Ephesians: 3 Catalysts for Growth

3 Main Themes

Theology – How we think about God. 
Relationships – How we relate to people. 
Spiritual Realm – How we engage in spiritual warfare. 

Purpose of Ephesians– Paul is writing to the believers in Ephesus in order to encourage them to grow in their faith (immediate goal) by living in unity with one another (primary means) in order to display God’s glory on earth and in the heavenly realm (ultimate goal).

Three Sources of Spiritual Weakness
1. A low view of God (and His word).
    A high view of God often results in an accurate view of ourselves.
    A low view of God always results in an inaccurate view of ourselves.

Ephesians 1:1-3 
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 

2. Unhealthy Patterns of Relating with People. 

Ephesians 4:1-3Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, 3 being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Ephesians 4:14-16 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; 15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

3. Inattention to the spiritual realm (Satan and his schemes). Eph. 1:, 20-21; 2:1, 6; 3:10, 15; 4:8, 10 

Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
Ephesians 1:10 with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him
Ephesians 1:20-21 20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.
Ephesians 2:5-6 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 

Application – 3 Catalysts for Spiritual Growth

1) Think Biblically – develop a biblical worldview.  

2) Relate Differently – develop healthy relational patterns.  

3) Fight Strategically – arm yourself with God’s power.