“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus and are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 1:1-2) Jesus changed Paul’s life, to say the least. Paul lived the rest of his life with Jesus at the center of it. Paul: (previously Saul – likely named after Israel’s first king who made the life-changing mistake of losing his trust in God when times got tough) means “little one”. Every time someone called his name, “little one”, he maybe experienced a deeply necessary, joy-filled contentment that it is not by his power that big things happen through him.
An Apostle: “Apostle” (Apostolos) means “sent one”. It was sometimes used for the commander of a naval expedition – one whose authority to speak and act was dependent on the nature of the authority of his sender. For Paul (don’t take this lightly or blow past it without pausing in awe.) the sender is…Of Jesus Christ: The One who sits at the right hand of God and rules the Universe. In Matthew 28, Jesus says, “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” By the will of God: In Galatians 1:15-16, Paul writes, “But when God, who had set me apart before I was born and called me through his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, so that I might proclaim him among the Gentiles…”. Imagine all that. He was chosen by God before he was born to be sent to change the world by the authority of the One who literally governs the universe. No wonder The Lord wanted him to hear the humble phrase “little one” every time someone called his name. To the saints: Let’s reclaim the biblical use of this word. 9 times in this letter, Paul calls his readers “saints.” The word “saint” is one of the many terms used in the N.T. to describe “one who has trusted Jesus Christ as Savior.” The person is ALIVE! Not only physically, but spiritually (Eph. 2:1). The word “saint” means, “one who has been set apart.” It’s related to the word “sanctified”. When a sinner trusts Christ as his Savior, s/he is taken out of “the world” and placed “in Christ.”
And are faithful: Faithfulness describes their response to God’s grace – they were full of trust that led to obedience. Question: Are we saints because we’re faithful? – OR – Are we faithful because we’re saints? We’re going to hit this point many times in Ephesians – so here’s an image that may be helpful in the beginning. Picture grapes, a perfect bunch of grapes. Now picture the branch on which the grapes hang. Now move to the source of the branch – it is attached to a vine with its roots that run deep. The grapes are faithfulness (the love, joy peace, patience…that Paul calls the “fruit of the Spirit” in Galatians 5:22). The branch is you. The vine is Christ (Jesus says, “I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” in John 15:5). Now, just let your horticultural knowledge take over. The vine flows through the branch to bear the fruit. The fruit is sweet nourishment for others and seeds that God will use as He wills.
In Christ Jesus: Paul uses this phrase 36 times in Ephesians and 164 times across all his letters. Theologian John Stott writes, “According to the New Testament – and especially Paul – to be a Christian is in essence to be ‘in Christ’.” This is the very heart of Christianity: to be united to Jesus Christ. We will saturate ourselves in this reality in the next year of sermons – it is critically important and unimaginably beautiful!
In Ephesus: The first half of Ephesians is Paul addressing our being “in Christ”, the second half is Paul teaching us how to live “in Ephesus” (or for us, “in the world”). Primarily, we are “in Christ.” Secondarily, we are “in the world”. Thereby, we are “IN CHRIST” in the world. Get it? See what our primary identity is? Good. We’ll come back to that.
From God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: There is a vital link between the author (Paul), the reader (us) and the message – it is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Paul is an apostle of Jesus Christ, we, ourselves are in Jesus Christ, and the blessing comes to us both from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ who are the single spring from which grace and peace flow forth.
We live in Western PA and Western NY, but our roots run way deeper than this soil and our family is far more expansive than those immediately around us – it goes around the globe, throughout all time and into heaven. As we see ourselves in this new light and live differently because of it, those around us may begin to think and say, in a winsome and wonderful way, “It seems like they belong somewhere else.” And they’d be right, because we do. No matter where we live or when, we ultimately belong in Christ. What this means, Paul will explain throughout this letter. So, let’s continue next week.
