Identity in Ephesians: You are Called
Ephesians 3:1-10
Connect:
Share how you have seen God in the Highs and Lows of your week.
Discuss how resolutions made last week in “growing more like Jesus” worked themselves out— what did God do in and through you (Phil 2:13)? Celebrate those together!
Prayer:
Pray that God would lead your discussion time and bring fresh insight, conviction, and hope through your time together.
Review:
We are launching into a new series on our identity in Christ as presented in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. There are 14 things that God says we are. We are “Blessed”, “Rooted”, “Alive”, “Reconciled”, and now “Called”! See if your group can summarize the main idea in the previous ones!
The Grand Tour of the message: Thinking back on what you heard this Sunday…
o What did you learn about God?
o What did you learn about people?
o What did you learn about yourself?
o What do you want to commit to putting into practice?
Reflect:
“Paul was a prisoner IN Rome, but not a prisoner OF Rome.” What’s the difference… and what difference did that make to Paul?
Read Ephesians 3:1. Discuss:
o When Paul said, “For this reason…” what was he referring to? (go back to chapter 2)
o Paul called Himself the “prisoner of Jesus Christ”. Why? What did he mean by that ‘identity’?
o Scott said, “Don’t let your current season hinder your eternal purpose.” How does the identity discussed above help us with that?
Read Ephesians 3:2-6
o Paul talks about a “mystery that was not made known to previous generations.” Why would God want to keep something a mystery?
o Paul says, “heirs together with Israel…” Heirs of what exactly?
o Paul talks about Gentiles and Jews being “members of one body”. How does faith in Jesus make us “members of one body” no matter our ethnicity? (John 1:12, Eph 2:13, Gal 3:28)
Read Eph 3:7-9
o How does this section affirm the phrase, “My calling is to steward the grace of God and pay it forward”? Explain.
o What are the “…boundless riches of Christ…” that Paul refers to here?
o Scott said, “You cannot pay back God’s grace, but you can pay it forward”. Why can we not pay God back, and how do we
‘pay it forward’?
Read Eph 3:10-12
o What is the eternal purpose God accomplished in Christ Jesus?
o Paul says, “In Him and through Faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence”. What does it mean to be “in Him”? (John 17:20-23 Romans 6:11, 12:5)
o Scott said, “You cannot pay back God’s grace, but you can pay it forward”. Why can we not pay God back?
Respond:
o We finished the message this weekend asking about 3 people in your life who do not have others who are likely to interrupt their life with the Good News the Jesus saves us from the condemnation that lands us in hell! Close the evening by sharing about and praying for those people.
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