The early Christian church battled many headwinds, including the pagan religions that controlled the masses. To this point, Paul urged the saints of Ephesus to embrace a simple and direct faith in Christ. His message was in stark contrast to the fearmongering gods of the day, gods who decreed predetermined futures for their subjects, regardless of their subjects’ personal choice.

When first-century people heard the gospel, it came to them as radically good news. Their lives were not at the mercy of chance and fate. Their destinies were not determined by the astral powers. Instead, God offered them eternal life through Jesus Christ, who, above any competing power, was now the Lord of their lives. By God’s grace and through no merit of their own, the Ephesians freely embraced a bright and exciting future.

In Christ’s name, the modern church enjoys the same privilege as the first-century Ephesians: the privilege of choosing the power of God over the powers of darkness. Dr. John McVay shows how Paul, in bold strokes, uses four metaphors to explain how the plan of salvation triumphs over spiritual wickedness. Paul describes the church as:

• the body of Christ,
• the temple of God,
• the bride of Christ, and
• the militia of Christ.

Faulty as the church may be, God works through it to put evil on notice. The rescue is underway, and Satan is doomed. God’s plan to unify everything in Christ has begun and will succeed!