The key to understanding Paul's letter to the Ephesians lies in the phrase 'in the heavenlies'. This occurs five times in this letter and nowhere else in Paul's writings in this specific form. Within the context, it means 'in the heavenly places' rather than 'among the heavenly beings'. It is not speaking of the sky or the after-life so much as of the realm of reality, the location where the real spiritual forces of life are at work. In Ephesians, Christ is the centre-piece of 'the heavenlies'. Christology in Ephesians is set in this mould.
