P. Derek Overfield PhD Thesis - Research@StAndrews:FullText

5. THE NATURE OF THE BODY
Although Christ is described as head
over both cosmos and Church it is only the latter
that is specifically designated as ~a
The
author of Ephesians adheres to this distinction in
order to emphasise the differing natures of the two
headships. This we have already seen. The exact
nature of the ~ 'toO'
Xp~O"t'oO'
of Ephesians is
set out very precisely in 5:23bc
the
or hxA.ncrca.
is that which collectively stands in a
living relationship with Christ, a relationship that
is characterised not by subjection but by dependence.
In Ephesians, as in Colossians, ~a.
is essentially
an ecclesiological /soteriological term.
But this
does not mean that ~a.
has no cosmic significance.
Here two facts which we have already demonstrated are
very significant; in Eph 1:23 "t~ MV'tO. lv 1tl!(nv
is best understood as being equivalent to the classical
and, secondly, 7tA.1}PWJ.la. has primarily an
active significance. What then is being said in 1:23
is that the Church brings Christ to completion.
The
Church then is an active body and the only place where
this activity can take place is the cosmos.
Schnackenburg well summarises this when he writes 35
" ••• sind Kosmos und Kirche nicht zwei Kreise, die
nebeneinander bestehen und je in ihrer Weise Christus
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