Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 1:1-2)
Getting the Church inside People: A Message of Grace and Peace for the Saints
Ephesians 1:1-2
If you missed Sunday’s first message from this Ephesians study, you can access it here. Below are some reflection questions from Sunday’s message. We’d love to hear back from you! If you’d like, forward your responses to this prompt to eramirezfirstbaptistweslaco@gmail.com.
· Reflecting on the introductory video on Ephesians (that can be reviewed here @ about the 47 minute mark), how do Paul’s introductory words in this letter differ from his other New Testament letters? How might the thought of Ephesians as a “circular letter” help us connect with it as a message for us?
· How can the message of Jesus Christ uplift us through all the challenges we face?
· When Paul uses the word “saint,” he’s not referring to a special class of believers, but to all who have placed their trust in Christ. How does this idea differ from the way we tend to use the word saint? Eugene Peterson wrestles through the idea that all followers of Jesus (the good, the bad, and the ugly) are saints. He shares the following letter a friend of his wrote to a church member who’d abandoned the church because of its hypocrisy. The man said that he admired Jesus greatly, but could no longer stomach the church and Peterson’s friend shared the following message: "I agree. It's very hard to participate in church over time and retain your humanity. You correctly deplore what you criticize." Then he followed up with a blunt question, "Yet do you worship with a congregation, scrub its floors, change its babies, face its crises, humble yourself self to its relational intricacies? The Jesus you admire did. He honored and observed worship and community. He formed a new communion while honoring the old. He lived as a participant. It was not from without out but from within the `people of God' that he confronted sin. And it was not from without but from within that he was censored and killed. It's the church that he came to build that killed him, not a network of autonomous idealists." Then he zeroed in: "The church is woefully sinful, distorted, and inadequate…But it's still in the bowels of the church, the worshipers, that God has chosen to work, live, and sometimes be crucified. It's the church, that Jesus says he will build, and that hell will not prevail against" (Practice Resurrection 934-936). What do you think of this correspondence? How can embracing Paul’s view of ourselves and our other congregants as saints impact us as we deal with issues in the church?
· Paul begins his letter with an offer of grace and peace for followers of Jesus. Grace describes God’s unearned favor upon us and peace refers to God’s “shalom” or an eternal sense of wholeness that cannot be overcome by our circumstance. What impact can this offer of grace and peace have upon our lives? Our world?
We hope that you’ll join in on one of our small group in person or online studies on Ephesians this fall that will walk alongside our Sunday morning sermon series. For details on these studies, message Lizzie @ (956)332-0899 or call the church office @ 956-968-9585. Follow us on Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/FirstBaptistChurchWeslaco for important updates. Blessings on your week!