Current SERMON SERIES – WALKING WITH GOD SERMON SERIES
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Jan. 16–Feb. 20, 2022
There was no church organization in the 1st century AD, as we think of church organization today. The Apostles led the church and so it was important for Paul to claim that title, as he does in the first verse of Ephesians. As the Apostles traveled they established Christian communities wherever they could. They usually appointed someone to lead each group as they traveled on to the next city. These appointed leaders began to take on the title and responsibilities of an Elder.
The Elders taught, preached, baptized new converts, and trained other leaders who served in their community, their church. The churches sent out evangelists to nearby cities, towns, and villages and the Good News of Jesus Christ continued to spread.
The apostle Paul wrote this letter from Ephesus, but most scholars agree that it was not written exclusively to the Ephesians. Paul had already been living in Ephesus for several years before he was put in prison and wrote this letter and letters to the Philippians, Philemon, the Colossians, and the (2) Corinthians. Each of the other letters include numerous mentions of individuals that Paul knows, but the letter we call Ephesians has almost no personal comments even though Paul stayed longer in Ephesus than any of the other cities.
For this reason, we think that Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is actually a general epistle – copies of which were sent to many different churches in western Turkiye. This means that, along with Paul’s letter to the churches in Rome, this is the best summation we have of what Paul thought was important in living the life of a disciple of Jesus Christ.
For six weeks, Brother Mike will cover Ephesians in the following sermons:
The Triple Goodness of God 1:1-14
The Grace of God 2:1-10
A Call to Walk in Unity 4:1-6
A Call to Walk in Purity 5:1-10, 21
A Call to Walk in Harmony 5:21 – 6:9
Al Call to Walk in Victory 6:10-20.
There was no church organization in the 1st century AD, as we think of church organization today. The Apostles led the church and so it was important for Paul to claim that title, as he does in the first verse of Ephesians. As the Apostles traveled they established Christian communities wherever they could. They usually appointed someone to lead each group as they traveled on to the next city. These appointed leaders began to take on the title and responsibilities of an Elder.
The Elders taught, preached, baptized new converts, and trained other leaders who served in their community, their church. The churches sent out evangelists to nearby cities, towns, and villages and the Good News of Jesus Christ continued to spread.
The apostle Paul wrote this letter from Ephesus, but most scholars agree that it was not written exclusively to the Ephesians. Paul had already been living in Ephesus for several years before he was put in prison and wrote this letter and letters to the Philippians, Philemon, the Colossians, and the (2) Corinthians. Each of the other letters include numerous mentions of individuals that Paul knows, but the letter we call Ephesians has almost no personal comments even though Paul stayed longer in Ephesus than any of the other cities.
For this reason, we think that Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is actually a general epistle – copies of which were sent to many different churches in western Turkiye. This means that, along with Paul’s letter to the churches in Rome, this is the best summation we have of what Paul thought was important in living the life of a disciple of Jesus Christ.
For six weeks, Brother Mike will cover Ephesians in the following sermons:
The Triple Goodness of God 1:1-14
The Grace of God 2:1-10
A Call to Walk in Unity 4:1-6
A Call to Walk in Purity 5:1-10, 21
A Call to Walk in Harmony 5:21 – 6:9
Al Call to Walk in Victory 6:10-20.