt of a family who was financially well off.

1:2

‘Grace be to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.’ Grace is mentioned first, because Grace brings forgiveness of sins; only then can we have true peace. Note that “Lord Jesus Christ” gives His Title, Name and Mission. Paul is inspired by the Holy Spirit to use his talents as an eloquent brilliant writer to reveal incredible Truth to us through God’s Word.
The next few verses give us magnificent praises and sublime heights of words of Worship. Carefully pray and consider memorizing some of the verses 3-14 as we are privileged to have revealed to us God’s activity in Salvation from eternity past, through time, through eternity future, including the mystery of God’s sovereign will for each of us, previously undisclosed.

1:3

May blessing, (praise, honor, and glory) be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (God and Messiah) Who has blessed us in Christ (Savior/Messiah) with every spiritual blessing (given by the Holy Spirit) in the heavenly realm! Wow! We have blessings available to us we can’t yet even understand or comprehend, yet we are promised them by God in His Word! Think of it, we not only have earthly blessings promised, but now it is revealed we have Heavenly Blessings promised for us. Remember the rewards promised by Jesus for you? The phrase “in Christ Jesus” is used 27 times in this letter! So, who exactly is “in Christ Jesus”? All who are united with Jesus by being born again and becoming a part of the Body of Christ; all through the power of the Holy Spirit. (See 1 Corinthian 12: 12-13) The finished work of Jesus on the Cross has put us in the position of being “in Christ Jesus”. Those who have refused to accept Jesus as Lord, God and Savior; confessing their sins AND repenting of them; are NOT in Christ Jesus. All God’s promises are for the True believer, not those who merely say they are “Christians”. Remember, your actions reveal the Truth!

1:4

God chose us before the foundation of the World. We were chosen to be “in Christ Jesus” before the World was created. God’s Love redeemed us. True, we must accept our redemption, yet it is still His Gift to us. Then we are adopted as His children, forever. God tells us we did not choose Him, He chose us! (John 15:16) A sinner, left to himself, does not seek God. (Romans 3:10-11) God, out of His Love, seeks the sinner (Luke 19:10) This offer of salvation is to EVERYONE! (John 3:16, 3:36, 5:24: Romans 10:9, 13, etc.) Remember, the lost choose to stay lost. A clue to the secret? Because God knows the future, He knows exactly who will be obedient and accept His Mercy and Grace. Yet, the choice still remains ours. All people can know IF they are chosen by God by their own response. Those who hear, believe, and obey are the “Elect, or chosen”. (1Thessalonians 1:4-7) God’s purpose for us will not be completely realized until we are with Him in heaven (1 John 3:2). That purpose is to be “Holy and Blameless before Him in love.” We will then be “glorified”. Election: The term refers to both divine volition and human choice. God will never FORCE anyone to believe in Him and follow Jesus.

1:5-6

God predestinated (foreordained) us to a place of adoption as His very own children, through Jesus Christ. WOW! We can hardly take this Truth in. We are adopted as God’s sons and daughters? Yes! Why would God do that, when we deserve death? Because of the good purpose of His will. God plans only good for us ~ Eternal good, what is best for us forever. God will surround Himself with sons and daughters, conformed to the image and likeness of His only begotten Son, Jesus. How can this happen? We make the choice to obey the Holy Spirit and follow God’s revealed Will. The greatest mistake a Christian can make is to substitute your will for the will of God. Now, we see WHY it is so crucial to seek to know the will of God. We are to be the Praise of His Glory; all because of His Grace, through His Beloved Son, Jesus. Think of it this way: God loves us as greatly as He loves His Son, or He never would have permitted Jesus to die for us. (John 17:23-24)

1:7-9a

We now have salvation, which is redemption and deliverance through the blood of Jesus, giving us forgiveness of our sins and offenses, all in accordance with the riches and generosity of His gracious favor. God Himself lavished all this upon us in His wisdom and understanding, making known to us the mystery, or secret, of His Perfect Will; that is, His Perfect Plan and Purpose for us. So, we, as sinners, have been given the free Gifts of Mercy and Grace which allows us to be forgiven of ALL our sins and failures, now and forever; through the sacrifice of Jesus shedding His blood on the cross in complete payment of the penalty of ALL our sins. We were trapped in our sins, guaranteed to go to hell to be tormented and suffer forever, and worse, to be forever separated from God. Yet our death sentence was “purchased through His blood” (1 Peter 1:18, Hebrews 9:22). And what can we give God in thankfulness for all this? “We love Him only because He first loved us.) Perspective is crucial. We are slowly being sanctified through the Truth of God’s Grace. Only His Grace gives us the ability to see the ultimate Truth of Eternity and then make the right faith choices each day to follow His Will. Make no mistake, all the universe is moving toward His ultimate goal, God’s Perfect Will.

1:9b-10

What exactly is the Mystery of His Will? This is the dominant theme of this Epistle, so we don’t want to miss this Truth. God’s Perfect Will is His Perfect Plan to unify all things and bring them together and consummate them in Christ, things in Heaven and things on Earth. We can get a hint of some of these “things”: The Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 13:5-50). The Church as one Body of Christ (Ephesians 3:1-12, 6:19; Romans 16:25). The Bride of Christ (Ephesians 5:23-32. Christ living in us (Galatians 2:20; Colossians 1:26-27). The Fullness of the Godhead (1Corinthians 2:7, Colossians 2:2,9.). Godliness (1Timothy 3:16) The Rapture of the Believers (1 Corinthians 15:51-52; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17). The Will of God (Ephesians) The Seven Stars (Revelation 1:20). Note that this is NOT a complete list of all the mysteries of God. Moreover, we, the Believers, are to be Stewards of the Mysteries of God. It is required of a Steward that he/she be found faithful 1Corinthians 4:1-2.

1:11-12

We have been chosen by God to be God’s child. We were selected by the Creator of the Universe, before time began, to be His beloved child. Even though He knows everything about us, He still chose us to belong to Him. We are the inheritance of Christ. Jesus counts us as His special inheritance. That means we are considered VERY VALUABLE! Do you feel Loved and Valuable? You should; a very high price was paid for you. Say out loud, every day, “I, then say your name, belong to God.!” Do you realize how powerful that is? Then begin your day by praying for God’s divine Guidance and Direction so that ALL you do, say and even think, would bring God Glory, Honor and Praise. As you begin your day, think “is what I’m planning to do going to Honor and Glorify God?” This will help you stay in God’s Perfect Will. All this for what? So that we who believe in and Hope in Jesus Christ, have been predestined to live for the Praise of His Glory. We are predestined to be Glorified with Jesus Christ!

1:13

We have heard and believed the Word of Truth, Jesus Christ; the glad tidings (the Gospel) of our salvation and have believed in and obeyed and relied totally on Him. We are sealed with the Holy Spirit. So, we believe the Truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; that He died on the cross for our sins; we confess and repent of our sins; we are given the Holy Spirit to live within our souls. We are now owned by God. (Jeremiah 32:11-12, 2 Timothy 2:19) We have Eternal Security. God guarantees we are His (Ephesians 4:30, 1 Corinthians 1:22, John 6:27)

1:14

The Holy Spirit living within us is the guarantee of our Eternal Inheritance (rewards). Our continual Sanctification is orchestrated by the Holy Spirit living within us. It is our choice to obey and follow God’s Will for our lives, becoming more and more like Jesus; or to disobey and quench the Holy Spirit. Our growing and becoming is dependent on our obedience. We anticipate the full redemption and acquiring and possessing that Eternal Inheritance. (Full Glorification and rewards)

1:15-18

For this reason, because I have heard of your Faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, (Note that each verse from 15 to 21 is only a part of a powerful and revealing prayer.) I continually give thanks for you, mentioning you in my prayers. (Do we thank God for other Believers?) I pray to the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Eternal Father of Glory that He may grant you a spirit of wisdom, the Holy Spirit; which provides special revelation and understanding; for proper and wise use in our lives; into the deep and intimate knowledge of God, (This special revelation is to be used to deepen our understanding and wise obedience of God). By having the eyes of your heart flooded with light, so that you can know and understand the hope to which He has called you; (This enlightenment comes directly from the Holy Spirit and is not discerned by non-believers. They cannot understand God’s Truth.)

1:19-21

So that you can know and comprehend with total understanding what is the immeasurable, unlimited and surpassing greatness of His power in us and for us as Believers; demonstrated in the working of His mighty strength, (Obviously the Creator of the Universe can and will work His power in each of us to accomplish His goals for us) Which He exerted in Christ Jesus when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His own right hand in the Heavenly places, (Jesus being raised from the dead and being given His place at the Father’s right hand is confirmed)
Far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named above every title that can be conferred, not only in this age and this world, but also in the age and the world which is to come. (Here we see a clear reference to the fallen angels mentions in Romans 8); as well as the future age and world which will be created after the millennium.

1:22

And He (God the Father) has put all things under His (Jesus) feet and has appointed Him (Jesus) the universal and supreme Head of the church. Jesus is always the head of all True Churches. Remember, the ‘Church’ is the True and faithful ‘Body of Christ’, not a building or denomination.

1:23

The Church is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. (In the True Church, Body of Christ, lives the full expression or measure of Jesus Himself; He alone makes everything complete.) This confirms that we are to represent Jesus here on earth; we are His Church.

As you diligently seek to know God and His purpose for your life, take the time and effort to look up all the scriptures referenced in this study. The Holy Spirit will reveal His will for your life as you prayerfully and diligently seek to know and serve your Savior! God knows exactly what is best for you. Why would you settle for less than best for yourself? As you respond and obey, in Faith; the rewards are TRULY ‘out of this world’!