Living to the Praise of God's Glory: A Missional Reading of Ephesians (Australian College of Theology Monograph)

The letter to the Ephesians is missional to its core. It effectively exhorts its readers to understand support and participate in Gods mission to rescue humanity and all creation from the damage and distortion of sin and so bring about a renewed creation filled with Gods glorious fullness. Working at the creative intersection of biblical studies and missiology this study adopts a missional hermeneutic to overcome the scholarly neglect of mission in Ephesians. The book systematically explores each passage in Ephesians delving into the characterization of God and his mission; allusions to Old Testament missional texts in Ephesians; and the portrayal of the apostle Paul and believers as participants in Gods mission. A multi-faceted vision of mission emerges which encompasses Gods actions in salvation history; the church as mediator of Gods glory reconciliation and grace to the nations; prayer; ethical witness; and verbal proclamation of the gospel. Reading Ephesians through this missional lens yields fresh insights into its purpose and context and the richness of its portrait of mission.