Who am I in Christ - Intro to Ephesians
Chris Hanbury - 2nd April 2006
1) Historical background
2) Introducing the concept of 'evidence-based' Christian living
3) Who we are 'in Christ'
1) Background
Ephesus is on the west coast of Turkey, it was on the coast but is now 5 miles inland because the harbour has silted up.
Founded by the Hitites in 1400 BC, the Greeks arrived in 1087 BC, the Temple to Artemis was built in 400 BC. In 189 BC the Romans captured the city, following which was increased prosperity and it became the Roman capital of Asia Province. In 65 BC Paul visited for 3 years. In 100 AD there was a financial boom, but after 150 the city declined, they stopped dredging the harbour, and finally it was attacked by Goths.
Artemis was also known as Diana and Sivele, a multi-roled multi-breasted moon god. Ephesus was known as the keeper of the temple of Artemis. It was a wealthy city with posh houses, plumbing, library, floor mosaics, wide roads lined with columns. Artemis worship brought money to the city.
Paul upset the tradesmen by bringing the gospel, eg the silversmiths worried that people would no longer buy their wares, as Paul preached the one true God. There was a big gathering of people which got into an uproar. They all shouted 'Great is Artemis' for two hours! The town clerk finally managed to send people home.
2) 'Evidence-based' Christian living
Proverbs 10 v 14 wise men store up knowledge
Prov 2 v 1-5 store up my commands
As a doctor, Chris adds up the evidence of your disorder and prescribes the appropriate medicine. It's a process of lifelong learning, similar to us being Christians.
Example of 'ASCOT' which was a series of Anglo-Scandinavian medical trials to discover whether new blood pressure treatments were better than old ones. Nearly 20,000 people took part. The result was that it showed that the new treatment was a lot better than the old.
3) Who we are 'in Christ'
We split into groups and looked at the first few chapters of Ephesians and summarised the main points.
This series continues in subsequent weeks, don't miss it! | 
