THE EPISTLE OF PAUL TO THE EPHESIANS

Ephesians, like most of Paul's other epistles to the Gentile churches, was written during his imprisonment in Rome. Addressing the believers in the church of Ephesus, the letter was written to address three principal points. Firstly, to explain the establishment of a spiritual body (the church) to both represent and manifest Christ's presence on earth, which at that time was appreciated by the believers as a mystery revealed to them, contrary to the kind of common knowledge it is to the churches of today. Secondly, it was written to affirm God's plan in bringing about the unification of the Jews and the Gentiles, bearing the message that in Christ, there is now neither Jew nor Gentile. Finally, the epistle concludes with instructions on how the church could guard itself against powers of evil influences.

As we come to these three points that make up the central message of this epistle, we will come across some spiritual fundamentals that every person in the Lord should be possessor of. For these truths not only set us free, but they also point us to our rightful places in the spiritual realms, which in turn puts us on grounds on which we can stand and remain in victorious living all our days in Christ.

Let us begin by considering our position in Christ:

Wealth in Christ (Eph. 1 - 3)

It always helps and refreshes us when we consider our position in Christ as His church, for when we do that, our minds are illumined by the truth and that helps us appreciate the magnitude of His love and sacrifice for us so that we may know and take up our authority against the kingdom of darkness as He meant for us to. David correctly perceived his authority as a victorious warrior in God; that opened the way for God's power to flow through him as he slew the enemy Goliath.

In chapter 1 of Ephesians, it is written that God predestined us to adoption as sons through Christ and that He also predestined us to receive an inheritance with Christ (Eph.1:5; 11). Beyond that, He also gave the Holy Spirit to us as a seal of that promise, and as a guarantee to our inheritance in His Son. With God's Holy Spirit given to us, even gentiles, who were formerly precluded from the blessings of the covenant of God, have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places (Eph.1:3) through the riches of the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The ideal Christian life therefore begins with a discovery and a reckoning of the kind of relationship and authority we have with God. Comprehending the depth and magnitude of His love and gift to us is very necessary even before we get deeper involved in serving Him. This is because when we know what God has given us, we will discover that He has actually given us all things that are needed in our service unto Him. Whenever God makes a request of us, He provides us with grace sufficient to meet that demand. With all that, every standard of performance God requires of us in our service would be within our achievement. Which is therefore no wonder that Paul should believe he was able to do all things through Christ who strengthens him (Phil.4:13).

Consider the occasion in which Abraham sent out his servant to find a bride for his son Issac. Among all the many duties that a servant in a typical household manages, finding a wife for his master's son must be one of the biggest responsibilities a servant can undertake. In order to decide on a suitable woman for his master's son, the servant must know what pleases his master and what does not. It is therefore not surprising that of all the supposedly many servants in his household the one appointed by Abraham for the task was "the oldest servant of his house, who ruled over all that he had" (Gen. 24:2). This servant must have been one who was familiar with the inclinations of Abraham, for only then will he be able to make a choice that meets with his master's approval. So to him, Abraham entrusted his possessions and gave him the power to make a decision on his behalf: "for all his master's goods were in his hand" (Gen. 24:10).

Like this servant, we also have our master's goods in our hands since God "has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ" (Eph. 1:3), and like the servant who ruled over all that he had, we have been given to "sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Eph. 2:6). In Christ, we have both the means and the power to answer God's purpose. So we rest in our labour, since we really use only what God has given us to serve Him. However, a lack enlightenment as to what we own in Christ blinds many from seeing this truth, and has the dangerous potential of driving any earnest God-loving believer into exhausting all his mind and resources in serving God. Some people caught here may even find themselves inadvertently distracted from cultivating an intimacy with God, which is valued above all the goodness of his work added together.

Such riches that we have in Christ, as we know, are gained on account of His sacrifice - and we have no claims whatsoever to the riches of heaven, except in the name of the Lord Jesus. Now, when we ask of the Father, He gives to us, not because it is merited by us, but on the sole account of what Christ has done. Therefore, our service unto the Lord is really our taking what is of God's and returning it to Him by blessing His people with His gift. This is how the Christian life is: it begins with the discovery of what God has provided for us and then taking those gifts and blessing the peoples with them through our ministry.

Taking a look at revivals, we might probably realise that most of them are a re-discovery of our position in Christ (who we are), and of what we have in Him. From the Protestants' movement of living by faith - to the Holiness' movement of sanctification - the Pentecostal movement of speaking in tongue - and finally the restoration of the gift of the fivefold ministry to the body of Christ - these are not "new" movements of the Holy Spirit as is commonly understood, but are really gifts and qualities that existed before us in the former glory of the early church. Revivals therefore do not bring with them "new" things, but restoration of the things that were. If only we lived in more revelation and reckoning that whatever is needed is already provided we would be more efficient in serving the Lord we love. Our labour for the Lord will therefore cease to be the laborious work that many are familiar with, but as the Lord promised, we would find His yoke easy and His burden light (Matt. 11:30). Thus let us "be diligent to enter that rest" (Heb.4:11).

According to Paul, we are seated with Christ in the heavenly places (Eph. 1:20, 2:6). This is a position of authority in which we remain so long as we are in Christ. From this position of authority we fulfil God's calling for our lives. So, serving God does not always have to be a demanding call that consists of arduous work and taxing endeavours, since in Christ, we have all that will ever be needed to accomplish our purpose in Him. For this reason, Paul prayed that the Ephesians might have the right perception of who they are in Christ.

Praying for spiritual perception (Eph. 1:15-23)

It is not always easy for anyone who has just learnt about a truth to immediately grasp it and make practical application out of it right away - especially when it comes to the perception of spiritual things. Many times, we would need the Holy Spirit to lead us into the enlightenment and perception of spiritual truths and later to guide us as to how we could walk in them. Just like the servant who could not see the Lord's aid until Elisha uttered a prayer for his eyes to be opened so he could behold the Lord's army that was more numerous than the enemies. The help was there - the provision has been made yet the servant did not see it, nor did he perceive it until the prayer was made for him to be spiritually enlightened (2 Kgs. 6:15-17). On similar account, we cannot always rely on teachings and preaching to impart certain spiritual qualities to God's people. Instead, we may need to pray for them, for the Holy Spirit to lift the veil from their eyes and reveal the mysteries of the divine to them.

The sacredness of spiritual wisdom and revelation is one such quality that is mobilised by prayer rather than taught. Paul desired for the Ephesians to arrive at the knowledge of God and of the spiritual authority and rights they possess in Christ. However, he did not try to teach them these things through another epistle or by preaching to them. Instead, Paul prayed for the spirit of wisdom and revelation to be imparted to the Ephesians so that they would gain a divine insight in these things (Eph. 1:16-21).

Why did Paul not write to them to teach them, but instead prayed for them to receive instead? There could be a number of reasons why he did that, but one reason could be that there are certain things that could only be experienced as they occur and not taught. As we ask of God to grant us insight and perception into things of the spirit that are beyond intellectual understanding, He removes the scales from our eyes and enables us to see and to perceive as He unveils the mysteries of the divine to us.

Hard as we might try, we can at most lead God's people into knowledge of the truth, but to lead people into truth itself is a task only God's Holy Spirit can fulfil. That makes it necessary for us to pray that God will bring us to deeper spiritual insights and perceptions that we might come to discover divine wisdom and revelation that God has intended for us.

It is most important that our hearts and souls comprehend what the Lord has placed in our lives, for if we do not have that reckoning within, it is easy for us to be led away and deceived into serving God and His people using the wisdom of our natural minds and the strength of our own flesh instead of resting in the spirit and allowing God's power to move through us. However, if we constantly lay to heart our identity in Christ and what we have in Him, we can experience all that the Lord has intended for us in abundance and not lack anything for what we are called to be and do.

"Jesus answered and said to her, 'If you know the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink', you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.'.... whoever drinks of the water I give to him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in Him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life." (John 4:10, 13)

To the woman at the well whom He asked for water, the Lord Jesus told that if she were to know the gift of God and who He was, she would never thirst again. We believe it is a spiritual knowing that Jesus was talking about there, since the kind of natural acquaintance that the multitudes had with Him did not give them the fountain of water that the Lord spoke about. Therefore, it is very important for us to know God and the gift of God in our lives so that we will never lack anything (thirst). This is not a theory or principle that it could be taught, but an experience to be known when we go deeper in the relationship we have with the Lord, taking the time to muse on who He is and on what He has so lovingly and sacrificially done for us.

The wealth of our condition in Christ (Eph. 2:1-10)

This is perhaps the most basic fundamental of our being in Christ. Formerly, before we were found in Christ, we were kept under the spiritual bondage of sin that ruled the world. However, when Christ came into our lives, He took hold of that in us which was oppressing us and set us free in the spirit to "sit with Him in the heavenly places" (Eph. 2:6). The Word of God says that we were "by nature children of wrath", which suggests that nothing but the pains of wrath was awaiting us simply because of who we were and what we had been. However, because Christ came to free us from that bondage, He has delivered us from that fate that was previously awaiting us. Now we are no longer "children of wrath", but "heirs to salvation", in Christ.

What great comfort for anyone who can comprehend the magnitude of what that deliverance does for us. To be saved from the torment of wrath and be elevated to a position of spiritual significance out of nothing deserving that we have done is one great gift from God that having received we ought to gratefully thank Him for. Because of the great sacrifice the Lord has done for us, our fate is forever altered and our destiny forever changed, for the better.

The wealth of our relation in Christ (Eph. 2:11-22)

Because of what the Lord Jesus Christ has done for us, we have not only been set free from the wrath of eternal judgment but we have also by that deliverance entered into the blessings of the new covenant that was created on the account of His sacrifice. As correctly said by Paul, we were once "strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world", but "in Christ Jesus (we) who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ" (Eph. 2:12-13). These words form the heart of our relationship with God today. We who were formerly outsiders to the promises of God have now entered into a covenant with Him that surpassed even the former one in glory and promise. This new relationship with God establishes also the way of access to Him, through His Holy Spirit, for "through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father" (Eph. 2:18). Having gained that privilege of entering the presence of God without an intermediary, we are no longer foreigners to the kingdom of God, but through the Lord Jesus we have gained the status of kinship with Father God.

This new relationship that God established for us through the sacrifice of Christ is not one that's given to the Jews at the exclusion of the Gentiles. Rather, it is God's intention to join and forge a unity between both races, which brings us to the central of the divine mystery that Paul spoke of in Eph. 1:9.

The divine mystery (Eph. 3:1-13)

"....it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets: that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel, of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God..." (Eph. 3:6-7)

It was imperative to point out that the new covenant established by the Lord Jesus embraces not just the Jews but the Gentiles, as well. This may not seem news at all to us living today, but to the people of that time, it must have been like big news revealed to them, on the account that all along until the time Christ died for us, Gentiles were a separate race from the Jews (the chosen race of God) and were kept out of whatever promise and covenantal relationship the Jews had with God. To proclaim that the Gentiles are now party to the covenant God established with men was a big revelation to the people, the announcement of a big blessing of which we are the grateful beneficiaries.

This mystery hidden in the earlier ages became known to the church through God's holy apostles and prophets (Eph.3:5), who built the foundation for the church (Eph.2:20). We can imagine God's plan still being a mystery today had it not been for His holy apostles and prophets who faithfully heard from Him and conveyed the message to all the churches - which brings us to appreciate the apostolic and prophetic ministry in our churches today. The Lord's apostles and prophets are usually stewards of revelation gifts. In the Old Testament, God used prophets to reveal and carry out his plan and purpose for His people; and in the New Testament, He continues to reveal secrets to His prophets but this time to the apostles, as well. Today, as we witness the restoration of the apostolic and prophetic ministries in our churches, we can be sure God is doing a new thing in our time and strengthening the pillars of His church to make them as strong, if not stronger, as those in the days of old. As such, the readiness and humbleness in receiving the ministries of the apostles and the prophets will help the Church greatly in benefiting from God's blessings the two ministries bring.

A prayer to receive divine fullness (Eph. 3:14-21)

In these verses, Paul prayed that the Ephesians might dwell in the richness of the knowledge of the love of Christ. He prayed that they might know His love that they might be filled with the fullness of God. This shows how important it must be for us to arrive at this knowledge of God and His love that Paul prayed about, for this would be the second instance he uttered a prayer like this. This first time he prayed for the Ephesians was in chapter one when he asked that their eyes be enlightened to know God; and now he prays for them to know the love of God. Very clearly, Paul was stressing on the importance of laying hold of God's person Himself i.e. of all His promises, blessings and love etc. If this were not of great significance, Paul would not have prayed two prayers of similar nature.

Knowing this, may we be encouraged to press towards this goal of knowing God and understanding the fullness of His love - for herein lies the secret to being filled with the fullness of God (Eph.3:19).

Walking in our calling (Eph. 2:10)

"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." (Eph. 2:10)

From Paul's words above, it is plain to see that each one of us has been specially created in Christ Jesus for a calling. After one receives the Lord Jesus, he also receives a calling that is special unto him apart from anybody else. It is in Christ, that we receive this calling. That being said, it is just as important that we remain in our calling and not stray from it. Like what Paul reminded the Corinthians, we ought to "remain in the same calling in which (we were) called" (1 Cor. 7:20).

In the presence of so many kinds of ministry we have in serving God, it is easy for anyone to tread on the path not paved for him and to neglect the path that was meant for him to walk on. It is thus necessary for every person to seek out that calling they have in Christ and then watch that they walk in that calling to the fulfilment of it.

Walk in Christian character (Eph. 4:1,17; 5:2,8)

In Christ, we have this special call which is reserved for us to fulfil, but everyone of us also receives the general call as a Christian to "walk worthy of the calling" in which we were called (Eph. 4:1). Besides knowing God and His ways, we also have to walk in Christ. By walking "in Christ", we mean conducting ourselves in such a way that the Christlikeness in us cannot be missed by the people around us. In speaking of this, Paul identified three areas in which we could do that.

Walking in our new man

First, we ought to forsake the old ways and former concepts of mind and adopting the renewed frame of thoughts, pattern our lives after that which have been instructed to us by the counsel of God's word.

"...you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind,...... and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness." (Eph. 2:17, 23-24)

Since we have been redeemed from the fallen nature we should cease going about in the ways of life we were previously accustomed to. The Word of God exhorts us to re-orientate our thoughts and make adjustments to our attitudes and character in such manner that we put on the godly image that was intended for us from the beginning to which we have now been restored, through the work of Christ. In 2 Cor.5:10, we are told "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new". The words "new creation" can be interpreted to mean new species. Thus, as new species on planet earth, we should not incline ourselves to old ways, but should instead live according to the new principles and precepts set before us.

Walking in Love

One of the qualities that should be reflected in our walk as a Christian is love, which brings us to the second point here.

"And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God ..." (Eph. 5:2)

So we not only walk in holiness and righteousness, but we are also exhorted to emulate Christ's sacrificial love for the people around Him. It is of great concern that we should reflect the love of Christ in our dealings with others, for this is the hallmark of a Christian, so the Lord says:

"If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit." (1 John 4:12-13)

Because it is generally not possible for the world to behold the Lord Jesus now, it is therefore dependent on us to manifest His nature in the way we conduct ourselves. Again, as earlier discussed, we do not make use of our own determination to love one another. Rather, we yield to the sovereignty of the Spirit within us and use what He has given us to fulfil the Lord's command to love. For "the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us." (Rom. 5:5). With the love that has been given to us, God enables and empowers us to love others.

Amidst the striking revivals and exciting restorations taking place today, what is one of the world's greatest needs is love. The whole purpose of the restoration of the fivefold ministry gifts to the church is that the church may come to the maturity of Christ: " till we all come to the unity of faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullest of Christ" (Eph.4:13). And Christ is love. That we might not present ourselves a stumbling block to that purpose of God, we ought to walk in that love and not judge another or react to circumstances according to our own perceived righteousness .

Walking in wisdom

Apart from walking in godliness and in love, Paul adds that we should also walk in wisdom:

"See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because they days are evil." (Eph. 5:15)

The Bible teaches us to be wise in our living - not to take after foolishness but to conduct ourselves in wisdom. The wisdom that Paul speaks of here is not the kind of intellectual ability that one individual may possess in larger quantity over another. Rather, it speaks of the kind of godly wisdom that is imparted to us through the spirit of truth.

"For You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom." (Ps. 51:6)

How does God make us to "know wisdom"? When we possess "truth in the inward parts". Jesus is the truth - when we have Him in our "inward parts" i.e. heart and spirit, we walk in truth, and are promised that we will know wisdom. So again, wisdom is another thing not sought out from books or other conventional sources, but is to be sought out from the relationship we have with the Lord, for it is He who will "make (us) to know wisdom."

While sitting speaks in relation to our position in Christ and walking in relation to the practical expression of that status, the secret of enduring victory in these two aspects, however, is largely dependent on how we yield and submit to God's mighty working in us, that is, standing in Christ, or abiding in Him (Phil 2:12-13).

Standing in Christ (Eph. 6:11,13-14)

In all three verses referred to above, the recurring word "stand" must catch our attention, surely - which is the position that we must maintain, if we were to live victoriously in the face of adversities and trials.

When we read the word "stand" in the above verses, it means to "hold the ground" which is to say we keep it in position. What then is our ground? In all spiritual understanding, it is victorious ground we are standing on, for Christ has won the victory for us, and so long as we remain in Him, we also become bearers of that same victory that has been secured through the resurrection of Christ.

"For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world - our faith." (1 John 5:4)

Since it is "our faith" that overcomes the world, it therefore becomes important where we put our faith. Rightly speaking, our faith is in Christ Jesus, and if we continues to be in Christ, then we also overcomes the world. So, the power living in us has already won the victory and we only need to remain in Him to be in continuous victory.

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Cor. 15:57)

Therefore we do not fight for victory (since we have it already), but we hold the victory ground. The key is to abide in Christ, for God makes us victorious, but this only on Christ's account (1 Cor. 15:57). Therefore, we do not need to overcome the enemy on our own strength (we are unable to anyway), but we only need to remain in the more supreme force (Christ) and let Him lead us to overcome with His strength and power.

“ I want to remind you that your strength must come from the Lord’s mighty power within you” (Eph.6:10 T.L.B)

There are three kingdoms existing in this world: the invisible kingdom of darkness, the visible realm of our physical world and, the invisible kingdom of God. The invisible kingdom of darkness is at present the controlling force and influence in our physical world, for "the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one" (1 Jn.5:19). So anyone who continues living according to the standards of this world under its principles and precepts will automatically come under the control and influence of the kingdom of darkness. On the other hand, he whose life is in Christ, and who therefore lives according to the principles of God's kingdom will come apart from the sphere of influence dominated by the kingdom of darkness, into the light where he stands in victory over the evil ones.

Christ has come to suffer and die so as to create this kingdom for us to take refuge in while we live on this earth. It is the only place where we can live out the abundant life of righteousness peace and joy God has purposed for us. Let us not let down His sacrifice. Let us abide in Him and dwell in His holy kingdom of light, not neglecting also to bring others to it.