Outline
- The Divine Purpose: The Glory and Headship of Christ (1:3-14)
- Prayer That Christians May Realize God's Purpose and Power (1:15-23)
- Steps Toward the Fulfillment of God's Purpose (chs. 2-3)
VI. Conclusion, Final Greetings and Benediction (6:21-24)
Ephesians 4 NLT
1 Therefore I, a prisoner for serving
the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been
called by God.
2 Always be humble and gentle. Be
patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of
your love.
3 Make every effort to keep yourselves
united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.
4 For there is one body and one Spirit,
just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future.
5 There is one Lord, one faith, one
baptism,
6 one God and Father of all, who is
over all, in all, and living through all.
7 However, he has given each one of us
a special gift through the generosity of Christ.
8 That is why the Scriptures say, “When
he ascended to the heights, he led a crowd of captives and gave gifts to his
people.”
9 Notice that it says “he ascended.”
This clearly means that Christ also descended to our lowly world.
10 And the same one who descended is the
one who ascended higher than all the heavens, so that he might fill the entire
universe with himself.
11 Now these are the gifts Christ gave
to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and
teachers.
12 Their responsibility is to equip
God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.
13This will continue until we all come to
such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in
the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.
14 Then we will no longer be immature
like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new
teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so
clever they sound like the truth.
15 Instead, we will speak the truth in
love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his
body, the church.
16 He makes the whole body fit together
perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts
grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.
17 With the Lord’s authority I say this:
Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused.
18Their minds are full of darkness; they
wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and
hardened their hearts against him.
19 They have no sense of shame. They
live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.
20 But that isn’t what you learned about
Christ.
21 Since you have heard about Jesus and
have learned the truth that comes from him,
22 throw off your old sinful nature and
your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception.
23 Instead, let the Spirit renew your
thoughts and attitudes.
24 Put on your new nature, created to be
like God—truly righteous and holy.
25So stop telling lies. Let us tell our
neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body.
26 And “don’t sin by letting anger
control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry,
27 for anger gives a foothold to the
devil.
28 If you are a thief, quit stealing.
Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others
in need.
29 Don’t use foul or abusive language.
Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an
encouragement to those who hear them.
30 And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy
Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own,
guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.
31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage,
anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior.
32 Instead, be kind to
each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ
has forgiven you.
Ephesians 5 NLT
1 Imitate God, therefore, in everything
you do, because you are his dear children.
2 Live a life filled with love,
following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice
for us, a pleasing aroma to God.
3 Let there be no sexual immorality,
impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people.
4 Obscene stories, foolish talk, and
coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to
God.
5 You can be sure that no immoral,
impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a
greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.
6 Don’t be fooled by those who try to
excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey him.
7 Don’t participate in the things these
people do.
8 For once you were full of darkness,
but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light!
9 For this light within you produces
only what is good and right and true.
10 Carefully determine what pleases the
Lord.
11 Take no part in the worthless deeds
of evil and darkness; instead, expose them.
12 It is shameful even to talk about the
things that ungodly people do in secret.
13 But their evil intentions will be
exposed when the light shines on them,
14 for the light makes everything
visible. This is why it is said, “Awake, O sleeper, rise up from the dead,
and Christ will give you light.”
15 So be careful how you live. Don’t
live like fools, but like those who are wise.
16 Make the most of every opportunity in
these evil days.
17 Don’t act thoughtlessly, but
understand what the Lord wants you to do.
18 Don’t be drunk with wine, because
that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit,
19 singing psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs among yourselves, and making music to the Lord in your
hearts.
20 And give thanks for everything to God
the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
21 And further, submit to one another out
of reverence for Christ.
22 For wives, this means submit to your
husbands as to the Lord.
23 For a husband is the head of his wife
as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of his body, the
church.
24 As the church submits to Christ, so you
wives should submit to your husbands in everything.
25 For husbands, this means love your
wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her
26 to make her holy and clean, washed by
the cleansing of God’s word.
27 He did this to present her to himself
as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead,
she will be holy and without fault.
28In the same way, husbands ought to love
their wives as they love their own bodies. For a man who loves his wife actually
shows love for himself.
29 No one hates his own body but feeds
and cares for it, just as Christ cares for the church.
30And we are members of his body.
31 As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves
his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into
one.”
32 This is a great mystery, but it is an
illustration of the way Christ and the church are one.
33 So again I say,
each man must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her
husband.
Ephesians 6 NLT
1 Children, obey your parents because
you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do.
2 “Honor your father and mother.” This
is the first commandment with a promise:
3 If you honor your father and mother,
“things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on the
earth.”
4 Fathers, do not provoke your children
to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline
and instruction that comes from the Lord.
5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters
with deep respect and fear. Serve them sincerely as you would serve
Christ.
6 Try to please them all the time, not
just when they are watching you. As slaves of Christ, do the will of God with
all your heart.
7 Work with enthusiasm, as though you
were working for the Lord rather than for people.
8 Remember that the Lord will reward
each one of us for the good we do, whether we are slaves or free.
9 Masters, treat your slaves in the
same way. Don’t threaten them; remember, you both have the same Master in
heaven, and he has no favorites.
10 A final word: Be strong in the Lord
and in his mighty power.
11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you
will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.
12 For we are not fighting against
flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen
world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in
the heavenly places.
13 Therefore, put on every piece of
God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after
the battle you will still be standing firm.
14 Stand your ground, putting on the
belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness.
15 For shoes, put on the peace that
comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.
16 In addition to all of these, hold up
the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.
17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and
take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and
on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all
believers everywhere.
19 And pray for me, too. Ask God to give
me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good
News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.
20 I am in chains now, still preaching
this message as God’s ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly
for him, as I should.
21 To bring you up to date, Tychicus
will give you a full report about what I am doing and how I am getting along.
He is a beloved brother and faithful helper in the Lord’s work.
22 I have sent him to you for this very
purpose—to let you know how we are doing and to encourage you.
23 Peace be with you, dear brothers and
sisters, and may God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you love with faithfulness.
24 May God’s grace be
eternally upon all who love our Lord Jesus Christ.
