Ephesians: Cosmic Conquest and Inclusion of the Gentiles

Course Description

Ephesians tells the story of God conquering the malevolent spiritual powers that rule the nations. God raises Christ from the dead, exalts him above every ruler and authority, and places all things under his feet. Paul locates his mission to the Gentiles within this cosmic conquest. Through the gospel, Christ delivers Gentiles from the powers that once ruled them, brings them into Israel’s promises, and joins them with Jewish believers in one body. This five-week course will explore how Ephesians connects Christ’s triumph over the powers, Paul’s mission among the Gentiles, and God’s reclaiming of the nations as his own possession.

Week 1: The Jewish Messiah and God’s Cosmic Plan

This opening session introduces the book of Ephesians and situates it within its first-century setting. Paul writes as a Jewish apostle to a predominantly non-Jewish community that worshiped Israel’s God through the Jewish Messiah. The letter begins by celebrating the blessings God has given believers through the Messiah and then draws them into a supernatural struggle of cosmic proportions. In the great blessing and prayer of chapter 1, Paul opens a window onto the powers at work in this drama and God’s purpose to bring all things under the Messiah’s rule. Participants will also consider how Ephesians relates to Paul’s other letters and what it contributes to our understanding of ancient Judaism and earliest Christianity.

Read: Ephesians 1

Week 2: Grace, Reconciliation, and the New Humanity

Ephesians 2 moves from death to life and from estrangement to a dwelling place for God. Paul addresses his readers as “you Gentiles” while including both Jews and Gentiles in the “we” of those whom God has made alive and saved through the Messiah. Along the way, the chapter offers one of the New Testament’s clearest explanations of the relationship among grace, faith, and good works. It then reaches its theological climax in the Messiah’s reconciliation of Jews and Gentiles. Together, they form one new humanity and are built into a holy temple in which God dwells.

Read: Ephesians 2

Week 3: The Mystery Revealed to the Powers

This session brings together ancient Jewish views of the cosmos, Paul’s calling as an apostle, and Gentile participation in Israel’s promise through the Jewish Messiah. Paul describes this surprising turn in God’s saving work as a “mystery” entrusted to him to proclaim. Through the community created by the inclusion of Gentiles, God displays his many-sided wisdom before the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms. Paul concludes the first half of the letter by unfolding the significance of this mystery and praying that believers, strengthened by the Spirit, will comprehend the immeasurable love of the Messiah. His prayer becomes praise to the God whose power at work among them can accomplish far more than they can ask or imagine.

Read: Ephesians 3

Week 4: Living as God’s New Humanity

In Ephesians 4–5, Paul turns from announcing what God has done to teaching Gentile believers how to live in response. They must leave behind the patterns of Gentiles who do not know God, for they belong to the new humanity that God is creating in righteousness and holiness. Paul calls them to preserve their unity, put away their former ways, and walk in love, light, and wisdom. Many of the virtues he commends echo the instruction of the Jewish Torah. This session will explore what it meant for Gentiles to worship and obey Israel’s God while living under the rule of the Jewish Messiah.

Read: Ephesians 4–5

Week 5: Standing Together against the Powers

In the final chapter, Paul applies his instruction to relationships within the households that formed the worshiping community. Children and parents, enslaved people and masters all receive instruction about how their allegiance to the Messiah should govern their conduct toward one another. Paul then concludes with one of the letter’s most memorable passages: the armor of God. The commands are plural and communal—the entire assembly must put on God’s armor and stand together against the hostile spiritual powers. This final session will place Paul’s military imagery within the themes of God’s victory over the powers and Paul’s mission among the Gentiles that run throughout Ephesians. The course will conclude by considering Ephesians as a Jewish apostolic letter addressed to Gentiles learning to live under the rule of Israel’s God and Messiah.

Read: Ephesians 6

Instructor

Dr. Zachary Wagner

Zachary Wagner (DPhil, MA) is an author, ordained minister, and New Testament scholar.