8. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God…

9. 1. Writer Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, 2. Recipient To the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus: 3. Greeting Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 4. Thanksgiving/Prayer Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ… 5. Body And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins…(2:1) 6. Farewell 23 Peace to the brethren, and love with faith… Ephesians and First Century Letter Format

14. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ…

15. APOSTLE (apostolos) Had seen the risen Christ

16. APOSTLE (apostolos) Had seen the risen Christ Had received their commission directly from the Lord

17. APOSTLE (apostolos) Had seen the risen Christ Had received their commission directly from the Lord Exercised a special inspiration

18. Exercised supreme authority

19. Worked miracles as a badge of their authority

20. Exercised supreme authority Worked miracles as a badge of their authority Given a commission to found churches

21. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God…

24. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints…

25. 1. NKJV …to the saints who are in Ephesus, 2. NIV …to God’s holy people in Ephesus 3. New Living …to God’s holy people in Ephesus 4. Common English …to the holy…people in Christ Jesus in Ephesus. 5. The Message I, Paul, am… writing to you faithful believers in Ephesus. Ephesians – Paul’s Audience

26. Just as Paul had been appointed by God to be an apostle, so too Christians in Ephesus – and today – had/have been separated by God unto God for the sole use of God for His service.

27. “There are only two kinds of people today: the saints and the aints. If you’re a saint, then you aint an aint. If you’re an aint, then you aint a saint.

28. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are: in Ephesus, and faithful

30. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are: in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus: Ephesians 1:1

31. The Christian faith is not a set of ideas or a nice road to follow. Rather, it is so deep an engagement with Christ, so deep a union with our Lord, that Paul only describes it as living in Christ. K. Snodgrass

33. We are not saints because of how we act – saints because of our position in Christ.

34. To live in Christ is to be shaped by Him. A person cannot be conscious of being enveloped by Christ and behave in ways totally out of keeping with His character.

35. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 1:2

36. Paul takes these two words – common greetings of the day – and gives them a powerful and elevated new meaning Paul always puts them in that order – grace before peace.

37. Paul takes these two words – common greetings of the day – and gives them a powerful and elevated new meaning Paul always puts them in that order – grace before peace. The grace of God is the means through which He saves us.

38. Paul takes these two words – common greetings of the day – and gives them a powerful and elevated new meaning Paul always puts them in that order – grace before peace. The grace of God is the means through which He saves us. The peace of God is the result of casting all our cares upon Him

39. 3 Blessed be [is] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ…

40. Prayers that open letters: Provide information about the concerns of and/or topics in the letter Occasion to express Paul’s love and concern for his Christian friends Opportunity for Paul to, in absentia, enter into the worship experience of the readers as they gathered together

41. The prayer in Ephesians is unique: long, one-sentence, doxology (3-14) thanksgiving (15-16) intercessory prayer (17-29)

42. 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing…

43. He blessed us, We praise Him with our lips because He first made us blessed

44. He blessed us, We praise Him with our lips because He first made us blessed Our blessing is a declaration His blessings are deeds

45. He blessed us, We praise Him with our lips because He first made us blessed Our blessing is a declaration His blessings are deeds We pronounce Him blessed He makes us blessed

47. 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, Ephesians 1:3

50. “There are only two kinds of people today: the saints and the aints. If you’re a saint, then you aint an aint. If you’re an aint, then you aint a saint. WHAT NEXT?

51. Just as Paul had been appointed by God to be an apostle, so too Christians today have been separated by God unto God for the sole use of God for His service. WHAT NEXT?