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The early Christian church battled many headwinds, including the pagan religions that controlled the masses. To this point, Paul urged the saints of Ephesus to embrace a simple and direct faith in Christ. His message was in stark contrast to the fearmongering gods of the day, gods who decreed predetermined futures for their subjects, regardless of their subjects’ personal choice.
Lesson: 1 - Paul and the Ephesians
Scripture: Ephesians 1:9-10 How can the message of Ephesians be summarized? From prison, Paul sets forth a vision of God’s Christ-centered plan for the fullness of time and the church’s role in it.
Lesson: 2 - God’s Grand, Christ-Centered Plan
Scripture: Ephesians 1:3 What does it mean to you that through Christ’s atoning sacrifice you are forgiven and redeemed? What if you feel that you are unworthy of it? (Hint: you are unworthy; that’s the whole point of the cross.)
Lesson: 3 - The Power of the Exalted Jesus
Scripture: Ephesians 1:19-20 Why is it important always to thank God in prayer for what you have to be thankful for?
Lesson: 4 - How God Rescues Us
Scripture: Ephesians 2:4-5 Who hasn’t experienced just how corrupted our own nature is, even after we have given ourselves to Jesus? What should this teach us about how important it is that we cling to Him every moment of our lives?
Lesson: 5 - Horizontal Atonement: The Cross and the Church
Scripture: Ephesians 2:13-14 How might your church play a positive role in actualizing the unifying work Christ already has accomplished on the cross? How might you participate in that work?
Lesson: 6 - The Mystery of the Gospel
Scripture: Ephesians 3:20-21 How can we learn to trust God and His ways amid what can be very trying circumstances?
Lesson: 7 - The Unified Body of Christ
Scripture: Ephesians 4:11-12 Paul’s picture of a healthy, unified body helps us understand God’s goal for us: to be parts of a fruitful church united in Christ.
Lesson: 8 - Christ-Shaped Lives and Spirit-Inspired Speech
Scripture: Ephesians 4:22-24 Think about the power of your words. How can you use them to be uplifting, encouraging, and faith-building?
Lesson: 9 - Living Wisely
Scripture: Ephesians 5:15-17 What are some of the “empty words” that in our day and age we need to be wary of? What strategies might believers today employ to “discern what is pleasing to the Lord”
Lesson: 10 - Husbands and Wives: Together at the Cross
Scripture: Ephesians 5:25-27 Paul cites the example of Jesus to both wives and husbands. What can you learn from Jesus about loving those in your own family circle?
Lesson: 11 - Practicing Supreme Loyalty to Christ
Scripture: Ephesians 6:9 Practicing Supreme Loyalty to Christ
Lesson: 12 - The Call To Stand
Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-11 What should Paul's warning that we fight not against flesh and blood but against supernatural enemies teach us about where our only hope of victory is?
Lesson: 13 - Waging Peace
Scripture: Ephesians 6:16-17 In what ways can we, as a corporate body, work together in the great controversy, in order to help each other in our struggles against evil, in whatever form it comes?
Scripture: Ephesians 2:8-10 What important truths embedded in Ephesians should continue to shape our lives as believers?