Read Ephesians 1-2. As you read, note the blessings you have been given in love through Jesus. How do these two chapters grow your affection for Him? How do they encourage you to extend His love to those closest to you?
What is the difference between having a “personal” relationship with God vs. a “private” relationship with God? Describe your personal relationship with God.
In these two chapters, Paul moves from a personal faith to a public faith to a communal faith. Where in the text do you see this most powerfully on display?
Read Ephesians 2.11-13 and answer the following questions. What’s the primary difference between Jews and Gentiles? How were the Gentiles “separate” from the Jews? How were the Gentiles “brought near”? How are the Gentiles representative of all non-Jews?
Read Ephesians 2.14-18 and answer the following questions. What has Jesus accomplished between these two people groups? How did He accomplish peace? What is the outcome of His sacrifice? What was created in Christ? What’s the relevance of His sacrifice and the “one new humanity” for us today, practically, relationally?
Read Ephesians 2.19-22 and answer the following questions. What’s the primary implication of these verses on your life? What does Paul mean when He says we are a “dwelling in which God lives”?
Reflect on the following questions:
- Where in your life has Jesus already made peace but you are refusing to embrace?
- What would it look like for you to live in the peace that Jesus has come to give you?
- What belief about God, or others, or yourself would have to change in order to fully embrace His peace?
Do a quick study of Jesus’ teachings on peace. How does Jesus call His followers to live? In real terms, what does that mean for you? In real terms, what does that mean for our Faith Family?
Read and reflect on the comments of John Stott: “I wonder if anything is more urgent today, for the honour of Christ and for the spread of the gospel, than that the church should be, and should be seen to be, what by God’s purpose and Christ’s achievement it already is—a single new humanity, a model of human community, a family of reconciled brothers and sisters who love their Father and love each other, the evident dwelling place of God by his Spirit. Only then will the world believe in Christ as Peacemaker. Only then will God receive the glory due to his name.”
Read Ephesians 1.21-22; 2.21-22; 4.11-13. How is “the fullness of God” or “maturity” realized in these verses?
How might Jesus be inviting you to grow in your faith from personal and private, to communal and corporate? What would be the greatest challenge to living this way? Who can join you on this journey of living out your faith with others?
