Ephesians 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints being in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus: BLB
Ephesians is one of the four letters Paul wrote during his first imprisonment in Rome (the other three are Philippians, Colossians and Philemon). The letter is a little different from some of his other letters which leads some to doubt whether or not Paul actually wrote the epistle. Paul is identified in the first line as the author but unlike some of his other letters, there isn’t any further personal information nor reference to his ministry nor even names of people assisting him there. Another argument made against Pauline authorship is that there are words used and ideas that don’t appear in his other letters. These contentions assume we know enough about Paul (and where he is at this stage of his life) to make that kind of judgment. At this point, Paul’s life is more complicated than when he was younger. Not only has he been actively planting churches (prior to his imprisonment) but he has been adding responsibilities (and worries) along the way as a result of these very churches and their members. While confident about the outcome of his current imprisonment, there has to be a thought or two about possibly being near the end and that would have an impact on what and how he writes as he is likely feeling more and more pressure to share everything that he knows while he still can.
On the other hand, the letter states that it is written by Paul and if it isn’t, then it is a lie. In determining the canon of Scripture, the concern of the early church was that everything should connect to Jesus via one of the apostles. The exception was Hebrews which the early church believed was apostolic. There were many other good books that could have been included but ultimately were left out because they lacked a connection to an apostle. There are many people today who want to diminish the authority of the books they don’t agree with or in the case of “red letter” Christians, they want to elevate the Gospels as being more important than Paul.
Galatians 1:11Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the Gospel I preached is not of human origin. 12For I did not receive it or learn it from any human source; instead I received it by a revelation of Jesus Christ….. 15But when the One who set me apart from birth and called me by His grace was pleased 16 to reveal His Son in me so that I could preach him among the Gentiles, I did not go to ask advice from any human being, 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before me, but right away I departed to Arabia, and then returned to Damascus. 18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas…… NET
This all begins for Paul when he gets knocked off his donkey and encounters Jesus while on the road to Damascus. After his conversion, he remains in Damascus for a few days but has to then flee from the Jews there who want to kill him. Although he returns to the city, he probably didn’t spend much of the three year period in Damascus considering the dangers he would have faced there. Arabia likely refers to the desert area outside Damascus. Ultimately what we see is that Paul, like the other apostles, has three years with the Risen Christ where he learns the Gospel and the content of faith thus his writings reflect just as much Jesus as do the Gospels.
There is nothing unique about how the letter begins as it follows the pattern of first century letters. The author is identified first. Next is the person the letter is being written to. Not all translations reference a location (other than as a footnote) as three of the most ancient manuscripts don’t reference Ephesus as the intended recipient of the letter. There is evidence that Ephesians is meant to be a circular letter that is to be shared among the network of churches in Asia Minor that are centered around Ephesus. (You might remember the seven churches of Asia Minor in the first three chapters of Revelation that starts with Ephesus and ends with Laodicea).
Colossians 4:16 After this letter has been read among you, make sure that it is also read in the church of the Laodiceans, and that you in turn read the letter from Laodicea. BSB
In his early attempt to put together a collection of New Testament writings, Marcion has a copy of Ephesians but the letter he had is addressed to Laodicea rather than to Ephesus. This would indicate that the letter may have also circulated as a letter to Laodicea. In many ways this is fitting, as the content of this letter is more universal in nature than letters such as 1Corinthians that address a specific problem at a specific time.
The word “saints” is a bit problematic as there is something superior about being called a saint yet Paul also calls the Corinthians “saints”. (In the Catholic church, “Saints” are those people who have performed three miracles after they die as evidence that they are nearer to the presence of God than everyone else).
1Corinthians 1:2 to the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, and called to be saints, with all those in every place who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours. NET
Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; NET
The Corinthians are morally and spiritually immature and are a disappointment to Paul, yet Paul addresses them as saints because they have been called by God through grace.
Ephesians is a little different as the letter addresses those saints who are faithful to Christ. First, there is something God does that allows us to be saints. Faith is our response to this gift of grace. Yet there is more to faith than simple belief as even the demons believe. That is, faith isn’t just intellectual – it also results in action.
We have talked in the past about the three components of faith (noticia, assensus and fiducia). The first part of faith is knowledge of Jesus and what He represents. The second element is assent, whereby we agree that this information we have been given is true. The last step is our response to what we have learned and believed by placing our trust in Jesus.
Ray Stedman describes saints as normal people with all manner of problems and spiritual battles but what sets them apart is the way they approach those problems and conflicts. The characteristic that sets them apart is that they are faithful meaning that they just can’t stop being a Christian. He tells this story about a young member in his church that illustrates what happens once we place our trust in Christ. (See https://www.raystedman.org/new-testament/ephesians/god-at-work):
“A young man called me this past week to tell me how discouraged he was, how he’d lost his confidence in prayer because he felt that no answer was coming, and how ready he was to quit. So I said to him, “Well, why don’t you just quit, then? Give up. Stop being a Christian. Try it.” — because I knew that if he did, the first thing he would have discovered is that he couldn’t quit. And he knew it, too. The minute I said that, he acknowledged it: “You’re right. I can’t quit.” That is because, as Paul will describe in this letter, there is imparted to us the Holy Spirit of God, and we are sealed by the Holy Spirit so that we can’t quit! That is a mark of a believer in Christ.
Ephesians 1:2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. NHEB
Paul has taken standard language of the day, with the Greco/Roman term “grace” and the Jewish term “peace” (shalom) and boosts the meaning of those terms by identifying God and Jesus as the source of both. (The Holy Spirit is coming up in short order in chapter one). This is a fitting statement as these next two chapters will be about this grace and peace.
Not surprisingly, this statement is blasphemous to the Jewish people because it equates Jesus with God and creates more than a few problems for Paul with the Jewish leadership.