This is one of those passages that is hotly debated, at least in the United States. Are the leaders there to do the work of the ministry or to perfect the saints so those people do the work of the ministry?
It strikes me that the apostles, prophets, etc. ARE the saints.
We all need the work of the Gospel day by day preparing us for the work of the ministry. Every last one of us gets to minister in our various vocations as our Lord equips and sustains us.
Showing posts with label Ephesians. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ephesians. Show all posts
Friday, May 11, 2012
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Bible Reading Challenge Week 19 Day 3
Our reading challenge for the day is Ephesians 1-6. I’ll hit a few highlights. You make comments too and fill in the gaps. What strikes you as specially significant?
Ephesians 1 - God has lavished his love nad mercy on all who believe on Jesus. He has given us so much blessing we cannot even begin to count it all. And it is all according to God’s will, by his grace.
Ephesians 2 - Salvation in Jesus has turned us around entirely - death to life, not by our works but to make us able to do the works God has appointed for us.
Ephesians 3 - God’s great mystery is that he can make people of every nation partakers of all his riches in Christ. He gathers even the worst of us and uses us to show his mercy.
Ephesians 4 - See all the unity statements - one body, reflecting the unity of God. We grow in Him to be one together.
Ephesians 5-6 - Our response to God’s work in Christ is to walk in his grace. Theologian Gerhard Forde said this life of progressive sanctification is no more than getting used to our identity in Christ.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Ephesians
“Ephesians” Carson & Moo pp. 479-497
Carson and Moo introduce this chapter with a basic outline of Ephesians. They then discuss authorship. Traditionally Paul has been considered the author but that is disputed in recent scholarship. Support for Pauline authorship then evidence that detracts from this view is presented on pp. 480-486. In support is the claim of the letter itself s well as the personal notes. In early circulation the letter was accepted as authentic. It is full of Pauline features. The similarity of Ephesians and Colossians is used both to argue for and against authenticity. If a later author claimed Pauline authority to Ephesus, since Paul was not clearly honored in a great way in Ephesus (based on Revelation 2.1, compare 2 Peter 3.15) it would seem odd. Themes in Ephesians are very Pauline. The letter also states that Paul was a prisoner, which was a common situation in Paul’s later life. To detract from Pauline authorship, scholars claim that the theology of Ephesians is not sufficiently Pauline. It includes words not typically used by Paul. The style is different from some of Paul’s other letters, particularly in the very long sentences. Ephesians discusses ministry structure in a way which some say Paul did not see it in his other writing. Carson and Moo consider that Ephesians is genuinely Pauline and that it was written at approximately the same time as Colossians to address similar situations.
If the letter was written during Paul’s Roman imprisonment, which seems likely, it was written in the very late fifties or early sixties. The destination of the letter is more difficult, as “in Ephesus” is absent from the letter in some prominent manuscripts. It seems a little less personal than we might expect from the apostle who evangelized the Ephesians. Yet it is quite plausible that Paul would have written the letter to Ephesus with an expectation that it would circulate more broadly.
What is the purpose of the letter? It seems to have a great deal of miscellaneous instruction. We can’t identify a specific situation that would have led to its composition. Yet the predominant themes are purity and unity of hte faith.
Aside from the missing “in Ephesus” in 1.1 there are no significant variations in the manuscrpt evidence. The letter was accepted into the canon quite early.
In recent study many scholars have discussed authorship and the different themes of the text. We find the book of Ephesians very helpful in its view that salvation and life are due to divine action, beginning with Christ’s saving work, continuing with the Christian’s growth in knowledge of the grace of our Lord, and emphasizing life in conformity to God’s work in salvation. Throughout we see God as supremely gracious, bringing salvation to unworthy sinners.
Carson and Moo introduce this chapter with a basic outline of Ephesians. They then discuss authorship. Traditionally Paul has been considered the author but that is disputed in recent scholarship. Support for Pauline authorship then evidence that detracts from this view is presented on pp. 480-486. In support is the claim of the letter itself s well as the personal notes. In early circulation the letter was accepted as authentic. It is full of Pauline features. The similarity of Ephesians and Colossians is used both to argue for and against authenticity. If a later author claimed Pauline authority to Ephesus, since Paul was not clearly honored in a great way in Ephesus (based on Revelation 2.1, compare 2 Peter 3.15) it would seem odd. Themes in Ephesians are very Pauline. The letter also states that Paul was a prisoner, which was a common situation in Paul’s later life. To detract from Pauline authorship, scholars claim that the theology of Ephesians is not sufficiently Pauline. It includes words not typically used by Paul. The style is different from some of Paul’s other letters, particularly in the very long sentences. Ephesians discusses ministry structure in a way which some say Paul did not see it in his other writing. Carson and Moo consider that Ephesians is genuinely Pauline and that it was written at approximately the same time as Colossians to address similar situations.
If the letter was written during Paul’s Roman imprisonment, which seems likely, it was written in the very late fifties or early sixties. The destination of the letter is more difficult, as “in Ephesus” is absent from the letter in some prominent manuscripts. It seems a little less personal than we might expect from the apostle who evangelized the Ephesians. Yet it is quite plausible that Paul would have written the letter to Ephesus with an expectation that it would circulate more broadly.
What is the purpose of the letter? It seems to have a great deal of miscellaneous instruction. We can’t identify a specific situation that would have led to its composition. Yet the predominant themes are purity and unity of hte faith.
Aside from the missing “in Ephesus” in 1.1 there are no significant variations in the manuscrpt evidence. The letter was accepted into the canon quite early.
In recent study many scholars have discussed authorship and the different themes of the text. We find the book of Ephesians very helpful in its view that salvation and life are due to divine action, beginning with Christ’s saving work, continuing with the Christian’s growth in knowledge of the grace of our Lord, and emphasizing life in conformity to God’s work in salvation. Throughout we see God as supremely gracious, bringing salvation to unworthy sinners.
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