Paul’s letters often fall into a basic, two-part division. The first part is theology while the second is about turning theology into biography. Paul follows this pattern in Ephesians with the first three chapters focusing on teaching and the last three on living. Paul could reach up into the heavens on subjects, but he wasContinue reading “The Walk of Life (1)”
Author Archives: A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green
The Walk of Life (2)
2. They are to walk differently than the world. In addressing what appears to be a largely Gentile church, Paul tells them they can’t be saved by Jesus and yet live like they don’t know Him. They can’t live like their unredeemed friends and family. That was how they used to walk when they “followed theContinue reading “The Walk of Life (2)”
Scale & Scope (1)
Our grandsons like to fish. The verdict is still out on the granddaughter (she’s six years old), but the boys are locked in. The ones in Arkansas are blessed in that they have a regular place to fish, so we get a quite a few pictures from their outings. I taught them early on whatContinue reading “Scale & Scope (1)”
Scale & Scope (2)
So how is the church involved in this? That’s what Paul is addressing in Ephesians 3. He begins by talking about the church as the place where God is accomplishing the reconciliation of humanity. Not just part of humanity, but all of it—Jews and Gentiles. They have all became “sharers together in the promise inContinue reading “Scale & Scope (2)”
Rescued!
Paul says some amazing things about Jesus towards the end of Ephesians 1. He tells us about how God has “raised Christ from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms far above” any and every power and authority in the heavenly realms (v. 20-21, see also 6:12ff). Furthermore, HeContinue reading “Rescued!”
Ephesians and the “Heavenly Realms” (1)
“Heavenly realms” or “heavenly places” (ESV) is a phrase unique to Ephesians. It is comes from the Greek word, epouraniois. This word is found in other places in the NT, but only in Ephesians is it translated this way. Paul uses it five times in Ephesians, so it’s an important term to understand if weContinue reading “Ephesians and the “Heavenly Realms” (1)”
Ephesians and the “Heavenly Realms” (2)
4. The heavenly realms are as real as the earthly realms. Of course, they aren’t perceived the same way. We know about the earthly realms through our physical senses. We know about the spiritual realms because God has revealed it to us through His word. Because God’s word is true, they are every bit as realContinue reading “Ephesians and the “Heavenly Realms” (2)”
The Good News of God’s Reign
Daniel has a dream in the first year of Belshazzar (7:1). The dream is an expansion of the one he interpreted for Nebuchadnezzar in chapter two. Instead of a statue with four parts representing four kingdoms, his dream has four creatures representing four kingdoms (v. 23). As in Daniel 2, these creatures also represent theContinue reading “The Good News of God’s Reign”
Pulling Back the Curtain
We’ve seen some amazing things in Daniel: These incidents provide us with windows through which we get glimpses of the world beyond ours. After all, these things don’t “naturally” occur in our world—so they point us to the reality of a world beyond ours. These glimpses (and the larger truths they embody) are made knownContinue reading “Pulling Back the Curtain”
Days of the Future Passed (1)
Chapter 9 of Daniel takes place sometime between the defeat of the Babylonians by the Medo-Persians (539 BC) but apparently before Cyrus has given his decree allowing the Jewish people to return to their homeland (Ezra 1:1 538 BC). One of the primary concerns of Daniel’s prayer in this chapter is the restoration of the sanctuaryContinue reading “Days of the Future Passed (1)”
A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green 