Ephesians 3
Chapter 3
(Verse 1-5) (1) Paul starts to pray for the people and then goes on to explain why he’s called a prisoner of Christ. He is writing this letter to the church in Ephesus from jail. He wan’t just arrested for preaching the gospel, he was arrested because the Truth was radical and it was uniting people that had never been united before. (2) Paul was a prisoner of Christ for the the gentiles but God gave him grace for that roll because it was his calling. (3-5) Paul talks about a mysterious plan. They plan that he’s referring to is the plan for unity in Christ. God wan’t trying to keep some big secret, he simply knew the perfect time to reveal his master plan to his people and who he was going to use to bring about that revelation because he is sovereign.
(Verses 6-13) The mystery that God revealed to Paul is that the Jews and Gentiles should unite as one body in Christ Jesus because the Gospel is for EVERYONE. (7) Unity is not just the side effect of salvation, it is the whole purpose of it. This is the good news that Paul was called to spread. Paul was called to reach outsiders and he considered it a privilege to be chosen for this task because he knew he was only there by the grace of God. (8) Paul called himself the least deserving of all God’s people because he knew he could never serve God without God. So, he humbled himself to let the gentiles know that they are worthy of his suffering. We are all united under the power of God. Paul was a spiritual hero in the eyes of many but he had the correct heart posture and saw it as a privilege to be used by God even though he was persecuted for it. Because of this, God was able to use him powerfully and equip him for his calling. (10-11) God’s divine plan was of course to save the world by sending Jesus to die and live for the forgiveness of our sins but his plan was also to raise up a church that would point to HIS glory. (12) We can have confidence to approach God because we know that we are not coming as just our sinful selves but as children adopted into the family. Wr have freedom in God because when he looks at us, he sees his son.
Verses (14-20) Paul continues his prayer for the gentiles letting them know that everyone is united under Christ because they’ve been adopted into the family of God and now share a father. He prayers for their spiritual growth and understanding of God’s love (17) To produce the fruit of God, we must be rooted in God’s love. (18)By understanding God’s love for us, we develop our love for him. However, because God is God, his love is too big for us to fully comprehend all at once. therefore our relationship with him is a journey of continually understanding his love for us and how empowers us to do his will.(19) One of the most beautiful prayers is that we might come to really know the full extent of God’s love. (20-21) God is so God that often times we can’t even imagine what he has in store for us so we just have to praise him in advance because we know that when we we trust in him, he will use our lives to fulfill his great plans in the earth.
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