The Epistle to the Ephesians
Lesson 12
In Christ - The Great Subject of Ephesians

Introduction
The phrase “In Christ Jesus,” or its equivalent, is found twenty-eight times in the Epistle to the Ephesians. The grace of God that cannot be measured filled the mind of the Apostle Paul. The grace that had put him “in Christ Jesus” overwhelmed him. God had accepted him and made him complete. God gave him security, and power.

Paul enjoyed this thought so much that he made it the subject of this great epistle to the Ephesians. When I thought about this, I thought that the best way to conclude these studies was to examine the phrase “In Christ” as we find it in this epistle. Therefore, that is the objective of this 12th and final lesson. I have selected twelve of these phrases and will try, by the grace of God, to explain them. I will try to show you the preciousness of their meaning.

Importance of this Lesson

• It presents a complete list of what Christ means to the believer.
• It is especially important that every Christian realizes his position and possessions in Christ Jesus. Only then can the believer live the Christian life and show it to others.

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The Lesson

I. IN CHRIST BY THE BAPTISM OF THE HOLY SPIRIT – Ephesians 1:1
“ 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”

1. You will notice that at the very beginning of this letter, the apostle Paul calls the reader’s attention to what is every believer’s position. He is IN CHRIST JESUS.
2. This is the first time Paul mentions this wonderful phrase. I thought it best to stop and explain how this amazing fact becomes real.
   1. 1 Corinthians 12:13 says, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body….”
      1 Corinthians 12:12 states clearly that we are baptized into the body of Christ (the Church). Clearly, we are “in Christ” through the baptism by the Holy Spirit.
   2. Romans 6:3 states “Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?” This complete passage of Romans 6:3-11 teaches that every believer died with Christ, was buried with Christ, and rose up together with Him. From the moment anyone receives Christ into his heart, The Word of God says he is “in Christ.”
   3. In Ephesians 1:1 Paul writes “the saints which are at Ephesus” AND “to the faithful IN CHRIST JESUS.” The verse does not suggest two kinds of people. The word faithful was chosen by Paul to describe the believers.
      1. Do not be confused by the word “saints” in the King James Version of the Bible. The word always means a person who is sanctified (set apart from the world and for God) in Christ Jesus. That means every believer. Please note the phrase “called to be saints” in Romans 1:7 and 1 Corinthians 1:2. The editors inserted the little phrase “to be.” This needs explanation.
      2. God does not call Christians to be saints at a later time in their lives. Believers are not saints because some religious body gave them that title. The phrase means that we are saints by the call of God.
      3. Every believer is counted among “the saints and the faithful ‘IN CHRIST JESUS’.”

II. IN CHRIST WE ARE “IN THE HEAVENLIES,” SHARING ALL THAT CHRIST IS IN US Ephesians 1:3
“ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places (literally, ‘in the heavenlies’) IN CHRIST”

1. Here for the first time Paul informs us as to where we are if we are IN CHRIST. We are “in the heavenlies.” The heavenlies is that wonderful position which all born again believers share with Christ. Christ gave the believer all that He is, all that He has and all that He will possess in the future. For example, as listed in Lesson 2, we share:
   1. His joy (John 15:11).
   2. His peace (John 14:27).
   3. His wisdom (1 Corinthians 1:30).
   4. His life (1 John 5:12).
   5. His nature (2 Peter 1:4).
   6. His grace and power (2 Corinthians 12:9).
   7. His relationships (John 20:17).
   8. His future inheritance and glory (Romans 8:16-21).
2. Actually, when you receive Christ, two amazing and wonderful things occur. When you receive Christ (John 1:12), He comes into your heart to stay and you are “hid with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3). Christ in you becomes “the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27) at the same time the Holy Spirit baptizes you into Christ (1 Corinthians 12:12-13).
3. According to our text God blesses us with all spiritual blessings “in Christ.” Reconciliation, regeneration, and propitiation all have to do with “in Christ.” All the great doctrines of our Christian faith, such as redemption, and justification are in Him. We possess all these blessings in addition to our eternal security and all the other blessings I have already mentioned.

• Remember, God does not accept us because of what we are, but because of where we are (in Christ)
  (Ephesians 1:3).

III. IN CHRIST BEFORE THE WORLD WAS FORMED – Ephesians 1:4
“ According as he hath chosen us IN HIM before the foundation of the world”

1. Many people who receive Christ are often amazed to learn that God knew them and chose them to be His own before He created the world.
2. The idea that God chooses to save some people a long time before they are born and even before He created this world has stirred up serious disagreement. For many years it caused bitter conflicts among people who study Bible doctrine.
3. I talked about this problem in detail in Lesson 3. Instead of writing all that again, I will try to summarize my answer to the problem.
   1. There is no verse in the Bible that says that God elects or chooses anyone to spend eternity in hell.
   2. God loves every human being (John 3:16, 1 John 2:2). Christ died for everyone (2 Corinthians 5:14).
   3. God desires all men to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4, Isaiah 45:22).
   4. Every person has the ability and the responsibility to repent, turn from sin, and receive Christ (Ezekiel 18:31-32, John 7:37-38, Matthew 11:28, Revelation 22:17).
   5. Sinners can resist the Holy Spirit and reject the grace of God. Read Acts 7:51, John 5:40 and Luke 13:34.
4. In my opinion we can find the simplest and most reasonable answer to this problem in one word. That word is foreknowledge.
   1. Among God’s wonderful attributes is the attribute of omniscience (God knows everything, even the future). This simply means that the God we love and serve has unlimited knowledge and wisdom.
   2. This means that God knows and has known from eternity all things. This knowledge includes all who would receive or reject Christ. In other words, God did not have to wait until you actually received Christ before He took you as His own.
   3. With God, there are no surprises. He knows the end from the beginning. So, if God knew you as His child before the foundation of the world, it was no problem for God to choose and take you as one of His chosen ones.
   4. Two verses should be enough to establish the position this lesson takes. (Remember these two references for the test.)
      1. “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate…” (Romans 8:29).
      2. “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father…” (1 Peter 1:2).

IV. IN CHRIST CLOTHED WITH RIGHTEOUSNESS – Ephesians 1:6
“ To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted IN THE BELOVED”
The question that comes with this verse is “How can a Holy God ever accept a wicked sinner who rejected Christ and deserved hell? How can God welcome such a person into His presence?

1. Notice first that God made us acceptable for Himself “to the praise and the glory of his grace….” In Ephesians 2:2-3, the apostle Paul describes the awful wickedness of sinners. But praise God for Ephesians 2:4-5, “BUT GOD, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, BY GRACE YE ARE SAVED.”
2. Now notice the text again. By grace, God “hath made us accepted IN THE BELOVED.” That is “In Christ.” Christ is the Beloved. It is in Christ that God sees us as perfect (Colossians 1:28) and clothed with His righteousness (Romans 3:22, Philippians 3:9).
3. It is a precious and wonderful thing that nobody can describe – to be able to say that by faith in Christ, God approved me, accepted me, received me, and welcomed me into His family and someday God will take me into heaven itself.

• Remember, God did not accept us because of what we are, but WHERE we are as believers. We are in Christ.

V. IN CHRIST REDEEMED AND FORGIVEN – Ephesians 1:7
“ IN WHOM we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace”

1. Remember that the “IN WHOMS” of Ephesians refer to Christ. It is proper, therefore, to include them in this study that every believer is “in Christ.”
2. The above text shows that “IN CHRIST” we have two valuable and outstanding things:
   1. redemption through His blood.
   2. the forgiveness of sin, according to the riches of grace.
      (Know these two for your test)
3. We can understand redemption best when we understand two simple phrases that are a part of its meaning. The phrases are “to buy back” and “to set free.”
   1. Illustrations of being “purchased” and “bought back”:
      1. In Acts 20:28, the Ephesian elders were exhorted by Paul “to feed the church of God, which HE HATH PURCHASED with his own blood.”
      2. Ephesians 1:14 states that the church is “a purchased possession.”
      3. 1 Corinthians 6:20 and 7:23 declare that as Christians Christ bought us with a price. That price was the shed blood of Christ (1 Peter 1:18-19).
   2. Please remember that this world does not belong to Christ yet. In John 7:7, Jesus said “but me it (the world) hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil.” Ephesians 2:2 states that as Christians, we once “walked according to the course of this world, according to the “prince of the power of the air.” Satan is not only the “prince of the power of the air,” but he is also “prince of this world” (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11). He is also called “the god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4).
      
   • Christ has to buy us back in order to take us out of this wicked, sinful world, out of the power of Satan that had made us blind (Acts 26:18, 2 Corinthians 4:4), and out of the power of darkness. He had to “buy us back.” For this, He paid the price of His own blood (1 Timothy 2:6;
     Matthew 20:28).
     
4. The forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.”
   1. The forgiveness of sin is the most valuable possession a Christian has. Whenever anyone receives Christ as Savior and Lord, he or she can immediately rejoice in the fact that every sin he or she has ever committed is completely forgiven.
      Note the verses that prove this fact:
      1. In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins
         (Colossians 1:14).
      2. …forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you (Ephesians 4:32).
      3. …and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all (Isaiah 53:6).
      4. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him (2 Corinthians 5:21).
   2. Even now, as Christians, whenever we may stumble and fail, “if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
   3. God forgave us according to the riches of His grace. God’s grace knows no boundaries. We cannot measure it. God’s grace is endless and there is enough for everyone, (2 Corinthians 12:9, 9:8).

VI. IN CHRIST WE WAIT FOR A GLORIOUS INHERITANCE – Ephesians 1:11
“ IN WHOM (Christ) also we have obtained an inheritance...”
This lesson gets more and more exciting as we go along. Just think of it. You and I, were poor miserable
sinners before we were “in Christ,” but now we already enjoy the “riches of His grace”
(Ephesians 1:7), the “riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering” (Romans 2:4) and the
riches of the complete assurance (Colossians 2:2). But now we are told that “in Christ” we have an inheritance.

1. Millions of Christians in our world today suffer greatly for lack of money or food. The comforting thing, however, is that every believer is an heir of God and a joint heir with Christ. If we suffer with Him, remember that we shall “be also glorified together” with Him. Read Romans 8:17. Paul wrote further, “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18). What an inheritance! Some day we will share the glory of Christ.
2. The apostle Peter adds some valuable thoughts to the matter of the wonderful inheritance we have “IN CHRIST.” He writes “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:3-4).
3. Let me refer you back to Lesson 3, Section VI where I have listed a few of the things we will inherit.

VII. IN CHRIST SEALED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT – Ephesians 1:13
“… IN WHOM also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise ”

1. God made certain that after He saves you He also keeps you saved. Peter wrote about us as people “who are KEPT by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time”
   (1 Peter 1:5). The sealing with the Holy Spirit assures and guarantees this fact.
2. Please note that we are sealed WITH the Holy Spirit, not BY the Holy Spirit. In other words, the Holy Spirit Himself comes to live in us permanently. In John, Christ said to His disciples “He (God) shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive…” (John 14:16-17).
3. Most of us know about seals of one kind or another. Housewives put seals on the preserves they prepare. They do this to keep them for future enjoyment. Governments put their official seal on their money or on official documents. Manufacturing businesses usually put their seal on their product to show they made it.
4. As I showed in Lesson 3, a seal basically does three things. (Be able to name all three for your test.)
   1. It identifies the owner.
      In 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, we read, “What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
      Jesus said, “I know my sheep, and am known of mine” (John 10:14). Paul, wrote to Timothy, and said that the foundation of God stands sure because it has this seal. The Lord knows those who belong to Him.
   2. It assures our preservation.
      The Holy Spirit is not only the seal of ownership, He is “the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession” (Ephesians 1:14). The “earnest” is the first payment on our journey to glory.
   3. It guarantees our destination.
      “ And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30). The word UNTO indicates arrival at our destination.

VIII. IN CHRIST, A WHOLE NEW POSITION AND RELATIONSHIP – Ephesians 2:6
“…made us sit together in heavenly places IN CHRIST JESUS”

1. Here we have another amazing and wonderful fact. The moment we receive Christ into our hearts our citizenship changes (Philippians 3:20). We are no longer a part of this world. Christ chose us out of this world (John 15:19, 17:6).
2. We now are “in the heavenlies” in Christ Jesus. We are seated there with Him. There we are blessed “with all spiritual blessings” (Ephesians 1:3). “In the heavenlies” means the realm that shows all that we are and have in Christ Jesus. For example:
   1. In that realm, as children of God, we are “heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ” (Romans 8:17).
   2. In that realm, Christ, “According to his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3).
   3. In that realm, Christ shares with us His very life. In fact, the new life you have as a Christian, is actually Christ living in you (Colossians 3:3-4, 1 John 5:11-12). Christ shares with us His very nature (2 Peter 1:4).
3. Furthermore, Christ shares with us:
   1. His peace (John 14:27).
   2. His joy (John 15:11).
   3. His strength (2 Corinthians 12:9).
   4. His sufferings (Philippians 1:29, 3:10).
   5. His inheritance and future glory (Romans 8:17).
4. A warning: Do not fail to take all that you possess in Christ. Allow Christ to fill you with His fullness. Remember, “ye are complete in him” (Colossians 2:10). If you have Christ, you have everything you need to live the Christian life.

IX. IN CHRIST TO MANIFEST GOOD WORKS – Ephesians 2:10
“… created IN CHRIST JESUS unto good works”

1. In Ephesians 2:9, the apostle Paul makes very clear that a person cannot save himself by his works “lest any man should boast.” No earthly accomplishment, no matter how great, can earn salvation for us.
2. In Ephesians 2:5,8, we are told that salvation is a gift of God and is completely “by grace are ye saved through faith.”
3. Why then should a believer do good works?
   1. Note the word “workmanship.” This word appears only twice in the New Testament, in
      Ephesians 2:10 and in Romans 1:20. In Romans 1:20, we see the phrase “the things that are made.” In the Greek language, only one word is used for this entire phrase. The word is poiema. From this word, we get our English word poem. Paul here was writing about creation and he saw creation as God’s poem. A poem that showed His power and glory.
   2. When we see this same word translated “workmanship,” in Ephesians 2:10, we realize that, as Christians, we are the work of God’s hand. We are created in Christ Jesus. We are God’s “poem.” God has determined that as a new creation IN CHRIST, we must do good works.
   3. We clearly understand that salvation is completely by grace and we should never make the mistake ignoring good works. God saved us by His grace, not works. However, we show the world that our salvation is real by doing good works.
   4. Remember then that in Christ you are God’s poem, the work of God’s hand. Since we are the work of His hands, He determined that you should do good works. “This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men” (Titus 3:8).

X. IN CHRIST THE BELIEVER IS BROUGHT BACK TO GOD – Ephesians 2:13
“ But now IN CHRIST JESUS ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ”

1. We find this verse in one of the greatest truths and passages of Scripture anywhere in the Bible. In chapters 2 and 3 of Ephesians, we see God crushing the middle wall of partition (the law) between Jews and Gentiles and He forms them into one new man “IN CHRIST” (Ephesians 2:14-15). We see that God brought both Jews and Gentiles back to Himself by the cross (Ephesians 2:16). It is in this contrast where we see the church as a temple, “built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone” (Ephesians 2:20). Amazingly and wonderfully, God made this temple up of both Jews and Gentiles. God built them “together for an habitation of God through the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:22). In this way God also show the mystery of the church; that is, “That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise IN CHRIST by the gospel” (Ephesians 3:5-6).
2. Remember that the word “Gentiles” in Scripture means all people of all nations who are not Jews. If you are not a Jew, how grateful you should be for the words “BUT NOW IN CHRIST JESUS.”
   1. In Ephesians 2:11, the apostle wrote, “Wherefore remember.” As Gentiles, we should stop to think about what we were and what we did not have before Christ saved us.
   2. In lesson 5 and 6 we learned about our sinful condition in the past. We learned about the things we did not have because we were not Jews. Here I will only list for you what we were and what we did not have before Christ saved us.
   3. What we were – Ephesians 2:1-3
      1. We were spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1).
      2. We patterned ours lives after the ways of this world (Ephesians 2:2).
      3. Satan controlled us (Ephesians 2:2).
      4. We obeyed the lusts of our flesh and we thought with minds like the unbelievers around us (Ephesians 2:3).
      5. We were by nature children of wrath (Ephesians 2:3).
   4. As unsaved Gentiles, there were some things we did not have before Christ saved us (Ephesians 2:12):
      1. We were without Christ.
      2. We were strangers from the people of Israel.
      3. We were strangers from the agreements God promise promised to Israel.
      4. We had no hope.
      5. We were without God in the world
3. BUT NOW IN CHRIST JESUS. We have received Christ, therefore we are:
   1. A part of the body of Christ. God made this body made up of born again Jews and Gentiles (Ephesians 2:16).
   2. We are no longer strangers, but a fellow citizens of the family of God (Ephesians 2:19).
   3. We now have peace with God (Ephesians 2:14,17).
   4. We are members of the Church, that holy temple God built “together for an habitation of God through the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:21-22).
   5. Together with all the Jews and Gentiles, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ (Ephesians 3: 6, Romans 8:17).

XI. IN CHRIST, WE WALK IN THE LIGHT – Ephesians 5:8
“ For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light IN THE LORD: walk as children of light”
The text says, “in the Lord,” this means that Christ bought us out of this world and delivered us from the power of darkness (Colossians 1:13). This is one of the wonderful parts of being “in Christ.”
In Acts 26:18, the Lord Jesus told the apostle Paul that He was sending him to the Gentiles “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God….”
The text we are looking at is similar to Ephesians 2:13, which is a text we have already considered. Ephesians 2:13 states that as sinners, we were “far off,” at one time but now, in Christ, God put us close to Himself “by the blood of Christ.” The text before us (Ephesians 5:8) says that at one time we lived in darkness, “but now are ye light in the Lord.”

1. Completely appreciate the text, we must understand just what that darkness is, out of which God delivered us. We talked about this in detail in Lesson 8. I will sum up what you learned in that lesson and I will add a few new thoughts. (Be able to state both number 1 and 2 for your test.)
   1. The darkness out of which God delivered all believers, is the darkness of spiritual blindness that is caused by Satan.
      1. When Paul spoke about those who reject Christ and His gospel, he said, “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them” (2 Corinthians 4:4).
      2. Remember that Christ sent the apostle Paul “to turn them (sinners) from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God” (Acts 26:18).
      3. We must remember that Satan is also the “prince of the world” (John 12:31; 14:30) and “the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2). In other words, the entire world, apart from Christ, is living in spiritual darkness.
   2. The darkness we have escaped is also the darkness of being lost.
      1. Christ, the light of the world (John 8:12), came to seek and to save that which was lost (Luke 19:10).
      2. To the Corinthians, Paul wrote, “But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost” (2 Corinthians 4:3).
      3. According to the Word of God, everyone, regardless of race, education or wealth is lost. Every person is lost in sin. Satan blinded every person and caused them to walk in darkness.
2. How are we delivered from this darkness?
   When we repent toward God and have faith in Jesus Christ, He delivers us from darkness. God delivers us from the power of darkness and changes us to be a part of His dear Son (Colossians 1:13).
   1. In John 8:12, Jesus said, “I am the light of the world.” In Matthew 5:14, Jesus said, “Ye are the light of the world.” In the words of another, Jesus is the Light that makes us shine. In Matthew 5:16, Jesus said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”
   2. Remember, as Christians, we are the light of the world because we are “in Christ.” It is always important to remember not only what you are but also WHERE you are.

XII. IN CHRIST, WE WIN THE BATTLE – Ephesians 6:10-11
“ Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil”

• I thought that it was very appropriate to use the word “Finally” to end our lessons on Ephesians and by talking about what we have “IN CHRIST”!
• It is even more fitting that we end these special studies with a reminder that every Christian is fighting in a spiritual war. God has provided the uniform and the weapons we need to win the battle.

1. Until God binds Satan and casts him into a bottomless pit (Revelation 20:1-3), he will continue to make unbelievers spiritually blind (2 Corinthians 4:4). He will strongly attack every Christian.
   1. The apostle Paul said that the thorn in the flesh he had to fight against was “the messenger of Satan to buffet (beat) me” (2 Corinthians 12:7).
   2. The Lord Jesus said to the apostle Peter, “Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat” (Luke 22:31).
   3. Later perhaps, Peter remembered his attack from the devil and wrote, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world” (1 Peter 5:8-9).
2. As Christians, we must not only fight against Satan, we must also win over the lustful desires of our old fleshly nature.
   1. Do not let this statement surprise you. In John 3:6, Jesus said, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”
   2. The same apostle who wrote, “I am crucified with Christ” (Galatians 2:20), also wrote, “when I would do good, evil is present with me” (Romans 7:21).
   3. The Scriptures teach clearly that when you repent of your sins (Luke 13:3, Acts 17:30) and you receive Christ as your Lord and Savior (Romans 10:9), He comes into your heart (Romans 10:10). At that time you become “ a partaker of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4) and He makes you a new person “in Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
   4. Nowhere, however, do the Scriptures teach that when God makes you a new person, that your old nature disappears. The old sinful nature remains with you until that glorious day when Christ shall appear and He makes you into His likeness (1 John 3:2) and takes you up into the clouds to meet him (1 Thessalonians 4:17).
3. The new nature of the believer is continually fighting against the old nature.
   • “For the flesh lusteth (fights) against the Spirit, and the Spirit (the Holy Spirit in us) against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other; so that ye cannot do the things that ye would” (Galatians 5:17).
   • Paul the apostle wrote, “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway” (1 Corinthians 9:27).
   • In Romans 7:21, Paul wrote, “I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.”
4. It is this continual battle between the flesh and the Spirit, between our old Adamic nature and the new nature we have in Christ, that makes our final text in this Ephesians study course so valuable.
   1. Read it again, “Finally, my brethren, be strong ‘IN THE LORD,’ and in the power of His might.”
   2. Always remember that if we are Christians, the Lord Jesus Christ, the creator and the one who supports all things in heaven and earth (Colossians 1:17), actually lives in us (Galatians 2:20). He is the one who “upholdeth all things by the word of his power” (Hebrews 1:3).
   3. Always remember the flesh can never defeat the flesh. Nor can the flesh ever defeat the devil.
      1. To overcome the temptations of the flesh, we must learn to walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16, Romans 8:4).
      2. To defeat Satan we need to “Put on the whole armour of God” (Ephesians 6:11). The armour is explained in lesson 7 under section 6, “The Church as a Warrior.” Please review this part of lesson 7.
      3. When we realize that as a Christian we are at war with Satan and with all the evil powers of darkness, we will not easily be discouraged if we will use the spiritual weapons God has given to us. We do not have to fight in the weaknesses of the flesh.
         1. In 2 Corinthians 10:3-4, the apostle Paul wrote “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds). Always remember that God is on our side and while Satan is mighty, God is ALMIGHTY.
         2. Prayer is a powerful weapon. James 5:16 says, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
         3. Faith is a powerful weapon. In Ephesians 6:16, Paul writes, “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked” or “the evil one,” of course the evil one is Satan. Add to this 1 John 5:4, “this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.”
         4. The Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God. Remember that when Satan tempted Christ, He fought against Satan and defeated him three times by quoting the WORD (Matthew 4:3-11). Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword….” Memorize the WORD. Hide it in your head as well as your heart, so that you can use this powerful weapon whenever you need it.
         5. The blood of Jesus and your testimony are also powerful weapons. Revelation 12:11 says, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony….” If Satan tries to make you doubt, plead the power of the blood that redeemed you and justified you (Romans 5:9, Ephesians 1:7). If you fail the Lord and sin comes into your life, confess the sin and ask for forgiveness through the cleansing power of the blood (1 John 1:7-9; Ephesians 1:7).

CONCLUSION

• I close this study with this thought: Nothing will build in us stronger spiritual muscle and backbone than faithfully witnessing for Jesus at every opportunity. With the blood to keep us clean, and our testimony to strengthen our determination, we cannot lose!
• I pray that you have been blessed and spiritually enriched by this study course on Ephesians. May God use you to be a witness of His grace and power.

Examination

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