The book of Ephesians has a special characteristic. Unlike Romans, which speaks from the sinners’ condition, Ephesians speaks from God’s eternal purpose. In the opening chapters of Romans, we see the sinners’ condition. In Romans 1 all kinds of sins are listed. But no such list is found in chapter one of Ephesians. This is because Ephesians speaks, not from the sinners’ condition, but from God’s eternal purpose. Moreover, Ephesians speaks from eternity, not from time, and from the heavenlies, not from the earth. The book of Ephesians brings us into eternity. Do not stay in time—get into eternity. Because Ephesians brings us into the heavenlies, we should not remain in our condition; instead, we should be in eternity and in the heavenlies. We are in God’s eternal purpose, and we need not look at our condition. Rather, let us look at God’s eternal purpose. Because we are so bound to our condition and enveloped in it, we need to be rescued. Ephesians does not care for our condition so much as it cares for God’s purpose. It speaks to us from the heart of God’s purpose. When we come to this book, we need to pray, “Lord, take me out of my condition, away from the earth, and outside of time. Lord, rescue me from my condition and bring me into eternity and into the heavenlies. I want to enter into the heart of God and into His eternal purpose.”
Many years ago I read the book of Ephesians as if I were a frog in a narrow well. From my position in the well, I tried to understand this book. But I could not understand it. To understand this book, we need to be delivered from our condition and brought into God’s eternal purpose and into the heavenlies. If we read Ephesians from such a position, our reading will be different. The specific and particular characteristic of this book is that it is written from eternity, from the heavenlies, from God’s heart, and from God’s eternal purpose.
Ephesians has a specific position in the order of the books of the New Testament. It would be very awkward if Ephesians were the first book of the New Testament. Praise the Lord that it has been placed in the right position, immediately after the revelation concerning Christ versus religion (Galatians), followed by the practical experience of Christ (Philippians), and leading to the Head (Colossians)!
In Galatians we see the matter of Christ versus religion. We should not replace Christ with anything. This means that it should not be our emotion versus religion or our practice versus religion. It must be Christ versus religion. Ephesians comes after this revelation of Christ versus religion. The matter of Christ versus religion leads us to the church. Christ is not versus religion merely for our experience. That is the improper emphasis of the so-called inner life people who seek Christ, not for the church, but for their experience. Christ is versus religion for the church. The very Christ who is versus religion is not primarily for our experience, but for the church. Galatians 2:20 says that we have been crucified with Christ and that Christ lives in us. This experience must be for the church life.
It is wrong to care so much for the personal experience of Christ that we neglect the church. However, if we care so much for the church that we neglect the practical experience of Christ, we are also wrong. To someone who cares only for personal experience, not for the church, I would say, “You must go on from Galatians to Ephesians.” But to someone who cares so much for the church that he neglects the experience of Christ, I would say, “Remember, following Ephesians is the book of Philippians.” We need the practical experience of Christ so that we shall be able to say that whether in death or in life Christ shall be magnified in us (Phil. 1:20). We should also be able to say that for us to live is Christ (Phil. 1:21) and that we count all things but dung on account of the excellency of Christ (Phil. 3:8). We all need to experience Christ. Before someone comes into the church, he must have some experience of Christ, and after he comes into the church, he needs even more experience of Him.
The experience of Christ leads us to the Head. Therefore, after Philippians we have Colossians. I am very fond of Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians. I have spent more time studying these books than any other books in the Bible. We all need to spend more time on these four books. Galatians is the revelation of Christ versus religion, Ephesians covers the church in seven aspects, Philippians deals with the practical experience of Christ, and Colossians leads us to the Head. If we get into these four books, we shall see that Christ is here, that Christ leads us to the church, that the church life leads us to experience Christ daily, and that all this brings us to the Head. This is the position of the book of Ephesians in the New Testament.
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