Category Archives: Ephesians

Daily Bible Reading “Spirit of Wisdom” (Ephesians 1:15-23)

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Spirit of Wisdom

Today’s Daily Bible Reading is from Ephesians 1:15-23. We will continue looking at Paul’s letter to the church at Ephesus. In lesson one, we saw that as believers in Christ we are blessed with spiritual blessings in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). We are chosen by God to be adopted into the family of God as His children and to be made holy in Christ, as Paul explained in Ephesians 1:4.

We are redeemed through the blood of Jesus (Ephesians 1:7). We are sealed with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13). How does that make you feel? If you are a Christian, God has you in the palm of His hand and He is not going to let you go.

In lesson two, Paul says he heard of the faith of the Ephesians in the Lord Jesus and their love to all the saints. He tells them that he thanks God and prays for them continually. Do you make a habit of praying for other Christians? I would love to have you pray for me.

Let’s take a look at Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians in Ephesians 1:17-23.

Paul prays that God would give them wisdom and knowledge in Him. His desire is that they would understand and know the hope of His calling and the majesty of the inheritance God has for His children. He also prays that they would know the incredible greatness of God’s power to those who believe, by the working of His mighty strength, which He demonstrated when He raised Christ from the dead and set Jesus Christ at His right hand in heaven.

God gave Christ a position which is far above all principality or power or might or dominion (which means governing body) rule over every name that is named in this world and the world to come. God put everything under the authority of Christ and made Him the head of the church. The church is His body, the fullness of Christ, who fills everything everywhere with His presence.

I would love to have someone pray this prayer for me, wouldn’t you? In order for us to understand the things of God it will take the work of the Holy Spirit to reveal it to us. When you hear God’s Word, put your trust and faith in Him, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and receive Him as your Savior, you inherit all the benefits of being a Christian. The most important benefit is the forgiveness of your sin and eternal life through Jesus Christ.

It’s not God’s will that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Not everybody who hears the gospel will trust and believe. That part of the equation is up to you. God is not going to force you to become a believer; He gave you a free will. Have you put your faith and trust in Him?

 

Daily Bible Reading:

Ephesians 1:15-23

15 Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints,

16 Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers;

17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:

18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,

19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,

20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,

21 Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:

22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,

23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

 

Things to think about:

  • Why should we thank God for other believers?
  • What are some prayers we can pray for other believers?
  • How should we pray for those who are not yet believers?
  • Have you asked God to give you wisdom, knowledge, and understanding so you might know and understand the things of Christ?

 

Prayer of the Day:

Dear Heavenly Father,

We thank You for this Scripture in the book of Ephesians. We pray today that You would give us wisdom, knowledge, and understanding so we might know the hope of Your calling and the riches of Your inheritance to Your children. Thank You for Your Son, Jesus Christ, whom You raised from the dead and who sits at Your right hand in heaven. Help us to understand the authority You gave Him over the church and to submit to His authority so we may be pleasing in Your sight. In Jesus’ precious name, we pray. Amen.

 

Daily Bible Verse:

That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give …

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unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:

– Ephesians 1:17

 

-This is an excerpt from The Book of Ephesians: Paul’s Letter to the Church at Ephesus by Deborah H. Bateman

Click the link above to get your copy now!

 

Christian Music Video:

PS. Thank you for coming to DeborahHBateman.com to study the Bible with us. Come back again tomorrow. Please invite your friends and family to join us for Bible Study.

 

Featured Book:

The Book of Ephesians: Paul’s Letter to the Church at Ephesus

by Deborah H. Bateman

The Book of Ephesians: Paul’s Letter to the Church at Ephesus is a Daily Bible Reading Study by Deborah H. Bateman. It is a study of the book of Ephesians from the New Testament of the Bible. Ephesians is one of the Apostle Paul’s letters, which was written to the church at Ephesus.

In the book of Ephesians Paul reminds us that we are chosen of God. He encourages us to walk in unity in the church. He talks about our various relationships including our relationship with Christ, with each other, the husband-wife relationship and others. He also exhorts us to put on the full armor of God so that we are clothed for battle against the enemy.

The Book of Ephesians: Paul’s Letter to the Church at Ephesus consists of twelve lessons, which can be used for an individual daily Bible study or a group Bible study. Each lesson consists of a brief commentary, the Daily Bible Reading Scripture, a few questions for contemplation called, “Things to think about,” and a prayer for the day.

For those of you interested in Bible journaling, may I suggest you pick your favorite Bible verse from each lesson and journal about it. This will be a great reminder of the lessons you learn as you read and study this book.

Go to: Amazon

Get your copy now!

 

Subscribe to Deborah H. Bateman to receive
Daily Bible Reading Lessons in your inbox.

 

Have a blessed day,

Deborah

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Daily Bible Reading “We are Chosen” (Ephesians 1:1-14)

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We are Chosen

Today’s Daily Bible Reading is from Ephesians 1:1-14. The book of Ephesians is one of many books in the Bible that are letters written by the Apostle Paul to the churches of his day. Paul’s letters were meant to encourage the churches and help them to follow the ways of God. Some of the churches Paul founded. We know from reading Acts 19 that Paul lived in Ephesus for two years. Paul refers to himself as an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God. By addressing the letter this way he is telling that he wrote the letter.

You may be a mom, dad, grandparent, pastor, teacher, etc. by the will of God. You are where God has placed you for a reason. He has a plan for your life.

Paul addresses the letter to the saints at Ephesus and the faithful in Christ, which includes those of us who are saved. He greets them by wishing them grace and peace from God the Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul gives glory to God saying, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ.” Paul is talking to Christians and he wants them to understand all the blessings they have in Jesus Christ.

He reminds them that we were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world, and we should be holy and blameless before Him in love. We were created to become God’s children and to have an personal relationship and fellowship with God.

Paul says God predestined us to become His children by adoption through Jesus Christ, by His will and for His pleasure. We praise God that because of the glory of His grace, we were made acceptable in the “beloved,” (verse 6) which is Jesus Christ. We have been redeemed.

Jesus paid for our sins through His blood and forgave us because of the riches of His grace, which He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. God’s secret plan, which He designed long ago according to His purpose, is centered on Christ and He has revealed it to us.

God’s plan is that at the right time He will bring everything in heaven and earth together in Christ. In Him we were chosen to receive an inheritance, because He predestined it according to His will. We who first trusted in Christ were chosen to live for the praise of His glory.

When you heard the truth of the gospel of your salvation and believed in Christ, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit, whom God promised long ago. The Spirit is God’s guarantee that He will give us all He has promised us and that He purchased us to be His children, to the praise of His glory.

 

Daily Bible Reading:

Ephesians 1:1-14

1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:

2 Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

8 Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;

9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:

10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:

11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.

13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

 

Things to think about:

  • Have you ever thought that becoming a Christian was similar to adoption?
  • Do you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? If yes, when did you come to know Him? If no, have you considered accepting Jesus as your Savior?
  • What does it mean to be sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise?

 

Prayer of the Day:

Dear Heavenly Father,

We thank You that in this Scripture we are reminded how much you love us and that You chose us to be Your children before the foundation of the world.  We pray that You would help us to be obedient and to show Your love to the world so they might come to know You as their Heavenly Father, as well.  We thank You for Your Son, Jesus Christ, who gave His life on the cross so we might be redeemed and forgiven of our sins.  We see in this Scripture that everything is for the praise of Your glory.  We love You, LORD and thank You for all the promises You have given us.  In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.

 

Daily Bible Verse:

Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. – Ephesians 1:2

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-This is an excerpt from The Book of Ephesians: Paul’s Letter to the Church at Ephesus by Deborah H. Bateman

Click the link above to get your copy now!

 

Christian Music Video:

PS. Thank you for coming to DeborahHBateman.com to study the Bible with us. Come back again tomorrow. Please invite your friends and family to join us for Bible Study.

 

Featured Book:

The Book of Ephesians: Paul’s Letter to the Church at Ephesus

by Deborah H. Bateman

The Book of Ephesians: Paul’s Letter to the Church at Ephesus is a Daily Bible Reading Study by Deborah H. Bateman. It is a study of the book of Ephesians from the New Testament of the Bible. Ephesians is one of the Apostle Paul’s letters, which was written to the church at Ephesus.

In the book of Ephesians Paul reminds us that we are chosen of God. He encourages us to walk in unity in the church. He talks about our various relationships including our relationship with Christ, with each other, the husband-wife relationship and others. He also exhorts us to put on the full armor of God so that we are clothed for battle against the enemy.

The Book of Ephesians: Paul’s Letter to the Church at Ephesus consists of twelve lessons, which can be used for an individual daily Bible study or a group Bible study. Each lesson consists of a brief commentary, the Daily Bible Reading Scripture, a few questions for contemplation called, “Things to think about,” and a prayer for the day.

For those of you interested in Bible journaling, may I suggest you pick your favorite Bible verse from each lesson and journal about it. This will be a great reminder of the lessons you learn as you read and study this book.

Go to: Amazon

Get your copy now!

 

Subscribe to Deborah H. Bateman to receive
Daily Bible Reading Lessons in your inbox.

 

Have a blessed day,

Deborah

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Recipe for Life

 

Daily Bible Reading “He Loved Us” (Ephesians 2:4-9)

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He Loved Us

Today’s Daily Bible Reading is from Ephesians 2:4-9. In Ephesians 2:4, Paul says, “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,” God is merciful, He loves us so much He demonstrated His great love for us while we were still dead in our sins He made us alive in Christ.

God showed His compassion toward us by giving us a way to have forgiveness for our sins. If it wasn’t for His love and compassion for us, we would all be on our way to hell. Thank God for His love, grace, and mercy toward us.

By His grace we are saved. Only through God’s unmerited favor can we be saved. God raised us up with Christ to sit in heavenly places, so He could show His abundant grace and compassion to us through Jesus Christ. It is by grace we are saved through faith. It is a precious gift of God. It is not anything we can do by ourselves or by our own works, so we have no reason to boast in ourselves. We can only boast about God and His great love for us, which He expressed through His Son, Jesus Christ.

When someone gives you a gift, do you open it right away? Are you excited to see what is inside the package? What would happen if someone offered you a gift, but you never opened it? It would be there for you to enjoy, if you would open it and take advantage of the gift inside. That is often how we look at God’s gift of salvation. It is there for us to receive if we are willing to accept it. God is not going to force it on us. We have to receive it willingly. Have you accepted God’s gift of salvation for your life?

 

Daily Bible Reading:

Ephesians 2:4-9

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, by grace ye are saved;

6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

 

Things to think about:

  • Are you thankful for God’s mercy?
  • What does the Scripture mean when it says, “By grace we are saved?”
  • Have you accepted God’s gift of salvation?

 

Prayer of the Day:

Dear God,

We thank You for this Scripture which reminds us how much You love us. It tells us about Your grace and mercy toward us. Help us to realize what a precious gift You gave us through Your Son. Help those who haven’t accepted this gift of salvation to do so today. Help those of us who know Jesus as our Savior to appreciate the gracious gift You gave us. In Jesus’ precious name, we pray. Amen.

 

Daily Bible Verse:

But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,- Ephesians 2:4

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–Excerpt from God Is Love ~ Deborah H. Bateman

 

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Featured Book:

godislove25

God Is Love

by Deborah H. Bateman

About the book:

God is Love is a Daily Bible Reading Study by Deborah H. Bateman. It contains 19 daily devotionals on Scriptures about love from the Bible: including God’s love for us, the love relationship between a husband and wife, love and honoring our parents, and much more.

This devotional would be great for either a personal daily devotions or group Bible studies, including small groups, and Sunday school classes. Each devotional contains a brief commentary by the author, the daily Bible Scripture, a prayer of the day, and several questions for personal reflection or group discussion.

In God is Love, Deborah strives to show you not only what love is, but that love comes from God, as well as the love of God surpasses all imagination. Her goal for you as you read this book is that you would realize how much God loves you.

Benefits of reading God is Love
• You will learn what love is
• You will learn about different kinds of love
• You will learn how much God loves you
• You will learn of the sacrifice made by God because of His love for you

Available on Amazon

Get your copy now!

 

Have a blessed day,

Deborah

Recipe for Life

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PS. Thank you for coming to DeborahHBateman.com to study the Bible with us. Please come back again tomorrow and invite your friends and family to join us for Bible Study.

If you haven’t already, be sure to subscribe to Deborah H. Bateman to receive the Daily Bible Reading Lessons in your inbox.

Daily Bible Reading “Honor Your Father and Mother” (Ephesians 6:1-4)

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Honor Your Father and Mother

Today’s Daily Bible Reading is from Ephesians 6:1-4. This Scripture reminds us that we should honor our father and mother.

This is the first of the Ten Commandments that has a promise attached to it. The promise is that “it may be well with you, and you might live long on the earth.”

Deuteronomy 5:16: “Honour thy father and thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.”

What do you think it means to honor your parents? Maybe to love, obey, respect, and cherish them. This Scripture starts off by telling us we should obey our parents as their children because it is right. I don’t think we are only supposed to honor our parents as children, but all the days of our lives. Ephesians 6:4 gives direction to the parents that they should bring their children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Both as parents and as children we have a commitment to each other.

My parents have both already gone to heaven to be with the Lord, and I miss them very much. Those of you who are fortunate enough to still have your parents here with you, spend as much time as you can with them and treasure every moment. How I would love to be able to sit down and have a conversation with my parents and to visit with them.

Our parents are the first ones who love us and teach us what love is. Love should be unconditional between a parent and their children. As children we should return that love and respect to our parents. We may not always agree with everything our parents do. They aren’t perfect and neither are we, but we can love each other in spite of our differences.

Some parents may not treat their children in the way that God intended them to, but that doesn’t negate our responsibility to honor them as our parents. We may have to ask God to help us forgive our parents for some of the things did or didn’t do.

If you are a parent you probably haven’t done everything right, either. You have probably made mistakes and wrong decisions concerning your children. This Scripture teaches us that we should honor our parents and God will bless us for doing so.

 

Daily Bible Reading:

Ephesians 6:1-4

1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.

2 Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise:)

3 That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.

4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

 

Things to think about:

  • What is the promise God gives us for honoring our parents?
  • What does it mean to honor someone?
  • Should we only honor our parents when we are children or should it be a life-long commitment?
  • Should we only honor our parents if they treated us well and loved us the way God intended for them to?

 

Prayer of the Day:

Dear God,

We want to thank You for the parents You gave us. Forgive us of the times in our lives when we haven’t honored our parents. We know You blessed us with them and for that we are grateful. Help us to always honor them. In Jesus’ name, we pray. We love You, LORD. Amen.

 

Daily Bible Verse:

Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise:) – Ephesians 6:2

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– This is an excerpt from God Is Love by Deborah H. Bateman

 

Christian Music Video:

PS. Thank you for coming to DeborahHBateman.com to study the Bible with us. Come back again tomorrow. Please invite your friends and family to join us for Bible Study.

 

Featured Book:

God is Love

By Deborah H. Bateman

About the book:

God is Love is a Daily Bible Reading Study by Deborah H. Bateman. It contains 19 daily devotionals on Scriptures about love from the Bible: including God’s love for us, the love relationship between a husband and wife, love and honoring our parents, and much more.

This devotional would be good for personal daily devotions or group Bible studies, including small groups, and Sunday school classes. Each devotional contains a brief commentary by the author, the daily Bible Scripture, a prayer of the day, and several questions for personal reflection or group discussion.

In God is Love, Deborah strives to show you not only what love is, but that love comes from God, as well as the love of God surpasses all imagination.

Available on Amazon

Get your copy now!

 

Subscribe to Deborah H. Bateman to receive
Daily Bible Reading Lessons in your inbox.

 

Have a blessed day,

Deborah

Recipe for Life