As is customary in first-century letter writing, Paul includes a prayer of thanksgiving for his readers. There are many things mentioned in this prayer, but today we will only look at Paul’s comments about the faith the Ephesians lived and the love they had “for all the saints” (Ephesians 1:15, 16).
Paul spent many hours with the saints at Ephesus. He taught them in various ways, and at different times. His closeness with this group is evidenced by his conversation with the elders from this church as he was making his final trip to Jerusalem (Acts 20). During the years after this final visit with these elders, Paul continued to “keep up with” the saints in Ephesus, as mutual friends would tell him about what was going on with this church.