Ephesians 1:1 Paul wrote with the authority of an apostle an official title of the men God uniquely chose to be the foundation of the church and the receivers, teachers, and
writers of His final revelation—the New Testament. Besides the original twelve and Matthias (Acts 1:26), who replaced Judas, Paul was the only other apostle (1 Corinthians 15:8).

Yet he was not inferior to the other apostles, having met all the requirements for his office (1 Corinthians 9:1). It was not his academic or rabbinical training but his apostleship was by the will of God. Like all Believers, he was first of all a bond-servant of Messiah Jesus” (Romans 1:1).

Believers are those whom God has made holy, which is the meaning of saints. Every Believer is a saint, because we have been set apart and made holy through the perfect righteousness of Jesus that has been placed to our account (Romans 3:21-22). The word saint means “one who has been set apart.” It is related to the word sanctified, which means “set apart.” When a sinner trusts Jesus as his Savior, he is taken out of “the world” and placed “in Messiah.”

The believer is in the world physically, but not of the world spiritually (John 17:14-16). Like a scuba diver, he exists in an alien environment because he possesses special equipment, the indwelling Holy Spirit of God. Every true believer possesses the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9;1 Corinthians 6:19-20), and it is through the Spirit’s power that the Believer is able to function in a supernatural way in the world.

Ephesians 1:2 This was a common greeting among Christians in the early church. Grace is God’s kindness toward those who are undeserving of His favor but who have placed their faith in His Son, Yeshua. To greet a Believer is to acknowledge the divine grace in which we stand and made members of Messiah’s Body and family. Because we
have grace from God we have peace with God and the peace of God. Peace is the equivalent of Shalom which speaks of spiritual blessing and completeness.