Ephesians chapter 4

vs 1



Paul obviously thinks that he, in being incarcerated for Christ, has been living a pretty worthwhile life for Christ. I don't think he's calling for them to all go get imprisoned, but he is calling on them to have the right focus.



vs 2



The challenges for Paul in his ministry are probably not exactly the same as the things he is elucidating for the Ephesians. Already we've had a little bit of hint that what they needed to hear about was unity regarding jew and gentile in Christ. Look at the things that Paul is telling them to do to live that life worthy of Christ. It's basically telling them to get along.

vs 3

I've got to admit that these things can be a challenge, especially when there are real issues of concern that are important. But it's during those times that it's all the more important to be at peace with each other.

vs 4

One body - the body of Christ. One Spirit - the Holy spirit. And one hope - which is hope in Jesus as Lord.

vs 5

Just think about how many times Paul is using the word 'one' here. His message is so obviously about unity, which should tell us that the Ephesians were suffering a bit from lack of it.

vs 6

Although God might be diverse in his triune aspect, he is still united in his monotheistic aspect. God is three in one. Not just three, and not just one. But both.

vs 7

It's funny, because I don't often think about grace as being a commodity. I think of it rather as a conceptual thing that just flows out of God endlessly. And yet Paul uses this language regularly. God's not a spendthrift, per se, but he gives us what we need.

vs 8

Oh, is that why it says that in Psalm 68? Of course! I guess I wouldn't have read it that way without Paul explaining it. And I wouldn't suggest we normally do such weird exegesis, but hey, Paul's allowed. It might be that this is following the lines of some sort of rabbinical rules for exegesis. I don't know.

vs 9

O....k.... My brain wants to read this in a logical way and say that Jesus can only have ascended to heaven if he first descended to earth from heaven. That reading seems to make sense to me. But I think there are some others who would read this as meaning that Jesus descended into hell. Not sure if this is the passage they use. They could well also use the passage in 1 Peter about preaching to the demons. My jury is out on this one.

vs 10

Apart from establishing Christ's supremacy over all creation, this verse again stresses the 'filling' role of God, which is a way of describing God's sufficiency, and possibly also his role in maintaining creation. It's God that makes it all tick, if you like. What that has to do with Christ coming to earth (or going to hell) is beyond me though.