Who and How in Ephesians
that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, Ephesians 1:17-20 (NKJV)
that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:16-19 (NKJV)
The book of Ephesians is a great book. It is full of insights and practical information. No matter how many times I’ve read Ephesians, I always come away with something new and helpful every time I read it.
Paul wrote the epistle, or letter, to the Ephesians when he was imprisoned in Rome, around 60 AD. If you look at the overall theme of the book, you’ll see that chapters 1, 2 and 3 talk about who we are in Christ, and the remaining chapters speak to how we are to act in light of who we are. It reminds us that our good deeds come out of our relationship with the Lord and not the other way around.
Ephesians, and Corinth for that matter, were logging cities. The buyers who came to purchase wood would choose the specific logs and pieces they wanted. They would then put a seal on them, which showed who the lumber belonged to (Ephesians 1:13). Paul used this to illustrate to the Ephesians how God marks us as His own. When we accept Jesus, he places the seal of the Holy Spirit on us, showing Who we belong to. We’ve been purchased out of the kingdom of the wicked one, and now we are the redeemed of the Lord. The Holy Spirit in us is the guarantee of everything we inherit through the shed blood of Jesus- both in this life and in eternity.
Ephesians tells us that when God raised Jesus from the dead and seated Him in heavenly places, far above everything and everyone, he also raised us right along with Him. We are truly positioned above it all, because when God raised Christ, the Head, He also raised the Body- that’s us. It tells us that all things are under Jesus’ feet, therefore all things are under our feet too! We are in perfect position to step on the neck of the devil and keep him down.
The book of Ephesians contains two passages that are excellent to decree and declare over your life. Ephesians 1:17-20 and 3:16-19, both shown above, can be used as prayers and confessions. I would encourage you to make them a regular part of your devotional time.
This barely scratches the surface of the truths contained in Ephsians. Take some time and read or reread it. Meditate on what God shows you, and be reminded of who you are and how you should live.
