Ephesians 2:11-22 Study Prompts #3

I am currently preaching a sermon series on Sunday mornings at Wildwood Community Church called “Packed” – based out of Paul’s Epistle to the Ephesians.  During this series, I am using my blog to post study prompts, devotionals, sermon audio/video, and discussion questions to help facilitate personal or group study of this book.  NOTE: At the bottom of this post, I have a set of links to previous resources in this series.

Ephesians 2:11-22 – Study Prompts #3

1. Take a moment to pray.  Praise God for His Word and ask Him to teach you its truth, just as the psalmist prayed in Psalm 119:12-16, “Praise be to You, O Lord; teach me Your decrees.  With my lips I recount all the laws that come from Your mouth.  I rejoice in following Your statutes as one rejoices in great riches.  I meditate on Your precepts and consider Your ways.  I delight in Your decrees; I will not neglect Your Word.”
2. Read Ephesians 2:11-22
3. In Ephesians 2:19, Paul uses two different metaphors to describe the unity that Jesus has created between Jews and Gentiles.  What are those two metaphors and what pictures do these metaphors bring to mind regarding the unity of the church?
4. In what way are you encouraged to be a part of the Heavenly family, with God as your father?  In what way are you encouraged to be a part of a holy nation/people?  Even if you are a part of a great earthly family or live as a citizen of a great earthly nation, what Jesus has done is upgraded our eternity in both citizenship and family!
5. After talking of the Jews and Gentiles being a part of one family and one people, Paul describes the church as a living “temple” in Ephesians 2:20-22.  How is this temple described?  What do you think is the “big idea” behind describing Christians as the modern day “temple” of God?
6. Both Jews and Ephesians had a real interest in temples.  In Jerusalem, the Jewish Temple that Herod built still stood when Paul wrote this letter.  It was a symbol of God’s presence with His people and a place of worship for His people.  In Ephesus, the great temple to the Greek goddess Diana (Artemis) stood as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.  However, the temple Paul describes in 2:20-22 is different.  In what ways is the temple that Paul describes better than the temples the Jews and Gentiles were more familiar with?
7. STUDY NOTE:  The foundation of the temple (2:20) is described as being made up of the “apostles and the prophets with Jesus being the very cornerstone.”  The cornerstone was the most important piece in an ancient building.  If the cornerstone was straight, the walls of the temple would be square and strong.  The selection of the perfect cornerstone made for stable construction.  The church is built on Jesus as the cornerstone who is perfect and holy, thus guaranteeing the design of the church.  The foundation being made up of the apostles and the prophets is an allusion to the New Testament Scriptures.  The Apostles and the New Testament prophets lived during the first century and were used by God to record on paper the New Testament which would define the beliefs for the “new man” that Jesus had created in the church.
8. The Temple that Jesus created (the church) has stood now for 2,000 years.  Every Christian who has lived in this era is a “living stone” in the dwelling place of God.  This means that as a church we are tied together with a history/heritage of believers from all over the world and from all ages, united in one Body to God.  How does thinking of this historical perspective help reinforce the unity  that Jesus created through His work on the cross and establishment of the church?
9. Do you really believe that your body is a “dwelling place for God by the Spirit?”  How would your life change if you really understood that God was with you always?

For more resources related to this study of Ephesians click on the following links:

• Packed – Series Introduction
• Eph. 1:3-14 (Study Prompts #1)
• Eph. 1:3-14 (Study Prompts #2)
• Eph. 1:3-14 (Study Prompts #3)
• The “In Crowd” (Devotional/Sermon Preview)
• Packed Sermon Discussion Questions
• Packed #1 Sermon Audio/Video
• Eph. 1:15-23 (Study Prompts #1)
• Eph. 1:15-23 (Study Prompts #2)
• Eph. 1:15-23 (Study Prompts #3)
• It’s a Wonderful Christian Life (Devotional)
• Packed #2 Sermon Discussion Questions
• Packed #2 Sermon Audio/Video
• Eph. 2:1-10 (Study Prompts #1)
• Eph. 2:1-10 (Study Prompts #2)
• Eph. 2:1-10 (Study Prompts #3)
• Unbelievable Offer (Devotional/Sermon Preview)
• Packed #3 Sermon Discussion Questions
• Packed #3 Sermon Audio/Video
• Eph. 2:11-22 (Study Prompts #1)
• Eph. 2:11-22 (Study Prompts #2)