Category: Ephesians

For of this you can be sure: no immoral, impure, or greedy person–such a man is an idolater–has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be partners with them (Ephesians 5:5-7).

We have to take God seriously.

Seriously

Grace is essential.  Grace is enormous.

But grace isn’t everything.

There is also wrath.

I know we don’t like to think about it, much less talk about it, but there it is. Wrath is as much a part of God’s character as grace is. Without it, there would be no need for grace. Wrath is a byproduct of his holiness, the natural response to our violation of God’s righteousness. Those who live for this world and its pleasures have not placed themselves under God’s authority, so they are not protected by his grace. They face his wrath.

And it is a consuming fire.

I’m not trying to freak you out, Beloved. If you belong to Jesus, then you are under his grace, and you are already forgiven. Praise be to God for his endless mercy!

Just don’t take that mercy lightly. It cost a lot.

Don’t play with fire today.

Or arsonists.

Happy Tuesday, Beloved.

But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk, or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving (Ephesians 5:3-4).

You are a child of the King of Kings, Beloved of Christ, chosen to bear witness of his glorious light to a dark and dying world. You are a walking, breathing testimony to his grace, his mercy, his life-changing love.

Act like it.

Happy Monday, Beloved.

…live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.  (Ephesians 5:2)

This verse goes along with yesterday’s.  One of the most powerful features of God’s character is his unending, unstoppable love.  If we imitate him, as Ephesians 5:1 tells us to, we will live a life that mirrors that love.

And what an example we have to follow.  Jesus loved us, and he told us in a way that goes far beyond words.

“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.  (John 15:13)

So how do we do that?  I mean, laying down your life is all well and good if you’re rushing into a burning building to rescue people, or if you dive into traffic to save a toddler.  But that opportunity doesn’t arise very often, and frankly, you can only do that trick once.

There is another way to lay down your life—but you probably don’t want to hear about it.  This is the daily act of dying to yourself, of putting other people first. It’s the little things—taking out the trash even though it isn’t your turn, letting someone else have the last doughnut even though you’ve been salivating over it all morning, letting the other car in front of you even though it means you have to slow down and why should you have to slow down why can’t they just wait their turn like everybody else—

Yeah, it’s that kind of stuff.  Not terribly dramatic; nothing to get you a mention in the paper, but loving nonetheless.  That’s your challenge.

So, Beloved, what will your fragrant offering be today?

Happy Friday.

Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children… (Ephesians 5:1).

Have you ever watched a son watch his father? The boy studies the man, soaking up the Dadness of it all.  Words, clothing, even mannerisms—the child models what he observes. Often, the child does not even realize what is going on.  He is simply watching, and becoming what he sees. This can be dangerous, because not all of Dad’s ways are worthy of imitation.  Thus the origin of the phrase, “Do as I say, not as I do.”

We have a Father who says, “Do as I say; do as I do; do as I am.”  All his ways are perfectly worthy of imitation. Study him closely today.  Look for him in his Word, in his world, and in his people. Then, do your best to be what you see.

Go ahead—be a copycat.

Happy Thursday, Beloved.

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you  (Eph. 4:32).

There’s an interesting thing about forgiveness.  It works for the forgiver as powerfully as for the forgivee.

Some of us—and by that I mean me—have trouble in the forgiveness department. Oh, we’re pretty good about forgiving those who apologize to us.  We can be gracious and charitable to folks who acknowledge their offense and want to make amends. But as you know, most people who offend you don’t apologize.

Because they’re jerks.

And yet we’re called to forgive them anyway.  The passage says, “Forgiving…just as in Christ God forgave you.”  He didn’t wait for us to apologize before acting to forgive us. If he had, he would have been waiting forever, which he could do, because he’s eternal, but what’s the point when we never would have made the first step?  Romans 5:8 says that, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” While we were still hurting God, he was offering forgiveness.

Does this kind of forgiveness heal the relationship?  Not necessarily. The offender needs to acknowledge their sin and accept the gift of forgiveness in order for that to happen.  

Kind of exactly like it was with you and God.

But forgiveness does more than release the offender from guilt; it releases the offended from bitterness.  Forgive, as an act of obedience to God, and you are free to move on, regardless of what the other person does.

If you need to forgive someone today, I humbly suggest that you follow God’s command and forgive.  They hurt you once; don’t give them the power to hurt you over and over again.

What? There’s no one in your life you need to forgive?  Don’t worry; you’ll get your chance. It’s only a matter of time.

Happy Wednesday, Beloved.

And do not grieve the Holy Spirit, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice (Ephesians 4:30-31).

Hmm…two pretty important things about God, here.

First, the Holy Spirit is a person.  For a lot of us, the Holy Spirit seems like some sort of ethereal God-mist, floating through the cosmos and entering people like a B-movie ghost. We see the Holy Spirit as kind of a manifestation of God’s power.

But ethereal God-mist manifestations of power don’t grieve.

Persons grieve.

Which brings the second point. The Holy Spirit can be grieved.  In Scripture we’ve seen the Father angry. We’ve seen the Son weep over a friend’s death and struggle at Gethsemane. Now we see that the Holy Spirit, too, demonstrates emotion.

Beloved, our behavior has an impact, not only on those around us, but on the One within us. When we hold bitterness, rage, slander, and all the rest in our hearts, it saddens the One who knows us best and loves us most.

So, whatcha gonna do with that?

Happy Tuesday, Beloved.

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen (Ephesians 4:29).

Beloved, you are in command of one of the most powerful forces in the history of history.

Words

They can build or destroy,

wound or heal,

bring laughter or tears.

Never doubt their power, and never doubt that you are in command.

How will you use your words today, Beloved?

Happy Monday

Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands,that they may have something to share with those in need (Eph. 4:28).

There is deep, complex theological meaning in this text that requires a thorough knowledge of Greek, Hebrew, Latin, Aramaic, and Dutch to understand, as well as close familiarity with the customs of the ancient Near East and Pacoima.

Well, actually, not really.

Be useful.

Earn your keep.

Got it?

Happy Friday, Beloved.

“In your anger do not sin.” Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold (Ephesians 4:26-27).

Uh oh.

So, yesterday you told the truth, and now everyone is angry.

Go figure.

So, you’re angry. Or they’re angry. Or both.

You don’t have a choice about that, so don’t bother beating yourself up about it. But you do have a choice about how you handle the anger. Are you going to let it fester like an infected wound, growing ever more painful and swollen and nasty-smelling and filled with noxious, oozing pus?

Well, are you?

Or are you going to cleanse the wound with forgiveness, and wrap it in mercy, and let grace heal you?

You know what your Enemy desires. He wants to use this anger as a wedge to drive you further from others, and further from God.

Don’t let him.

Happy Thursday, Beloved.

Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. (Eph. 4:25).

We are one body.

Therefore, lying to your neighbor is like lying to yourself.

Not that you’ve ever done that.

I like the phrase, “Put off falsehood.” It makes it sound like lying is a burden that weighs you down,

which it is.

As you walk through your Wednesday, make every effort to speak the truth,

even when it hurts,

even when it’s unpopular.

It’ll lighten your load.

Happy Wednesday, Beloved