Ephesians
“The Church of Ephesus”
[Read Eph 1]
There is a problem with the Letter to the Ephesians.
There is no problem!
Unlike the other letters sent to the churches – Ephesians is not trying to sort out problems or factions in the church.
It is not like, say, Corinthians. With all its dysfunction!
Not like the letters of John dealing with poisonous and subtle variations of the message of Jesus.
Ephesians is pure.
It has been variously described as (quoted in The Message of Ephesians (BST) John Stott (Leicester: IVP, 1979), 15-16.)
“The crown of St Paul’s writing”; “the divinest composition of man”; “the Queen of the epistles”.
The former president of Princeton (John Mackay) wrote “To this book I owe my life.”
Chapter 1 is a glorious, if not overwhelming, declaration and pronouncement of the wonder of what God has done.
It is a triumphant celebration of the immense power of God; and the way He has lavished His love upon people.
Of the place of the church and her members. Of the legacy and inheritance which is theirs.
Yours.
It is dizzying stuff.
Powerful prayers and doctrine and gifts from God.
Hard to take it all in; hard to absorb it – but it is wonderful trying!
Ephesus was a happening place too.
In Acts 19-20, Paul’s time is described there.
It involves the discovery of believers there about the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
The account of the seven sons of Sceva; the huge burning of occult and magic books; the riot.
Oh yes – the riot.
Because of the impact of Paul’s ministry – those who sold silver shrines and idols of the pagan goddess Artemis – were increasingly and seriously out of pocket.
You might say – the Gospel caused a recession.
So a riot broke out – and mob rule took over.
My favourite part of the account is in verse 32:
"The assembly was in confusion: Some were shouting one thing, some another. Most of the people did not even know why they were there." (Acts 19:32)
And to this church – then – we have this beautiful letter.
To appreciate this letter – especially as we begin to engage with it – there is an important exercise for us to attend to.
Especially as we take in the majesty of Eph 1.
Especially because – given it is the Word of God – we also quite rightly, lose ourselves in the majestic sweep of the words of Eph 1.
There are two bookends to consider.
One bookend refers to an incident before the Letter to the Ephesians was sent; and the second bookend to something which happened after the Letter to the Ephesians was sent.
This “before and after” – are crucial to attend to in order that we ensure we are being honest about our reading of Eph 1. And the rest of the epistle for that matter.
The first bookend is Acts 20:28-29.
After three years with the Ephesians, Paul speaks his final words to them before leaving them for good.
" "Keep watch over yourselves and over all the flock, of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God that he obtained with the blood of his own Son. I know that after I have gone, savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Some even from your own group will come distorting the truth in order to entice the disciples to follow them." (Acts 20:28-30)
(In fact – read on for the full sense of this final speech of Paul’s).
So – here in the early days of the church – they receive this warning from Paul. And it is couched in rich language (drawing on Father, Son and Spirit) and all the while – a haunting warning about what they must guard against.
That is the first bookend.
The second bookend, which is after the Letter to the Ephesians was sent, is found in Rev 2.
These are the words of Jesus Himself.
" “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands: “I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance. I know that you cannot tolerate evildoers; you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them to be false. I also know that you are enduring patiently and bearing up for the sake of my name, and that you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember then from what you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. Yet this is to your credit: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. To everyone who conquers, I will give permission to eat from the tree of life that is in the paradise of God." (Revelation 2:1-7)
The first bookend warns against those who would come in among the church and cause havoc.
The second bookend comments on the effect of the way they have tried to guard against that threat and combat it.
They have kept to the truth – but they have lost their love.
They are “right” – but they do not love.
And this second bookend comes with a warning. To continue with this loss of love has awful consequences.
The love that has been lost is even towards each other – as each is viewed with suspicion.
They have left their first love.
Both their love of God and their love of each other:
It is reminiscent of God’s plea through Jeremiah:
"Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem, Thus says the Lord: I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed me in the wilderness, in a land not sown." (Jeremiah 2:2)
And so – here we are.
We have this glorious message from God in Eph 1.
And it sandwiched between the reality of evil which actively works against God and His people; and reality of the loss of love for God and others as the church defends herself from such a threat.
And so the message of Eph 1 is lost on such a church.
Such a church has become cold and blind.
In fact – such a church can even become proud. Proud that they have the truth; proud of their knowledge.
But so, so lacking!
They have every appearance of being right, proper and orthodox – but there is no heart.
No warmth.
They attend to good works and they know their Bible and doctrine – but that first love has gone.
It is not one or the other. Oh – do not for a moment think that to be a “loving” church means that no work or attention needs to be given to correct Biblical understanding and doctrine.
It is both. Truth and love.
The Way, the Truth and the Life.
To really consider if Eph 1 is really ours to indulge in with good conscience – we must consider how we have engaged with the two bookends in question.
How we have taken seriously the prospect of threats to the life and mission of the church; of our own discipleship.
Whether we as a church, and as disciples, in preparing and responding to such threats have lost our first love.
For God.
For each other.
These two bookends must be considered if we are to truly take in the majesty of Eph 1.
They are reality checks.
As a church, as a disciple – who do you consider as the enemy?
And by “enemy” – I am thinking of people.
Who – in your view – threatens the church’s health and stability? Her life?
Who is the enemy?
They might be within or without the church.
If you have a person in mind – or a type of person – ask yourself if you love them?
Those answers begin to confront you with where we might be at as a church; as a Christians.
So - as you take in the words of Eph 1 – what is your heart’s response?
Do you feel smug? Do you read that and think – “good for us! Good for me!”
How do we rate as a church?
How do you rate as a disciple?
The Letter to the Ephesians is best read by first taking heed of the counsel of Christ:
"Remember then from what you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent." (Revelation 2:5)
Presented By: Rev Geoff New