Backtracking

Ephesians 1:19-23

18I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

The sermon Sunday made it definitely worth going back to this passage.

Some nuggests from the sermon:
-Overall theme of Ephesians: Cosmic Reconciliation
-The church is the most significant and beautiful place in the world. Christ has been exalted to the supreme place in the universe, and what's going on in the church is the heart of the action.
-The church is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church.

I often live as if being a Christian is somethng that is a private option for people, sort of a sideline, not to be brought out overtly in my public or work life, or my everyday commerce. In fact I am uncomfortable when people are 'too open' about their faith at work; or I cringe and draw away. Now, there is such a thing as speaking inappropriately -- however, if what Kurt said about this passage is true, then I must remember that there is no place that the truth of Christ is not relevant and even ofprimary importance!. So -- athough every expression of my faith would not be appropriate in every situation, there is an appropriate expression of faith for every situation because Christ is over all and in all, and I am primarily a follower of Christ whether I am at work or at the store or at home. An appropriate expression may be in certain actions or in certain words, and possibly it is verbal more often than I have thought. But mainly I need to absorb the idea that the workplace is not 'over' Christ, nor are modern ideas of social or political correctness 'over' Christ. Therefore, although it makes me uncomfortable, it may actually be appropriate at times to ignore conventions and speak out. Social approbation is nothing compared to the possibility of whetting someone's appetite for Christ, and letting them know that I am someone who is willing to tell them about him. I need to be ready and willing to give an account for myself and my actions at all times, even to random people when the opportunity arises. The more I do that, the more they know that Christians are all over the place, which might be an encouragement to seek God.

Eph 1: 15-23 Paul's prayer

v. 17-19a I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe

.

Is this how I pray for people? No. I usually pray for the things they want: their health, a job, a family member's well-being or salvation, for some situation to work out to their advantage, etc. Not that I shouldn't be concerned or pray for these things, but Paul's concerns are of a totally different nature.

His prayer has to do with knowing God better. This involves the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, which I take to mean, at the least, being able to recognize, understand, and apply God's word. Of course they didn't have the New Testament as such when Paul was writing; in fact, God was speaking directly through Paul and others at that time so that we would eventually have this body of revelation that we can safely and surely consider to be God's word. Back then it may have meant discerning between the teaching of any several people claiming to speak for God. Today it also may mean discernment regarding the many preachers, authors, teachers that are around us. But more importantly, I think it means listening to God's word in scripture, by the power of the Spirit. And it also means measuring other teaching and interpretation of the scriptures by the yardstick of the Bible, also by the power of the Spirit.

Then he mentions three other things that he wants us to know: our hope, our riches, and His power.

Those things are for tomorrow's study.

On to Ephesians

I am so happy to have finished Jeremiah -- not that I just wanted to be done with it, but it is a marker for me to actually have stuck with the book all the way through, read it all, thought about parts of it over the course of a few months. My usual pattern is to stick with something for about 2 to 3 weeks, then it goes by the wayside. I am thanking God for helping me get all the way through Jeremiah, and taking it as evidence of the work of the Holy Spirit in me. It so often doesn't feel as if God is at work changing me, so I need to take any concrete success and give God the credit. Credit where credit is due.

We've had preaching on Ephesians at church lately, so I am going to take that book as my next step. I will go section by section, according to the NIV headings, rather than by chapters. They call the first section "Blessings in Christ", and it is verses 1-14.

The first thing I noticed was the extravagent language used for what God has done for us:
-blessed us with EVERY spiritual blessing in christ
-in accordance with the RICHES of God's grace that he LAVISHED on us
-which he has FREELY given us

And his purpose is also extravagent and expressed in superlatives:
-to bring ALL things in heaven and on earth together...
-he works out EVERYTHING in conformity with the purpose of his will

And it is all 'to the praise of his glory'. All thy works shall praise thy name in earth and sky and sea...

The sweeping comprehensiveness of God's purpose rather takes my breath away. But in the tumble of this huge wave of God's purpose for creation that is relentlessly moving toward its destination, we also see that he is aware of each individual person as part of the whole:

Eph 1:13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of his glory.

So, rather than just feeling like 'one of the crowd' and an inconsequential cog in the wheel, I know that I am a special individual who God purposefully chose to 'include in Christ'. I am marked with the Holy Spirit and, as I said above, I need to recognize that my three months of Bible study are an indication of that, and give thanks to God for it. I've proven over and over that I can't keep going on my own. Lord, help me to keep depending on your Spirit to guide me and engage me in your word.