Please note that all Biblical quotes, in this and all other lessons posted to Greek Thoughts, are from The Literal English Translation of the Bible produced by BTE Ministries - The Bible Translation and Exegesis Institute of America.
This week we conclude our study of the adjective ἐπουρὰνιος (epouranios - Strong's #2032), which means the heavenly regions or the spirit realm. ̓Επουρὰνιος is a compound word comprised of the preposition ἐπὶ (Epi - Strong's #1909 meaning upon, on, at) and the noun οὐρανὸς (Ouranos - Strong's #3772, the Greek word used for heaven). It is an adjective (e)poura/niov) used in the New Testament to represent the spirit realm, which is the location of God's throne and the place where all spiritual beings and forces (both good and evil) exist.
In our study of ̓Επουρὰνιος, we have established, from Ephesians, that believers have been blessed with every spiritual blessing. These blessings are located in the spirit realm, where God and all other spiritual forces are functioning. The specific location for these blessings is in Christ, who is seated in the spirit realm above all other spiritual forces, at the right of the throne of God, in the place of authority and honor. That being established, it is now important to establish one final position in the spirit realm — that of the believer in Christ, which is the theme of Paul's letter to the Ephesians. Our study is taken from Ephesians 2:4-6.
Ephesians 2:4-6
4) But God, being rich in mercy, on account of His great love with which He loved us,
In this section of scripture, Paul uses resurrection language to describe three stages that take place during salvation. He first uses the Greek verb συζωοποιὲω (Sunzoopoieo - Strong's #4806), which is translated "He made us alive together." Next, he uses the verb συνεγεὶρω (Sunegeiro - Strong's #4891), which is translated "He raised us up together." And then he uses the verb sugkaqi/zw (Sunkathizo - Strong's #4776), which is translated "seated us together." Each of these verbs is in the aorist tense, which means that each is expressing a one-time act in the past. Therefore, each of these phases has happened once, in the past, in the life of the believer - at salvation. Of special interest to us this week is Paul's statement of the third and final phase taking place at salvation - that God has seated us together in the spirit realm in Christ Jesus.
Paul's purpose in writing to the Ephesians is to establish the fact that believers, at the time of salvation, are positioned in the spirit realm, in Christ, at the right of the throne of God. This is a most important concept for believers to understand, especially as we struggle with the flesh and the things of the world. The reason for this is because false teaching on how a believer is to deal with the fleshly realm is rampant today, even emphasizing that a believer must fight to get back into proper relation and position with Christ. But God's Word teaches that everyone who has received the Spirit of Christ has been made spiritually alive, has been raised up from the spiritual dead, and has been seated in Christ Jesus in the spirit realm. The preposition ἐν (En - Strong's #1722) translated "in" expresses position. This shows that the believer is positioned permanently "in Christ" at the right of the throne of God.
The importance of this truth is clear: the struggles believers have in the physical realm make it "seem" as though our spiritual position in Christ does not exist, that we are not positioned far above all other spiritual forces in the spirit realm. Our fleshly struggles cause us to "feel" as though we are being defeated and that we must fight to get back into a more spiritual condition. That which "seems" to be happening and that which "feels" as though we are losing the battle is the opposite of the truth that exists in the spirit realm.
The truth existing in the spirit realm is that every believer is seated "in Christ" at the right of the throne of God, far above all spiritual forces including the evil spiritual forces mentioned in Ephesians 6:12. In order for evil spiritual forces to remove a believer from his spiritual position in Christ, Christ Himself would have to be defeated, and that is impossible. This is the point Paul is making: Satan can only seduce believers into thinking and believing that the truth concerning their spiritual warfare is gauged by the physical realm. In truth, however, Christians are to believe by faith that their position is in Christ in the spirit realm and are to resist the temptation to fight with Satan based upon how things seem to be in the physical realm. This is a position of faith. James 4:7 says, "Therefore be submitted to God. And resist the devil, and he will flee from you." The action believers are to take against the devil is to be submitted to God, perceiving their position in Christ, and the devil will flee from them. That is why Paul concludes the Book of Ephesians (6:11) by encouraging believers to stand against the systematic attacks of the devil, after having put on the armor of God, which is Christ Jesus. The believer's response to Satan is to resist him and to stand, by faith, in the present and permanent position in Christ in the spirit realm.
We will begin a study next week on what it means "to remain" or "to dwell" in Christ.
*EPOURANIOS is the English font spelling of the Greek word ἐπουρὰνιος.
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Bill Klein has been a pastor, counselor, and educator for the past 41 years. He has had extensive training and education in biblical languages, and has authored a Biblical Greek course.
He is currently serving as Professor of Biblical Greek at Master's Graduate School of Divinity, and president of BTE Ministries - The Bible Translation and Exegesis Institute of America, a non-profit organization located in California that provides Bible study tapes and Greek study materials through their website BTEMinistries.org.