Ephesus was a city in Asia Minor and was one of the cities Paul visited and won converts on his second missionary journey. Paul wrote letters to seven different churches in all. In each of Paul's epistles he mentions the church in that city by name. The title "To the Ephesians" appears in all the ancient manuscripts of this epistle. Some have thought that this was a circular letter, which was to be distributed to several undesignated local churches. Even though the letter was evidently distributed to other churches, Paul wrote it to the Ephesians. Those to whom Paul wrote lived in Ephesus, they were "set apart" for God's use, and they were in Christ Jesus, hence the term "saints." The phrase, "in Christ," represents their position in the body of Christ as born again believers. Paul, on his third missionary journey, stayed in Ephesus for two years and saw a great evangelistic work (Acts 19:1-20). Some ten years later Paul wrote to his friends in Ephesus. The "saints" were those believers that God had chosen and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior. They were "set apart" by God to be His children.

Rather than spending so much time asking God to bless them, believers should be searching the Word of God to find the blessings that they have. Believers receive riches far beyond human comprehension. Because of the Christian's position in Christ Jesus, we have all the blessings of the Spirit. Paul tells us in Romans 8:32, that as we receive Jesus Christ He freely gives us all things. God has given us every spiritual enrichment that might be needed for the spiritual life. Believers need not ask for them, but may receive or appropriate them by faith. Believers have the indwelling Christ and are in Christ, and are enriched with all that Christ is and all that He has received.

Christ said, "You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you" (John 15:16a). The unbeliever is condemned because s/he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God (John 3:18), but s/he must realize that all people are God's children and all have the opportunity to be saved. God uses the Christian to bring about the salvation of the nonbeliever, because the sinner is to hear the Word of God from the Christian. The Holy Spirit does His work of conviction, and with all of God's means combined, all people have the opportunity to have eternal life with Christ Jesus.

The word "predestinate" is used four times in the New Testament (Romans 8:29-30; Ephesians 1:5, 11). Different people use the word "predestination" in different ways, and it is often used and abused. The word means to mark out beforehand, and refers to our future inheritance (Ephesians 1:11). Scripturally speaking, predestination refers to what God does for His people. No one is predestined to hell because the word does not refer to unsaved people. Every believer will ultimately be conformed to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29-30). This is not to say that we have no choice for what our action throughout our lives will be. People still have freedom to do as they please, but as we make our decisions, God is with us and guides us into His holy realm.

The word "mystery" in the New Testament refers to what was hidden in the Old Testament, but now is revealed to God's people (note Romans 16:25-26). The mystery of His will deals largely with the progress of God's revelation presented in the New Testament. The Father's will for the Son will be realized in the future, which is identified as the dispensation of the fullness of times. We as believers will someday share in the mystery that God will one day unite everything in Christ.

When sin entered the world it, tore everything apart. Man was separated from God, and separated even from man as Cain killed his brother Abel (see Genesis. 4). Man apart from God has tried to build a religious and international unity. The Scriptures tell us that God will someday gather everything together in Christ. The dispensation of the fullness of times will be the millennial reign of Christ when God will unite everything in Christ. At Christ's second advent He will come to earth and be King over every king and Lord over every lord. The Son of God will not come the second time in humiliation, but in glorification, to rule and to reign. Scripture tells us He will reign with a rod of iron (Revelation 12:5). This present world is headed for judgment, but Christ will come and reign over all.

The sealing of the Holy Spirit is a mark of ownership, and deals with security and protection. The Holy Spirit Himself is that seal. He comes to indwell every believer at the moment of salvation. Romans 8:9 tells us, "Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Him." The Father has chosen us (verses 3-6); the Son has redeemed us (verses 7-12); and the Spirit has sealed us (verse 11). See also Ephesians4:30.

An atheist says there is no God for man to know. The agnostic says if there is a God, man cannot know Him. The Apostle Paul met God in the person of Jesus Christ. There will be a day when we will know Him perfectly. Paul prayed that believers might know the Father better (verse 17b), and salvation is knowing Him (John. 17:3). Through reading the Scriptures with sincere contemplation, and through prayer, people can develop a strong and true relationship with their savior. Your knowledge and love of God should be carried with you and guide you throughout your day. The willful turning away from the knowledge God has given man in His creation leads mankind into corruption and condemnation (Romans 1:18 ff). The last words written by Peter urged believers to "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18).

The word hope is used in our everyday language as something that is uncertain. Paul often uses the word hope in describing our salvation, or certain aspects of the Christian life. The word hope is not used in Scripture as something that is uncertain, but of that which is firm in the mind and the plan of God. Hope is promised in the Word of God, yet there is a future aspect to it; believers will experience it in the future. Unbelievers are without hope (Ephesians 2:12), but believers have a living hope (1 Peter 1:3). The hope the believer has in Christ encourages him to be pure and to have holiness of life (1 John 3:3), for someday we will be like Him; we will see Him just as He is.

Paul desired believers to know and understand the power of God in their lives. In addition to the word dunamis, which means power, he used three other words in the original language to encourage us. The spiritually dynamic and living force is directed toward believers. It is according to the working (energeian). The English word "energy" comes from this word. The next word is kratous. This is power, which overcomes resistance, as in Christ's miracles. This word is used only of God; never of believers. Then he speaks of God's inherent strength (uschyos), which He provides. See also 6:10 and 1 Peter 4:11. Without question, the Apostle Paul is seeking to emphasize the magnitude of God's great power available to believers. The power of God, which is available to Christians, has already been manifested in behalf of Christ. These four ways demonstrate God's great power:
a. Christ was raised from the dead (1:20b);
b. Christ was seated at the Father's right hand (1:20c);
c. God's power in Christ is seen in placing all things under Christ's feet (1:22);
d. Christ is made head of the church (1:22).

Christ became head of the church after He ascended unto the Father. When the church began on the Day of Pentecost, Christ became the head of the body. Some want to make the church begin earlier than Acts 2, but you cannot have the body without the head. So Christ became the head when the church began. Christ now presides over the church, directing the lives and actions of those who are a part of His body. Because He is head of the church, the church should draw all spiritual vitality from Him.

The natural man has physical and intellectual life, but does not have spiritual life; he is spiritually dead. Some say that man is spiritually well, or perhaps sick; however, the Bible describes the unbeliever as dead in trespasses and sins. Death signifies separation. That is, the natural man is separated from relationship and fellowship with God. Some proclaim that all individuals are children of God. That is simply not true in the spiritual sense. 1 John 3:10 identifies some who are children of God and others who are children of the devil. The Spirit of God must regenerate an individual. At the moment of his salvation he passes from death into life (John 5:24). The one who is spiritually separated from God and is dead may not be as evil as he could be. In fact, many are very moral. Yet they are spiritually dead. The one who receives Christ as Savior passes from spiritual death unto spiritual life

There are three heavens: the atmospheric heaven, the starry heavens, and the third heaven, which is the abode of God. Satan is the prince of the power of the air. His abode is in the atmospheric heaven. He has access to the earth so he can tempt man; he has access to God where he accuses believers before Him day and night (Revelation 12:10). The world is under the control of the evil one, Satan (1 John 5:19).

Even though man is spiritually dead by nature, he may be made alive to God by receiving Jesus Christ as Savior. This is called the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. That is when the Spirit of God places within the believing sinner the life of the Son of God. He was dead, now he is alive. We are "made alive together with Christ" and so we are united with Christ.

The moment the sinner receives Jesus Christ as personal Savior he is baptized by the Spirit of God into the body of Christ (see 1 Corinthians 12:13). Now God sees this one as in Christ, as having died with Christ, having been buried with Christ, and risen with Christ. He is seated with Christ in the heavenly realms. One who has been made alive is also identified with Christ and raised with Him. As a citizen of this earth the believer can look up to Christ in the heavens. As a citizen of heaven and as a result of being in Christ, the believer can look down from his position. In one sense we can say, "Keep looking up." In another sense we can say, "Keep looking down." The believer should more and more be looking at things with a heavenly perspective, or a divine viewpoint.

God is rich in mercy and saves us by His grace. His mercy keeps us from having what we deserve; His grace provides for us what we do not deserve.

There is no question that salvation is the gift of God. A gift is received; it is not earned. The basis of salvation is grace, and the means is faith alone in the crucified, risen Lord Jesus Christ. The exercise of faith, or believing, is a non-meritorious act. Verse 9 clearly says it is not by works; it is by grace and grace alone. The gift is God's and the faith is to be exercised by the sinner. Salvation is not through works; it is not through ordinances; it is not through the law (see Romans 4). Man has nothing to his credit. God has done everything!

This verse tells us that salvation is God's workmanship. The word "workmanship" (poiema) is that which God has made. The result of His workmanship is that we are a new creation in Christ Jesus. In the Bible there is a reference to "wicked works," "works of darkness," "dead works," and "good works." The good works the believer is to perform do not include everything he might choose. In this verse we are told that works are limited to doing in one's life those activities that God has before ordained that we should walk in (or do). According to Romans 12:2 we are to know "that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." One has said that God's workmanship is not brought about by good works, but it results in good works (Titus 2:14; 3:8).

One who is not a Jew is a Gentile. The Ephesian church was made up largely of Gentiles. God made a distinction between Jews and Gentiles. He called out Abraham, who was the progenitor of the Hebrew nation. A Gentile could come into the nation of Israel only as a proselyte. The Israelites looked down on the Gentiles, and hatred crept into the hearts of both Jews and Gentiles.

Paul lists five things that describe the Gentiles:
1. They were without Christ. They had no title rights as Gentiles to the Messianic expectations of Israel.
2. They were aliens from the commonwealth of Israel. They had no part in the inheritance of the chosen people.
3.They were strangers from the covenants of promise. They had no share by birth in the provisions of the covenants God made with Israel.
4. They had no hope. Without the Messiah-Savior there was no hope,
either for man in general or for individuals.
5. They were without God in the world. They were without any true
knowledge of God.

When a Jew receives Christ and when a Gentile receives Christ they are made one in the body of Christ. In the Old Testament temple there was a Court of the Gentiles, which was off to the side. Gentiles could not go beyond a certain point. Now the blood of Christ makes the Gentiles, who were described as being afar off, near. When a Jew or a Gentile receives Jesus Christ as Savior they are baptized into the body of Christ and are one with Him and one with each other (1 Corinthians 12:13; Galatians 3:27-28). In the body of Christ the Jew and the Gentile have equal privileges. This, of course, is all made possible by the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The church saint is under an entirely new "rule" of life. It is called grace. Paul also calls it "the law of Christ" (Galatians 6:2; notice also 1 Corinthians 9:21). He is no longer under the Old Testament commandments and regulations. Other references, which give some light on this new responsibility under grace, are Colossians 2:14, 20 and Hebrews 10:1-10. In Romans 10:4 we are told that Christ is the end of the law for both Jews and Gentiles.

In God's wisdom His plan was to make in Himself a new man. This new man is the body of Christ. This body began on the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit first baptized believers into the body of Christ. It will continue until the rapture when Christ comes to take away His body, the church. This is the creation identified in 2 Corinthians 5:17. The old things we had in Adam have all passed away, and the things we have in Christ are all new. In this "new man" the Gentiles are not incorporated into Israel, but both believing Jews and Gentiles are incorporated into one new man, that is the body of Christ.

Because of the finished work of Christ on the cross and His glorious resurrection, New Testament believers, both Jews and Gentiles, have access to the Father. We have access to the Father by the Holy Spirit. Both have equal access to God. Anyone who receives Jesus Christ as personal Savior has as much access to God as any other person.

The apostles and prophets laid the foundation for the church by their spiritual writings. The church is built upon the doctrine the apostles gave. These, of course, are New Testament prophets. Christ is the rock, the chief cornerstone of the church.

Very simply put, the Lord Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of the church. In the early building practices the chief cornerstone was carefully placed because it was crucial to the entire building.

The concept of the temple comes from the Old Testament. In the New Testament Paul described the church as a great building, a holy temple in which God dwells. No physical building is a holy temple to the Lord today. The word for temple refers to the sanctuary where God dwells. The Holy Spirit now lives in every believer (see John 14:17; Romans 5:5; 8:9-11; 1 Corinthians 6:19). Every believer is now a temple of the Holy Spirit. The believer's responsibility is to glorify God.

God's methods of dealing with mankind change over the course of history. St. Augustine wrote, "Distinguish the ages and the Scriptures harmonize." The word "dispensation" is derived from a compound word in the original language. It means "the law of the house." Sometimes the word is translated "stewardship" or "administration." Paul said the administration of God's grace was given to him "for you." He had already mentioned in Ephesians 1:10 "the dispensation of the fullness of times." There he referred to the millennial reign of Christ. Here we have the dispensation of the grace of God, which identifies God's rule of life for believers as God is dealing with the church, the body of Christ. In the old economy Israel was under the dispensation of law. Today believers are under the dispensation of grace. In the old economy the people of Israel were blessed as they obeyed God (note Exodus 19:5). In the new economy in which we live believers are fully blessed because they are in Christ (Ephesians 1:3).

Revelation is truth made known to man which man otherwise could not know. Paul identified certain mysteries, which he revealed. A mystery is that which was hidden in ages past, but now is revealed, so it is no longer a mystery. (Note also Romans 16:25-26.)

This mystery is explained in verse 6, that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel. They are members of the one body; they share together in the promise in Christ Jesus. He had already written about this in chapter 2, verses 11-22. Paul's mission was to the Gentiles. He wanted not only to win them to Christ, but also to teach them of the position they had in Christ as members of His body. God revealed this to Paul and it was his responsibility to share it with the Gentile Christians.

The New Testament apostles and prophets had an unusual ministry and unusual authority in the early church. They did not speak according to their own insight, but they spoke what was revealed to them by God. Colossians 1:26 is a parallel passage to Ephesians 3:5. It states that that which was kept hidden in the past is now made manifest. That which was given to the apostles and prophets was what Paul made known. In this context the manifold wisdom of God does not refer to the redemption of mankind, but to the new relationship between believing Jews and Gentiles in one body. The church is God's medium to communicate this wisdom to angelic hosts in the heavenly realms. The rulers and authorities refer to both good and evil angels (see Ephesians 1:21 and 6:12). Angelic beings were created by God; they are not omniscient, omnipresent, nor omnipotent. Peter indicates that during the Old Testament angels were curious to look into God's plan of salvation being worked out on the earth (note 1 Peter 1:10-12). Paul indicates that angels watched the activities of the local church (see Corinthians 11:10). In 1 Corinthians 4:9 Paul says, "We are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels." Angels knew about God's power, but the wisdom of God revealed through the church was something new to them. The word "manifold" suggests the beauty and verity of God's wisdom in His great plan.

The manifold wisdom of God in this verse refers to the oneness of the believing Jews and Gentiles in the body of Christ. The rulers and authorities in heavenly realms are angelic beings, whether good or evil. As they observe the church they see the evidence of God's wisdom. This wisdom is seen in His "new creation"-the church, which is the body of Christ.

In this verse Paul says, "In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence." The word "freedom" literally means courage and boldness. The believer, who can go directly to the Father freely and confidently, may appropriate that which is accomplished through Christ at the cross. The Apostle John also encouraged us to have confidence as we approach our heavenly Father (note 1 John 5:14-15).