Tolle Lege: Ephesians
Paul’s letter, written to the church in and around Ephesus, divides in two distinct halves. On the first side (chaps. 1–3), Paul shows what God has done to save and unite his people to himself. On the other side (chaps. 4–6), Paul provides direction for how Christians should grow and live. But these two halves are not in isolation. Using the metaphor of walking in chapter two, Paul shows how these two sides work together in his instruction. We “once walked” in our deadness of sin, following this world and Satan (2:1–3). Only through the mercy of God are we “made alive” by the grace of God in Jesus Christ (2:4–9). Then, we “walk” in the good works that Christ has made us to accomplish for his glory (2:10), a precursor to the second half. At the root of this letter is the decisive change that occurs when God saves dead sinners and calls them to live in him. We were once far off but are now brought near (3:17). Once we were alienated (4:18), but now we are, as the church, the Bride of Christ (5:25). Therefore, because we have been redeemed by grace in Christ Jesus (chaps. 1–3) we are new creatures and walk in the way of righteousness (chaps. 4–6).
Why should I read this? Read Ephesians 1) to know what God has done for you in Jesus Christ and 2) how you can walk in a way that mirrors Christ and glorifies God. Some people have been instructed to emphasize one of these two things––either to simply know what God has done or to do what is good. When we simplify the gospel to only one of these two things, we’re not really talking about the gospel. If we only emphasize God’s work we may easily believe in a cheap grace that does not naturally conclude with our growth in holiness. If we only emphasize what we are to do, then we will certainly end up as stoic legalists, desperately trying to meet the mark. Ultimately, this says something about our view of God. In the first extreme, God is a softy who just loves you, no questions asked. This view often leads to people saying, God seems nice as an idea but does not really matter to me. In the second extreme, God is a cold, distant judge. There is no love, just condemnation. This view often leads people to say, God is unkind and impersonal, who needs all his rules. The letter to the Ephesians helps us to rectify these two extremes and, instead, see Biblical Christianity for all its worth. In fact, we will see God truly.
Key Themes. Union in Christ (1:3–14; 2:11–22), Trinitarianism (e.g., 1:1–14), Christ’s Lordship (1:20–23), Salvation by grace through faith (2:1–10; 3:1–13), Doxology and Prayer (1:15–23; 3:14–21), Christian living (4:1–6:9), and Spiritual Warfare (2:1–4; 6:10–20).
Applying the Letter. As we have seen, the letter to the Ephesians has rich theology in a short amount of space. Like the book of Romans, Paul was writing to people he likely did not know. In the case of Ephesians, however, the letter was constructed as a circular letter that was sent around from the city of Ephesus, where Paul knew many, to smaller churches in Asia Minor that Paul had likely not visited; whereas the letter to the Romans was directed to one church in one city he had yet to visit. Because there are no truly local concerns in either letter, like in Galatians or 1 Corinthians or Philemon, it makes the letter easier to read and apply today. Likewise, we are in the same redemptive-historical context as Paul’s original addressees. On the one hand, we are united by the Spirit to Christ in his blood and yet, we live in the post-Pentecost world that has not experienced the joy of restoration. This makes your job to apply the letter much easier as compared to Old Testament writing, for example.
But there is one warning in reading and applying Ephesians. Since both Ephesians and Romans are lacking in local particulars and contain substantial theological claims, we have a habit of reading these letters as systematic theology, which they are not. Not only is it anachronistic to put these letters in a genre that was, arguable, not created until one thousand years after Paul, but reading these letters in this way misses Paul’s respective points. Paul was trying to communicate theological truth in both places, but he is also making reasoned arguments with a pastoral aim. As we apply Ephesians, it is good to keep his thesis in mind. Paul is concerned that we walk in a manner worthy of the gospel. It is the same logic as in John’s letter, if Christ has died for us then we ought to die for our brothers (1 John 3:16). If we really are Christians than we ought to walk as Christians in every area of life.
