Just as the Messiah Loved Us

About this episode

William Klock discusses the teachings of Paul in Ephesians and the misconceptions surrounding them.

Just as the Messiah Loved Us Ephesians 4:25-5:2 by William Klock   Fourth of July weekend in 1998 I had to go on a service call to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island. I did not want to brave the ferries for a one-day round trip to Friday Harbor on a holiday weekend, but this print shop was desperate, so the owner suggested I bring my wife and daughter—Alexandra wasn’t even two months old at the time—and they’d put us up for the whole weekend. That sounded a lot better. And, conveniently, the Episcopal church was literally next door to the place we were staying. Sunday morning we walked over for the service. The second lesson was from Ephesians—the part of Ephesians we’re just now getting into today with Chapter 4. And their deacon got up to preach and said, “This morning’s lesson was written by Paul. I don’t like Paul very much and I know that’s true for all of us. Paul says mean, nasty, bigoted things.” He went on to pit Paul against Jesus as he described Paul as a “Pharisaical moralising Puritan”—like Paul had never really understood Jesus’ gospel of grace and made it all about works instead—and a lot of “works” that are just plain offensive to modern sensibilities: stuff…

People in this episode

Host: William Klock

Topics covered

• love
• Ephesians
• Christianity
• gospel
• Paul
• grace

Keywords

• Ephesians
• Paul
• Jesus
• gospel
• Christianity
• love
• grace

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Ephesians

Places: Friday Harbor, San Juan Island

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