Getting Started in Ephesians

Ephesians is packed. Election, adoption, redemption, grace, faith, good works, the church, spiritual gifts, unity, marriage, parenting, work, spiritual warfare, and the armor of God are all here. It would be easy to preach any one of those things and still miss what Paul is doing with the letter as a whole.

Before working through the individual passages, we need to grasp the argument and flow of the letter. Hear the melodic line.

God is bringing all things together under Christ (1:9-10), and the church is already a living display of that coming reality. By grace, God takes people who were dead, divided, and far from him and makes them alive in Christ, reconciles them to himself and one another, and forms them into one new people (2:1-22). Therefore, they must live like the people God has made them to be. They are to walk worthy of their calling, grow together toward maturity under Christ, live under his lordship in every relationship, and stand firm against spiritual opposition.

That argument should control how we preach and teach the individual parts.

The Hinge of the Letter

The simplest way to get your bearings in Ephesians is to notice the turn at 4:1.

The first three chapters overwhelmingly tell us what God has done. God has chosen, adopted, redeemed, forgiven, made alive, raised up, reconciled, and brought near a people in Christ (1:3-14; 2:1-22). Then Paul writes, “I therefore, a prisoner of the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called” (4:1).

The “therefore” matters. The commands of chapters 4–6 grow out of the grace of chapters 1–3. The imperatives (commands) of 4-6 describe the life that should flow from the blessings of 1-3.

Paul’s repeated use of “walk” helps us follow the argument. We once walked in sin (2:2). God created us in Christ for good works so that we would walk in them (2:10). Therefore, we are to walk worthy of our calling (4:1), no longer walk as the Gentiles do (4:17), walk in love (5:2), walk as children of light (5:8), and walk wisely (5:15).

God Is Making One People in Christ

Unity is one of the great themes running through Ephesians because it grows directly out of what God is doing in Christ.

God’s purpose is to bring all things together in Christ (1:9-10). We see that purpose already at work in the church. Dead sinners are made alive with Christ by grace (2:1-10). Those who were far off are brought near by Christ’s blood (2:11-13). Christ makes Jew and Gentile one, creates “one new man,” and reconciles both to God through the cross (2:14-18). Together they are being built into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit (2:19-22).

So when Paul tells Christians to be “eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit” (4:3), he is telling them to live in light of what God has already done. They do not create Christian unity. God has created it in Christ. And this new people has a purpose beyond itself. Through the church, God makes his manifold wisdom known even to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places (3:10). The church is part of God’s display of what he is accomplishing in Christ.

Christ Builds His Church Through His People

The unity God creates is supposed to grow into maturity (4:7-16).

The ascended Christ gives gifts to his people, including leaders who equip the saints for the work of ministry and the building up of Christ’s body (4:11-12). The goal is unity, knowledge of Christ, doctrinal stability, maturity, and growth (4:13-15). Then Paul gives us a picture of a healthy church. Christ is the head, every member has a part, and the whole body grows and builds itself up in love (4:16).

If 4:1 is the hinge of Ephesians, 4:16 is one of the clearest pictures of where Paul’s argument is headed. Christ does not give leaders to do all the ministry. He gives leaders to equip his people so the whole church serves, matures, and grows together.

The Gospel Comes Home

Paul’s instructions about wives and husbands, children and parents, and bondservants and masters are not a change of subject. Paul has been describing the new life God created in Christ. Put off the old self and put on the new (4:17-24). Walk in love (5:2), light (5:8), and wisdom (5:15). Be filled with the Spirit, giving thanks and submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ (5:18-21).

Then Paul brings all of that home. He addresses wives before husbands (5:22-33), children before fathers (6:1-4), and bondservants before masters (6:5-9). Wives are told to submit, while children and bondservants are told to obey. Then those exercising authority are addressed, and their authority is placed under Christ. Husbands love as Christ loved the church (5:25). Fathers raise their children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (6:4). Masters remember that they too have a Master in heaven (6:9).

The new humanity God created through the gospel must become visible in the relationships where Christians actually live.

Don’t Miss Paul’s Prayers

Twice Paul tells us how he prays for these Christians (1:15-23; 3:14-21), and both prayers emphasize knowing and comprehending.

He prays that the eyes of their hearts would be enlightened so they would know the hope of God’s calling, the riches of his inheritance, and the greatness of his power (1:17-19). Then he prays that they would have strength to comprehend the dimensions of Christ’s love and know a love that surpasses knowledge (3:16-19). Before Paul tells them how to walk, he prays that God will open their eyes.

Don’t rush through chapters 1-3 to get to the “practical stuff.” Paul thinks knowing what God has done in Christ is profoundly practical. It shapes our walk. The obedience of chapters 4-6 grows from the realities of chapters 1-3.

Remember Where the Battle Is

The spiritual warfare at the end of Ephesians has also been part of the letter all along. God has blessed us in the heavenly places (1:3). Christ reigns there above every rule and authority (1:20-21). Believers have been raised and seated with Christ there (2:6). God’s wisdom is displayed through the church to rulers and authorities there (3:10). Then Paul tells us that our struggle is against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places (6:12).

The armor of God is not an appendix to Ephesians. It belongs to the argument. Christ reigns, his church belongs to him, and hostile powers remain. Therefore, God’s people must “be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might” (6:10) and stand firm (6:11, 13-14).

Preaching and Teaching Ephesians

Don’t let the pieces drown out the whole. God is carrying out his great purpose in Christ. By grace he makes dead sinners alive, brings those who were far away near, reconciles enemies through the cross, and creates one new people. That “one new people” must now walk worthy of their calling, grow together toward maturity under Christ, live as the new people God has made them to be, and stand firm in the strength he provides.

This is the flow to keep in view as you preach the individual passages: See what God has done. Walk worthy of his calling. Grow together under Christ. Stand firm in the Lord.