PPE-03 Paul and the Ephesians

People who have lived in more than one country often talk about how difficult it is to adapt to new cultures. Each nation has its own customs, values and laws. And what is appropriate in one nation isn’t necessarily appropriate in another. Business people, students, and even missionaries have to spend a lot of time learning the ways of the new nation where they reside. In many ways, the same is true of the Christian life. We were all born outside of Christ, separated from his kingdom. Many of us spent years learning and following the ways of the kingdom of darkness. And this presents challenges for us as we try to live according to the ways of our new nation, our new kingdom — the kingdom of light in Christ.

This challenge is nothing new. In the city of Ephesus, the first generation of Christians had to learn how to live in ways that were appropriate for the kingdom of Christ. Many Christians had been converted from pagan religions. They had spent much of their lives following the ways of Satan before they came to faith in Christ, and they found it difficult to change how they thought, felt and behaved. So, as the apostle Paul wrote from prison to the Ephesians, he directly addressed this challenge by painting a sweeping, cosmic portrait of life in the kingdom of God in Christ.

This is the third lesson in our series Paul’s Prison Epistles, and we’ve entitled it “Paul and the Ephesians.” In this lesson, we’ll investigate Paul’s epistle to the church in Ephesus. We’ll focus especially on ways he designed this letter to teach the Ephesians and their Christian neighbors how to build, maintain and thrive in God’s kingdom. Our exploration of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians will divide into three parts. First, we’ll examine the background of this letter. Second, we’ll look at its structure and content. And third, we’ll explore its modern application. Let’s begin with the background of Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians.

Christ called Paul as an apostle to provide authoritative teaching and leadership to the church. And Paul did this, in part, by writing letters while he was in prison. But Paul didn’t just want to spread theoretical doctrine or record it for posterity. First and foremost, he applied his teachings to the challenges facing particular churches. His letters were pastoral and caring, and they spoke directly to the problems that various churches faced in the first century. This means that, as we study Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, it helps to begin by asking questions like, “To whom was this letter written?” and “What significant issues were they facing?” Knowing the answers to questions like these will help us make greater sense of Paul’s teachings for the Ephesian church.