Lesson 1: Blessed

Dear Ladies,

For those of you who had to miss meeting together this week- or you are simply following along via the blog- we are so glad that you are joining us. One of the themes that appeared over and over in our discussion on Thursday was Paul's encouragement to be praying for ALL the saints and that includes praying for YOU! So, let us know how we can be lifting you up throughout our study.

Let's begin with prayer and ask for the Lord's direction over our times of study. 
As we did our homework, several of us felt overwhelmed with the amount of material. The first week of a Precept study can feel like drinking from a fire-hose, but we hope that you will press on and be patient with yourself. God's Word will not return void.

Day Two {pages 5-7}
As you made your list of observations about the author, did you learn anything new about Paul?
We talked about two different ways to list our observations.

1. You can simply read through Ephesians and note the reference and observation.

Author: Paul
(1:1)      Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God(1:15)    Paul heard of the Ephesians faith and their love for the saints
(1:15)    Paul does not cease giving thanks for them in his prayers..

-or-

    2. You can make a separate list for the 5 W's (Who, What, Why, When, Where)and H (How).

WHO
Apostle of Christ Jesus (1:1)
Prisoner (3:1; 4:1; 6:20)
Written letters before (3:3)
Received tribulation on their behalf (3:13)
Recipient of God's Grace (3:2,7)
Recipient of insight into the mystery of Christ (3:4)
Minister to the Gentiles (3:7-8)
Very least of all the saints (3:8)
Prays a LOT (1:15; 3:14)

These two different methods can be helpful for you to see Paul in a different light. I particularly enjoyed making my list of WHY Paul wrote the letter because it helped me have a little more insight into the theme and context of the book.


Day Three {pages 7-9}
The same approach that we used on observing Paul can be used on the recipients: the saints of Ephesus.

Day Four: Historical Background {page 8-9}
The Ephesians were surrounded with idol worship of Artemis, and their whole economy was heavily weighted in the sales and tourism surrounding Artemis. No wonder there was a riot when Paul proclaimed that Artemis was not the true God! Our society has many idols too- money, movies, music, technology, etc. Are we willing to take a stand for the true God while we are surrounded with idol worship?

Day Five: Letter Summary {page 9-12}
We spent a large amount of time here as we divided into small groups to talk about this day's homework. Here are some of the answers the ladies shared:

a. Ephesians 1:3-14: What is Paul generally talking about in these verses?

• Redemption all throughout God's plan
• God chose us
• What we have "In Him"

b. Ephesians 1:15-23: What is Paul generally telling the recipients in these verses?

• Don't cease giving thanks
• He's praying that they would understand who/what they are "In Him"

c. Ephesians 2: Who is being addressed and what are they being told?

• Gentiles, in the flesh, remember who you were before and who you are now
• Through God's grace they have been saved (2:5-9)
• They are part of God's family (2:19)

d. Ephesians 3:1-13: What is Paul's main point in these verses?

• Gentiles are fellow heirs...
• God's grace in equipping Paul and extending salvation to the Gentiles
• Paul wants to convey his insight into the mystery of Christ

e. Ephesians 3:14-21

• Paul models what prayer for the saints looks like. He prays that they would know the love of Christ and be filled up to ALL the fullness of God.

f. Ephesians 4:1: What does Paul want the Ephesians to do?

• Walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called. Think on that for a moment. What does it mean to walk in a manner worthy of the calling? That's heavy stuff there, ladies!

g. Ephesians 4:1-32: Who is the focus of this chapter and basically what does Paul want?

• Paul focuses on their unity as a body and to walk no longer as Gentiles walk
• lay aside the old, be renewed in their minds, and put on the new self

h. Ephesians 5:1-21: What is Paul's concern in these verses?

• walk in Christ
• (5:2) walk in love
• (5:8) walk as children of Light
• (5:15) be careful how you walk

i. Ephesians 5:22-33: What is Paul teaching the categories of people addressed in these verses?

• Showing the model of the church and Christ through the lens of marriage. 
• Introduction on how to treat each other and why.

j. Ephesians 6:1-9: Why are these categories of people being addressed?

• How to obey and show no partiality
• Addressing interpersonal relationships and unity in them

k. Ephesians 6:10-17: What is the main topic of these verses?

• How to stand firm in the faith and the power of His might

l. Ephesians 6:18-20: Who is to pray and why?

• You and me!
• Be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for ALL the saints!

m. Ephesians 6:21-24

• I am sending Tychicus to you- so that you may know how I (Paul) am doing

Now that we have summarized the book, let's look at our Ephesians At A Glance chart {page 159}. Using pencil, fill in as much as you can, but don't worry if you are unsure of certain sections. We will continue to build and change this chart throughout our study of Ephesians. I forgot to write down the other ladies' themes, so, I will just list mine. Keep in mind, these are not the "right" answers- you are just looking for a phrase or subject that will bring to your mind what that chapter is about when you recall it in the future.

Also, you will note that I did not keep my chapter headings in clean breaks. Remember that the chapter and verse breaks are man-made to help us find and identify different sections of the Bible. Ephesians, in it's original form, was merely a letter to the church.

Chapter 1: Motivation for faith
He chose us (1:4) and lavished us with riches (1:7-ff)
What we have "In Him" (1:18)
Chapter 2: Through grace we are all saved (2:5,8)
Chapter 3: Paul's prayer for them to know Christ 
Chapter 4: God's plan for the believer's walk
Walk worthy of the calling (4:1)
Chapter 5:1-16: Walk in the light 
Chapter 5:22- 6:9: How to treat others and why
Chapter 6:10-20: How to stand firm in the faith
               6:21-24: Closing

Segment Divisions
Segment divisions are just another way of summarizing chunks of the book together. I simply chose to group Chapters 1-3 together as "Who we are" and Chapters 4-6 together as "How we walk". Once again, there is no right or wrong answer, this is to remind you of what you have learned thus far.

Can I just say, I'm really proud of you?!? Taking this step to study God's Word in depth is sometimes a scary step, but I cannot tell you how limitless the rewards will be! It is worth it, beloved. So, keep it up. Feel free to email me or Kim anytime with questions or thoughts. We love hearing from you.

Preview to Lesson Two
We will learn how to do Word Studies in Lesson Two. See click here or go to the home page for instructions on how to do a word study.

Introduction to Ephesians and the Precept Study Method

Dear Ladies,

Kim and I were so humbled and blessed to have so many of you join us for today's lesson. We have been praying for you and preparing for this study throughout the summer and it is such a thrill to have this day finally here.

We hope this blog will be a source of encouragement and an opportunity to spur one another on to love and good deeds! We have included a variety of resources, but if you would like to see something else included, please let us know.

Let's begin with prayer. 
Read {page 3} of your Lesson guide and take the time to write out your prayer. This will be a sweet encouragement to you at the end of your study to see how God has led you down the path that He has for you!

Read through the entire book of Ephesians.
We encourage you to set aside 20-25 minutes to read through the whole book of Ephesians in one sitting. For an even fuller experience, read it out loud. This allows you to not only see it, but also hear it. Romans 10:17, "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

Precept Upon Precept: What you need to know.
For those of you who are new to Precept studies or the Inductive study method, now would be a good time to read {Important Information for First-timers on pages 1-2}. When filling in answers throughout your Lesson guide, we have found it helpful to write the reference (1:1) next to your answer. This keeps us looking in the Bible for our answers and also allows us to share God's Word with others more clearly.

Pull out the {Observation Worksheets} located in the Appendix {pages 137-158}.
As you re-read through the book of Ephesians, mark references to the author in a distinctive way. (Precepts recommends an orange circle, but you can mark it any way that makes sense to you. We have found it helpful to cut out the bookmark {on the back cover} of the Lesson Guide and write down your markings to remind you throughout the study.) Make sure to include pronouns (I, me, my) that refer to the author, but do not mark we or us where the author links himself to the recipients.

After you have circled all references to the author throughout the whole book of Ephesians:

1. write down who the author is at the bottom of {page 4}, with references supporting your answer.
2. Follow the instructions listed at the bottom of {page 5}. 
3. Using the 5 W's and H {page 5}, write your observations on the chart {page 13}.               You'll have to write small!
4. Complete {page 6}.

Read {page 7} and mark all references to the recipients in a distinctive way.
Remember to include pronouns such as you and your, but do not mark the pronouns we or us.

After you have circled all references to the recipients throughout the whole book of Ephesians:

1. write down who the recipients are at the bottom of {page 4}, with references supporting your answer.
2. Follow the instructions listed at the bottom of {page 7}. 
3. Using the 5 W's and H {page 5}, write your observations on the chart {page 13}.               You'll have to write small!
4. Complete the top of {page 8}.

Historical Background
Read Day Four and follow the instructions on {page 8-9}. Here you will learn some of the Ephesians' culture by studying Acts 19-20.

Kim did a great job of the history of Ephesus, for a timeline, click here.
Below are a couple of maps of Ephesus.

Letter Summary
To get more familiar with the book of Ephesians, we will look through the book and summarize the content. Read {page 9-12} and answer the questions.

Now that you have summarized the book, do you see any natural divisions or segments? Answer question #3 on {page 12}.

Complete question c on {page5}.

In the Appendix you will find a chart called Ephesians At A Glance {page 159}. Using pencil, fill in as much as you can, but don't worry if you are unsure of certain sections. We will continue to build and change this chart throughout our study of Ephesians.

So there you have it! You made it through the first week. The first week is almost always one of the most difficult, but it will be worth it my friend! We look forward to hearing what He has taught you throughout this week of study. May He enlighten the eyes of your heart.