Paul’s Prison Epistles (Ephesians, Colossians, Philippians, Philemon) His Love Ministries P.O. Box 507 Middle Island, NY 11953-0507 (631) 732-3074 www.hlminc.org The contents of this booklet are the sole property of His Love Ministries, Inc. It is Not for sale. It may be reproduced only in its entirety without editing and shared with the accompanying CDs that contain the class lectures. We pray that this class material will help you in your walk with our LORD Jesus. August 21, 2002 September 5,2011 2 Welcome: To 602 Paul’s Prison Epistles (Ephesians; Colossians; Philippians; Philemon – This class has one requirement that we will be reading the same Bible translation. The New American Standard Bible. If you do not own one please purchase one with a center column reference for all the classes that are taught at His Love Ministries. My view of God’s Word. 1. Every word in the Bible is God Breathed 2. All that it teaches is true. Revealing God, satan and men’s fallen condition 3. The very words were chosen by God to communicate clearly to us. 4. Our primary need is to study scripture in the days ahead that we can hear and discern the LORD’s voice. 5. The material that will be covering this quarter are the letters that Paul wrote when he was in prison in Rome. 6. These 4 epistles (letters) can not be placed into any order as to which letter came first, second and so on because there is no date indicated. But it is universally agreed that they were all written while Paul was in prison. So I have been seeking God as to which letter He wanted me to begin with. 7. Ephesians has been constantly impressed upon me as it presents the clearest teaching in the New Testament on our warfare. The enemy You are no match for him! He has defeated man from the beginning. In the garden we see his first victory over Adam and Eve. That victory was obtained by his craftiness. Adam was the height of God's reflection. Our first parents were not weakened by sin and a fallen nature that was given to rebellion and pride. This fact must not be passed over too quickly. Adam and Eve had no struggle with the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes or the pride of life. These conditions truthfully reflect our current fallen state but not theirs at creation. They were made to be in the presence of God with no fear or shame. Holiness was not a struggle to maintain for corruption was not found in them. Their natural condition was to forever be in God's presence. We in our fallen state now, measure what we comprehend by ourselves. We so quickly forget what God has revealed to us in His word, that we see in part and as we are finite what we acquire of our past is corrupt by the fact that it comes from men who can never come into any truth apart from God. Man cannot understand himself or the universe that God has placed us in without God providing us with truth that He alone has and has imparted to us by the grace of His revelation to us. 3 The enemy knew that he could not harm man. He was beneath us. As clearly as we now stand upright above the serpents that roam the earth, we never were created beneath any part of God's creation but above all as the reflection of God to care for His garden. Man possessed a glory that was not his own. Man could understand all of God's creation and give names to all the animals because man, who reflected God, perceived clearly their nature and purpose before the fall. The fact that Adam gave names to the animals reveals that he stood above all that God created and has the capacity to understand all that God has made. Even in our fallen state we can discover the underlying principles that God has ordained to sustain His creation. But this is not our current condition! Since Adam we see an unbroken series of continuous defeats. The strongest and the wisest of men have all tasted defeat from our enemy. Even those who stood the closest to God have their failures recorded for us to examine. To begin we must give up the illusion that we are a match for the enemy. We are not wiser that Solomon not stronger that Samson nor have we stood in the presence of God without food and water for forty day like Moses. Yet each person we meet in scripture has sin recorded as a result of that defeat in the garden by our enemy who did not lift a finger to defeat them. The enemy used words formulating "the lie" that brought death and separation from God to our first parents and to every generation that takes a breath. The enemies plan to defeat us. Because the enemy does not have death in his power, he cannot destroy us. He gains victory by tempting us to sin and rebellion. Then God must punish us. This was the enemies plan and God knew it. God sent His Son to take the punishment of All sinful men and opened to us forgiveness and restoration to our intended place before God. Now the enemy seeks to bring us to despair and defeat. He reminds us of our sins and continuously tells us that we are not worthy of God’s forgiveness. God has a plan to mature His Children! It can first be seen in a statement given to Cain. Genesis 4:3-7 3 So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the LORD of the fruit of the ground. 4 Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and for his offering; 5 but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell. 6 Then the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? 7 "If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it." 4 God was very careful of where He lead the new followers that was just leaving Egypt. Exodus 13:17-18 17 Now when Pharaoh had let the people go, God did not lead them by the way of the land of the Philistines, even though it was near; for God said, "The people might change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt." 18 Hence God led the people around by the way of the wilderness to the Red Sea; and the sons of Israel went up in martial array from the land of Egypt. Then upon entering the Promised land. Judges 3:1-4 NAU Judges 3:1 Now these are the nations which the LORD left, to test Israel by them (that is, all who had not experienced any of the wars of Canaan; 2 only in order that the generations of the sons of Israel might be taught war, those who had not experienced it formerly). 3 These nations are: the five lords of the Philistines and all the Canaanites and the Sidonians and the Hivites who lived in Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal-hermon as far as Lebo-hamath. 4 They were for testing Israel, to find out if they would obey the commandments of the LORD, which He had commanded their fathers through Moses. Then God lead David to write! Psalm 144:1 NAU Psalm 144:1 A Psalm of David. Blessed be the LORD, my rock, Who trains my hands for war, And my fingers for battle; Then at the end of Paul’s letter to the Romans Romans 16:20 20 The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. This victory is only because there was an encounter in a wilderness and a final battle in a garden that lead to the victory over death hell and the grave in the Resurrection of Our LORD Jesus. The Victory over our enemy was never in us. Exodus 14:13-14 13 But Moses said to the people, "Do not fear! Stand by and see the salvation of the LORD which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever. 14 "The LORD will fight for you while you keep silent." Then Again at Jericho With a shout on the seventh day. Joshua 6:16 16 At the seventh time, when the priests blew the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, "Shout! For the LORD has given you the city. There will be a final shout when God will slay the wicked with the rod of His Mouth! 5 Isaiah 11:4 And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. 2 Thessalonians 2:8 8 Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; 1 Thessalonians 4:16 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.