We are sharing a special series about teaching the Book of Ephesians in small groups. If you haven’t read the Introduction to the series, we invite you to read it here.
Whether you are interested in studying Ephesians for the purpose of teaching it to small groups or for your own personal study, we believe you will find this series helpful.
We are currently in the middle of Chapter Three.
Basic Premises for Studying Scripture
- God is worth knowing
- His Word is worth learning and obeying
- Because God is worth knowing and His Word is worth learning, we will follow a proven method of knowing Him and learning His Word.
- We will use the I – M – D – I method of Bible study:
- Inductive – Methodical – Direct – Independent
- Inductive study – “logical, objective, impartial reasoning” … examining specifics of Scripture before reaching conclusions
- Methodical study – “a way or path of transit” (Greek – methodos) … focused on taking the proper path to gaining knowledge about God
- Direct study – “relying on Scripture as the primary tool for learning”
- Independent study – “original thinking combined with Spirit insight”
- Observe (See and Record)
- Question (Ask and Answer)
- Interpret (Determine the Holy Spirit’s Intent)
- Apply (How God’s Truth applies to your life)
Bible Study – The Group Process
We invite you to model the process of observing, asking questions for interpretation, interpreting for meaning, and applying for discipleship for your small group. This process may be new to some of the people in your group, so going through it with them for awhile may help them feel comfortable with how to do it.
One of the biggest mistakes people make in reading the Bible is trying to interpret the meaning of individual verses before observing everything in the verses. Studying in context also helps keep us from making incorrect interpretations. That means starting the observation process at the beginning of each Bible book.
The challenge in studying alone or with the group is trying to determine the meaning of passages in the Bible before assuring that we’ve observed everything in the passages and asked every possible question. We carefully answer all of the questions before reaching a conclusion to the meaning.
Read the Scripture and go through each step with your group. You may be able to cover observation, questions, interpretation and application in one meeting, but don’t rush the process. It takes time to see everything in a text, ask good questions, get good answers to those good questions, interpret the meaning of the text and apply the meaning to life. If it takes two or three meetings to do that for each text, that’s fine! The goal is to rightly divide God’s Word, not finish by a certain date.
Observe – Write what you see
One way to outline Ephesians chapter three is:
- Mystery of Christ Revealed (3:1-7)
- Mystery of Christ Explained (3:8-13)
- Mystery of Christ Understood (3:14-21)
Our recent studies have looked at the Mystery of Christ “revealed” and “explained.” We now move into the area of the Mystery of Christ “understood.”
Let’s begin with verse 14 –
Ephesians 3:14 in Greek
For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … τουτου χαριν καμπτω τα γονατα μου προς τον πατερα του κυριου ημων ιησου χριστου
For this reason … τουτου χαριν (of this for reason) … the word χαριν is an adverb from the word χάρις (grace, kindness, favor) .. the word χαριν is used nine times in the New Testament (mostly by the Apostle Paul) and means “in favor of, for the pleasure of, on account of, for this cause, for the reason of.”
Paul’s usage in 3:14 takes us back to the beginning verse of the chapter where he used the same phrase: “ For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles—” In verse one, Paul was referring back to chapter two where we learned that Jesus Christ, our peace, broke down the middle wall of separation and created “in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace” (2:15). Jesus reconciled Jew and Gentile “to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity” (2:16).
It’s important that we don’t lose sight of how Paul is establishing Christian doctrine before heading into Christian practice. We must remember what Jesus accomplished on the Cross. It’s not how we feel about it; it’s what Jesus did about it. Christians are “new.” We are different than Jews and different than Gentiles. Jesus created in Himself one new man from the two, “thus making peace.” Through Christ “we both have access by one Spirit to the Father” (2:18).
As Paul was writing what we know as Ephesians chapter three, he still had chapter two in his sights. As he wrote about the “mystery” that God had revealed to him to reveal to Gentile and Jew, Paul remembered that Gentiles were “no longer strangers and foreigners” as they had been prior to Christ’s death on the Cross. Saved Gentiles were “fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God” (2:19). They had been built “on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone” (2:20). They were part of a great spiritual building, “being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord” (2:21). The “new man” Jesus created out of Jews and Gentiles “are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit” (2:22).
All of that is part of the “reason” (χαριν) Paul referred to in 3:14 when he wrote, “For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” When Jesus said on the Cross, “It is finished,” He accomplished all that Paul had referred to in Ephesians chapters one and two. When we consider what Jesus did for us and every other Gentile and Jew, it should also cause us to “bow” our knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … καμπτω τα γονατα μου προς τον πατερα του κυριου ημων ιησου χριστου
The word καμπτω means “to bend, to bow.” Paul used the word in Romans 11:4 when referring to what God told the prophet Elijah – “I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” Paul used the word in Romans 14:11 in the context of the Judgment Seat of Christ – “For it is written: As I live, says the Lord, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God.” Paul used the word in Philippians 2:10 in the context of God the Father exalting God the Son because of His obedience unto death on the Cross – “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth.” And, Paul used it in our study text in Ephesians 3:14.
The idea of “bowing” or “bending” the knee in ancient times was to demonstrate obedience and reverence for a sovereign. Paul said that he bowed his knees to the “Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” In this act, we see the apostle demonstrating his appreciation for the great mystery that God had revealed to him, and through Paul to other apostles and all who would read his letters. The “mystery” God has revealed to the world should cause all of us to bow our knees as a demonstration of our appreciation and awe at the eternal plan of God carried out through the finished work of Jesus Christ.
We can call God, “Father,” because of the “Son.” We have “peace with God” because of the sacrifice of the “Son.” We can bow our knees to the Father because of “our Lord Jesus Christ.” Jesus Christ is the “reason” why we have everything we do as God’s saved children.
Ephesians 3:15 in Greek
from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named … εξ ου πασα πατρια εν ουρανοις και επι γης ονομαζεται
from whom … εξ ου … The Greek word εξ means “out from and to, out from whom”.. the context refers back to the “Father.”
the whole family … πασα πατρια … the word πασα should be translated “every, every kind of” … πατρια means “lineage, family, tribe” .. which family or tribe?
in heaven and earth is named … εν ουρανοις και επι γης ονομαζεται … “every family in the heavens and on the earth is named” .. God is the Creator of every family in the heavens and on the earth, including humans, angels, and other supernatural beings .. God is the Father of humans .. God is the Father of angels .. God is the Father of the visible and the invisible .. He is the “Father” because He created everything .. God also “named” all the families in the heavens and on earth .. ονομαζεται means “to give a name” ..
Ephesians 3:16 in Greek
that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man … ινα δωη υμιν κατα τον πλουτον της δοξης αυτου δυναμει κραταιωθηναι δια του πνευματος αυτου εις τον εσω ανθρωπον
This is what Paul prayed for the Gentiles and Jews who were created into one “new man” through the death of Jesus Christ.
that He would grant you … ινα δωη υμιν … the word δωη means “to give, to offer” … Paul bowed his knees to God the Father and ask
according to the riches of His glory … κατα τον πλουτον της δοξης αυτου … Paul’s request was based on the “riches” of God’s glory .. that’s impossible for any of us to quantify because God’s glory is beyond anything any of us have witnessed .. πλουτον means “wealth, abundance, riches, possessions of many kinds” … δοξης means “opinion which determines value, honor, praise, glory” … Paul’s request that God grant something to His people is “according to” (κατα) God’s wealth, God’s abundance, God’s riches. What is it that Paul wanted God to do for His children?
to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man … δυναμει κραταιωθηναι δια του πνευματος αυτου εις τον εσω ανθρωπον
to be strengthened translates from δυναμει κραταιωθηναι (with power to be strengthened) .. δυναμει means “might, power, strength, ability to perform” … κραταιωθηναι means “to strengthen, become strong, to prevail, attain mastery” … Paul asked God the Father to strengthen His people, give His people the strength and ability to perform and prevail … where and how?
through His Spirit in the inner man … δια του πνευματος αυτου εις τον εσω ανθρωπον … the “where” is the “inner man” (εις τον εσω ανθρωπον) … the how is “through His Spirit” (δια του πνευματος αυτου) … Paul demonstrates yet again the beauty of the Trinity in the lives of Christians … the apostle called on the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ to strengthen believers “in the inner man” through (διά, through, by, because of) the Holy Spirit … Paul wrote early in his letter to the Ephesians that the Holy Spirit would play a vital role in the lives of believers … “you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.” The Holy Spirit seals us, guarantees our inheritance, and strengthens us “in the inner man.”
εσω ανθρωπον (inner man) means “inside, within, inner” .. it’s an adverb from the preposition εἰς, which means “towards, into, unto” .. it literally means “motion into which” .. ανθρωπον (man) means “human, humankind, one of the human race” .. the word includes male and female members of the human race ..
Paul’s prayer was specifically for the “inner man.” What did he mean by that? The fact that Paul prayed that Christians would be strengthened with might “through His Spirit in the inner man” is the answer. I believe the εσω ανθρωπον is where our soul resides and where the Holy Spirit dwells in each of us. The Holy Spirit is Omni-Present, meaning that He is “Everywhere Present at the Same Time.” However, the Holy Spirit endues God’s people differently than He does unbelievers. For instance, in the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit would “come upon” or “fill” an individual for a particular purpose. However, that filling was not permanent. King David pleaded with God not to “take” His Holy Spirit from him:
Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Psalm 51:10-11
The presence of the Holy Spirit in Paul’s writings are different. Paul wrote in Ephesians 1 that the Holy Spirit of promise “sealed” us, and “is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption.” Paul wrote in Romans 8 that believers are in the Spirit, “if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” Paul went on to write that “if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 3 that Christians are the “temple of God” and that “the Spirit of God” dwells in them.
The presence of the Holy Spirit in a Christian is evidence that the person is in fact a Christian. So, where does the Holy Spirit “dwell” in a believer? In the “inner man” (εσω ανθρωπον). When we die, we do not die. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4 – “Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.” Our outward man (ἔξω ἡμῶν ἄνθρωπος) is perishing, but our inward man (ἔσω ἡμῶν) is being renewed (ἀνακαινοῦται, to make new) day by day. Why is that? Because the Holy Spirit who dwells in us is renewing us.
The Holy Spirit’s ministry of “renewal” began when we were saved, and He keeps renewing us until the guaranteed day of our redemption.
But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior. Titus 3:4-6
We received the Holy Spirit in “abundance” when we were saved, and the Holy Spirit continues to work in us to fulfill God’s will for our lives.
There’s a lot more to come in this context, but I hope the study gets you excited about what God wants to do in us and for us. Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3 is a great place to focus.
Observe – Write what you see
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Question – Ask and answer questions based on observations
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Interpret – What is the Holy Spirit’s intent in these verses?
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Apply – How can you apply these spiritual truths to your life?
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Free eBooks
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Next Time
We will look at Ephesians 3:17-19 in the next part of our series, Teaching Ephesians.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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