Fellowshipmtz

Ephesians 2:11-13 - Gentiles’ ”Outsider” Status

Ephesians 2:11-13

Twice Paul calls upon the Gentile believers to "remember."  Previously, he had made it clear they were "dead in the trespasses and sins in which they one walked."  Now, he emphasizes the highly disadvantaged position of the Gentiles as a whole before God intervened.

Ephesains 2:10 God’s Workmanship: Works Matter!

Ephesians 2:10

Immediately after making the grand declaration "by grace are you saved through faith" (vs 8), Paul addresses two common (and opposite) fallacies, errors pertaining to God's salvation.  The first error is to suppose we might have performed some work that contributed to, or resulted in, our salvation.  The second error (which we consider today) is that good works are unimportant and/or unnecessary in the life of a Christian.

Ephesians 2:8-9 / By Grace, Through Faith

Ephesians 2:8-9

Preaching on these well-known verses, Alexander MacLaren (1826-1910) begins his sermon:
"Here are three of the key-words of the New Testament — 'grace,' 'saved,' 'faith.'  Once these terms were strange and new;  now they are old and threadbare.  Once they were like lava, glowing and cast up from the central depths; but it is a long while since the eruption, and the blocks have gotten cold, and the corners have been rubbed off them.  I am afraid that some people, when they read such a text, will shrug the shoulder of weariness, and think that they are in for a dreary sermon. But the more familiar a word is, the more likely are common ideas about it to be hazy.  We substitute acquaintance with the sound for penetration into the sense."

Ephesians 2:4-7 -- ”But GOD!”

Ephesians 2:4-7

From Creation, we learn of GOD's power & wisdom, His creativity & benevolence.  By individual conscience, we gain unmistakable impressions of GOD's holiness & righteousness (His moral character).  But it in/through GOD's sending of the Son we learn of His LOVE (His mercy, grace, kindness)!

Ephesaians 2:2-5 - ”How Dead Were We?”

Ephesians 2:2-5

Andrew MacLaren (1826–1910), a British Baptist pastor and contemporary of Charles Spurgeon wrote (preached): "The Apostle looks upon the world — many-coloured, full of activity, full of intellectual stir, full of human emotions, affections, joys, sorrows, fluctuations — as if it were one great cemetery, and on every gravestone there were written the same inscription.  They all died of the same disease — 'dead through sin,'..."

Ephesians 2:1-7 / DEAD!

Ephesians 2:1-4

John Stott (1921-2011) writes in his commentary on Ephesians:
"Paul first plumbs the depths of pessimism about man, and then rises to the heights of optimism about God.  It is this combination of pessimism and optimism, of despair and faith, which constitutes the refreshing realism of the Bible. For what Paul does in this passage is to paint a vivid contrast between what man is by nature and what he can become by grace."

1 John 5:10-13 / Doctrine of Assurance

1 John 5:10-13
The Doctrine of Biblical Assurance
Guest speaker, Kendall Oliver is pastor of Covenant Reformed Baptist Church in Decatur.

Titus 2:11-14 / How God’s Grace Gives Hope!

Titus 2:11-14

Guest Speaker, Jordan McFarland  (current ministry intern at Southern View Chapel in Springfield).  Jordan is a graduate of Calvary Bible College (now, Calvary University), receiving a B.A. in Advanced Biblical Studies.  He is starting classes at Faith Seminary
in Lafayette, IN with the intention of receiving a Masters of Divinity.  Jordan desires to serve in pastoral ministry somewhere as the Lord leads.

 

Ephesians 1:20-23 / The Power of GOD in Christ!

Ephesians 1:20-23 -- Wonder of wonders!  GOD gives (the resurrected, and ascended, and ruling) CHRIST to the Church!

Ephesians 1:18-19 - A Believer’s Hope and Call

Ephesians 1:18-19

The effect of having "the eyes of our hearts are enlightened" is that we know:
1) the hope to which God has called us
2) the riches of God's glorious inheritance among [in] the saints
3) the immeasurable greatness of God's power...