Ephesians 6:23-24 23Peace be to the brothers [and sisters] and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.24Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with incorruptibility.
The final verses of this letter contain a prayer blessing. Paul ends his letters with a wish prayer for God’s blessing upon the readers. Just as he started the letter with a greeting of “grace and peace” (1:2), so now he ends the letter with a prayer for peace and grace. He includes several other key words from this letter. Each word has been a key theme in the letter and provide the readers a final moment of reflection of just what God can and will do in their lives as they commit themselves to Christ.
Peace (eirēnē) is what humanity is seeking but looks in the wrong place. The need for peace comes from the divisions and enmity because of sin and the many walls people build between themselves and others. Paul reminded the Ephesians in this letter that the source of true and everlasting peace is Jesus Christ (2:15, 17). They had believed in the gospel that brought peace (6:15). He called them to live out this peace in the unity that comes by living in obedience to the Holy Spirit (4:3). Now, in this closing prayer, he one more time points the source of this peace as God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Peace is available for those who accept the gospel. This is not only an inner peace of a clean conscience because of God’s forgiveness of our sins but a peace that affects all our life, relationships, and actions. We become people of peace because we have been filled with God’s peace (Romans 15:13).
The word love (agapē) is repeated twice in this closing prayer and is a key theme in this letter, occurring 20 times in various forms. God is the source of love and does everything in love. God had the plan of salvation in Christ already before the creation of the world and desires for every person to experience this salvation because God is love (1:4). Yet, God gives each person the free choice to accept this love through Jesus Christ and to come to know and experience the power of this love in his or her life (3:17, 19). The reason God created us is to know this love by being “in Christ.” This love will affect our whole lives: how we relate to other believers in unity as the church (4:2, 16), how we live as new creations (5:1-2), and our marriages and family relationships (5:25, 28). This love also comes from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul prays that faith (pisteōs) will accompany peace and love. The object of faith is Jesus Christ (1:15). Faith is trusting in God’s grace shown through Jesus Christ (2:8). Faith is the open door to new life in Christ and the way in which we can experience the peace and love offered to us in the gospel (3:17). When we trust in this message of hope, we become united with other believers in the unity of faith (4:5, 13). Faith is one of the key spiritual protections we can have in our battle against sin and evil (6:16). Faith is a journey that begins with the simple acceptance of God’s offer of salvation and grows until it becomes the force that compels us into ministry in this world, even in difficult situations of suffering and persecution.
Grace (charis) is God’s glorious gift of himself to us through Jesus (1:6). It is another keyword that occurs in this letter at important points. Grace is how we experience God’s blessing of redemption, forgiveness, and salvation (1:7), resulting in relationship, wholeness, and newness. Grace overcomes the impossible and hopeless situation caused by sin (2:5). God is the source of grace, but we can only experience the fullness of this grace “in Christ Jesus” (2:7). Like Paul, we become stewards of this message of grace and must share it with those around us (3:2, 7, 8; 4:7). There is no end to how much of this grace we can experience because it is a product of God’s infinite love.
Paul ends this letter with the hope that the Ephesians will experience this grace with incorruptibility (aphtharsia). This last word in the letter is difficult to interpreter because it could refer to grace or to the love the followers of Jesus have. It may be best not to force an interpretation but to consider that Paul is giving a final statement of total confidence and faith in the message he proclaims. This is a hope that cannot be taken away by any suffering, imprisonment, or battle with the forces of evil. God’s grace, peace, and love are the treasurers God gives us to experience beginning in this lifetime and for all eternity. This is a hope that compels us to live in holiness and righteousness as we are remade into the likeness of Jesus Christ, who is perfect love. If we follow this way of hope and commit ourselves fully to the truth that is in Jesus, we will find the very purpose for our creation. This is the key idea of this letter and the answer for any challenges the Ephesians faced and we face today.
For older posts, click here.