Lesson 13: Waging Peace (2 Corinthians 10, 1 Timothy 1, 1 Peter 5, Acts 19)

Last week we studied Ephesians 6:10-17 and the spiritual battle armor that Paul says we need to be able to "stand against the schemes of the devil." We noticed two important things. First, that our battle was "against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places," Ephesians 6:12, and second, that almost all of the armor was defensive in nature. That might cause us to decide that we are exclusively "waging peace" in our relationship with other people, as the title of this study suggests. But then Paul said something that did not quite fit. He requested prayer to help him "boldly" (he uses the term twice in Ephesians 6:19-20) proclaim the gospel. Perhaps "waging peace," is more about the "waging" than the "peace." Let's dive into our study of the Bible and see what it says elsewhere about the nature of our battle against evil!

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The Current Quarter’s Bible Studies on Ephesians 2023.

Lesson 12
The Call to Stand
(Ephesians 6:10-20)
How would you characterize Paul's instructions in Ephesians so far? Isn't much of it about internal organization? That is how we relate to fellow family members and fellow church members. Now that ...
Lesson 11
Practicing Supreme Loyalty to
(Ephesians 6:1-9)
Let's continue our journey on unity and harmony. We have seen what the Bible says about it in the church and in marriages. What about unity and harmony with our children? What about looking at our ...
Lesson 10
Husbands and Wives: Together
(Ephesians 5:21-33)
Are Christian marriages in trouble? When I attend a marriage I hear the sad comment that things are wonderful on the day of the marriage, but they are destined for sorrow. I'm an optimist, so I don...
Lesson 9
Living Wisely
(Ephesians 5:1-20)
Do you know people who seem to live a life that is much better than yours? Would you like to live better and smarter? The answer is in the Bible. Living as Christians requires us not only to embrac...
Lesson 8
Christ-Shaped Lives and Spiri
(Ephesians 4:17-32)
Were you a Christian your entire life? If so, some of what is written to the Ephesians today may be difficult to align with your life. Imagine that you grew up worshiping idols. Your moral compass ...
Lesson 7
The Unified Body of Christ
(Ephesians 4:1-16)
Is unity in the church an easy thing? You might look around at all the denominations and answer that unity is obviously hard. What about unity in a marriage? I frequently hear couples say "marriage...
Lesson 6
The Mystery of the Gospel
(Ephesians 3)
Imagine that you received a letter from a lawyer reporting that you have a relative, previously unknown, who died and left you a fortune. You could say that a mystery has been revealed, you have a ...
Lesson 5
Horizontal Atonement: The Cro
(Ephesians 2:11-22)
"Horizontal Atonement?" That sounds like geometry. Before the math challenged among us get worried, we are talking about relationships and not math. Specifically, our relationship with others and n...
Lesson 4
How God Rescues Us
(Ephesians 2)
The first time I was completely living on my own was when I began law school in Atlanta, Georgia. During my undergraduate I lived at home. The church in Atlanta was in the middle of an exciting deb...
Lesson 3
The Power of the Exalted Jesu
(Ephesians 1 & 3)
For many years I drove cars that I found for sale during one of my exercise walks. These vehicles were great values, but not very attractive, and not very powerful. Today is different. In the old d...
Lesson 2
God’s Grand, Christ-Cen
(Ephesians 1)
Is gratitude part of your attitude? Have you noticed people who speak as if they are entitled to certain things when they have done nothing to earn them? I know I react positively to those who are ...
Lesson 1
Paul and the Ephesians
(Ephesians 1, Acts 19)
We begin a new series of studies, this time on the book of Ephesians. While topical studies are popular, I strongly prefer to write studies on specific books of the Bible. Why? Over my years of stu...

Emotional Intelligence

Can the Bible help you get promoted at work? Can the Bible increase your pay? Can the Bible help you keep your job? Improve your marriage? The answer is “Yes!” The Bible teaches principles of “emotional intelligence” that can actually help you to be smarter and get along better. Bruce Cameron, the writer of these Bible studies and a law professor, has published a paper written for lawyers which presents 17 Bible-based rules of emotional intelligence which God gave us to improve our lives. Best of all, Professor Cameron’s paper is free and you do not have to be a lawyer to understand it. To get your free copy, first click on this link. Second, when you see the title of the paper (EI, EI, Oh What an Employee), click on the “One-Click Download” and the paper will download to your computer as a PDF. If you have friends who want to read the paper, have them go to the website and download it as well.