We are all in awe when a baby is born. Even with the medical breakthroughs and discoveries regarding childbirth, it is still an event shrouded in mystery and awe. Another mystery for me is how you can board a jet plane with 100 others, and that plane can actually fly! While the science behind it is proven, the mystery of it still abounds. Consider this as we begin LifeWay's Explore the Bible Study: Revealed.

God leads Paul to utilize repetition, in the beginning verses of Ephesians 3, to emphasize the great mystery surrounding the gospel. As you will discover below, there is a LOT in this study. I have tried to give you points from the Downloadable teaching ideas that you can incorporate into your own teaching plans. Be sure to download the entire document below.

Ephesians 3:1-2

• Paul, who was once known as Saul – a Jew of Jews, a protector of the law, a persecutor of Christians – not only was saved, but God gave him the grace to be able to go to a group that was viewed with contempt by all Jews, including many believing Jews. 
• It was God’s grace that moved Paul with compassion for a people who desperately needed the gospel. 
• It was God’s grace that gave him the passion to help two groups of believers unite under the banner of the cross!
• This, in and of itself, was a mystery!

Imagine you are in a church and a certain individual, who is of a different race than the majority of the individuals in the church, accepts Christ. What would you think if that church felt that the person shouldn't be baptized in their church because of his/her racial background? How would you feel if you were the new believer? What a sad scenario this would be; yet this could happen and has happened around the world in countless churches. Sadly, we struggle with overcoming bias, prejudices, and conflicts, just to name a few. Even the early church struggled with this. The Explore The Bible Study: Reconciled in Christ, will focus on discussing how this should not be who we are in Christ and as His church. 

In the second half of the chapter, Paul speaks directly to the Gentiles in the church about reconciliation. As you look at this passage, consider the barriers to reconciliation you and your group need to remove, how they can be removed, and the purpose for removing them.

Imagine you are living in Ephesus
Ephesus was a multi-cultural city. It was a melting pot for many different cultures and religions. You might assume that there was an atmosphere of openness and diversity in this setting, but openness and diversity is an impossibility to attain, just as is the case in our culture today. It sounds good on paper but doesn’t exists.

From a Jewish perspective there were only two groups of people – Jews and Gentiles. The Jews in Ephesus worked hard to maintain the purity of their race and religion. Acts 19 records Paul’s visit to Ephesus. As was his custom, Paul began preaching in the synagogue when he arrived in the city (Acts 19:8). The opposition to Paul’s preaching of Jesus was so great that he had to withdraw from the synagogue to preach in the lecture hall of Tyrannus (19:9). Though some became followers of Christ, many Jews remained hardened in their opposition to the Christian faith.

Equally, the Gentiles also opposed Christianity. As we mentioned in earlier sessions, the Gentiles' conversions to Christianity was cutting into the profit of those making idols for the worship of Artemis (Acts 19:21-27). This led to riots.




It Gets Real in the Church
The church at Ephesus included both Jews and Gentiles who came out of this cultural climate. It was difficult for them to check their attitudes, preconceived ideas, and prejudices at the door. Paul wanted to help them understand the true nature of reconciliation and how it should impact the way they lived as believers in Christ. All of this was part of who they were when they were dead in their trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1). But now they are alive with Christ! (2:5)

“Believing that salvation is achieved by human means is thinking too highly of oneself and too lowly of the power of sin and death.” This is a quote from this week's Explore The Bible Study: Resurrected. Ephesians 2:1-10 will help you and your group dig deep into the riches of God's grace as you explore the new life we have in Christ.

As you study and guide your group, focus on the following TARGET: How should being saved by grace change the way we live life and view others? Prayerfully consider also how you can help those in your group who might not know Christ or who struggle with being justified by grace and not works.

The downloadable supplemental teaching ideas guide you to contrast Paul's description of our lives before Christ in Ephesians 2:1-3 and our new lives in Christ, Ephesians 2:4-7. It reaches a climax as you look at one of the most powerful descriptions of salvation in the Bible, "For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift — not from works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9, CSB)

As you discuss good works versus grace, consider asking the following questions based upon what Paul said in Ephesian 2:8-9.

• “How good is good enough in order to qualify for a relationship with Christ?”
• “How bad do you have to be before you are rejected by God?”
• “How bad is bad enough to lose a relationship with Christ?”

As the group looks at the fallen state of man as described in Ephesians 2:1-3, they might ask questions regarding the salvation of children since we are born sinners. The following video is included as an option in order to help explain the questions that might arise:

I never enjoy showing my driver's license. I worry that every time I give mine to a TSA agent in the airport, he/she won't confirm that the picture is really me. Yet, after the agents eyes glance from the picture to my face and then back to the picture, it seems that he is comfortable that the i.d. matches who I am. As we study this week's Explore the Bible Study: Remembered, we need to remember that, if we profess Christ as our Savior, we have been given a new identity in Christ. Along with that new identity comes a new way of living and looking at life as well. If we are believers, we are who the Scriptures say we are. Our I.D. is correct.

Paul was very adamant that believers understand their identity in Christ. This is his focus in the entire first chapter of Ephesians and is expanded upon throughout the entire letter. He knew that understanding this would impact every action and attitude! John MacArthur has a great statement regarding this,

“Only when we come to understand how our lives are anchored in eternity can we have the right perspective and motivation for living in time. Only when we come to understand our heavenly citizenship can we live obedient and productive lives as godly citizens on earth.” [MacArthur, John (1985). MacArthur New Testament Commentary - Ephesians (p. 37). WORDsearch. Retrieved from https://app.wordsearchbible.com.]

As you guide your group to study Ephesians 1:15-23, guide them to understand that, if they are believers, they have been spiritually adopted into God's family according to His plan which existed before the creation of the world. Christ has redeemed them, forgiven them, is enlightening them to His truth, and has already given them His inheritance in heaven. They are not who they once were. Their I.D. has been updated!