How wonderful it is for us to come together as a family each Sunday to worship the Lord, to be refreshed and energized, ready to face another week.

As we continue in the practical side of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, having taught the Doctrine of the church, we come to chapter 5.  We remember the transitional verse, “… I urge you to live a life worthy of your calling” (4:1), doing our part in light of all the spiritual blessings that God has given us in Christ (1:1-14).

As you read Ephesians 5:1-21 to prepare for this Sunday’s worship service, consider the following questions:

1. What does Paul mean by, “Be imitators of God, as dearly loved children and live a life of love”?  Consider 5:1-2.

2. How can we imitate God in the areas of:
   1. Love (3-6)
   2. Light (7-14)
   3. Lifestyle and attitude (15-21)

Come ready to worship the Lord and to hear from the Lord through His Word.

I also want to give married couples advanced notice to be at the worship service on February 25 and March 11 when we will tackle one of the most misunderstood, misinterpreted and abused words of the Bible in Ephesians 5:21-33.

My prayer for you is that God will bless you as you strive to “live a life worthy of your calling.”

In Christ,

Pastor Calvin

1. How are we to keep the unity in the church based on Eph 4:1-3?
2. What is the role of the leaders in the church (4:11-12); the role of the believers in the church (4:13-16)?
3. What does it take for us to live in harmony with one another (4:17-32)?

1. What’s so important about 3:2-13 that he interrupts his thought process from v. 1?  And what is its relationship with the previous chapter, 2:11-22?
2. What word is repeated a few times in 3:6 and what is its significance?
3. What does Paul pray for the Ephesians and us in 3:14-19?  Why this prayer?

1. How does the apostle Paul describe man’s condition without God? (Eph 2:1-3)
2. What did God do to change that (2:4-9) and for what purpose (2:10)?
3. What is God’s desire for all believers to be because of what Christ did on the cross? (2:11-22)

I find it so exciting to be here in San Francisco as your Interim Pastor. In fact, I feel it is my privilege to be here to serve you, the CACC family.

As I was praying for you in preparation to come here, I was asking the Lord to show me what I should preach on. I realized that Paul’s letter to the Ephesians would be an appropriate one. As one pastor and theologian has said, “It is Paul’s greatest word on the church, teaching us what the church is in the mind of God and what it ought to be in practice before the eyes of men.” It describes God reaching out to people to recreate and transform them into a new society. It shows who we really are without Christ and who we become with Christ, both individually as well as corporately as a church.

The book of Ephesians has been described as the “Switzerland of the New Testament”. So you can see why I would be excited to preach through this book. I will try and do so in six weeks. For you to get more out of this book, I want to encourage you to read through the book with me. You can read the whole thing in less than 20 minutes. But let me encourage you to read the first chapter in preparation for this Sunday, January 14, 2018. In fact, if you like, you can make some mental notes or jot them down on paper.

What words do you see repeated and why?

Who is involved in the process of our redemption in Eph 1:7-14 and how?

What is Paul’s prayer for us and why (1:15-23)?

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday to worship our Lord together who has “blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ” (Eph 1:3). He is worthy of our praise!

In Christ,

Rev. Calvin Sagherian