The Ecclesiology of Ephesians, Part 1: Eph 1:1–23

I began the series of expository sermons on Ephesians almost exactly a year ago. But although we have concluded the expository series on Ephesians, we aren’t really finished with this marvelous book. I want to round off the series by bringing the theme of the church into focus. Most scholars agree that no other book of the New Testament contains such a lofty and detailed doctrine of the church. It dominates Ephesians, occurring in nearly every chapter of the book. And so I want to take the next six or seven weeks to survey the ecclesiology of Ephesians.

The first occurrence of the word “church” in Ephesians is right at the end of chapter 1 (v. 22). In Classical Greek the word ekklesia was used of the citizens of the city state gathered in assembly. When the people went home the assembly ceased to exist. This has led many to adopt a congregational view of the church. If church means “assembly,” then the church cannot exist in any other form than when it is literally assembled for worship. All other applications of the word church are invalid. For example, a denomination cannot be called a church. The term church should not even be applied to the universal church of Christ on earth. The concept of one holy catholic and apostolic church is a theological abstraction. All we have are many separate congregations of Christians, and even then they are not the church during the week - only when they are assembled for worship.

But this approach is flawed for two reasons.

First, it isn’t valid to rely so heavily on secular Greek usage. That may be valid where the OT background does not seem to be in view. But in this case the word ekklesia has taken on a strong theological coloring due to its usage in the Septuagint, where it was used to translate the Hebrew words qahal and edah. The word qahal in Hebrew refers to an assembly as well, but a very specific assembly: the gathering of God’s people at Mount Sinai to meet with God and receive the covenant. Thus, the nation of Israel, as a corporate unit in covenant with God, is called “the qahal of Yahweh.” In the Septuagint it is called “the ekklesia of the Lord.” There may have been many particular gatherings of God’s people in various synagogues, but in the Old Testament there is only one qahal of the Lord.

In addition to qahal the Hebrew Bible uses another word, edah, to refer to the old covenant community. The two words are very closely related in meaning, but edah focuses on the permanence of the covenant community, even when not gathered or assembled for covenant transactions or worship. The close association of edah with qahal in the Hebrew Bible infused new meaning into the Greek word ekklesia. By the time we come to the NT the Classical Greek meaning has been supplemented by its covenantal significance for Israel.

The early church wanted to maintain its continuity with the Old Covenant people of God and so the word ekklesia from the Septuagint was chosen. This is just one example among many where the writers of the New Testament applied the titles and privileges of the old covenant people of God to the new covenant community. They viewed the church, not as a parenthesis, not as a second track separate from Israel, but as the fulfillment of God’s dealings with Israel.

The second reason that the congregational interpretation of ekklesia is wrong is that it does not take all of the evidence into account. A case could be made for the congregational view that ekklesia refers to a particular assembly - but only if you restrict yourself to certain well-known examples that spring to mind. For example, First Corinthians is addressed “to the church of which is at Corinth.” You find similar references to particular churches at Jerusalem, at Antioch, etc., throughout the New Testament.

But this is not the only usage of ekklesia. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is a prime example. In Ephesians we see a significant development and advance in Paul’s ecclesiology. The word ekklesia occurs nine times in Ephesians, and in each case, without exception, it signifies the church as a worldwide entity, the totality of those who have been incorporated into Christ by the Spirit so as to become his body.

In chapter 1 the first occurrence of the word ekklesia in Ephesians defines the word from the very outset as the body of Christ, the fullness of him who fills all in all (vv. 22-23). The word fullness suggests completeness and totality.

In chapter 2 the church is described as a spiritual temple being built on the foundation of the apostles and new covenant prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the chief cornerstone. The church, then, is the fulfillment of the eschatological temple that Ezekiel prophesied.

In chapter 3 the total church united to Christ constitutes the ultimate expression of God’s manifold wisdom. It is the eternal purpose of God in Christ, the cosmic demonstration of God’s glory to the principalities and the powers. The church is thus the pinnacle of salvation history. As the fullness of Christ who fills all in all, it plays an essential role in God’s ultimate purpose of bringing glory to himself through Jesus Christ as one in whom all things in heaven and on earth are summed up.

In chapter 4 the church is called “the whole body” of Christ. This body is being built up organically and progressively through the various ministries and gifts of the ascended Lord until it attains to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. It is growing up into Him who is the Head, even Christ.

In chapter 5 the church is the bride of Christ, parallel to Israel the bride of Yahweh. The church is the totality of those whom Christ loves and for whom he gave himself up in order to sanctify and cleanse her, with the goal of presenting her to himself in all his glory without spot or wrinkle at the last day.

So although one common use of ekklesia in the New Testament is to refer to the local church, that meaning is secondary to its universal meaning as the entire church of Jesus Christ, the body of Christ. Local congregations like the house churches of Ephesus are merely particular expressions of the worldwide body of believers united to Christ and to one another by the Spirit.

Union with Christ

Where does Paul get this lofty notion of the church as a total entity, the universal body of Christ? It is an implication of his doctrine of union with Christ. Paul begins his letter to the Ephesians with a long benediction in which he enumerates the many spiritual blessings that the church enjoys in union with Christ. It is easy to read this opening section in individualistic terms, as blessings that each individual believer possesses in Christ. But the text is emphatic. These blessings are all corporate in nature. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.” God chose us, predestined us, lavished his grace upon us, forgave us, made known to us the mystery of his will, gave us an inheritance, and gave us the Spirit as a pledge. Every single benefit is expressed in corporate terms, as something that we enjoy together as the church.

And why is this? Because all of these wonderful spiritual blessings come to each one of us as individuals by virtue of our union with Christ. The prepositional phrase “in Christ” occurs about 10x in the same paragraph. First, every spiritual blessing is said to be “in Christ.” Then Paul goes on to enumerate these blessings that we have in Christ:

election is “in Christ” (v. 4)
we are adopted as sons “through Jesus Christ” (v. 5)
grace is given us “in the Beloved” (v. 6)
we have redemption “in him” (v. 7)
God’s kind intention toward us was purposed “in him” (v. 9)
the summing up of all things is being accomplished “in Christ” (v. 10a)
both things in heaven and things on earth are “in him” (v. 10b)
“in him” we have obtained an inheritance (v. 11)
finally, having believed in Christ we were sealed “in him” with the Holy Spirit of promise (v. 13).

Christ is the sphere in whom all of these blessings are found. Outside of Christ, there is nothing but sin and death and judgment. In Christ, we possess all things. He is the overflowing storehouse of spiritual riches, the fountain of all grace, the sum and substance of salvation.

This tenfold repetition of the phrase “in Christ” is designed to hammer home a point: there is one and only one way to receive these blessings, and that is by being engrafted or incorporated into Christ. If this is so, then all who are united to Christ, are thereby united to each other and become a corporate entity together by virtue of their common existence “in Christ.” Paul’s doctrine of the church as a single entity is grounded in his conception of salvation as an incorporation into Christ, as a sharing in Christ’s death and resurrection. The doctrine of union with Christ is fairly well developed prior to Ephesians, and can be found even in Paul’s earliest writings. This doctrine anticipates much of what he will say later about the church as Christ’s body.

For example, read Romans 12:4-5.

But in this reference is still not clear. The body of Christ could still mean a local church, the church of Rome or the church of Corinth. It isn’t until Ephesians that Paul draws out the implications of union with Christ in order to develop a mature ecclesiology as a thought-out doctrinal affirmation of the one universal body of Jesus Christ.

Christ’s Covenant Headship

In addition to his “in Christ” language, Paul also speaks of the covenant headship of Christ as another way of getting at the same truth. All of the spiritual benefits of salvation flow to us from the Headship of Christ. It is the notion of covenantal identification with Christ, being represented by him as our covenant head.

This is made clear when you consider the parallel between Adam and Christ that Paul has previously articulated in Romans 5 and 1 Corinthians 15. The parallel also occurs in Ephesians, although not as explicitly.

Read chapter 1:22-23.

Here Paul alludes to the fact that God placed all things in subjection under Adam’s feet. Paul is quoting Psalm 8: “What is man that you take thought of him … You crown him with glory and majesty! You make him ruler over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet” (vv. 4-6). Paul takes this language of Adam’s covenant headship over creation and applies it to Christ.

Paul conceived of fallen Adamic humanity as a corporate expression of life under the covenant headship of Adam. All mankind are involved in Adam’s transgression. The guilt of his sin was reckoned to their account. They then ratify that one sin by their own actions of willful rebellion against God. All of humanity is engaged in one corporate resistance against God. In Ephesians 4:22, Paul speaks of this corporate rebellion under Adam as “the old man.”

But Paul then teaches that Christ’s role as the second Adam involves a new creation, the establishment of a new humanity, a new corporate existence under the covenant headship of Christ. This is “the new man” inaugurated in Christ (Eph. 4:24). If the headship of the first Adam had the effect of creating a corporate humanity in rebellion against God, then the headship of Christ the second Adam is giving birth to a corporate humanity that is being renewed after the image of God in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

So these two aspects of Paul’s thought both point to the concept of the church as a total entity: the doctrine of union with Christ, and the doctrine of the covenant headship of Christ as the second Adam. Indeed, union with Christ and covenant headship are merely two sides of the same coin. We are in union with Christ and made to share in the riches of grace that reside in him, only because God had first established Christ to be our covenant head who would undertake our legal obligations before God on our behalf.

The interconnection of these two motifs can be seen in Ephesians 1:4-5. According to Paul’s statement there, the origin of the church as a corporate entity must ultimately be traced back to the eternal counsels, to the mystery of God’s electing love before the foundation of the world. Even before our actual vital union with Christ by the Spirit through faith, we were in a legal sense “in Christ.” In the eternal counsels, the Son voluntarily offered to step forth on behalf of the elect to be their surety and head, to undertake to satisfy the wrath of God for their sins and to bring them into the enjoyment of eternal salvation in him. When Christ became incarnate, he did not come to save all mankind, but in order to accomplish the redemption of those for whom he undertook in the counsels of eternity. Thus, before the church as a historical body was born and came into existence through the cross of Christ, it existed beforehand in the mind of God according to the eternal covenant of redemption when we were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world “according to the kind intention of his will.”

This covenantal transaction is spoken of as something that occurred “in Christ” (Eph. 1:4). It is as if the language of vital union has so dominated Paul’s thought that it gets pushed back even into the pre-temporal arena where it does not strictly apply. What this shows is that our vital union with Christ is grounded in the prior covenant headship of Christ in the eternal covenant of redemption between the Father and the Son.

Application

Imagine what an incredible encouragement this cosmic picture of the church must have been to the small house churches of Ephesus, as well as to the other churches of Asia Minor to whom this letter was circulated!

What a privileged position they possess! Sociologically, they are insignificant. They have no political clout, no impressive social standing in the world. Numerically, they are insignificant. Each house church certainly had no more than 50 or 60 members given the size of most houses at the time. What gives them such privilege and significance has nothing to do with them; it is only because of their relation to Christ. All the rule and authority God has given to Christ are exercised by Christ on behalf of the church, since God has given this exalted Christ to the church. In Christ, who is exalted as Head over all things, including the subjugated principalities and powers, they too are more than conquerors. Thus, they need not succumb to defeatism or see themselves as another insignificant religious cult among many other religious groups. They are the universal church of Jesus Christ, united to Christ and one another by the Spirit. They are exalted with Christ in the heavenly realms, able to confidently confront the defeated powers in Jesus’ name as they proclaim the gospel to the unbelievers around them.

This is why Paul prays for them that the eyes of their heart would be enlightened. He wants them to see their identity in relation to Christ the exalted Lord of all creation. The church will be what it ought to be only when it is convinced of its privileged identity as the body of Christ, as those who by the Spirit are partakers of Christ’s Lordship won through his victory on the cross.

What are some things for us to think about in light of this glorious meditation on the church?

First, we must see ourselves first and foremost in corporate terms as the church. We must not view ourselves as an aggregate of individual Christians who all happen to have received the same spiritual blessings. Rather we must see ourselves as the body of Christ, united to Christ and thereby to one another. We have been brought up to think of the Christian life as me and my Bible. If I want to go to church, I can. It’s a nice option if you want to make friends with people who share the same values. But the church is not essential.

This attitude is totally contrary to Paul’s teaching in Ephesians. If the church is an essential part of God’s eternal purpose, then we must be totally committed to the church. Regular and faithful attendance at worship is not a nice option that we can do if we happen to have the extra time. Participation in the life of the church is an essential part of God’s eternal purpose. Therefore, it ought to be an essential part of your life as well. Be inflexibly committed to faithful participation in the life of the church.

Second, we must see congregationalism as a false doctrine that destroys the unity of the church, by splitting it up into thousands of individual congregations with no more relationship to one another than the individual grains of sand on the seashore. In other words, we must not only have a high commitment to our local congregation as important as that is. We must also have a high commitment to seeing our own congregation as part of the worldwide body of Christ spread throughout the world in various denominational and congregational forms. All those who profess the apostolic gospel as summarized in the Apostles’ Creed must be regarded as true expressions of the body of Christ. Yes, they are all imperfect, and some are even filled with error. But we are not perfect either. Only if we regard one another as brothers in Christ will we be able to work toward greater reformation and conformity to the Word of God.

In conclusion, brothers and sisters, God’s eternal purpose dwarfs our limited, individualistic conception of salvation that we have inherited from the evangelical culture in which many of us were brought up. Once our eyes have been opened to see what the church means in the plan of God, that ought to stir us up to greater faithfulness in our attendance at worship, in our involvement in the life of the body, and in our prayers and concern for the members of Christ’s church throughout the world, many of whom are suffering for Christ in ways that we cannot imagine. Pray that we may get beyond our selfish preoccupation with our own lives and careers and families. Pray for one another and for those believers that make up the church in every land. As we do so, let us never lose sight of the vastness of what God is doing through the church.

“Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”