We invite you to use the Hinged Bible Study on the book of Ephesians, produced by CDM and written by women in the PCA. There are free videos, discussion questions, a Leader’s Guide, and videos interacting with the authors. 

Our Worship Informs Our Walk

Week 1 – Ephesians 1:1-14

Encouragement from Karen: 

I am excited to begin this journey with you as we seek to be more vitally connected to Christ and one another. Ephesians 1:1-14 is a glorious 203-word doxological summit. Paul is effusive in His praise of Christ’s work on our behalf. Understanding we are blessed, chosen, adopted, redeemed, and forgiven should make our hearts sing. We will spend the first six weeks of Ephesians unpacking our vertical worship of Christ, and the last six weeks unpacking our horizontal walk in the context of the home, church, workplace, and community.

You and I sisters are products of our doxology. The Doxology is not just a song you sing at the end of a service, but rather should be the lyric of our life. In Latin, “dox” means glory, and “ology” we know from school years is a word or a thought about something. As you dig into this week’s study, you will find countless words or thoughts about glory. But how does your worship impact the way you walk out your faith this week?  The word worship finds its roots in the words “worth” and “shape.”  In other words, what you find worthy, precious, or valuable shapes everything about our lives. It impacts our actions, attitudes, choices, and relationships. Spend time counting your blessings this week. What is more precious than gold to you? It could be approval, success, control, people in our lives, or prayerfully, it might be the “God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!”

Dig deep in the treasure chest of this passage. I can’t wait to hear about all the blessings you uncover this week. It will be a celebration of our blessed belonging. May we worship and walk “to the praise of His glorious grace”!

Video Teaching – Week 1 – Ephesians 1:1-14

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.” – Ephesians 1:3-4

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 1:1-14. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. In what ways was Paul’s life transformed through the work of Christ in him? How do you see the transforming work of Christ in you?
  3. We tend to notice things that are set apart. The Christians in Ephesus probably stood out from the culture around them. People likely noticed their set-apartness. In what ways might people in your circles see your set-apartness?
  4. Name the spiritual blessings we have in Christ. Which one is particularly precious to you?
  5. What does it mean to you to have forgiveness and redemption from sin?

Hinge Point….Walking these truths out this week

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests

Hinged Helps:

Hinged Bible Study Chapter 1 for those who may not have received their copy yet.

Read: To learn more about Christ’s work on our behalf – God for Us by Abby Hutto

Listen: Cultivate connections in your small group with Hope Blanton

Hinged Hangout with Christina Fox

Week 2: Gospel Gap – Ephesians 1:15-23

Encouragement from Karen: 

How about the time I was fussing at my husband on the way to pre-marital counseling with a young couple on communication skills? Remember when I taught on gospel-centered community while withdrawing from the women in my small group? Then there was the day I read about how God will never leave or forsake me and then I felt my chest tighten with anxiety. These are not hypothetical gaps; they are real gospel gaps in my life. There is a gap between knowing about God and really knowing God. The chasm between what I claim to believe and how I live. And depending on the minute, that gap could be as wide and deep as the Grand Canyon. The deeper the gap, the more urgency for repentance and faith. The wider the gap, the more urgency for unceasing prayer. The extravagant grace the Gospel extended to us is the only thing that can adequately fill the gap.
Would you pray that the eyes of my heart might be enlightened? Many places in my heart are darkened by sin. Some days I have blind spots and a hardened heart. That is why I need true wisdom. Knowledge acquired will never fill the gap, but knowledge applied can. Paul wants us to have a real experiential, intimate, and personal knowledge of God. The gap is filled when there is a substantive heart change over mere head knowledge. Living eyes wide open means you and I, sisters, don’t have to live as cynical, hopeless women. We can step out in confidence because the hope of our future is Heaven. It means on those days when we feel like God is stingy or holding out on us, we can try to wrap our mind and heart around the extravagant, abundant riches of the glorious inheritance we will share with Him one day in Glory. And finally, on those days when He allows us to hit the wall of our self-sufficiency, we can rest that our weaknesses are perfected in the immeasurable greatness of His power that is directed right toward us.
Pray for me sister…I am praying for you,
Karen

Video Teaching – Week 2 – Ephesians 1:15-23

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body.” – Ephesians 1:22-23a

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 1:15-23. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. What steps can you take to make prayer a priority in your daily routine?
  3. What is one gospel gap that you have in your life right now? (The gap between knowing about God and knowing God, or between knowledge acquired and knowledge applied, or between what I think I know and how I live.)
  4. In what ways do you struggle to hold on to the hope of your calling or do you put your hope in lesser things?
  5. Name one or two things that you are currently trying to handle in your own strength. How would next week be different if you spent time plugging into His immeasurably great power that is directed toward you?
  6. How does Ephesians 1:22-23 describe the Church? How is the Church connected to Christ?

Hinge Point….Walking these truths out this week

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests

Hinged Helps:

Read: Praying Together: The Priority and Privilege of Prayer in our Homes, Communities and Churches by Megan Hill

Listen: enCourage Podcast with Ashley Hales – Hinged to Authentic Community

Hinged Hangout with Lisa Tarplee

Week 3: His Masterpiece – Ephesians 2:1-10

Encouragement from Karen: 

Most of us have admired the beautiful crafts and DIY projects on Pinterest. Some courageously dare to recreate these ideas with paintbrushes and glue guns in hand only to find out that Pinterest perfection can be elusive. But there is no such thing as a Pinterest fail when it comes to the Creator’s handiwork. We are His Workmanship! In Greek, the word is “poiema” which describes any work of art — a statue, song, architecture, poem, or painting. It conveys the idea of something artfully created. God is the Master sculptor, builder, musician, writer, and artist.
Joni Eareckson Tada one of our beloved PCA sisters, called herself a “poiema” after becoming a quadriplegic. She said, “(God) has a plan and purpose for my time on earth. He is the master artist or sculptor, and He is the One Who chooses the tools He will use to perfect His workmanship. What of suffering, then? What of illness? What of disability? Am I to tell Him which tools He can use and which tools He can’t use in the lifelong task of perfecting me and molding me into the beautiful image of Jesus? Do I really know better than Him, so that I can state without equivocation that it’s always His will to heal me of every physical affliction? If I am His poem, do I have the right to say, ‘No, Lord? You need to trim line number two and brighten up lines three and five. They’re just a little bit dark.’ Do I, the poem, the thing being written, know more than the poet?”
As Joni reminds us, He chooses the tools and sees the glorious end from the beginning. He purposefully chisels and cuts away sinful habits. He delights in the melody and poetry that reflects our hearts toward Him. He blends the dark and bright colors and circumstances in our lives to produce something a watching world leans in and declares beautiful. The fingerprints of His nail-pierced hands are evident as we emerge as new creations. We are living exhibitions that highlight what the extraordinary grace of God can accomplish in the lives of ordinary people. We are saved to serve God, not ourselves. To walk out good works, He has prepared before the foundation of the world. The psalmist also used the word “poiema” when he wrote, “I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands” (Psalm 143:5). If you and I were to meditate or ponder on His handiwork in our lives, it would change what you see when you look in the mirror. It would impact how you perceive others. And it would give purpose and meaning to all your days.
Have a lovely week, beautiful friend!
Karen

Video Teaching – Week 3 – Ephesians 2:1-10

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ–by grace you have been saved.” – Ephesians 2:4-5

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 2:1-10. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. How does it (and should it) affect our daily lives that our citizenship is in heaven since we have been raised up with Christ?
  3. Describe ways you are showing forth the incomparable riches of His grace?
  4. Are you resting on the present value of Christ’s shed blood as your only source of power to please God and live an obedient life before Him?
  5. How do we boast in what Christ has done for us?

Hinge Points: Consider each Hinged Point and how you can seek this week to…

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests

Hinged Helps:

Read: Closer than a Sister by Christina Fox

Listen: enCourage Podcast with Tara Gibbs – Living Outward Faced in an Inward Faced World: Women and Evangelism

Hinged Hangout with Shea Patrick

Week 4:  Uncomfortable – Ephesians 2:11-22

Encouragement from Karen: 

It doesn’t take much to divide us. Preferences, personalities, and prejudice separate. Facing differences is often inconvenient and uncomfortable. We have two choices, isolate or integrate. Radical individualism often fuels autonomy and isolation. We think withdrawing will bring long-term comfort, but, in the end, there is only misery. These self-seeking toxins can leak over into the Church, promoting a consumer mindset rather than Covenant community. Integration or hinging to others takes courage, but it will never be comfortable. When you think about Jesus’ call to us to follow Him, you will find nothing comfortable about His grace-based discipleship invitation. Being a part of the Body and the Bride was never meant to be comfortable.

Unity requires barriers and blind spots to be removed. This week we can rejoice in Christ the Victor, who breaks down walls of hostility. We can take comfort; His peace-making mission reconciles us to Himself and one another. And we can get ready for a little blessed belonging building project. He brings us near. How close you ask? A little too close for comfort. He joins us together in love, so we grow up into maturity. We are living stones, not bricks. It is the fundamental difference between unity and uniformity. And talk about being uncomfortable. He is chiseling, shaping and divinely placing us to fit together for stability and mutual support. As Holy Temple stones, we are interlocked and overlapped so we stay vitally connected to Christ and each other. The blueprints point towards a dwelling place for God. As a radial individualistic world leans in and looks for a place to belong, what will they see? Our unity will either validate or negate the claims of the Gospel. God uses His Word and surrounds us with different kinds of people because He knows these gifts will shape us until we are fully joined together. This Covenant community-building project won’t be completed until we get Home.

“The beauty and blessing are in the belonging!”

(Thanks, Ronjanett, I needed that reminder)

Karen

Video Teaching – Week 4 – Ephesians 2:11-22

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.” – Ephesians 2:17-18

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 2:11-22. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. Pastor Alistair Begg began a sermon series on Ephesians with an overview describing the location of the saints in Ephesus as their “Gospel Geography”–in Ephesus and in Christ Jesus (Eph. 1:1). Where is your gospel geography? Where has the Lord planted you? How do you or how could you begin to appreciate “no longer being far off but being brought near” (v. 13) with your involvement in your local church?
  3. Can you identify a time in your life when you desired your peace over pursuing peace with others?
  4. How does this week’s passage challenge and encourage you when you look at ways you personally and the Christian community as a whole are or can be intentional in pursuing unity?
  5. Discuss the process of being joined and built together as a Covenant community. Can you share an example of His process of fitting you together with others?

Hinge Points: Consider each Hinged Point and how you can seek this week to…

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests  – See form below if you would like to confidentially share a prayer request with our Hinged Prayer Team.

Hinged Helps:

Read: United: Captured by God’s Vision for Diversity by Trillia Newbell

Listen: enCourage Podcast with Sherry Lanier and Ronjanett Taylor on Gospel Friendships

Hinged Hangout with Ronjanett Taylor

Week 5:  The Mission to Display Multifaceted Wisdom – Ephesians 3:1-13

Encouragement from Karen: 

“…so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known (v.10).”

I have been a pastor’s wife for thirty years next week. We have served three large churches and planted two churches from scratch in five very unique places. Our lives are marked by knowing and loving many different kinds of people. We have walked together through the highest highs and the lowest lows. Sharing life with these saints is one of our greatest privileges. All along the way in the good, bad, and hard, there is a higher purpose being accomplished in our lives, the lives of these good people, and more importantly, the eternal purpose of redemption.

The Church is not just a building but a Body and a Bride. Paul is driving home in our passage this week that our purpose and mission is so vital that it should have proper priority in our lives. We are His vehicle to put on display the manifold wisdom of God. His character is displayed in the richest and multifaceted dimensions of variegated colors. We have been learning wisdom is not merely knowledge acquired, but knowledge applied. How is it applied? In a variety of ways, through various people in diverse sets of circumstances. And witnessing the beauty of this multicolored application has taken our breath away.

We have seen the brightness of a family welcome a child by adoption. We have seen the radiance of a mother persevere through cancer with hope. We have seen the glory of young couples move from engagement to covenant marriage. And we have seen the dim shades of a husband continue to serve the Lord after his young wife has passed away. The Church is the hands and feet of Jesus, tangibly showing us what knowledge applied looks like in an everyday faithfulness. But this spectacle was never just for us. The display of God’s wisdom through their lives is a gospel classroom for a world that is intently looking for any traces of beauty amid brokenness. May they see our Teacher displaying through His disciples the multifaceted dimensions of blessings, redemption, forgiveness, and reconciliation in such a way it can only be explained that it comes from Him. Showcasing His glory is our chief mission each day. To yield our lives to Christ in such a way that from whatever angle the world gazes in, they might see new blazes of His wisdom shining forth. And we get the privilege of walking out this mission together until we get Home because His wisdom is inexhaustible!

In awe of the radiant display!

Karen

Video Teaching – Week 5 – Ephesians 3:1-13

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” – Ephesians 3:6

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 3:1-13. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. What type of distinctions do you see that can separate us in the Church today?
  3. How can we actively fight against things that could separate us in our particular body of believers?
  4. Reread verse 12, as it discusses our boldness and access to God. What do these other verses say about that access?
    • Hebrews 4:16
    • Hebrews 10:19
    • 2 Corinthians 3:4
  5. How can the Church display the manifold witness of God? Have you become frustrated with the Church? How has the Church sown God’s plan well?

Hinge Points: Consider each Hinged Point and how you can seek this week to…

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests  – See form below if you would like to confidentially share a prayer request with our Hinged Prayer Team.

Hinged Helps:

Read: Beyond the Roles; Editor Melanie Cogdill. Essays written by 21 different women

Listen: enCourage Podcast with Carol Arnold on Living on Mission

Hinged Hangout with Shea Patrick

Week 6:  A Life-Long Pursuit to Know the Unknowable Love of God – Ephesians 3:14-21

Encouragement from Karen: 

“…that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge (v. 17b-19a)

Is there something in your life right now that feels impossible? Maybe it is having a clean house or every piece of laundry clean at the same time. What about finding a meal everyone can get excited about around the dinner table? Maybe it is having your inbox completely cleaned out. These things can loom, large, but in reality, they are not eternal. What if you and I committed ourselves to a life-long pursuit of something impossible but also eternal? To give your life to seeking to know the unknowable love of God for you and the world. How would this pursuit transform us over a lifetime?

As we are rooted in His love, our lives would be more secure and stable. Our hearts would be nourished and enabled to grow in unconditional love for others. If we were grounded in His love, we would be able to withstand the trials and tribulations of life without being moved. When love is deep and foundational in our daily walk, we will begin to see the fruit of Spirit which begins with love manifested in our lives. But if you are anything like me, that sounds a bit elusive. How can I experientially know this agape or unconditional love? Grasping the love of Christ never happens in isolation. Comprehension begins in community as we hinge to one another. As we are vitally connected to Christ’s love, we are empowered to live and love covenantally with all the saints. Each beloved family member shows us another dimension of the unknowable love of Christ. As they forgive, endure, serve, and pray, we catch glimpses of belonging.

Over our lives, this pursuit will take us wider, longer, higher, and deeper than we have ever been. The Spirit enables us to live and love supernaturally in four directions. As we go wide, our hearts expand to love the whole world like God because one day, we will spend eternity with every tongue, tribe, and nation. As we go long, we are compelled to keep short accounts and be the chief repenter because His love stretches from eternity past to eternity future. On days when it is tough to love others in a fallen world, our minds and hearts are cast high toward the heavenlies remembering no matter what happens, we are seated with our Father. When we sin and hide in shame, we are comforted God’s deep love descended from heaven to redeem us. And on all the in-between days, we can be confident “neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).

You are dearly loved!

Karen

Video Teaching – Week 6 – Ephesians 3:14-21

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “…that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being…” – Ephesians 3:16

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 3:14-21. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. How does your misunderstanding of God’s love for you impact your relationship with Him? With others?
  3. What would happen if you were “filled with all the fullness of God?”
  4. Where do you feel weak today?
  5. What experiences of God’s abundant power have you seen in times of weakness, in your life, or the lives of others?

Hinge Points: Consider each Hinged Point and how you can seek this week to…

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests  – See form below if you would like to confidentially share a prayer request with our Hinged Prayer Team.

Hinged Helps:

Read: Prayers of the Bible by SusanHunt

Listen: enCourage Podcast with Barbara Thompson – Equiping the Church for Kingdom Prayer

Hinged Hangout with Susan Tyner 

Week 7:  One – Ephesians 4:1-16

Encouragement from Karen: 

“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph. 4:1-3).

We live in a fractured and splintered society. Race and politics are the current lightening rod fueling divisive words and actions. But in reality, it doesn’t take much to divide us, our age, marital status or whether we have children separate us into groups. Socioeconomic status and work or schooling choices can section off women in neighborhoods and churches. Then there is the snare of the compare, primarily showcased in social media that underscores that we are just not like others in a limitless number of arenas. These divisive forces leave women isolated and discouraged. So here is the crucial question: am I eager or apathetic about pursuing unity?

This quest for unity is a daily calling to walk out the reality of life in Christ that we have learned about in Ephesians Chapters One-Three. You and I do not have the strength or ability to bring harmony and togetherness. It will require Spirit-empowered humility, gentleness, patience, and love. Each of these faith-filled steps has one aim–to be eager, enthusiastic, or zealous to guard or maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Peace is the gospel glue that holds it all together. Shalom is peace with God, peace within (vital vertical connection), and peace with others (vital horizontal connection).

Oneness is not sameness, but rather the beauty of unity amidst God-designed diversity. Unity comes from a Spirit-empowered work inside of us. Uniformity comes from a worldly pressure outside of us. We are unique living stones being joined together rather than identical bricks. The Word offers the God-head as our reference point for community life together. The world is endlessly offering counterfeit versions of community that will never bring lasting cohesiveness. John Stott said, “The unity to the Church is as indestructible as the unity of God Himself. It is not anymore possible to split the Church than it is to split the Godhead.” Our togetherness will either validate or negate the claims of the gospel to a watching world. This broken world is watching now more than ever before and it is hungry for the oneness, peace and belonging we the Church can offer. May the Lord give us an eagerness and zeal to guard and maintain His unity this week!

Better Together…

Karen

Video Teaching – Week 7 – Ephesians 4:1-16

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” – Ephesians 4:15-16

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 4:1-16. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. How did Paul describe a “worthy” life in verses 2 and 3 and how should that make a difference in the way you walk with others this week?
  3. Look at all the things Paul said there is one of in this passage. What are the personal and corporate implications of each of these aspects of oneness?
  4. Are you making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace? How do you need to grow in this area?
  5. Is the Word the centerpiece of your life and ministry? Do you believe in its redeeming, transforming power? What hinders you from doing this?
  6. How are you serving the church in a way that builds up the body?

Hinge Points: Consider each Hinged Point and how you can seek this week to…

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests  – See form below if you would like to confidentially share a prayer request with our Hinged Prayer Team.

Hinged Helps:

Read: Union with Christ by Rankin Wilbourne

Listen: Audio from One Conference with Courtney Doctor

Week 8:  Walking and Talking – Ephesians 4:17-32

Encouragement from Karen: 

I love to people watch, especially at the airport. One of my all-time favorites is the kids whose parents are so toasty they let their children try to walk backward on the moving sidewalks. Their entertainment is an excellent metaphor for life. There is no neutral. You are either retreating or advancing, even when you think you are standing still. We have been learning about what it looks like to walk worthy of our calling. This week we will see our hearts and minds govern our steps. In the old man, our thinking is futile, and our hearts are dark. But in the new man, our minds are renewed and our hearts are transformed. Everything is overflow!

So where are you walking this week? Around your neighborhood, into your workplace, through your living room? And who are you talking to this week? A customer service agent, your child, or your spouse? Each step holds within the potential of life-taking or life-giving impact. When we walk in the flesh, we retreat into self: self-righteousness, self-reliance, and all other kinds of selfish behaviors. Every footstep screams it is all about me! But when we are filled with the Holy Spirit, we step towards others with truth, love, generosity, forgiveness, and kindness. And as James reminds us, “no human being can tame the tongue…with it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing (James 3:8-10). Our speech either breathes life in or sucks life out of relationships. May we speak words that build up rather than tear down. Let our speech be nourishing and gracious rather than unwholesome and filled with lies. You and I are walking and talking and there is no neutral spiritually speaking. The world is watching and listening to see if the gospel is actually true. My prayer for us this week echoes Paul’s prayer in Galatians 5:25, “If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.”

Prayers for your mind, heart and steps this week…

Karen

Video Teaching – Week 8 – Ephesians 4:17-32

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” – Ephesians 4:32

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 4:17-32. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. Explain how putting on the new self, made after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness, brings renewal to your heart and mind and helps you pursue unity with others.
  3. Read Ephesians 4:29-32 and discuss all the things we are called to put away.
  4. Identify types of unwholesome speech that have hurt you or that you have used to hurt others.
  5. Describe a situation in your life where you need to put off the old, be renewed, and put on the compassion of Jesus so you can be tenderhearted and forgiving.

Hinge Points: Consider each Hinged Point and how you can seek this week to…

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests  – See form below if you would like to confidentially share a prayer request with our Hinged Prayer Team.

Hinged Helps:

Read: Slowly Unraveled by Rachel Craddock

Listen: Audio from Transformed Conference with Nancy Guthrie, Melissa Kruger, and Courtney Doctor

Week 9:  Walking Like Our Father – Ephesians 5:1-20

Encouragement from Karen: 

One of my great joys is sitting at the dinner table with Chris and my son Haddon. While they are their own man, I often feel like I am seeing double and hearing an echo. Let’s just say there is a strong family resemblance. From infancy, we learn to walk and talk from our parents. We mimic their words and follow in their footsteps. Paul encourages us to imitate Christ’s sacrificial love and illuminating light. Imitating is similar to the idea to mime. Mimes capture our attention with gestures and actions without a word. Mimes embody the notion that actions speak louder than words. So, in other words, Paul says, don’t just talk about love, walk in His love. Don’t tell everyone about light, but rather express it in acts of service and obedience.
In our passage this week, we are urged to walk in love and walk in the light. I John is another epistle written to beloved children, hinging us to love and light vertically and horizontally as we learn to walk. John reminds us that our Father is the supreme reference point for love and light. He is Love. He is Light.
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because GOD IS LOVE.”    – I John 4:7-8
“GOD IS LIGHT, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.”  – I John 1:5-7
You and I are still learning to walk from our Heavenly Dad. We learned about the stepping stones last week. We are to put aside fleshly footsteps and instead walk in truth and generosity. We are called to keep in step with the Spirit by daily walking out the overflow of our redemption. Being kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
Walking with you…

Karen

Video Teaching – Week 9 – Ephesians 5:1-20

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “Therefore, be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” – Ephesians 5:1-2

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 5:1-20. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. What do you think it means to be an imitator of God?
  3. Read Matthew 18:2-4. What practical steps can you take to become more like a child dependent on your Father?
  4. What does Psalm 107:9 say about your heart’s longings? Where is lasting pleasure found? (Read Psalm 16:11.)
  5. Read Psalm 139:23-24. To uproot our sin, we must get to the essence of our being, our wayward hearts. Where do we run to for a cure for our hearts? Why do you think it is so hard to ask God to search us?

Hinge Points: Consider each Hinged Point and how you can seek this week to…

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests  – See form below if you would like to confidentially share a prayer request with our Hinged Prayer Team.

Hinged Helps:

Read: Sexual Sanity for Women by Ellen Dykas

Listen: Audio from enCourage Podcast with Sarah Ivill: Never Enough: Confronting the Lies of Appearance and Achievement

Hinged Hangout with Lisa Tarplee (to be posted below on July 29)

Week 10:  Gospel Show and Tell – Ephesians 5:21-33

Encouragement from Karen: 

“…We must say to ourselves something like this: ‘Well, when Jesus looked down from the cross, he didn’t think “I am giving myself to you because you are so attractive to me.” No, he was in agony, and he looked down at us – denying him, abandoning him, and betraying him – and in the greatest act of love in history, he stayed. He said, “Father, forgive them; they don’t know what they are doing.” He loved us, not because we were lovely to him, but to make us lovely. That is why I am going to love my spouse.’ Speak to your heart like that, and then fulfill the promises you made on your wedding day.” Tim & Kathy Keller- The Meaning of Marriage

Marriage is a mirror. It is a show and tell exercise every day. We are to be a living, breathing, walking, talking, mirrored reflection of Christ and the Church to a watching world. The goal of marriage is not some hallmark channel portrait but a picture that will draw others to see Jesus. Our lives together are to embody the gospel in a compelling way so others are motivated to engage with the power of the gospel.

When we looked in the mirror this morning, maybe we don’t see lovely yet. On hard days at the Hodge household, it could look more like a circus funhouse. Carnival mirrors make things or circumstances appear larger or smaller than reality. And when my sin is ever before me, it is as if I am looking at distorted or horror images.

Take hope beloved daughter a day is coming when Christ’s sanctifying work (even in the context of marriage) will be done, and you will be altogether lovely. “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is (I John 3:2).

Your marriage is a mirror that either validates or denies the sacred bond between Christ and the Church. The world sees a portrait of grace when two completely different people become one flesh. Every time we forgive, persevere, or are faithful to our spouse, the gospel is seen with a bit more clarity. When our neighbors see the unlikely image of how the gospel can motivate a wife to submit to a husband when she desperately wants her way, the gospel becomes more beautiful. And when they see the powerful depiction of a husband laying down his life for his undeserving wife daily well, that is a compelling picture. If God can keep Christians together in a Covenant relationship, it shouts to the world that the gospel picture is authentic.

Much love to you as He makes you lovely….

Karen

Video Teaching – Week 10 – Ephesians 5:21-33

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “…submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.” – Ephesians 5:21

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 5:21-33. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. Discuss why the idea of submission is so hard and countercultural? How has the Fall corrupted God’s idea?
  3. Discuss how Christ’s love for His Bride the Church both encourages and challenges you.
  4. Read Ephesians 5:25-28 and Ephesians 1:4. How does God’s Word set you apart and make you holy? How does our passage this week connect to where Paul began in Chapter 1?
  5. We get an opportunity to reflect a dimension of the love shared between the Bridegroom and the Bride to a watching world. They are looking to determine whether it is true or false, whether it is something that radically changes everything. What are some practical ways this week you can reflect God’s covenantal love?

Hinge Points: Consider each Hinged Point and how you can seek this week to…

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests  – See form below if you would like to confidentially share a prayer request with our Hinged Prayer Team.

Hinged Helps:

Read: The Meaning of Marriage by Timothy and Kathy Keller

Listen: Christ-Centered Marriage with Chris & Karen Hodge

Hinged Hangout with Karen Hodge

Week 11:  Mundane is Majestic – Ephesians 6:1-9

Encouragement from Karen: 

“…the works of monks and priests, however holy and arduous they may be, do not differ one whit in the sight of God from the works of the rustic laborer in the field or the woman going about her household tasks…all works are measured before God by faith alone.” Martin Luther

Ever fall into bed exhausted wondering if anything you did today made a substantial difference? I feel this way regularly. As a believer, our work is not a job but rather a vocation or calling. There is no sacred or secular work, God institutes all work for His glory. Every day presents new opportunities to image Him as Creator. God formed and filled in creation. When you fill an excel spreadsheet or dinner plate with spaghetti, you reflect His glory. God brought order out of chaos. When you organize a team or successfully match up all your socks, the Father smiles. And as your Savior empowers you to be patient with a co-worker or tie your toddler’s shoe for the umpteenth time, He is recreating you to reflect Him to a watching world.

Our passage this week gives us our HOW, WHO and WHY to get up on Monday morning to work for our King. We are called to serve Him wholeheartedly. HOW? With a Spirit-empowered zeal holding nothing back. When we feel weak and inadequate, we remember where the immeasurably great strength comes from (Eph. 1:18). When we get discouraged because others let us down and don’t follow through, we remember WHO we serve. We ultimately serve the Lord, not people. We recognize our daily tasks are rooted in being His workmanship, created for good works that we are called to walk out by faith daily (Eph. 2:10). When we grow tired and weary and wonder if anyone notices all our hard work, we remember the compelling WHY. The Lord is the rewarder of His children. His reward is no mere pat on the back for a job well done, but the promise of spending eternity with Him forever. He is infinite, and when plans fall apart, we remember our finiteness. The good news is we serve a Master who is able to do far more abundantly than all we can ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be the glory (Eph. 3:20). So, when you get up tomorrow remember friend, there are no mundane tasks, only opportunities to glorify our majestic Savior.

May mundane moments be transformed into majestic moments …

Karen

Video Teaching – Week 11 – Ephesians 6:1-9

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content. The videos will be up on our web and YouTube Page through the end of 2020.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “Bondservants, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ, not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.” – Ephesians 6:5-6

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 6:1-9. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. What are some ways you can model obedience to Christ to your children?
  3. What are some ways you can model repentance and faith to your family?
  4. How do you describe your “calling” or vocation?
  5. What are some of the common challenges we face when responding to authority?
  6. Do you think God cares about how we spend the majority of our day in the work environment?

Hinge Points: Consider each Hinged Point and how you can seek this week to…

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests  – See form below if you would like to confidentially share a prayer request with our Hinged Prayer Team.

Hinged Helps:

Read: Risen Motherhood by Laura Wifler and Emily Jensen

Listen: Discipling Women in the Workplace with Jeany Jun

Hinged Hangout with Connie Miller 

Week 12:  Finally – Ephesians 6:10-24

Encouragement from Karen: 

“Finally,” Ephesians 6:10
It’s as if Paul sighs in overwhelming awe, finally. He ends his letter to his beloved Church plant with this word. In light of all, I have written to you, remember what is true in the end. Finally, Church remember to worship who Christ is and give thanks for who we are in Him…
Blessed (1:3)
       Adopted (1:5)
              Forgiven (1:7)
                     Saved by grace (2:5)
                            Brought near (2:13)
                                   Built together (3:20)
                                          Strengthened & filled (3:18-19)
       …life here in the now and not yet is a battle.
Finally, you have reached the end of the Hinged Ephesians Bible Study. Remember what He taught you in the context of community that we walk together…
Unified and one (4:1-7)
       Joined and held (4: 16)
              Putting off and Putting on (4:22-24)
                     Filled and thankful (5:18-20)
                            Submitted and sacrificially serving in every relationship (5:21-6:9)
         …we are in this fight, but we are not alone, and we serve a Savior who is the Victor!
Finally, this is your week to remember. I encourage you to go back through your study and make your own list. Remember who Christ is and who we are in Christ. Remember, we are His Bride the Church, and we walk through this battleground in full armor until we are Home together.
Finally, and full of gratitude,
Karen

Video Teaching – Week 12 – Ephesians 6:10-24

Click on picture for the link (new video available each Friday). The 30-minute video lesson is a teaching of the weekly text that can be viewed individually for personal study or as preparation for group discussion or groups can view it together on a shared screen and then discuss. Some may want to watch it first as an introduction and then do the five days of study while others may watch it as a summary. We want there to be freedom and flexibility to engage with the content.

Discussion Questions:

Memory Verse: “Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.” —Ephesians 6:18-20

[See below for downloadable memory verse]
  1. Go back and look at Ephesians 6:10-24. Which verse did God hinge to your heart this week?
  2. There are six essential pieces of armor: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of the gospel, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit. Let’s discuss each one and one practical way you can put it on this week in your life.
      • Belt of truth—How will your life be shaped by sound doctrine this week?
      • Breastplate of righteousness—How will standing firm in the righteousness of Christ protect your heart this week?
      • Shoes of the gospel—Where is God calling you to walk out the truth of the gospel this week?
      • Shield of faith—What are some fiery darts that threaten you and how can your faith help you to stand firm this week?
      • Helmet of salvation—How can knowing God’s truth about your identity in Him protect your mind this week?
      • Sword of the Spirit—How can knowing and applying God’s Word help you be victorious in Christ this week?
    1. How does prayer undergird all we do, including fighting against our spiritual enemy?
    2. What is your one knowledge acquired truth from the Hinged Study that you will seek by faith to be knowledge applied?

Hinge Points: Consider each Hinged Point and how you can seek this week to…

Thinking Biblically: Hinge to Christ (vertically)—What is one thing you learned this week about being more hinged or vitally connected to Christ?

Living Covenantally: Hinge to His Church (horizontally)—How can you take what you have learned this week and live it out in the context of community?

Hinged to Heaven: Prayer Requests  – See form below if you would like to confidentially share a prayer request with our Hinged Prayer Team.

Hinged Helps:

 Read: A Place to Belong by Megan Hill

Listen: A Place to Belong

Hinged Hangout with Connie Miller

Friends…anybody out there feeling a little disconnected? Maybe a bit unhinged from Christ and His Church? I want to invite all the women of the PCA to study the book of Ephesians with me this summer.

Ephesians hinges on two grand ideas: being vitally connected to Christ and His Church. Chapters 1–3 take us vertical as we connect to Christ. And chapters 4–6 move us out horizontally as we learn to connect to each other. This study was written by nine women just like you who come from different generations, geographical contexts, and different kinds of churches but the study blends their voices to sing as one. It is my prayer as you gather an intergenerational group of women (virtually or Lord willing in person), you will see not only the beauty in community but also hear that kind of gospel echo in your group.

By joining with us, you will:

  1. Be able to access teaching videos (30 min.) on each of the 12 Bible Study passages taught by Karen Hodge and Paula Miles. Note this teaching is different than the teaching you would receive at a Hinged Conference.
  2. Be invited to our Hinged Hangout – A Facebook Live Event each Wednesday night at 8pm EST where we will have the chance to learn from the authors and one another (these are optional).
  3. Receive a weekly encouragement from Karen in your inbox.

Let’s Get Started

Weekly Hinged Communication: Every week, there is a note of encouragement from Karen Hodge, along with:
  • Video teaching (30-35 min.) that corresponds with the weekly chapter. They will reside on our CDM YouTube Channel which you can subscribe to here.
  • Hinged Point-discussion questions.
  • Other helpful encouragements.
Learning in Community: What do you need? A Bible, the Hinged Bible Study and a HINGE (a way to connect).

Study Strategies:

Gather a group: 
  • Invite women from your church, neighborhood, far away friends, or family to join you.
  • We certainly want to welcome anyone who wants to study this individually as well.
Find a way to HINGE around the content:
  • Virtual: You could gather to discuss the study virtually via Zoom or Google Hangout.
  • Phone: You could coordinate a weekly conference call to share what you have learned on Free Conference Call.
  • Text or Video: You could start a text, or use groupme or voxer to share your a-ha moments.
  • Face to Face: Lord willing, you may even be able to meet in person.
Hinged Bible Study: 

We encourage you to dig into the weekly lessons. Each lesson has five days of content to help you. The study includes these parts:

1.     Hinged Mind: Thinking Biblically
  • Encourages women to dig into the scriptures.
  • Focuses on having the mind of Christ.
  • Focuses on being vitally connected to Christ.
2.     Hinged Hearts: Living Covenantally
  • Encourages women to glean the passage for gospel application, both individually and relationally with others.
  • Focuses largely on women’s hearts.
  • Focuses on being vitally connected to His Church.
3.     Hinged to Heaven
  • Opening and closing prayers
4.     Memory Verse
Hinged Bible Study Teaching Videos:
  • The teaching video (30-35 min.) corresponds with the weekly chapter.
  • You can watch them anytime you like.
  • They will reside on our CDM YouTube Channel which you can subscribe to here.
Hinged Hangout: We recorded a relational community building Facebook Live Event each week on our Facebook page to learn from the authors and one another. These recordings are included below.

Comments from those who have participated in the Hinged Bible Study:

“Thank you for organizing and preparing the Hinged Bible Study! I am benefiting as I study at my own pace at home.”

Order the Hinged Bible Study from the PCA Bookstore

“Each Monday morning I have been listening to the Hinged videos, and I am so personally challenged and encouraged by the messages. Thank you for the great investment of much time and prayer to prepare these materials and to distribute all of the communications to us. Karen, your written weekly introductory letters are excellent and packed with so much to reflect upon before looking at the scripture passage. Over my years in women’s ministry I have always felt that our PCA teaching and resources are “top notch” in content, doctrine, and personal and practical application. This current teaching series certainly reflects that standard. Thank you for this summer blessing, especially during a very unusual 2020!”

“I wanted to share how encouraging and challenging and uplifting this summer study in Ephesians has been. The rich video teachings, delving into this jewel of scripture and then meeting for Zoom gathering has met a great need this summer. I just finished reading your email about Hinged@Home and I look forward to going deeper into Ephesians. Thank you for all that you do to build up the church.”

“I have been extremely blessed by the thoughtful teachings and questions in the workbook; the question for thought in the emails we received; the video teachings each week; and the Hinged Hangout. In a time when connection with my church family has been pretty limited, watching the videos helped me to feel I was in touch with other women seeking Christ. I have been greatly encouraged in my walk with Christ and my desire to love others and his church.”

Weekly Hinged Hangouts

Feel free to watch these recorded relational community building Facebook Live Events to learn from the authors and one another.

Week 1: Christina Fox

Week 2: Lisa Tarplee

Week 3: Shea Patrick

Week 4: Ronjanett Taylor

Week 5: Shea Patrick

Week 6: Susan Tyner

Week 7: Paula Miles

Week 8: Rachel Craddock

Week 9: Lisa Tarplee

Week 10: Karen Hodge

Week 11: Connie Miller

Week 12: Connie Miller

Hinged Bible Study on the book of Ephesians

We have all heard we are better together, but what does that look like in real life? The Hinged study instructs and applies the Gospel in the context of community for God’s glory! It was written by nine women from CDM’s National Women’s Ministry Team. Each brings her own unique voice, experiences, and a love for Christ and His Church to this study of Ephesians. It is a study about blessed belonging and how God unites us in His beautiful bride.

Authors: Rachel Craddock, Christina Fox, Karen Hodge, Paula Miles, Connie Miller, Shea Patrick, Lisa Tarplee, Ronjanett Taylor, and Susan Tyner.

Binding: Coil Binding  |  Chapters: 12 |  Page Count: 210

Also Available: Downloadable Digital Edition

Click here for downloadable Weekly Bible Verses and Quotes.