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THE BOOK OF EPHESIANS
OUTLINE WITH TEXT
"Therefore, Walk Worthy." |
J. Deering,
AncientPath.net
The Text With Built-In Outline:
I. INTRO 1:1-2
(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.
II. YOUR CALLING 1:3-14
A. GOD'S PLAN 1:3-6
(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, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before
Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,
6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.
B.
THE BENEFITS OF GOD'S PLAN 1:7-14
(7) In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness
of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, 8 which
He lavished upon us. In all wisdom and insight 9 He made known
to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention
which He purposed in Him 10 with a view to an administration suitable to the fulness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in
Christ, things in the heavens and things upon the earth. 11
In
Him also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined
according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, 12
to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. 13
In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation-- having
also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance,
with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory.
III. THE RESULT 1:15-3:21
A. PAUL'S WISH LIST 1:15-23
(15) For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you, and
your love for all the saints, 16 do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers;
17 that the
God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to
you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in
the knowledge of Him. 18 I pray
that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the
glory of His inheritance in the saints, and 19 what is
the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might 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. 22 And He put all things in subjection
under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church,
23 which is His body, the fulness of Him who fills all in all.
B. PART 1 - SALVATION 2:1-10
(1) And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2 in which you
formerly
walked according to the course of this world, according to the
prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3 Among them
we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were
by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.
(4) But God, being rich in mercy, because
of His great love with which He loved us, 5
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, 7 in
order that in the ages to come
He
might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not
of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, that no one should boast. 10
For we are
His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for
good works, which God
prepared beforehand, that
we should walk in them.
B. PART 2 - UNITY 2:11-22
(11) Therefore remember, that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called "Uncircumcision"
by the so-called "Circumcision," which is performed in the flesh by human hands -- 12 remember that
you were at that time separate
from Christ, excluded
from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having
no hope and without
God in the world.
(13) But now in Christ
Jesus you who formerly
were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
14 For He Himself
is our peace,
who made both groups into one,
and broke down the "barrier of the dividing wall," 15
by
abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is
the Law of commandments contained
in ordinances, that
in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, 16 and might reconcile them
both in one body to God through the cross, by it
having put to death the enmity.
(17) "AND HE CAME AND PREACHED PEACE TO YOU WHO WERE FAR AWAY, AND
PEACE TO THOSE WHO WERE NEAR;"
(18) for through Him we both have our access in one
Spirit to the Father.
(19) So then you are
no longer strangers and aliens, but you are
fellow citizens with the saints, and
are of God's household,
20 having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the keystone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together is growing into a holy temple
in the Lord; 22 in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.
C. THE MYSTERY 3:1-21
(1) For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for
the sake of you Gentiles — 2 if indeed you have heard of the
stewardship of God's grace which was given to me for you; 3 that by revelation there was made known to me
the mystery, as I wrote before
in brief. 4 And by referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into
the mystery of Christ, 5 which in other
generations was not made known
to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit; 6
to
be specific, that
the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus
through the gospel, 7 of which I was made a minister, according
to the gift of God's grace which was given to me according to the working of His power. 8 To me, the very
least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable
riches of Christ, 9 and to
bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which
for ages has been hidden in God, who created all things; 10
in
order that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church
to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was in accordance with the
eternal purpose which He carried out
in Christ Jesus our Lord,
12 in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him.
(13) Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my tribulations on your
behalf, for they are your glory.
(14) For this reason, I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on
earth derives its name, 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to
be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man; 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through
faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is
the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that
you may be filled up to all the fulness of God.
(20) Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that
we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, 21 to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ
Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.
IV. THEREFORE WALK WORTHY 4:1-6:9
A. PART 1 - UNITY 4:1-6
(1) I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord,
entreat
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 forbearance to one another
in love, 3 being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace. 4 There is
one body and
one Spirit, just as also you were called
in one hope
of your calling; 5 one Lord,
one faith,
one baptism, 6
one God and Father of all who
is over all and through all and in all.
A. PART 2 - GIFTS 4:7-16
(7) But to each one of us grace was
given according to the measure of Christ's gift. 8
Therefore it says,
"WHEN HE ASCENDED ON HIGH, HE
LED CAPTIVE A HOST OF CAPTIVES, AND
HE GAVE GIFTS TO MEN." 9 (Now
this expression, "He ascended," what does it mean except that He also had descended into the lower parts
of the earth? 10 He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might
fill all things.)
(11) And He gave some
as apostles, and some
as prophets, and some
as evangelists, and some
as pastors and teachers, 12
for
the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13 until we
all attain to the
unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the
Son of God, to a mature man,
to
the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ.
(14) 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 that which 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.
A. PART 3 - WALK 4:17-32
(17) This I say therefore, and affirm together with the Lord, that you
walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility
of their mind, 18 being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God,
because of the ignorance that is in them,
because of the hardness
of their heart; 19 and they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality, for the practice
of every kind of impurity with greediness.
(20) But you did not
learn Christ in this way, 21
if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, 22 that, in reference to your former manner of life,
you
lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance
with the lusts of deceit, 23 and that you be renewed in the spirit
of your mind, 24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness
of the truth.
(25) Therefore, laying
aside falsehood,
"SPEAK TRUTH,
EACH ONE" of you, "WITH HIS NEIGHBOR,"
for we are members of one another.
(26) "BE ANGRY, AND yet DO NOT SIN;"
do not let the sun
go down on your anger, 27 and do not give the devil an opportunity. 28 Let him who steals
steal no longer; but rather let him labor,
performing with his own hands what is good, in order that he may have something to share with him who has need. 29
Let no unwholesome word proceed
from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, that it may
give grace to those who hear. 30 And do not grieve the Holy
Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander
be put away from you, along with all malice. 32
And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God
in Christ also has forgiven you.
B. PART 1 - THEREFORE IMITATE
GOD 5:1-14
(1) Therefore be imitators
of God, as beloved children; 2 and
walk
in love, just as Christ also loved you, and gave Himself up for
us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. 3
But do not
let immorality or any impurity or greed even be named among you,
as is proper among saints; 4 and there must be no filthiness
and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting,
but rather giving of thanks.
5 For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an
inheritance
in the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let no one deceive you
with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God
comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not
be partakers with them; 8 for you were
formerly darkness,
but now you are light in the Lord;
walk as children of light 9
(for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth), 10 trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 And
do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness,
but instead even expose
them; 12 for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret. 13 But all things
become visible
when they are exposed by the light,
for everything that becomes visible
is light.
14 For this reason it says, "Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will
shine on you."
B. PART 2 - THEREFORE WALK
WISELY 5:15-20
(15) Therefore be careful
how you walk, not as unwise men, but as
wise, 16 redeeming
your time, because the days are evil. 17 So then do
not be foolish, but
understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not
get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be
filled with the Spirit, 19
speaking to one another
in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; 20 always giving
thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;
C. BE SUBJECT TO ONE ANOTHER
5:21-33
(21) and be subject to
one another in the fear of Christ.
1. WIVES
5:22-24
(22) Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For
the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head
of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body.
24 But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.
2. HUSBANDS
5:25-33
(25) Husbands, love your wives, just
as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her;
26 that He might sanctify her,
having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 that He might present to
Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she should be holy and
blameless. 28 So husbands ought also to love their own
wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; 29 for no one ever hated his own flesh,
but
nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, 30 because we are members of His body.
(31) "FOR THIS CAUSE A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER, AND
SHALL CLEAVE TO HIS WIFE; AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH."
(32) This mystery is
great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church.
33 Nevertheless let each individual among you also love his own
wife even as himself; and let the wife see to it that she respect
her husband.
3. CHILDREN
6:1-3
4. FATHERS
6:4
(4) And, fathers, do not
provoke your children to anger;
but
bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
5. SLAVES
6:5-8
(5) Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh,
with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ; 6 not by way of eyeservice, as men-pleasers,
but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. 7 With good will render service, as to the
Lord, and not to men, 8 knowing that whatever good thing each
one does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether slave or free.
6. MASTERS
6:9
(9) And, masters, do the same things to them, and give up threatening,
knowing that both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no partiality
with Him.
V. BE STRONG WITH THE FULL ARMOR
OF GOD 6:10-20
BE STRONG 6:10-14a
(10) Finally, be strong in the Lord,
and in the strength of His might.
11 Put on the full armor of God,
that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 12
For
our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces
of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand
firm. 14 Stand firm therefore,
A. WITH TRUTH 6:14b
"HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH
TRUTH," and
B. WITH RIGHTEOUSNESS 6:14c
"HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF
RIGHTEOUSNESS," 15 and
C. WITH PREPARATION 6:15
having shod "YOUR FEET WITH THE
PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE;"
D. WITH FAITH
(16) in addition to all, taking up the shield of
faith with which you will be able to
extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one. 17 And
E. WITH SALVATION 6:17a
take "THE HELMET OF SALVATION," and
F. WITH THE WORD OF GOD 6:17b
the sword of the Spirit, which is the
word of God.
G. WITH PRAYER 6:18-20
(18) With all prayer and petition pray
at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view,
be on the alert with all perseverance
and petition for all the saints,
19 and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness
the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly,
as I ought to speak.
VI. THE SALUTATION 6:21-22
(21) But that you also may know about my circumstances, how I am doing,
Tychicus, the beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord, will make everything known to you. 22 And
I have sent him to you for this very purpose, so that you may know about us, and that he may comfort your hearts.
VII. THE BENEDICTION 6:23-24 (23) Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus
Christ. 24 Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with a love incorruptible.