Tag Archives: Pauline Letters

Ok, a bit of background information. Most of it was taken from the ESV Study Bible without changes because this information is important and I didn’t want to mis-communicate the historical information, or re-invent the wheel when the ESV Study Bible explains things very well. Continue reading →

Well, guys, I’ve decided to start blogging my study of Ephesians. My purpose in this is not only to study Ephesians, but also to force myself to explain things that I would ordinarily take for granted as basic Christian beliefs.  I do want to be intentional in not skipping topics or issues that Paul mentions, but I may, at times, refer to outside sources for in depth research/study/reading, in the interest of keeping these posts as short as possible.

As is with any Bible study, Ephesians contains some very controversial issues and teachings. I do welcome all comments, and I have set the comments to be moderated so that I can make sure I see any that are posted and reply as I have the time to do so. And please, I realize that some people may not agree with what I believe the letter of Ephesians to say; let’s keep it civil though. Any derogatory comments toward myself or others who comment will be deleted to maintain the attitude of love which we should be displaying as Christians, which I want this blog to display, as best it can.

That said, here’s the outline from the ESV Study Bible that we’ll more or less be tracking with:

1. Introduction (1:1–14)
   1. Greetings (1:1–2)
   2. Spiritual blessings in Christ (1:3–14)
2. Paul’s Prayer of Thanksgiving (1:15–23)
3. Salvation by Grace through Faith (2:1–10)
   1. Hopelessness and helplessness without Christ (2:1–3)
   2. Hope in Christ (2:4–10)
4. Unity and Peace of Christ (2:11–22)
   1. Unity of Christ’s people (2:11–15)
   2. Peace with God (2:16–18)
   3. Implications of Christ’s peace (2:19–22)
5. Revelation of the Gospel Mystery (3:1–13)
   1. Paul’s apostolic ministry (3:1–7)
   2. The mystery and wisdom (3:8–13)
6. Paul’s Prayer for Strength and Insight (3:14–21)
7. Unity of the Body of Christ (4:1–16)
   1. Exhortation to unity (4:1–6)
   2. The different gifts (4:7–10)
   3. The gifts for edification of the church (4:11–16)
8. Paul’s Testimony (4:17–24)
9. Exhortation to an Edifying Lifestyle (4:25–32)
10. New Life in Love (5:1–20)
    1. Exhortation to self-sacrificial love (5:1–2)
    2. Instruction in holy living (5:3–20)
11. Submission to One Another (5:21–6:9)
    1. Submission in general (5:21)
    2. Wives and husbands (5:22–33)
    3. Children and parents (6:1–4)
    4. Slaves and masters (6:5–9)
12. The Whole Armor of God (6:10–20)
    1. The Lord’s strength (6:10–13)
    2. Standing firm (6:14–17)
    3. Being constant in prayer (6:18–20)
13. Conclusion (6:21–24)