Ephesians is the Mt. Everest of the whole Bible. It's scope is cosmic. It reveals God's purpose in Christ for the whole universe, and the central role of the church in that purpose. Ephesians is about us, the believers.
Whereas Colossians is about Christ and the sufficiency of Christ for the church, Ephesians is about us, about our relation to Christ, and what that means for us. In no other book of the Bible is the preciousness of the believer to God made so well known.
In Ephesians, Paul confirms what we have already been taught in the gospels--that the benefits which are brought to us by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ are so excellent that we are extremely ungrateful if we are not satisfied with them and are always jockeying to get more of this world. He shows us the excellency of what we have in Christ so we will look to him and not seek help anywhere else because Christ has taken care of everything for us. Christ has so well provided for us that if we use what he has provided, we shall have complete happiness. So let's look at the blessings God has provided for the church.
Eph 1:2:
Grace (to you) - God's unmerited favor, the source of all our blessings--our salvation is by God's grace, our power over sin is by God's grace, our spiritual growth is by God's grace, our wisdom and understanding is by God's grace, so when Paul prays for grace, he is praying for the fountain of all blessing.
and peace to you - peace with God (no peace without grace), we have laid down our arms against him, are no longer in rebellion against his will, have ceased our hostility, are in harmony and unity with him, reconciled to him, for I am his enemy (Ro 5:10) until his grace brings me to faith and I come out of rebellion against him.
from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ - no peace, no grace but from God the Father. Grace and peace do not come from God as Creator, but only from our special relation to God as Father, through saving faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Eph 1:3:
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ - so great are the privileges of our faith that Paul gives them in the form of praise to God. Let's see why.
who has blessed us - past tense, done deal.
in the heavenly realms - he gave us everything there is to give, God has nothing more to give, from heaven (Christ), which includes all blessings that prepare us for heaven. And that means that our lives are grounded in the divine realm (sphere) and they are worked out in and from that realm, that as believers who are in Christ, our lives are not grounded on earth only--we live in a divine realm, and only those in Christ live in that divine realm, all others are excluded.
with all spiritual blessings - 1) those whom God blesses, he blesses with all spiritual blessings.
2) spiritual blessings, not material blessings. We have no promise of material blessings. Those to whom the Father gives Christ, the blessing, he gives all spiritual blessings, he holds nothing back. "He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him for us (believers) all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" (Ro 8:32).
God does not bless that way with earthly blessings. Some he blesses with health, some with wealth, etc. But when he blesses spiritually; i.e., when he gives Christ, he is blessing with all spiritual blessings.
in Christ - all our blessings from God come down through Christ. Just as all our prayers and worship go to God through Christ--"no one goes to the Father but through me" (Jn 14:6b), so all our blessings from God come the same way, through Christ. He is the mediator, the go-between, between God and man--believing man.
Whereas Colossians is about Christ and the sufficiency of Christ for the church, Ephesians is about us, about our relation to Christ, and what that means for us. In no other book of the Bible is the preciousness of the believer to God made so well known.
In Ephesians, Paul confirms what we have already been taught in the gospels--that the benefits which are brought to us by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ are so excellent that we are extremely ungrateful if we are not satisfied with them and are always jockeying to get more of this world. He shows us the excellency of what we have in Christ so we will look to him and not seek help anywhere else because Christ has taken care of everything for us. Christ has so well provided for us that if we use what he has provided, we shall have complete happiness. So let's look at the blessings God has provided for the church.
Eph 1:2:
Grace (to you) - God's unmerited favor, the source of all our blessings--our salvation is by God's grace, our power over sin is by God's grace, our spiritual growth is by God's grace, our wisdom and understanding is by God's grace, so when Paul prays for grace, he is praying for the fountain of all blessing.
and peace to you - peace with God (no peace without grace), we have laid down our arms against him, are no longer in rebellion against his will, have ceased our hostility, are in harmony and unity with him, reconciled to him, for I am his enemy (Ro 5:10) until his grace brings me to faith and I come out of rebellion against him.
from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ - no peace, no grace but from God the Father. Grace and peace do not come from God as Creator, but only from our special relation to God as Father, through saving faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Eph 1:3:
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ - so great are the privileges of our faith that Paul gives them in the form of praise to God. Let's see why.
who has blessed us - past tense, done deal.
in the heavenly realms - he gave us everything there is to give, God has nothing more to give, from heaven (Christ), which includes all blessings that prepare us for heaven. And that means that our lives are grounded in the divine realm (sphere) and they are worked out in and from that realm, that as believers who are in Christ, our lives are not grounded on earth only--we live in a divine realm, and only those in Christ live in that divine realm, all others are excluded.
with all spiritual blessings - 1) those whom God blesses, he blesses with all spiritual blessings.
2) spiritual blessings, not material blessings. We have no promise of material blessings. Those to whom the Father gives Christ, the blessing, he gives all spiritual blessings, he holds nothing back. "He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him for us (believers) all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" (Ro 8:32).
God does not bless that way with earthly blessings. Some he blesses with health, some with wealth, etc. But when he blesses spiritually; i.e., when he gives Christ, he is blessing with all spiritual blessings.
in Christ - all our blessings from God come down through Christ. Just as all our prayers and worship go to God through Christ--"no one goes to the Father but through me" (Jn 14:6b), so all our blessings from God come the same way, through Christ. He is the mediator, the go-between, between God and man--believing man.
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