Ephesians: Starting out

I have always had a soft spot for the book of Ephesians.

Firstly, I’ve been to the ruined City of Ephesus on an epic day trip from Marmaris in Turkey. Most people fancied another day on the beach. Keir and I fancied something a bit different. A bit of history. And we certainly got it. Amazing ruins. Museum full of interesting insights in to the life of those who lived there. Interesting tour guides. Just a shame about the crowds.

Second, as teenager I went on a church weekend away and one of the local Methodist ministers was leading the study on Ephesians.  He spoke for at least 8 hours over the weekend, and it was captivating. He knew his Greek language and his Roman history. He reached behind the familiar “proof” texts to unpack what was there. I have long since lost the copious notes I took that weekend, but during the next month, I hope to catch a glimpse of what inspired me 30 odd years ago and to share that with you.

A little context…

Those that study such things think this may have been a circular letter intended to be read by several of the churches Paul visited or established during his journeys. It was probably written about AD60 – around 30 years after Jesus’ death and resurrection. This is the same period that Colossians was written and there are some similarities between the two books.

The city of Ephesus is agreed to be most important city in western Asia Minor (now Turkey) during its time. It had an important harbour that opened into the Cayster River and then on to the sea. That is hard to imagine now as the sea is almost three miles from the ruined city as water levels have changed and the river has silted up, a factor that led to the city’s demise.

Of course, Helen has already taken us through Acts where we joined Paul briefly in Ephesus at the Pagan Temple of Diana in Acts 19. And now many years later, Paul is writing to the church there with some encouragement. Unlike so many of his letters, he is not writing to chastise over an error in teaching or the people living sinful lives. He writes to expand their vision and to lift their eyes to the heavens.

So let’s begin…

I, Paul, am under God’s plan as an apostle, a special agent of Christ Jesus, writing to you faithful believers in Ephesus. I greet you with the grace and peace poured into our lives by God our Father and our Master, Jesus Christ. Acts 1:1-2

This is the first two verses from The Message. (I won’t use The Message every day as some of the meaning in Ephesians is a little hidden in the biblical versions which aim to be more readable.)

I love this idea that Paul is a Special Agent and we are on his side. He greets them with grace and peace – there is no peace without grace and no grace without experiencing the peace of Christ. Wow! What a start.

So, your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to join me over the next few weeks to explore Ephesians and to unpack especially what it means to live “in Christ”. That phrase in the Greek – en Cristoj (pronounced “en christos”) – is used throughout Ephesians and unpacking it will be key to how we read this book.

Now brace yourself, this tape will self destruct in ten seconds…