Isaiah 6; Mark 10:17-31.
Second Week of Missions Month: Whom shall we send? And who will go for us?
The question is really, “Who is willing?” It is the same question posed by the story of the Rich man. The question was whether he was willing to go the next step and leave his source of comfort—his wealth—and put his trust in God to provide as he followed Christ. Was he willing to go? He walked away sad and we don’t know if he ever came back to follow Christ or if he lived out his life in empty pursuit of wealth.
Jesus explains to his disciples that it is hard for those with wealth to enter the kingdom--easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. We all have wealth and possessions. Even the poorest among us in the United States of America has the opportunity of a roof over their head and at least one meal a day. By the world's standards that is security. And security is hard to give up. Jesus reassures the questioners "Who then can be saved?!" by reminding them that nothing is impossible with God.
Peter pipes up on behalf of the disciples saying. “We have already left everything to follow you.” Peter was looking for the gold star. He in effect is saying that the disciples are willing. They have left everything. They are following Jesus. And Jesus gives him an answer in his seeking for a reward. Jesus says that no one who has given up all of this list of things will receive them back a hundred times—along with persecution. The earthly reward for following Jesus, it seems, is to suffer. We don’t like to think about that. We want to stop where it says we will receive everything back, we don’t want to think about the persecutions that come with it. But on the other side of all the sacrifice, all the restoration, all the persecution is eternal life in the age to come. So the reward is bitter sweet, but the final destination is worth it.
Jesus closes his conversation here with the statement that “Many who are first will be last and the last first.” In making that declaration, Jesus refocuses our attention on the fact that those who think they are ahead—like the rich man—may end up last if we do not stop to consider our attachment to worldly things. Are we willing to leave it all and follow him? Are we willing to go? Are we willing to give up whatever God asks, holding loosely to what we have to be available for his purpose?
Could we give up some comfort for the sake of the kingdom? It is nice to have a roof over our heads, it is nice to have running water, it is nice to have electricity. It is really nice to have a little box on the wall to set the exact temperature we want our homes to remain. Are we willing to set our thermostats a little lower, be a little uncomfortable, and give the difference to missions? Are we willing to walk instead of drive and give the difference to those who are really in need? Are we willing to lay down our desire for absolute comfort to be obedient to build the kingdom of God?
God is asking, “Whom shall we send, and who will go for us?” Are we ready to lay down our plans, our goals, our possessions to follow him and be his message-bearers to a world that is in darkness? Who will go? Examine your heart and ask the Lord to reveal to you the things you are holding onto that may keep you from responding “Here am I, send me.” Start to surrender those things to him today. The goal is eternity, and nothing is worth keeping if it keeps us from serving our King and building his kingdom.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Monday, October 5, 2009
Updated Calendar
Important Dates to Remember!
October-
Tuesday the 6th Elder’s Meeting 6:30 pm
Sunday the 11th Business Meeting following Worship
Fall Harvest Party at Rainsbarger’s 5:30
Thursday the 15th Burundi Presentation at 6:30 pm
16th-18th Women’s Retreat Weekend
No kids or downstairs Sunday School,
Coffee and donuts for those who want to come for an extended fellowship time!
Sunday the 25th Area Rally at Gardner Friends
November-
Sunday the 15th Beginning of Family Sunday School
Shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child
Thanksgiving Meal
October-
Tuesday the 6th Elder’s Meeting 6:30 pm
Sunday the 11th Business Meeting following Worship
Fall Harvest Party at Rainsbarger’s 5:30
Thursday the 15th Burundi Presentation at 6:30 pm
16th-18th Women’s Retreat Weekend
No kids or downstairs Sunday School,
Coffee and donuts for those who want to come for an extended fellowship time!
Sunday the 25th Area Rally at Gardner Friends
November-
Sunday the 15th Beginning of Family Sunday School
Shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child
Thanksgiving Meal
This week's sermon: With every breath
Ephesians 6:18-24.
In this closing section of Paul's letter to the Ephesians he finally speaks a personal request. He asks that they pray for him. Paul has spent this letter reminding the Ephesian Christians of their place in Christ as adopted children of God; of those who had been far, but brought near; of Paul's own concern for them and his prayers for them; encouraging them to live according to their new life in Christ; urging them to line up for battle with one another equipped with the armor God provides. He has used the words of this letter for the benefit of the Ephesians, which is why this request for them to pray for him catches my attention.
Paul asks them to pray that every time he opens his mouth, he will boldly and fearlessly proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now we know after studying Acts and Ephesians, that Paul did not need help knowing the right words to say to preach the gospel. We know that he does not need more courage to proclaim the gospel in spite of hardships, he has been actively doing so for the entirety of his ministry. The words that catch my eye are "every time I open my mouth." Paul was asking for them to pray that his proclamation of the gospel would be continuous, an outpouring of the Grace of God with every breath.
In the service this week we heard a story about some missionaries in Aguascalientes, Mexico. They had the privilege of connecting with a woman and her family by simply caring for them, and celebrating a birthday. This family had heard words proclaiming the facts of the gospel, but had never seen someone live out the Grace and Love that come with the message. Because these missionaries chose to not only use words to share the gospel, but their very lives, this family left a destructive lifestyle and came into the Love of Christ themselves.
It is this kind of continuous living proclamation of the gospel that I believe Paul was asking the Ephesians to pray over his ministry. It is the kind of fearless proclamation we need to pray for each other; that we would be so filled with Christ, that the gospel would flow out in every breath, every action. Every time we encounter people in our family, at work, in the marketplace, we would proclaim Christ with our actions and our words. Every time we interact with those in the body of Christ--encouraging each other, ministering to others' needs, caring for the joys and sorrows of life--every time we minister to one another we pour out the message of the gospel with our actions and our words. This is the "with every breath" method of sharing the gospel. It is what Paul was asking the Ephesians to pray for him, it is what we need to pray for each other. This is how we fearlessly proclaim the gospel, this is how the kingdom of God is built one life at a time.
In this closing section of Paul's letter to the Ephesians he finally speaks a personal request. He asks that they pray for him. Paul has spent this letter reminding the Ephesian Christians of their place in Christ as adopted children of God; of those who had been far, but brought near; of Paul's own concern for them and his prayers for them; encouraging them to live according to their new life in Christ; urging them to line up for battle with one another equipped with the armor God provides. He has used the words of this letter for the benefit of the Ephesians, which is why this request for them to pray for him catches my attention.
Paul asks them to pray that every time he opens his mouth, he will boldly and fearlessly proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now we know after studying Acts and Ephesians, that Paul did not need help knowing the right words to say to preach the gospel. We know that he does not need more courage to proclaim the gospel in spite of hardships, he has been actively doing so for the entirety of his ministry. The words that catch my eye are "every time I open my mouth." Paul was asking for them to pray that his proclamation of the gospel would be continuous, an outpouring of the Grace of God with every breath.
In the service this week we heard a story about some missionaries in Aguascalientes, Mexico. They had the privilege of connecting with a woman and her family by simply caring for them, and celebrating a birthday. This family had heard words proclaiming the facts of the gospel, but had never seen someone live out the Grace and Love that come with the message. Because these missionaries chose to not only use words to share the gospel, but their very lives, this family left a destructive lifestyle and came into the Love of Christ themselves.
It is this kind of continuous living proclamation of the gospel that I believe Paul was asking the Ephesians to pray over his ministry. It is the kind of fearless proclamation we need to pray for each other; that we would be so filled with Christ, that the gospel would flow out in every breath, every action. Every time we encounter people in our family, at work, in the marketplace, we would proclaim Christ with our actions and our words. Every time we interact with those in the body of Christ--encouraging each other, ministering to others' needs, caring for the joys and sorrows of life--every time we minister to one another we pour out the message of the gospel with our actions and our words. This is the "with every breath" method of sharing the gospel. It is what Paul was asking the Ephesians to pray for him, it is what we need to pray for each other. This is how we fearlessly proclaim the gospel, this is how the kingdom of God is built one life at a time.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
This Week's Sermon: Lining Up for Battle Together
Ephesians 5:21-6:18.
Authority can be such a divisive topic not only in churches, but in the family, and in the workplace as well. We all know who’s in charge, sometimes they won’t let us forget it! And those who are not in charge, those who feel they don’t have power, what do they do? They find ways to undercut and manipulate and get what they want by going around the powers that be. This kind of worldly authority patterns don’t get us very far. They make those in charge bullies, and those subordinate bitter. This passage has been used in the past to justify the worldly system, to defend abuse and slavery. I want to tell you this morning that if that is the way we read these words, we have been getting it wrong. This passage, just like the rest of this letter to the Ephesians, is calling not for an authoritative power structure, but for unity in spite of its existence in the world.
Many times we forget that this book in our bibles is not a theological treatise, but a letter. It was not written to be dissected, but as an encouraging letter to be read from start to finish. When we forget and begin chopping the letter into sections, we tend to leave behind the previous sections and content and see each section as a separate entity. So, to review and connect our passages together, Paul started by telling the Ephesians to praise God because of his gift to them of every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ; reminded them of their adoption into God’s family; showed them where they were—far away—and how they had been brought near; told them of how he prayed for them—for God to open their eyes and enlighten their hearts to his love for them and his power at work within them; and then lines out how their lives should be different from their old way of living since Christ has made them new. And through all of this, there is a continued emphasis on unity; of our level footing at the cross--salvation by grace not works; of God’s destruction of the hostility that divides us; of his bringing together and making us one; and how this new life lived in gentleness, patience, humility, and love leading to unity through the bond of peace. The last section that we read ended with some ways the Holy Spirit shows up in our lives: speaking to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, singing to God, and giving thanks.
Now, without pausing to take a breath, Paul says "submit to one another out of reverence for Christ." This statement is so much a part of these two sections, it is a manifestation of the Spirit at work within us, and it is also the beginning of the section we will study today. “Submit yourselves to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Everyone usually "amens" that verse, and cringes at the next. Today we are going to stop being afraid of the word submission. We are going to stop being held captive to the view that submission is somehow a reinforcement of the world’s system of oppression and abuse. Instead we are going to see this word as a blessing. It is going to become something encouraging and a blessing to us in all of our relationships. Submission. Who would have thought?
Let’s look at this word, submission. In the Greek, the root is hupotasso. It has a military definition, which is going to be key to our boldness with this word from today forward. The military definition is to line up troops, to arrange them under a commander for battle. In this case, an ending is placed on the word that makes it not an absolute command, but a matter of our own decision--hupotassomai. Not just “submit!” but instead submit yourself voluntarily. Paul says to these Ephesians “Submit yourselves (voluntarily) to one another out of reverence for Christ.” In that verse, who is our commander? Christ! He is the leader of our army. We are to voluntarily submit to one another—line up for battle with one another, out of reverence, respect and fear for our commander. That puts a whole new spin on our way of thinking, doesn’t it? Suddenly we are not fearing each other. We are not fearing the person in authority over us. We are acting out of reverence for Christ. It does not take away the earthly authority, but suddenly we have a greater purpose and a greater authority that we know we can trust with every part of our lives.
Now Paul takes this into our daily lives--marriage, family, and work--where we are most likely to experience conflict and anxiety over authority and power. He starts with the one closest to home. Paul says “submit to one another out of reverence for Christ; wives to your husbands as to the Lord.” Then he finishes by stating the authority structure already in place—for the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church. Our response to this verse should be to look around and realize we are standing on a battle field. No one argues over power when enemy fire is coming. So, just as the believers are to line up together for battle under Christ, wives are to line up for battle with their husbands. Wives, we have to be watching their backs. When troops line up for battle, everyone looks out for everyone else. Submission is a matter of seeing the bigger picture: we have to remember our trust, and our hope is not in our husbands. Our hope and our trust is in the Lord. On the field of battle, sergeants and captains don’t lay out the battle plan. The plan comes from the general or the commander. Christ is our commander, and we put our trust in him, because he already proved he would die for us. This gives us the boldness to be respectful of our husbands, not manipulative, not steamrolling them, and not heckling them to pieces.
Husbands, Paul says something radical to you, love your wife as Christ loved the church. Think about that for a moment. What did Christ ever do for himself? What did he ever do that had a purpose other than to raise up the church and glorify the Father? Nothing. Are you ready for that kind of sacrifice? That takes some serious trust in God. Laying down your life for your wife, being willing to sacrifice your wants for her needs, that is tough stuff. But that is exactly what Real Men of God are called to do. Husbands, your wives are lining up for battle with you, you need to line up with them as well. You are under fire from a common enemy, this is not the time for power plays and bullying. This is not the time to bellow, “I am the king of my own castle.” What good is a castle if all your troops are lying dead around it? Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church, sacrificed himself in the battle so he could win the war.
This lining up for battle does not take away the authority roles that are already in place, it just makes them less of a focus. Children obey your parents, for this is right, and so that you will have a long life. If privates don’t obey the more experienced captains and sergeants on the field of battle, they are toast. Children, even you need to know that we are at war. We have an enemy who would like nothing more than to ruin your lives by leading you astray. Line up for battle with your parents and trust their lead. Parents, since we are at war, don’t exasperate your children, they may just decide to join the other side. You need to raise them in the instruction of the Lord Jesus. That means not only teaching them facts, but living out the new life that Christ has placed in us through the Holy Spirit.
The next groups addressed are servants and masters. Today we could read this employees and employers, or working people and managers. You all know how it goes in a work environment. The boss uses his power to make himself feel important and the working people all stand at the water cooler and conspire to play minesweeper for an hour everyday to get back at him. We start to see each other as enemies, when in reality we are all under fire from the same source. Even co-workers and managers who are not Christians are under fire from the enemy. They sometimes pass that fire along to others, but a lot of it is internalized. If we could see the bigger picture, and decide to stop undermining each other, we could line up for battle together. What if employees chose to voluntarily do their work as though they were serving Christ? What if Bosses saw that they were going to be held accountable for their actions by the same judge as those who worked for them? If we could do this in the workforce, we would stop losing ground and the witness of Christ would advance.
I know the whole military analogy is sometimes hard to swallow, but let’s not forget that Paul does not transition to another topic in chapter 6 verse10. No, he says “finally,” to sum it all up. After we get our attitudes toward each other in the right perspective, one more reminder that we must put on the armor God provides for us so that we can stand against the enemy who is not flesh and blood. Your enemy is not your spouse, your children, your parents, your boss, or your workforce! There is an enemy, and unlike an earthly enemy, this is one that we cannot defeat. Only God can defeat him, but God has given us the armor necessary to stand our ground. So, stop fighting each other for control. Stop the power struggle at home, in your marriage, and at work. Open your eyes to the battle raging around you and choose to line up and stand in formation under our one commander Jesus Christ, looking out for the wellbeing of those around us, and standing our ground together.
Authority can be such a divisive topic not only in churches, but in the family, and in the workplace as well. We all know who’s in charge, sometimes they won’t let us forget it! And those who are not in charge, those who feel they don’t have power, what do they do? They find ways to undercut and manipulate and get what they want by going around the powers that be. This kind of worldly authority patterns don’t get us very far. They make those in charge bullies, and those subordinate bitter. This passage has been used in the past to justify the worldly system, to defend abuse and slavery. I want to tell you this morning that if that is the way we read these words, we have been getting it wrong. This passage, just like the rest of this letter to the Ephesians, is calling not for an authoritative power structure, but for unity in spite of its existence in the world.
Many times we forget that this book in our bibles is not a theological treatise, but a letter. It was not written to be dissected, but as an encouraging letter to be read from start to finish. When we forget and begin chopping the letter into sections, we tend to leave behind the previous sections and content and see each section as a separate entity. So, to review and connect our passages together, Paul started by telling the Ephesians to praise God because of his gift to them of every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ; reminded them of their adoption into God’s family; showed them where they were—far away—and how they had been brought near; told them of how he prayed for them—for God to open their eyes and enlighten their hearts to his love for them and his power at work within them; and then lines out how their lives should be different from their old way of living since Christ has made them new. And through all of this, there is a continued emphasis on unity; of our level footing at the cross--salvation by grace not works; of God’s destruction of the hostility that divides us; of his bringing together and making us one; and how this new life lived in gentleness, patience, humility, and love leading to unity through the bond of peace. The last section that we read ended with some ways the Holy Spirit shows up in our lives: speaking to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, singing to God, and giving thanks.
Now, without pausing to take a breath, Paul says "submit to one another out of reverence for Christ." This statement is so much a part of these two sections, it is a manifestation of the Spirit at work within us, and it is also the beginning of the section we will study today. “Submit yourselves to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Everyone usually "amens" that verse, and cringes at the next. Today we are going to stop being afraid of the word submission. We are going to stop being held captive to the view that submission is somehow a reinforcement of the world’s system of oppression and abuse. Instead we are going to see this word as a blessing. It is going to become something encouraging and a blessing to us in all of our relationships. Submission. Who would have thought?
Let’s look at this word, submission. In the Greek, the root is hupotasso. It has a military definition, which is going to be key to our boldness with this word from today forward. The military definition is to line up troops, to arrange them under a commander for battle. In this case, an ending is placed on the word that makes it not an absolute command, but a matter of our own decision--hupotassomai. Not just “submit!” but instead submit yourself voluntarily. Paul says to these Ephesians “Submit yourselves (voluntarily) to one another out of reverence for Christ.” In that verse, who is our commander? Christ! He is the leader of our army. We are to voluntarily submit to one another—line up for battle with one another, out of reverence, respect and fear for our commander. That puts a whole new spin on our way of thinking, doesn’t it? Suddenly we are not fearing each other. We are not fearing the person in authority over us. We are acting out of reverence for Christ. It does not take away the earthly authority, but suddenly we have a greater purpose and a greater authority that we know we can trust with every part of our lives.
Now Paul takes this into our daily lives--marriage, family, and work--where we are most likely to experience conflict and anxiety over authority and power. He starts with the one closest to home. Paul says “submit to one another out of reverence for Christ; wives to your husbands as to the Lord.” Then he finishes by stating the authority structure already in place—for the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church. Our response to this verse should be to look around and realize we are standing on a battle field. No one argues over power when enemy fire is coming. So, just as the believers are to line up together for battle under Christ, wives are to line up for battle with their husbands. Wives, we have to be watching their backs. When troops line up for battle, everyone looks out for everyone else. Submission is a matter of seeing the bigger picture: we have to remember our trust, and our hope is not in our husbands. Our hope and our trust is in the Lord. On the field of battle, sergeants and captains don’t lay out the battle plan. The plan comes from the general or the commander. Christ is our commander, and we put our trust in him, because he already proved he would die for us. This gives us the boldness to be respectful of our husbands, not manipulative, not steamrolling them, and not heckling them to pieces.
Husbands, Paul says something radical to you, love your wife as Christ loved the church. Think about that for a moment. What did Christ ever do for himself? What did he ever do that had a purpose other than to raise up the church and glorify the Father? Nothing. Are you ready for that kind of sacrifice? That takes some serious trust in God. Laying down your life for your wife, being willing to sacrifice your wants for her needs, that is tough stuff. But that is exactly what Real Men of God are called to do. Husbands, your wives are lining up for battle with you, you need to line up with them as well. You are under fire from a common enemy, this is not the time for power plays and bullying. This is not the time to bellow, “I am the king of my own castle.” What good is a castle if all your troops are lying dead around it? Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church, sacrificed himself in the battle so he could win the war.
This lining up for battle does not take away the authority roles that are already in place, it just makes them less of a focus. Children obey your parents, for this is right, and so that you will have a long life. If privates don’t obey the more experienced captains and sergeants on the field of battle, they are toast. Children, even you need to know that we are at war. We have an enemy who would like nothing more than to ruin your lives by leading you astray. Line up for battle with your parents and trust their lead. Parents, since we are at war, don’t exasperate your children, they may just decide to join the other side. You need to raise them in the instruction of the Lord Jesus. That means not only teaching them facts, but living out the new life that Christ has placed in us through the Holy Spirit.
The next groups addressed are servants and masters. Today we could read this employees and employers, or working people and managers. You all know how it goes in a work environment. The boss uses his power to make himself feel important and the working people all stand at the water cooler and conspire to play minesweeper for an hour everyday to get back at him. We start to see each other as enemies, when in reality we are all under fire from the same source. Even co-workers and managers who are not Christians are under fire from the enemy. They sometimes pass that fire along to others, but a lot of it is internalized. If we could see the bigger picture, and decide to stop undermining each other, we could line up for battle together. What if employees chose to voluntarily do their work as though they were serving Christ? What if Bosses saw that they were going to be held accountable for their actions by the same judge as those who worked for them? If we could do this in the workforce, we would stop losing ground and the witness of Christ would advance.
I know the whole military analogy is sometimes hard to swallow, but let’s not forget that Paul does not transition to another topic in chapter 6 verse10. No, he says “finally,” to sum it all up. After we get our attitudes toward each other in the right perspective, one more reminder that we must put on the armor God provides for us so that we can stand against the enemy who is not flesh and blood. Your enemy is not your spouse, your children, your parents, your boss, or your workforce! There is an enemy, and unlike an earthly enemy, this is one that we cannot defeat. Only God can defeat him, but God has given us the armor necessary to stand our ground. So, stop fighting each other for control. Stop the power struggle at home, in your marriage, and at work. Open your eyes to the battle raging around you and choose to line up and stand in formation under our one commander Jesus Christ, looking out for the wellbeing of those around us, and standing our ground together.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Fall Mini-Calendar
Important Dates to Remember!
October-
2nd-3rd Emporia Clean Sweep in our area
Tuesday the 6th Elder’s Meeting 6:30 pm
Sunday the 11th Business Meeting following Worship
Fall Harvest Party at Rainsbarger’s 5:00
Thursday the 15th Burundi Presentation at 6:30 pm
16th-18th Women’s Retreat Weekend
Sunday the 25th Area Rally at Gardner Friends
November-
Sunday the 15th Beginning of Family Sunday School
Shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child
Thanksgiving Meal
October-
2nd-3rd Emporia Clean Sweep in our area
Tuesday the 6th Elder’s Meeting 6:30 pm
Sunday the 11th Business Meeting following Worship
Fall Harvest Party at Rainsbarger’s 5:00
Thursday the 15th Burundi Presentation at 6:30 pm
16th-18th Women’s Retreat Weekend
Sunday the 25th Area Rally at Gardner Friends
November-
Sunday the 15th Beginning of Family Sunday School
Shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child
Thanksgiving Meal
This week's sermon: Out with the Old, In with the New
Ephesians 4:17-5:20.
These declarations and prohibitions are all expansions on verse 2 of chapter 4, where Paul says to “be completely humble, gentle, patient, bearing with one another in love.” This is that life of humility and love lived out practically. Paul takes us through four statements of what we ought to look like as children of the king. Paul tells the Ephesians to 1. Stop living like the gentiles; 2. Put off the old self, and put on the new; 3. Be imitators of God as dearly loved children; and 4. Be careful how you live, live wisely. These four statements are expanded on in the surrounding verses, detailing the old life and what to put off, and the new life, what to put on.
Paul begins this section by describing the life of the gentiles as a dark, separated, ignorant, numb, indulgent lifestyle that does not satisfy. Sounds great, right? I put it right up there with sleeping on the street without a blanket. Do you remember last week’s picture of the beggar turned son of the king? This is the life he was giving up. This is not much of a sacrifice, and yet sometimes we treat leaving this life of darkness, loneliness, and hunger as a great martyrdom. But if we are in Christ, Paul says we should know better. This is not the Truth that we were taught in Christ. Remember the woman at the well, Jesus said to her, “If you asked me I would give you water so that you would never thirst again.” God does not call us to a life of emptiness, but a life so full of himself, we realize our former starvation without him.
The Truth we learn in Christ is to put off the old way of life that does not satisfy. It no longer suits us to be wearing the clothes of a beggar spiritually, but the very robes of Christ’s righteousness and holiness. That is why put off the cloak of lies we hide behind. Not because it is wrong—which it absolutely is—but because wearing the robes of righteousness we don’t have anything we need to lie about. Lying is a survival skill in some people’s lives. It is how they make up for the fact that they feel inferior, weak, ashamed of who they are. But in Christ, we are God’s children, the sons and daughters of the king. What do we have to hide? Even the things of the past are no longer important, they are overcome by what Christ has done for us in bringing us into the family, and the Holy Spirit is doing in us to transform us from the inside out. This is the ultimate recognition of grace, to live in honesty with one another. To refuse to judge, to refuse to fear the judgment of others, but to be in complete unity as one body.
This unity is held together by our obedience to deal with our disagreements and even anger with one another in a way that brings about healing, not wounding. It is not a sin to be angry. It is a natural response we have to injustice, or pain, or being wronged. What we choose to do with that anger can become sinful if we allow it to fester, if we refuse to practice constructive confrontation, if we let it go down to bitterness and drive a wedge between ourselves and another person. Then it is sin, then it causes wounds that become gangrenous. And injuring our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, or allowing a wound in our hearts to fester by continually picking it open gives the devil a foothold. It is like making a whole in the network of sentries around the castle so that the enemy can sneak his troops over the wall.
Paul describes many things that are part of the old life and the alternative new life actions. Stealing is part of that old life. Working—not only for our own living, but so that we can find value in sharing with others is part of the new life. Tearing people down through course language and gossip is part of the old life. Building people up in conversation and bringing them encouragement in what we say is part of the new life. Seeking a loophole so that you can still engage in the habits you enjoy while feeling smugly superior is grieving to the Holy Spirit, it is trying to hang onto the old life while pretending to live in the new. So don’t do it. Life in Christ is not about what you can get away with, it is about how deeply you can immerse yourself in Christ to experience his abundance. This is why Paul tells the Ephesians to imitate God as dearly loved children.
When kids see their parents and do what they are doing, it is not because there is some rule that they must. It is out of love and a desire to be just like daddy. I remember when Kathrina started taking her plastic alphabet letters from the fridge 9particularly the green letter “T”) and shaving just like daddy, or when she would want to help mommy sweep and mop the floor. Bella loves to help do the dishes, and both girls love to sit in the computer chair and “work.” It should be the same with us. We should love our heavenly daddy so much and desire to be like him that our behavior naturally patterns after his. And we know that God is love, we should live in love towards God and one another, following the pattern Christ set for us.
That pattern does not include, and never will include, sexual immorality, impurity, greed, obscenity or coarse joking. Why, because they are on the “bad” list? Well, they are, but not just because someone arbitrarily decided they were bad. No, these are symptoms of a greater problem. You know that it is not good for your lungs to fill up with fluid. You know it is bad to loose feeling in your hands and feet. You know that it is really bad to start having body parts fall off. But if you go to the doctor, his concern is to find out why these things are happening. The same is true of the sinful habits in our lives. Paul tells us the basic diagnosis as to why these bad things, immorality, impurity, greed and obscenity, would show up in our lives. The problem, he says, is idolatry. That is the real sin here. That is the root. “But I don’t bow down to an idol!” You protest. But if you can’t say no to sexual immorality, lust has become your god. If you can’t say no to dishonesty and greed, self has become your god. If you can’t say no to obscenity and coarse talk that tears others down to make you look good, popularity and the praise of men has become your god. These become the things you imitate and seek after above everything else. Watch out for idolatry, it is the root disease of all kinds of infection in the Christian life. Now Paul gives a warning about people who will try to tell you that this is all meaningless. They will tell you it doesn’t really matter what you do. They will say that grace covers everything, so live like you want to. Well, grace does cover everything that we allow it to cover. If we are following another god, a god of darkness, emptiness, loneliness, deceit, and death; if we are sacrificing and surrendering ourselves to those gods in idolatry then we cannot simultaneously be surrendering ourselves to the One True Living God and his abundant grace.
As Paul says, there is no fellowship of light with darkness. You cannot have a little darkness and a little light. Wherever there is light, darkness has to flee. Do not deceive yourself into thinking that you are in the light when you are surrounding yourself with darkness. The last admonition Paul gives is to live wisely. We know that the way of the world is foolishness, and there are a lot of ways to ruin your life foolishly. That is why I think the only thing Paul mentions in this little section is don’t get drunk. Probably the biggest thing you could have done in Paul’s day to ruin your ability to make good decisions was to get drunk. Now we have added a whole host of intoxicants and drugs that contribute to stupid decision making. Instead of turning to intoxication to feel good about ourselves and to gain confidence, why not instead be filled with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit will come in, give us a good picture of who we are in Christ, give us strength for every situation, give us peace and confidence and a sense of God’s love and grace. All that and no hangover or worries about the foolish things we did the night before.
All of these things that Paul tells the Ephesians again are a way to fulfill the life lived in gentleness, patience, humility, and unity through love. The keys are to stop living like we did before, put off the old, put on the new, imitate God like his children that we are, and live wisely. In this way our lives serve to glorify God, to build up the body of Christ around us, and to satisfy our souls in a way the old life just could not have done. We can’t do all of this alone. But we can have this life with the help of the Holy Spirit and by encouraging each other with Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual songs. Our lives of love and thanksgiving help those around us to continue walking in their new lives as well, and we all build each other up as one body with Christ as the Head.
These declarations and prohibitions are all expansions on verse 2 of chapter 4, where Paul says to “be completely humble, gentle, patient, bearing with one another in love.” This is that life of humility and love lived out practically. Paul takes us through four statements of what we ought to look like as children of the king. Paul tells the Ephesians to 1. Stop living like the gentiles; 2. Put off the old self, and put on the new; 3. Be imitators of God as dearly loved children; and 4. Be careful how you live, live wisely. These four statements are expanded on in the surrounding verses, detailing the old life and what to put off, and the new life, what to put on.
Paul begins this section by describing the life of the gentiles as a dark, separated, ignorant, numb, indulgent lifestyle that does not satisfy. Sounds great, right? I put it right up there with sleeping on the street without a blanket. Do you remember last week’s picture of the beggar turned son of the king? This is the life he was giving up. This is not much of a sacrifice, and yet sometimes we treat leaving this life of darkness, loneliness, and hunger as a great martyrdom. But if we are in Christ, Paul says we should know better. This is not the Truth that we were taught in Christ. Remember the woman at the well, Jesus said to her, “If you asked me I would give you water so that you would never thirst again.” God does not call us to a life of emptiness, but a life so full of himself, we realize our former starvation without him.
The Truth we learn in Christ is to put off the old way of life that does not satisfy. It no longer suits us to be wearing the clothes of a beggar spiritually, but the very robes of Christ’s righteousness and holiness. That is why put off the cloak of lies we hide behind. Not because it is wrong—which it absolutely is—but because wearing the robes of righteousness we don’t have anything we need to lie about. Lying is a survival skill in some people’s lives. It is how they make up for the fact that they feel inferior, weak, ashamed of who they are. But in Christ, we are God’s children, the sons and daughters of the king. What do we have to hide? Even the things of the past are no longer important, they are overcome by what Christ has done for us in bringing us into the family, and the Holy Spirit is doing in us to transform us from the inside out. This is the ultimate recognition of grace, to live in honesty with one another. To refuse to judge, to refuse to fear the judgment of others, but to be in complete unity as one body.
This unity is held together by our obedience to deal with our disagreements and even anger with one another in a way that brings about healing, not wounding. It is not a sin to be angry. It is a natural response we have to injustice, or pain, or being wronged. What we choose to do with that anger can become sinful if we allow it to fester, if we refuse to practice constructive confrontation, if we let it go down to bitterness and drive a wedge between ourselves and another person. Then it is sin, then it causes wounds that become gangrenous. And injuring our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, or allowing a wound in our hearts to fester by continually picking it open gives the devil a foothold. It is like making a whole in the network of sentries around the castle so that the enemy can sneak his troops over the wall.
Paul describes many things that are part of the old life and the alternative new life actions. Stealing is part of that old life. Working—not only for our own living, but so that we can find value in sharing with others is part of the new life. Tearing people down through course language and gossip is part of the old life. Building people up in conversation and bringing them encouragement in what we say is part of the new life. Seeking a loophole so that you can still engage in the habits you enjoy while feeling smugly superior is grieving to the Holy Spirit, it is trying to hang onto the old life while pretending to live in the new. So don’t do it. Life in Christ is not about what you can get away with, it is about how deeply you can immerse yourself in Christ to experience his abundance. This is why Paul tells the Ephesians to imitate God as dearly loved children.
When kids see their parents and do what they are doing, it is not because there is some rule that they must. It is out of love and a desire to be just like daddy. I remember when Kathrina started taking her plastic alphabet letters from the fridge 9particularly the green letter “T”) and shaving just like daddy, or when she would want to help mommy sweep and mop the floor. Bella loves to help do the dishes, and both girls love to sit in the computer chair and “work.” It should be the same with us. We should love our heavenly daddy so much and desire to be like him that our behavior naturally patterns after his. And we know that God is love, we should live in love towards God and one another, following the pattern Christ set for us.
That pattern does not include, and never will include, sexual immorality, impurity, greed, obscenity or coarse joking. Why, because they are on the “bad” list? Well, they are, but not just because someone arbitrarily decided they were bad. No, these are symptoms of a greater problem. You know that it is not good for your lungs to fill up with fluid. You know it is bad to loose feeling in your hands and feet. You know that it is really bad to start having body parts fall off. But if you go to the doctor, his concern is to find out why these things are happening. The same is true of the sinful habits in our lives. Paul tells us the basic diagnosis as to why these bad things, immorality, impurity, greed and obscenity, would show up in our lives. The problem, he says, is idolatry. That is the real sin here. That is the root. “But I don’t bow down to an idol!” You protest. But if you can’t say no to sexual immorality, lust has become your god. If you can’t say no to dishonesty and greed, self has become your god. If you can’t say no to obscenity and coarse talk that tears others down to make you look good, popularity and the praise of men has become your god. These become the things you imitate and seek after above everything else. Watch out for idolatry, it is the root disease of all kinds of infection in the Christian life. Now Paul gives a warning about people who will try to tell you that this is all meaningless. They will tell you it doesn’t really matter what you do. They will say that grace covers everything, so live like you want to. Well, grace does cover everything that we allow it to cover. If we are following another god, a god of darkness, emptiness, loneliness, deceit, and death; if we are sacrificing and surrendering ourselves to those gods in idolatry then we cannot simultaneously be surrendering ourselves to the One True Living God and his abundant grace.
As Paul says, there is no fellowship of light with darkness. You cannot have a little darkness and a little light. Wherever there is light, darkness has to flee. Do not deceive yourself into thinking that you are in the light when you are surrounding yourself with darkness. The last admonition Paul gives is to live wisely. We know that the way of the world is foolishness, and there are a lot of ways to ruin your life foolishly. That is why I think the only thing Paul mentions in this little section is don’t get drunk. Probably the biggest thing you could have done in Paul’s day to ruin your ability to make good decisions was to get drunk. Now we have added a whole host of intoxicants and drugs that contribute to stupid decision making. Instead of turning to intoxication to feel good about ourselves and to gain confidence, why not instead be filled with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit will come in, give us a good picture of who we are in Christ, give us strength for every situation, give us peace and confidence and a sense of God’s love and grace. All that and no hangover or worries about the foolish things we did the night before.
All of these things that Paul tells the Ephesians again are a way to fulfill the life lived in gentleness, patience, humility, and unity through love. The keys are to stop living like we did before, put off the old, put on the new, imitate God like his children that we are, and live wisely. In this way our lives serve to glorify God, to build up the body of Christ around us, and to satisfy our souls in a way the old life just could not have done. We can’t do all of this alone. But we can have this life with the help of the Holy Spirit and by encouraging each other with Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual songs. Our lives of love and thanksgiving help those around us to continue walking in their new lives as well, and we all build each other up as one body with Christ as the Head.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Weekly Schedule 9/13/09
Tuesday September 15th-
Sunday September 20th- Sunday School 9:30 am
Remember to pray this week for those who are ill and those who mourn.
Coffee at Amanda's 9:30 am
Elder's Meeting 6:30 pm
Elder's Meeting 6:30 pm
Sunday September 20th- Sunday School 9:30 am
Fellowship in the Birchwood Room 10:30 am
Worship 10:45 am
Iglesia Evangelica Amigos 3:00 pm
Worship 10:45 am
Iglesia Evangelica Amigos 3:00 pm
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