Ephesians 4 Study Page 1

Context:

Critical Observations

Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is his crowning achievement. His writing is lofty and eloquent, following Judaic traditions Who: Paul, churches in Asia in poetry, hymnic form, and persuasive speech. In essence, Minor Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is a well-written “theological Where: Paul is imprisoned in tract dressed up like a letter.” Rome, one of the churches is in Ephesus, a major port on the coast of modern Turkey Historical and Cultural Background: Paul is imprisoned in Rome for spreading the gospel, so when he says in Eph 4:1 “As a prisoner of the Lord,” he is being literal as well as figurative. Ephesus, called the “city of change”, was situated on the Mediterranean Sea and next to a large river, was the largest trading center in Asia Minor. There was a large Jewish population as well as Roman, demonstrating a tolerance for many faiths. This may be one of the reasons Paul speaks so decisively about false teaching--Gnosticism was much easier to swallow than an exclusive gospel. Also, Ephesus was considered the heart of the cult that worshiped the emperor, boasting three temples to him.

Broader Setting: the early church has spread as far north as Rome and as far east as Asia. Most churches are wellestablished, but struggle with living in a community of many faiths. Primary Tension: The church is well-established, but perhaps becoming too comfortable. Paul encourages all churches to remember their higher purpose.

10 minutes: Introduction and Individual Study Share the background and summarize the first three books of Ephesians. Read the passage aloud. Ask the following question: “If you were an Ephesian Christian hearing this letter in church on Sunday morning, what would you think? What would you talk to your friends about after church?” Add, “While you are doing that, please jot down any questions that you might have about the passage.”

7 minutes: Group shares observations and questions. • What did you talk about with your friend after church? • “Let’s list our questions. We won’t answer them quite yet; we’ll take all of them and then answer them methodically so we can try to get to them all.”