Besides the letters Paul wrote to address problems in the church (Corinthians and Galatians), Paul wrote several letters to more spiritually mature churches and individuals to further explain the great gifts and promises God has given them through their faith in Jesus Christ. The Theme of Ephesians is “Living in Heavenly Places”. The idea being that because we are saved by grace through faith we, unlike the Jewish nation, no longer have to go through a priest to speak to God; we are spiritually in His presence all the time.
Another great teaching of Paul in Chapter 1 is that, while we receive a great inheritance from God because we are in Christ, we also are God’s inheritance, 1:18. Many of us look on our children as our inheritance from God; what a wonderful thought that God sees us as His inheritance.
The key verses for Ephesians are: “God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you
can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.” Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT.
Outline
1A. Spiritual blessings of life. Chapters 1-3
2A. Practical aspects of Life. Chapters 4-6