Post by Josh on Feb 10, 2007 11:10:47 GMT -8
9/17/06:
Selections taken from our Illumina software:
"In contrast to the letters to the Corinthians and the Galatians, Ephesians is a letter of encouragement. Paul describes the church as a dynamic fellowship of believers that functions as the living body of Christ on earth. Ephesians includes specific teaching on the implications of the Christian life for personal morality, marriage and family, and relationships between Christians in general.
MAJOR THEMES IN EPHESIANS
GOD’S PURPOSE
According to God’s eternal, loving plan, he directs, carries out, and sustains our salvation.
Importance: When we respond to Christ’s love by trusting in him, his purpose becomes our mission. Have you committed yourself to fulfilling God’s purpose?
CHRIST THE CENTER
Christ is exalted as the center of the universe and the focus of history. He is the head of the body, the church. He is the Creator and sustainer of all creation.
Importance: Because Christ is central to everything, his power must be central in us. Begin by placing all your priorities under his control.
LIVING CHURCH
Paul describes the nature of the church. The church, under Christ’s control, is a living body, a family, a dwelling. God gives believers special abilities by his Holy Spirit to build the church.
Importance: We are part of Christ’s body, and we must live in vital union with him. Our conduct must be consistent with this living relationship. Use your God-given abilities to equip believers for service. Fulfill your role in the living church.
NEW FAMILY
Because God through Christ paid our penalty for sin and forgave us, we have been reconciled—brought near to him. We are a new society, a new family. Being united with Christ means we are to treat one another as family members.
Importance: We are one family in Christ, so there should be no barriers, no divisions, no basis for discrimination. We all belong to him, so we should live in harmony with one another.
CHRISTIAN CONDUCT
Paul encourages all Christians to wise, dynamic Christian living, for with privileges goes family responsibility. As a new community, we are to live by Christ’s new standards.
Importance: God provides his Holy Spirit to enable us to live his way. To utilize the Spirit’s power, we must lay aside our evil desires and draw on the power of his new life. Submit your will to Christ, and seek to love others.
HISTORICAL SETTING
The words “in Ephesus” (1:1) are absent from the oldest Greek manuscripts. This may be accounted for in two ways: (1) The epistle may have been addressed to a single church but was later adapted to a general reading by the omission of the name, or (2) the epistle was originally written for general publication or for many churches, and one particular copy was addressed to the church at Ephesus.
Because Marcion knew this letter in the second century as the Epistle to the Laodiceans, copies of the letter may have been possessed originally by both Laodicea and Ephesus. The letter may have been intended to be read by a larger circle of Christian communities. Without the words “in Ephesus,” the address reads “to the saints who are also faithful in Christ Jesus.”
Paul first visited Ephesus on his second missionary journey (Acts 18:19). He also spent between two and three years of his third journey in Ephesus (Acts 19:8-10; 20:31). He left the city during a riot caused by silver craftsmen who felt their religion and trade were being threatened (Acts 19:24-28; 20:1). Paul later visited with the Ephesian elders at Miletus on his journey to Jerusalem (Acts 20:17-38).
The city ranked with Alexandria and Antioch of Syria as one of the most important cities of the eastern Mediterranean Roman world. It was a port city located on the Cayster River, three miles from the Aegean. It was an important city commercially as the starting place of a great overland trade route to the east.
Ephesus was the worship center of the Greek goddess Artemis (Diana in Latin). The temple of Artemis was 340 feet long, 160 feet wide, and richly decorated with 100 columns more than 55 feet high. The city was the guardian of the sacred image of Artemis, which was believed to have fallen from heaven (Acts 19:35).
AUTHOR
The Pauline authorship of Ephesians is attested both by internal and external evidence. Paul names himself twice in the letter (Ephesians 1:1; 3:1). Pauline authorship was also attested by the early church fathers. Only in recent times have liberal critics questioned Paul’s authorship of the letter to the Ephesians. They conclude that someone other than Paul was the author because the letter addressed the Ephesians as if they did not know Paul (3:2), and it did not mention anyone by name except the person who delivered it (6:21). But the letter may have been written by Paul to be read in several cities in the area of Ephesus. The oldest manuscripts of the letter do not have the phrase “in Ephesus” (1:1) but do contain Paul as the named author. This would explain the general nature of the letter and still maintain Pauline authorship.
DATE
Ephesians is the first of Paul’s Prison Epistles, the others being Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon (3:1; 4:1). Paul was in prison several times: Philippi (Acts 16:23); Jerusalem (Acts 23:18); Caesarea (Acts 23:33; 24:27; 25:14); and Rome (Acts 28:16, 20, 30). The imprisonments in Rome and Caesarea gave enough time for considerable correspondence. Since Paul anticipates in Philippians 1:19 and Philemon 1:22 his forthcoming release, and no such release was anticipated at Caesarea, it is most probable that Paul wrote the Prison Epistles, including Ephesians, during his first imprisonment at Rome, which lasted from A.D. 60 to 62.
PURPOSE
Paul’s letter to the Ephesians was designed to deepen the walk of Christians who had no major spiritual problems. Paul sought to enlighten them by recounting the greatness of their past sins, God’s great redemption, and the present power of the Spirit for waging victorious spiritual warfare.
GEOGRAPHY AND ITS IMPORTANCE
Paul spent over two years in this strategic city. Ephesus was the largest city in the province of Asia, with a population of around 300,000 people. The city had the best seaport in Asia and was an important trade center. It also boasted a refined culture and a well-known religion that worshiped in a massive temple built to honor the goddess Artemis, a daughter of Zeus."
Selections taken from our Illumina software:
"In contrast to the letters to the Corinthians and the Galatians, Ephesians is a letter of encouragement. Paul describes the church as a dynamic fellowship of believers that functions as the living body of Christ on earth. Ephesians includes specific teaching on the implications of the Christian life for personal morality, marriage and family, and relationships between Christians in general.
MAJOR THEMES IN EPHESIANS
GOD’S PURPOSE
According to God’s eternal, loving plan, he directs, carries out, and sustains our salvation.
Importance: When we respond to Christ’s love by trusting in him, his purpose becomes our mission. Have you committed yourself to fulfilling God’s purpose?
CHRIST THE CENTER
Christ is exalted as the center of the universe and the focus of history. He is the head of the body, the church. He is the Creator and sustainer of all creation.
Importance: Because Christ is central to everything, his power must be central in us. Begin by placing all your priorities under his control.
LIVING CHURCH
Paul describes the nature of the church. The church, under Christ’s control, is a living body, a family, a dwelling. God gives believers special abilities by his Holy Spirit to build the church.
Importance: We are part of Christ’s body, and we must live in vital union with him. Our conduct must be consistent with this living relationship. Use your God-given abilities to equip believers for service. Fulfill your role in the living church.
NEW FAMILY
Because God through Christ paid our penalty for sin and forgave us, we have been reconciled—brought near to him. We are a new society, a new family. Being united with Christ means we are to treat one another as family members.
Importance: We are one family in Christ, so there should be no barriers, no divisions, no basis for discrimination. We all belong to him, so we should live in harmony with one another.
CHRISTIAN CONDUCT
Paul encourages all Christians to wise, dynamic Christian living, for with privileges goes family responsibility. As a new community, we are to live by Christ’s new standards.
Importance: God provides his Holy Spirit to enable us to live his way. To utilize the Spirit’s power, we must lay aside our evil desires and draw on the power of his new life. Submit your will to Christ, and seek to love others.
HISTORICAL SETTING
The words “in Ephesus” (1:1) are absent from the oldest Greek manuscripts. This may be accounted for in two ways: (1) The epistle may have been addressed to a single church but was later adapted to a general reading by the omission of the name, or (2) the epistle was originally written for general publication or for many churches, and one particular copy was addressed to the church at Ephesus.
Because Marcion knew this letter in the second century as the Epistle to the Laodiceans, copies of the letter may have been possessed originally by both Laodicea and Ephesus. The letter may have been intended to be read by a larger circle of Christian communities. Without the words “in Ephesus,” the address reads “to the saints who are also faithful in Christ Jesus.”
Paul first visited Ephesus on his second missionary journey (Acts 18:19). He also spent between two and three years of his third journey in Ephesus (Acts 19:8-10; 20:31). He left the city during a riot caused by silver craftsmen who felt their religion and trade were being threatened (Acts 19:24-28; 20:1). Paul later visited with the Ephesian elders at Miletus on his journey to Jerusalem (Acts 20:17-38).
The city ranked with Alexandria and Antioch of Syria as one of the most important cities of the eastern Mediterranean Roman world. It was a port city located on the Cayster River, three miles from the Aegean. It was an important city commercially as the starting place of a great overland trade route to the east.
Ephesus was the worship center of the Greek goddess Artemis (Diana in Latin). The temple of Artemis was 340 feet long, 160 feet wide, and richly decorated with 100 columns more than 55 feet high. The city was the guardian of the sacred image of Artemis, which was believed to have fallen from heaven (Acts 19:35).
AUTHOR
The Pauline authorship of Ephesians is attested both by internal and external evidence. Paul names himself twice in the letter (Ephesians 1:1; 3:1). Pauline authorship was also attested by the early church fathers. Only in recent times have liberal critics questioned Paul’s authorship of the letter to the Ephesians. They conclude that someone other than Paul was the author because the letter addressed the Ephesians as if they did not know Paul (3:2), and it did not mention anyone by name except the person who delivered it (6:21). But the letter may have been written by Paul to be read in several cities in the area of Ephesus. The oldest manuscripts of the letter do not have the phrase “in Ephesus” (1:1) but do contain Paul as the named author. This would explain the general nature of the letter and still maintain Pauline authorship.
DATE
Ephesians is the first of Paul’s Prison Epistles, the others being Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon (3:1; 4:1). Paul was in prison several times: Philippi (Acts 16:23); Jerusalem (Acts 23:18); Caesarea (Acts 23:33; 24:27; 25:14); and Rome (Acts 28:16, 20, 30). The imprisonments in Rome and Caesarea gave enough time for considerable correspondence. Since Paul anticipates in Philippians 1:19 and Philemon 1:22 his forthcoming release, and no such release was anticipated at Caesarea, it is most probable that Paul wrote the Prison Epistles, including Ephesians, during his first imprisonment at Rome, which lasted from A.D. 60 to 62.
PURPOSE
Paul’s letter to the Ephesians was designed to deepen the walk of Christians who had no major spiritual problems. Paul sought to enlighten them by recounting the greatness of their past sins, God’s great redemption, and the present power of the Spirit for waging victorious spiritual warfare.
GEOGRAPHY AND ITS IMPORTANCE
Paul spent over two years in this strategic city. Ephesus was the largest city in the province of Asia, with a population of around 300,000 people. The city had the best seaport in Asia and was an important trade center. It also boasted a refined culture and a well-known religion that worshiped in a massive temple built to honor the goddess Artemis, a daughter of Zeus."