At what point in your life did you turn from the inclinations of the flesh and accept this gift from God?  What do you remember about your life before Christ? What change has He made in your life? Share your answer with your small group or an individual this week. 2.  What times in your life have you felt far from God? What made you feel distant from Him.          How did God draw you near? How d...  Read More

Ephesians 2:19-22  (HCSB)19 So then you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints, and members of God’s household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone. 21 The whole building, being put together by Him, grows into a holy sanctuary in the Lord. 22 You also are being built together for God’s dwelling i...  Read More

Ephesians 2:11-18  (HCSB)Unity in Christ11 So then, remember that at one time you were Gentiles in the flesh—called “the uncircumcised” by those called “the circumcised,” which is done in the flesh by human hands. 12 At that time you were without the Messiah, excluded from the citizenship of Israel, and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But n...  Read More

Ephesians 2:8-10  (HCSB)8 For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift— 9 not from works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them.Andy NashHuman nature is to boast about what we have accomplished in our own life. In Monday’s reading yo...  Read More

Ephesians 2:4-7  (HCSB)4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love that He had for us, 5 made us alive with the Messiah even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace! 6 Together with Christ Jesus He also raised us up and seated us in the heavens, 7 so that in the coming ages He might display the immeasurable riches of His grace through His kindness to us in Christ J...  Read More

Ephesians 2:1-3 (HCSB)From Death to Life2 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins 2 in which you previously walked according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler who exercises authority over the lower heavens, the spirit now working in the disobedient. 3 We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we...  Read More

ABUNDANT RICHES IN CHRISTBelievers praise God for the redemption and forgiveness we have through faith in Christ.KEY TRUTH: All Who Believe in Christ Are Abundantly Blessed (Ephesians 1:3–14)KEY TRUTH: Believers Should Grow in Their Knowledge of God and Demonstrate Thankfulness for the Blessings That Are Ours in Christ (Ephesians 1:15–23)FAMILY CONNECTION:  CONTINUE THE DISCUSSION AFTER CHURCH!Wha...  Read More

In Ephesians 1:3-4, the Apostle Paul tells us that we are blessed with every spiritual blessing and that we should be holy and blameless before Him (Christ). What are some of the spiritual blessings that you see evident in your life? What does it mean to live lives that are holy and blameless?2.  The Apostle Paul prays for the Ephesian Christians to receive the Spirit of wisdom, the      revelati...  Read More

Ephesians 1:20-23 (HCSB)God’s Power in Christ20 He demonstrated this power in the Messiah by raising Him from the dead and seating Him at His right hand in the heavens— 21 far above every ruler and authority, power and dominion, and every title given, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And He put everything under His feet and appointed Him as head over everything for the church, ...  Read More

Ephesians 1:15-19  (HCSB)Prayer for Spiritual Insight15 This is why, since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 I never stop giving thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. 17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, would give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. 18 I pray that the perception of ...  Read More

Ephesians 1:11-14  (HCSB)11 We have also received an inheritance in Him, predestined according to the purpose of the One who works out everything in agreement with the decision of His will, 12 so that we who had already put our hope in the Messiah might bring praise to His glory.13 When you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed in Him, you were also sealed...  Read More

Ephesians 1:7-10 (HCSB)7 We have redemption in Him through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace 8 that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure that He planned in Him10 for the administration of the days of fulfillment—to bring everything together in the Messiah, ...  Read More