Paul’s teaching on “the heavenly places” in Ephesians reminds us of important truths. Jesus’s reign at God’s right hand in heaven is foundational for God’s purpose to make all things right in heaven and on earth (1:20–23). On account of their union with Christ, believers have been blessed with every blessing of the Spirit (1:3) and have been made alive in Christ (2:5) and seated with Christ in the heavenly places (2:6).

Pastors love to preach from Ephesians, where Paul weds rich theology and Christian living. But one of the most perplexing statements is “in the heavenly places,” which Paul repeats throughout the letter (1:3, 20; 2:6; 3:10; 6:12). Presented with this enigmatic phrase, pastors may wish they could ignore it.

Unlocking this expression requires us to square it within the context of Ephesians and in light of Paul’s theology. We’ll discover that Paul’s teaching on “the heavenly places” emphasizes Christ’s reign in heaven (1:20), a doctrine that has incredible implications for how believers have been blessed in Christ (1:3; 2:6) and how they should understand their role in waging spiritual warfare (3:10; 6:12).

Heavenly Blessing

At the beginning of Paul’s outburst of praise in Ephesians 1:3–14, he writes, “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” (1:3). The three prepositional phrases—“in Christ,” “with every spiritual blessing,” and “in the heavenly places”—prove essential for determining the passage’s meaning. The phrase “in Christ” highlights that believers have received blessing because they’re united to Christ through faith. The word “spiritual” in “every spiritual blessing” refers to the Holy Spirit.

The phrase “in the heavenly places” refers to the blessing’s source. The God of heaven has blessed Christians with every blessing of the Spirit through faith in Christ, but these blessings await their consummation when Christ returns.

In Ephesians 1:20, Paul writes that God “raised [Christ] from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places.” Jesus is the “firstfruits” of the resurrection (1 Cor. 15:20–23), and he reigns at God’s right hand “in the heavenly places” over the church and all evil powers (Eph. 1:20–23). Christ’s heavenly reign represents a significant step in uniting all things in heaven and has implications for God’s plan to make all things right on earth.

Seated with Christ in the Heavenly Places

In Ephesians 2:6, Paul writes that God “raised us up with [Christ] and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” The difficulty is that Christians are not physically seated with Christ in the heavenly places. From the passage’s context and Paul’s theological outlook, three important salvation realities can be deduced from this verse.

First, whereas Jesus has been bodily raised from the dead (1:20), Christians have been spiritually (of the Holy Spirit) raised from the dead (2:4–6).

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