Romans 12:3-12

How can a person have “sober judgment” about himself, and what relationship does this have with the close community described in this passage? – We can have sober judgment about ourselves by receiving objective truth about ourselves which we ourselves are unable to see.  We are blind to many aspects of ourselves because we are simply unaware, and because we are reluctant to squarely face areas that are too unpleasant for us.  These objective truths must come from outside of us, from people who know us well.  This is where we need the close community.  We need people who have plenty of opportunities to observe objective truths about me.  We need people who can see my life over long period of time, observe my way of life, and communicate truth to us.  However, this must be done in the context of loving relationships.  Without it, because of the twistedness in us caused by sin, we can receive difficult truths as attacks on us even when it’s spoken out genuine concern.  We need to be assured that truth is being spoken to us because it really matters for our lives and for our relationships with others.  Also, without being in a close community, people can withhold truth from us.  Sometimes it’s not easy speaking truth to others because there is no guarantee that it will be received well.  In such situations, it would be tempting to withhold the full truth.  We need a close, loving community that cares enough to tell whole truth because it’s essential for close community.

Identify points of contrast between Genesis 4’s description of Cain and his descendants as a picture of life falling apart outside of God, and the picture presented here of the community made possible by the reversal of sin’s ravages.  – In Genesis 4, Cain and his descendants became more and more isolated, living life by self and for self.  It began with Cain’s jealousy and murderous thoughts towards his brother.  Then he became afraid of others that they might treat him the same way he treated his brother.  He physically retreated and isolated himself when he built a city to protect himself.  His descendants sought significance and meaning in life through their own accomplishments.  In such a way of life, any situation where others can potentially make demands on us becomes a threat.  Any time we have to divert resources from ourselves to someone else, we become unsettled.  It’s a life of continuous anxiety.  In the course of such life, even the ‘joy’ that people experience is so isolated and alone, and that is no joy, for it cannot be shared with anyone else.  In the community of faith, where relationships matter a lot, a reversal is possible.  Because we are one body and each member belongs to all the others, we cannot disregard others in our decisions and actions.  The moment we cut off ourselves from others, we see detrimental effects on the health and strength of the body.  If we pursue our own agenda, that’s terribly deflating for others who want to build this community up to what it was supposed to be.  What we do inevitably affects the rest of the body, since we are connected.  In this community, as we allow the needs of others to make demands on us, we can begin to chip away at this isolated life.  We begin to taste the fulfillment of serving others, the joy of being a blessing to them in some way.  We also begin to experience the freedom that comes with releasing the grip on our lives.  However, for me to experience this reversal, I must battle the Cain within me, which says, “Do what you have to do, but save a part of yourself for yourself, pace yourself.” These are words that lead to no benefit for anybody – walls go up around me, and there is no connection with others, no life.   I must uproot the Cain in me by affirming and embracing my role in this community.  I must commit to respond to the needs by making sure I give my fully, as described by these words in verse 8 – generously, diligently, cheerfully.

Submitted by Jeannie Lee, Gracepoint Berkeley:

Romans 12:4-5 (Friday’s DT)

⁴ Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, ⁵ so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.

One of the things that hit me from this week was from Romans 12:4-5, verses I had memorized years ago in Survival Kit 1.  The thing that always challenges me about these verses is the phrase, “each member belongs to all the others.” Each time I read these verses, I have to pause and think about how much am I living these verses out.  We live in a close-knit community and are often praised for how close we are, how we are actively trying to live out the Acts 2 fellowship; our fellowships are named a2f and Koinonia (greek for fellowship). If each member belongs to all the others, that means I belong to my brothers and sisters, including my time, my energy, my house, my children, and that they belong to me, meaning I’d better know what their needs are, and I’d better be owning them. I had to examine myself to see how much I actually take ownership over and also how much I allow others to take ownership over my life, and commit once again to personally own my younger brothers and sisters, not to be afraid of speaking the truth in love, not being afraid to bring up uncomfortable issues if need be, not being afraid to impose myself on them, whether it be for a meal, or to talk, or to impose myself to be a listening ear, to probe more deeply when necessary; there are many ways others can belong to me and I can belong to others.

Another point that stuck out to me this week was Tuesday’s DT on Matthew and Ephesians.  One of the questions was, “What is the foundation of the church, according to the Matthew and Ephesians passages?” And my answer was, the confession of the saints that Jesus is Savior and Lord, those who gather in the name of Jesus, and the foundation of the apostles and prophets.  The Ephesians 4 passage also ended with, “¹⁶ From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” I thought about each person’s role in the building up of the church, how each part needs to strive to attain to unity in the faith, in the knowledge of the Son of God, and to continually grow, so that the body would be a living vibrant active community of faith.  I see so many people who tragically are stuck in a “little old me” mentality, thinking that, “What can I do anyway,” “I can’t contribute much,” or “I’m not needed,” “No one will even notice if I’m not there,” when it clearly says, each part needs to do its work, and that we are all members of God’s household! And that we are being built together, to achieve unity and to grow together! What an amazing picture! There is no time or room to remain in insecurity or to have a “little old me” complex. We need to be the church that advances upon the gates of Hades! I committed again through these passages and DTs to be someone who helps to hold together the body, and to look for ways to build it up, rather than to be disjointed and remain in unfruitful isolated thoughts.

Submitted by Ander Chen, Gracepoint Berkeley

These passages about the church are also necessarily about each Christian.  Read each passage, and reflect on God’s vision regarding how Christian life is to be lived out. What do each of these passages tell me about myself?  What is my response to this?

What the passages say to me is that as a Christian, I need to be a more prayerful person and ask God, lean on God, entrusting him with my life and ministry and not trying to rely on myself and what qualities I think I may have (Matt 18:19-20). Im reminded that I am apart of God’s household and so my life must be set apart from the world, in: lifestyle, attitude, outlook, where my focus lies, what I value and treasure, and what drives me in my life. Others should be able to see my life and notice that difference and through my life I am to be a priest, someone who who shares the gospel with others (Eph2:19-20). It also tells me that God has prepared me for works of service so that the church, the body of Christ may be built up (Eph 4) and that I am to be a minister, a servant to others and not myself and in order to train and teach others i need to continually mature in my faith and understanding of God through his word, reflection and in loving others.

As I read this description of the church and of a Christian, I realize how short I still fall in all of these ways. Therefore, I want to commit to praying a lot more this semester, especially as I feel anxious in ministering to the junior class, with so many new people and so many things to get caught up on, more than ever do I feel inadequate and need to life and entrust them to God in prayer. I’m also reminded that my own life and values need to be constantly shaped and reformed so that my life can honor God. That I personally need to continue to grow in my understanding of God, and my own relationship with God needs to deepen. The world and its values of success, independence, and personal achievement still weight heavily in my mind and I need to do the hard work of reversing these ideas and values. It also means that my own struggles with my sin of lust, with my selfishness and pride needs to be confronted each day and confessed to God. My response to the fact that im a minister is that I need to be faithful to this calling God has given me. To not let up but dive in, take hold of the people God has given to me and not let my fears and insecurities of failing paralyze me but to trust God and go and start loving/ministering to the guys God has given me. There is nothing else for me to do but just dive in and get to know these junior guys. I’ve been tasked with the high calling of loving them, discipling them and coloring them and I just need to start and trust God with the rest. I need to pray for them, help them to grow and love them as I did my previous guys. I know God has taken me out of my comfort zone and for that I am thankful. I pray that my heart and capacity can be stretched and I want to respond with just doing God’s work and not stopping.

The Greek word for “fathers” in verse 4 can mean “parents,” but more likely Paul is turning attention specifically to fathers. Fathers had legal control of children and were responsible for their instruction from about age seven. Girls did not normally receive formal education, but were taught household duties. Leon Morris is probably correct in saying it is significant that Paul wrote “children” instead of “boys.” Girls were valued less in ancient society, but Paul did not accept such a limitation.

In the ancient world fathers had absolute control and were sometimes harsh; that is why Paul includes the warning against provoking children to anger.

[…]

But the text instructs children to obey and honor their parents. What this means in practical terms will depend on the age of the child and the integrity of the parents. Obedience will be different for a five-year-old and a twenty-year-old, even though honor may be much the same. Especially in our culture the freedom of young adults is a given, but even with that freedom honor of parents should remain.

The text assumes an ideal, but what if the reality is far worse? The less integrity a parent has, the more difficult honor will be. At times honor may even be reduced to honor for the “office” of parent rather than the person. Showing honor should never require distorting the truth. The guideline here, as everywhere, is speaking the truth in love. Where the parents’ will conflicts with God’s will, again the attitude of the early church is the right path: “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29). All application of this section must remember that these commands are an application of the larger ethic of Ephesians to a specific area. The whole letter is the framework for applying these instructions.

Instructions to Slaves and Masters (6:5 – 9)

THESE VERSES CONTINUE the House Codes that started in 5:22. Paul almost certainly drew from well-known early Christian teachings in framing these sections. He could have treated numerous relations or problems, but these topics were chosen because they are traditional and because Christianslike Jewswere seen as subversive elements in the society and especially as a threat to the family structure. Christians needed to show they did not threaten order and decency. The very form of the Christian house codes is an apologetic to turn aside slander and accusations.

That Christians were seen as a threat to the household structure is understandable. As we have seen, women were told to submit to their husbands “so that no one will malign [blaspheme] the word of God” (Titus 2:5). A similar statement occurs in reference to slaves: Slaves should consider their masters worthy of full respect “so that God’s name and our teaching may not be slandered [blasphemed]” (1 Tim. 6:1). Such slandering could arise because Paul had set aside valuations based on whether one was free or a slave (Gal. 3:28), wrote about slaves being freed by Christ (1 Cor. 7:21 – 23), and made slaves brothers of their owners (Philem. 15 – 16). Slaves, like wives, often would have been expected to adopt the gods of the family, which would have created further conflict for Christians. And regarding children, several of Jesus’ sayings placed allegiance to him over allegiance to the family.

The directions given to slaves removes any suggestion that this new faith upset the cultural order; on the other hand, these verses are still extremely subversive. Slave owners may have been pleased with the service they would get, but in the process they lost control, for slaves now had a higher allegiance than to their owners. Slaves no longer belonged to their owners, did not really serve them, did not merely do their will, did not seek to please them, and were no different from them. They were slaves of Christ, served him, and did God’s will, and the slave owners were to treat them the same way as slaves were to treat owners. The idea that in dealing with human beings they were really dealing with Christ is reminiscent of Matthew 25:40: “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”

This section makes specific to slaves (and masters) what was asked of everyone in 5:10, 17, 21: pleasing the Lord, doing his will, and mutual submission. To apply mutual submission to slaves and slave owners was a startling redefinition of slavery. In 1 Corinthians 7:21 – 23 Paul even told slaves that slavery should not matter, that they were Christ’s freed people, that both free and slave were slaves of Christ, and therefore that they should not be slaves of humans! The ease with which Paul made these points was based on his conviction that slaves, their owners, and he were all slaves of Christ. He referred to himself frequently as a slave of Christ, which should not be surprising insofar as Christ himself took the form of a slave. The background for this theology is already in the Old Testament (see esp. Lev. 25:55).

[…]

That masters are asked to treat their slaves “in the same way” is cryptic, but still shocking. For them to follow this instruction, they would have to treat their slaves with respect and fear and with sincerity of heart as to Christ. That alone should have abolished slavery for Christians! Owners would also have to give up playing to audiences and do the will of God as slaves of Christ. Moreover, just as slaves had to give up slacking off, masters had to give up threatening, which fits neither service to Christ nor the life of humility and gentleness called for in 4:2 – 3. This ethic moves beyond the Golden Rule, that is, beyond treating others as we want to be treated; it instructs us to treat others as we would treat our Lord.

[…]

In the Greco-Roman world slavery was so much a part of life that hardly anyone thought about whether it might be illegitimate. Only the Therapeutae, a Jewish sect in Egypt, and perhaps the Essenes, rejected slavery in principle. It was considered an economic and practical necessity, an assumed part of life as much as birds and trees. Scholars are reluctant to hazard estimates about the numbers, but as many as one-third of the people in Greece and Rome were slaves. In addressing them Paul was addressing an enormous number of people. People became slaves through various avenues: birth, parental selling or abandonment, captivity in war, inability to pay debts, and voluntary attempts to better one’s condition. Race was not a factor.

[…]

These Christians were called to take their identity from Christ, regardless of the circumstances. Revolt was out of the question, but their lives were to be a quiet protest and a witness to a higher calling.

For the early church to advocate revolt would have been the death of the Christian movement. Slavery and other social issues were not their focus; the gospel and its description of life were. They did not work out the sociological implications of the gospel except where it related to reception of the message and relations within churches. But as they presented life in Christ, they put in motion a process that would eventually destroy slavery.

Slaves and masters (6:5 – 9). The application of the teaching on slaves and masters is obviously relevant for work relations, but it actually involves every relation and act. No relation is merely a relation; it is a context for relating to Christ. No job is merely work; it is a context for serving Christ.

Relations with people. The first application of this text concerns the way we understand ourselves and others. Society sends signals that declare our relative value and tell us where we fit in the hierarchy, but this text gives a different system of valuing. The hierarchy does not exist. We all have roles and tasks, but they do not render people more or less valuable. We all have the same Lord and face the same judgment. Arrogance and feelings of inferiority are out of place, as is favoritism. If God does not show favoritism, neither should we. We typically show favoritism to the rich and powerful, but little respect for the poor and powerless. Both are sins.

It is so easy for us to demean people we consider to be “low on the totem pole.” We do not have slaves, but we do have “service personnel” and people who “do not count.” It is easy to dehumanize and tyrannize them. We “chew them out” when we are unsatisfied. We view them as faceless numbers when the time comes to downsize. By lack of attention, body language, or attitude we communicate to them, “We do not really care about you.” Yet such people are as important as any “star” or power-broker, and our Christian witness depends on how we treat them. We must relate to them as if we were relating to Christ.

Be Strong Against Evil (6:10 – 13)

An English translation cannot easily show it, but the imperatives throughout this section are plural. We usually interpret them as if they were addressed to individuals, but without denying their relevance for individuals, we should understand them as Paul’s instructions for the church collectively to put on God’s armor and stand as one person (cf. Phil. 1:27).

The Armor of God (6:14 – 20)

A decision about “the belt of truth” is the most difficult, but the other three items in verses 14 – 16 (“righteousness,” “readiness,” and “faith”) emphasize a human response to God’s saving work. This passage is an appeal for human action. Clearly, “righteousness” in verse 14 does not refer so much to the gift of righteousness (Rom. 5:17) as to righteous acts by believers (see 4:24; 5:9). “Salvation” and “the word of God” in verse 17, however, are clearly gifts from God, which at the same time enable and motivate human obedience.

[…]

The “breastplate of righteousness” is from Isaiah 59:17, which describes God’s putting on armor to come in judgment. Paul was not writing about judgment, but the fact that the new being is created to be like God (4:24). To put on the breastplate of righteousness means that Christians are to reflect the righteous character of God in their actions.

“Feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace” (v. 15) is adapted from Isaiah 52:7, which describes the messenger of good news. Usually this is understood in terms of willingness to share the gospel, but the intent is broader than sharing the good news.

[…]

With the shield Paul has in mind the large shield Roman infantry used to protect their whole bodies. Such shields were four feet tall and two and one-half feet wide and were constructed of leather stretched over wood, reinforced with metal at the top and bottom. Especially if soaked in water, they were effective in stopping burning arrows.

[…]

“The helmet of salvation” (v. 17) is also from Isaiah 59:17, again describing God’s own armor. M. Barth suggested the helmet is a ceremonial helmet, a helmet of victory, which indicates the battle has already been won, though this is questionable. In Isaiah God strapped on a breastplate of righteousness and the helmet of salvation to bring righteousness and salvation. But in Ephesians, the believer puts them on to do righteousness and to receive salvation.

With the sword of the Spirit a change occurs. With the earlier pieces of armor, the second element identified the first. For example, the belt was truth. With the sword of the Spirit, this is not the case, for the sword is the word of God. The Spirit is the one who empowers the sword. Throughout Scripture God’s word is the instrument by which his power is shown. The wording here may be influenced by Isaiah 11:4.

“Word of God” does not refer to the Bible but to the gospel message. The Greek word used here (rhema) usually refers to a teaching or prophetic utterance or, more specifically, to the gospel.

Tychicus, the letter carrier & Closing benediction (6:21 – 24).

WE TEND TO ignore the relevance of texts like this. Their application may be limited, but they still are significant in shaping how we view God and ourselves. Paul’s view of his friends and his concern for them deserve to be copied. By viewing other Christians as in the Lord and by desiring God’s gifts for them, we change the way we relate to them. We cannot extend God’s peace and love honestly to people we do not care about.

Snodgrass, Klyne. “Ephesians 4:1 – 16” In The NIV Application Commentary: Ephesians. By Klyne Snodgrass, 193-228. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, © 1996.

Application:  According to Apostle Paul, what should under gird all of my relationships?

What needs to under gird all of my relationships is Christ’s example of love and self-sacrifice for the church.  That means, likewise, I need to give up my body sacrificially when it comes to the people in my life whom God has called me to love.  For example, as a husband my duty and responsibility is to love my wife as I love myself (v. 28) by limiting my own options and putting her needs before my own.  Though Apostle Paul’s examples in this passage appear to focus a lot on the nuclear family, it is clear that his charge is to be applied in all relationships because of the model Christ set before us.  In John 15:12-13 Jesus says to His disciples, “My command is this:  Love each other as I have loved you.  Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”  What a contrast to the world’s perspective as people tend to love only out of excess or when expecting to receive love in return.

Paul used the ancient Greek word agape.  Agape describes a different kind of love. It is a love more of decision than of the spontaneous heart.  “Agape has to do with the mind: it is not simply an emotion which rises unbidden in our hearts; it is a principle by which we deliberately live.” (Barclay) Agape really doesn’t have much to do with feelings – it has to do with decisions.  The word has little to do with emotion; it has much to do with self-denial for the sake of another.  It is a love that loves without changing. It is a self-giving love that gives without demanding or expecting re-payment. It is love so great that it can be given to the unlovable or unappealing. It is love that loves even when it is rejected. Agape love gives and loves because it wants to; it does not demand or expect repayment from the love given. It gives because it loves, it does not love in order to receive. (David Guzik commentaries)

As I think about my own testimony I can’t help but recount all the acts of agape love that has been poured out onto me through my leaders.  So many of them freely gave up their time, money, and energy for me even though there was nothing I could really offer them in return.  They just simply gave because of Jesus’ call to love others just as He laid down His life for the church.  Personally, I know how difficult it is to love because I look at my own life and how I am still so self-centered in many ways, looking after my own needs before the needs of others.  Additionally, I have a hard time loving people because I often fail to draw from the well of God’s love which is infinite and perfect by nature.  Instead, I attempt to love others through my own love which is so limited and inadequate because of my many faults and sins.  Reading such verses that call me to sacrifice myself can appear quite daunting.  However, I know that as long as I imitate and reflect on the love that I’ve received through Christ, and from those who have gone ahead of me, I too, can begin to love others.  I need to start off by taking small steps of denying myself and changing my scope to focus on the needs of others, and meeting those needs.  As God has given me the immense privilege of serving Him in Austin, I want to make it my commitment to love people with the model He set before me through Jesus who freely laid down His life for the sake of others.

Here is the recommended personal devotions schedule.

O: Who does Apostle Paul exhort us to be imitators of? God

O: What does he address us as? As dearly loved children

O: In what ways are we to imitate God? In living a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

D: Why might Apostle Paul remind us that we are dearly loved children, as he asks us to imitate God? As we remember our identity and history, that we have been dearly loved by God ever since before we were born, that God takes care of us as if we were his own children, that gives us the motivation to also live out a life of love.  Knowing how much love and blessings that we have already received, it frees us up to not worry about or look at ourselves, but to give of ourselves and love others.

D: How did Christ live a life of love? He gave himself up as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.  He lived a life that was completely surrendered to God.  He did not hoard anything for himself, or guard his own life for his benefit.  There was no selfishness about him at all, but He lived a life of serving and loving others.  As we recently went through devotionals in Mark, Jesus’ life was characterized by constantly thinking about others, meeting people’s needs, healing and ministering to people without rest. He never shut people out when they approached Him, even if He himself must have been so physically tired and drained. He didn’t consider himself highly, but was a servant to all.

App: How have I been dearly loved by God?  What are concrete ways in which I can live out a life of love today? As I look back at my life, this has been so true, that I have been dearly loved by God.  He has regarded my life as more precious than even I considered it.  God has always desired the best for my life.  Had God left me to myself without persevering after me, I would have made such a mess of my life.  I shudder to think where I would be now. God has protected and shielded me from harm, he has blessed me with a rich community, with so many sisters and brothers in Christ.  In the past couple months, I have been experiencing affirmation of the fact that God loves me. Even though the reality of my mom’s cancer and the uncertainty of her condition has been scary, at the same time, I have experienced in such a personal way God’s presence, His Words speaking personally and relevantly, God giving me a sense of peace through times of prayer, the way He has guided and given enough mercy to go through each day.  Whenever I go back to this truth and fact that I have already been so loved by God, then I gain proper perspective about my life, and I experience being able to give myself to others.  It gives me the motivation to love others, and to be a servant. As dearly loved by God, and as his child, I have nothing to worry about.  God has taken care of my life, and He will continue to take care of me in the future. Therefore, I can be freed up completely to give myself to others, to use whatever resources I have to love others (financially, physically, emotionally). This is the identity that I want to struggle to hold onto each day as I engage in ministry, as I reach out to students, as I interact with the team members here, so that I can be a person that can love others as Christ has loved me.

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Submitted by Sara Song, Gracepoint Austin

What is entailed in living as children of light?  How can I get better at this?
In being a child of light, there is now a fundamental shift in how to view the purpose of my life, myself, and God. Once my purpose was to pursue my own passions and sinful desires and doing whatever made me feel good, including the list of sins in verses 3-5. But as a child of light, my purpose is now to “find out what pleases the Lord,” and “exposing the fruitless deeds of darkness.” Once my view of myself consisted of just being someone who was on my own – a person who only answered to herself and had no other higher duty but to fill my flesh. But now God calls me his “child” and an “imitator of God.” A person who can bring God’s light into situations and circumstances where there is only darkness and exposing the lies of this world through God’s truth. Once my view of God was just a distant, aloof and irrelevant being. However, as a child of light now God is the Father of light, the one who infuses within me his own Spirit of holiness and righteousness, the one who has loved me dearly. And part of living as a child of light entails daily reminding myself of these truths and struggling to live them out – that I have a greater purpose in life to do God’s will, that my identity is rooted in God’s love, and that God is my Father. That basic fact that I am a CHILD and God is my FATHER helps me to understand how it is I ought to live my life, and as I learn more about my Father, I want to become more like him in his character. Living as a child of light, therefore, can only become more of a reality in my life as my personal relationship with the Father, the source of light, becomes stronger. As a child of light, Paul gives specific commands on what to do, which were to “find out what pleases the Lord” and to “have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness.” Finding out what pleases the Lord is natural as a child would want to find out what pleases his/her parents and wants to do them. As a dearly loved child would want to love her parent back and knowing that the parent is loving, the child would find ways to obey and do things that please the parents. It’s a natural response of love for God, knowing his character, holiness, and goodness. Then exposing the fruitless deeds of darkness is also natural response of my relationship with God – as a child of light, my presence in a situation that is filled with sin, darkness and falsehood should be to shine God’s light of truth.

How can I get better at this? I see that being a child of light is more than just following specific acts or commands. Like everything in Christian life, my identity and duties as a child of light comes from being personally infused with God’s light through building up my relationship with Him. I see that as my understanding, intellectually and emotionally, of my place as God’s child deepens, then I WANT to live my life pleasing my Heavenly Father and doing just as he does – to expose the darkness and bringing truth and light through his Word into this world. I see just how much more I need to be in the presence of my Father and not become complacent in struggling through my thoughts, feelings, or those voices that negate God’s calling about me or lure me to think that I am alone or an orphan. I sometimes think these kinds of struggles aren’t as serious as others that are more outwardly apparent because I can hide them from others, but it’s clear that living as a child of light can only happen as my personal relationship with the Father, the source of light, becomes stronger.

What is entailed in living as children of light?  How can I get better at this?
In being a child of light, there is now a fundamental shift in how to view the purpose of my life, myself, and God. Once my purpose was to pursue my own passions and sinful desires and doing whatever made me feel good, including the list of sins in verses 3-5. But as a child of light, my purpose is now to “find out what pleases the Lord,” and “exposing the fruitless deeds of darkness.” Once my view of myself consisted of just being someone who was on my own – a person who only answered to herself and had no other higher duty but to fill my flesh. But now God calls me his “child” and an “imitator of God.” A person who can bring God’s light into situations and circumstances where there is only darkness and exposing the lies of this world through God’s truth. Once my view of God was just a distant, aloof and irrelevant being. However, as a child of light now God is the Father of light, the one who infuses within me his own Spirit of holiness and righteousness, the one who has loved me dearly. And part of living as a child of light entails daily reminding myself of these truths and struggling to live them out – that I have a greater purpose in life to do God’s will, that my identity is rooted in God’s love, and that God is my Father. That basic fact that I am a CHILD and God is my FATHER helps me to understand how it is I ought to live my life, and as I learn to more about my Father, I want to become more like him in his character. Living as a child of light, therefore, can only become more and more of a desire or reality in my life as my personal relationship with the Father and source of light becomes stronger.
As a child of light, Paul gives specific commands on what to do, which were to “find out what pleases the Lord” and to “have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness.” Finding out what pleases the Lord is natural as a child would want to find out what pleases his/her parents and wants to do them. As a dearly loved child would want to love her parent back and knowing that the parent is loving, the child would find ways to obey and do things that please the parents. It’s a natural response of love for God, knowing his character, holiness, and goodness. Then exposing the fruitless deeds of darkness is also natural response of my relationship with God – as a child of light, my presence in a situation that is filled with sin and darkness, falsehood should be to shine God’s light of truth.
How can I get better at this? I see that being a child of light is more than just following specific acts or commands. Like in everything in Christian life, my identity and duties as a child of light comes from being personally infused with God’s light through building up my relationship with Him. I see that as my understanding intellectually and emotionally of my place as God’s child and who God is deepens, then I cannot BUT want to live my life pleasing my Heavenly Father and doing just as he does – to expose the darkness and bringing truth and light through his Word into this world. I see just how much more, then, I need to be in the presence of my Father and not become complacent in struggling through my thoughts, feelings, or those voices that negate God’s calling about me or lure me to think that I am alone or an orphan. I sometimes think these kinds of struggles aren’t as serious as others that are more outwardly apparent because I can hide them from others, but it’s clear that if everything stems from my relationship with God, then I will never really end up understanding what it means to live as a child of light and allowing God’s light to powerfully shine through my life.

SEXUAL SIN AND greed. The shift from Christ’s self-giving nature in 5:2 to the self-indulgence of 5:3 is striking. The three sins mentioned — “sexual immorality” (porneia), “impurity” (akatharsia), and “greed” (pleonexia) — were already mentioned at 4:19. The second and third sins are the same in both passages, but the first sin in 4:19 is “sensuality” (aselgeia). Galatians 5:19 lists porneia, akatharsia, and aselgeia as the first explanations of “works of the flesh,” all three apparently in reference to sexual sin. The NIV does not show it, but “sexual immorality” and “impurity” are linked in 5:3 as a tandem (see also Col. 3:5). “Impurity” refers primarily to sexual sin, even with “of any kind” being added. “Greed” is added as a separate sin, which can include sexual lust, but can refer to any kind of drive to “have more.”

[…]

Lax sexual standards do not fit with Christianity, whether in the first or the twenty-first century. Christians too easily adopt the sexual attitudes of the surrounding culture, but sexual sin will not mesh with life in Christ. What we do with our bodies matters because we belong to God.

[…]

Greed, too, stares back at us from the mirror of the text. The desire to have more motivates both sexual sin and all other sins. In fact, sin has been described as seeking to get more out of life than God put into it. Even though God has packed life full of good things, mosty of us are never satisfied. When desire for more takes over — especially with sexual relations — it distorts the mind, debilitates us, disrupts life, and finally becomes our master.

Sins of the tongue (5:4). This verse is an expansion of 4:29. The three words for sins of speech in this verse occur nowhere else in the New Testament, although cognates appear of the word translated “obscenity” (aischrotes; see, e.g. Col. 3:8). The root expresses that which is shameful or disgraceful; while the word could have a wider reference, its being paired here with two words on speech here indicates that Paul’s concern is about shameful and indecent language. “Foolish talk” (morologia) suggests speech from a fool (one void of understanding) and brings to mind the frequent condemnation of the fool in Old Testament wisdom literature. “Coarse joking” (eutrapelia) usually has a positive meaning outside the New Testament, but clearly is negative here. It suggests something easily turned, a double entendre—speech innocuous in itself but turned to have an indecent intent. Such speech is not fitting for the believer.

[…]

“Foolish talk” seems primarily concerned with foolish talk of a sexual nature, but application of the text requires rejecting any talk appropriate to fools (i.e., those who are morally and spiritually perverse). This is not a rejection of humor, but of misguided humor. Humor is a gift, but it can be a form of egotism, escapism, or self-defense and can be used in harmful, belittling ways.

The Relation of Christians and the Disobedient (5:7 – 14)

The word translated “partners” (symmetochoi) is actually a compound form, “partners with” or “fellow partners.” The simpler form was used often for business partnerships, though not always in a technical, legal sense. […] If one is joined to Christ and shares in him, one cannot share in the lives of those practicing sexual sin and greed (cf. 2 Cor. 6:14).

Let the light do its work (5:11 – 14). The command in verse 7 not to partner with the disobedient is expanded in verse 11 with the command not to participate in their actions either. The NIV “have nothing to do with” instructs believers not to share in or participate with wrongdoing.

[…]

The separation Paul calls for, however, is not so much a withdrawal as a confrontation. “Expose” (vv. 11, 13) often carries a nuance of correcting or convincing someone. Whether the confrontation is only by conduct or also verbal is debated, though to suggest this passage has nothing to do with spoken confrontation is overly narrow.

CAREFUL LIVING (5:15 – 17).

In verse 16 the NIV’s “Making the most of every opportunity” is an interpretation of the phrase “redeeming the time.” The Greek word translated as “redeem” is a compound form, an intensification, of the word that means “buy” or “purchase.” It is used with reference to buying back a slave, but in the New Testament, except for this text and Colossians 4:5, refers only to Christ’s purchasing salvation (Gal. 3:13; 4:5). Discussions about whether the meaning is an attempt to gain time or to ransom time from the bondage of evil are probably too literalistic. The expression is a metaphorical way to speak of using time well. A good translation would be, “Buy up every opportunity.” Time is going by, and evil will use it if Christians do not.

v.18

What to do about alcohol? The text’s prohibition of drunkenness obviously is directly applicable and possibly needed even more now than in Paul’s day. Drunkenness has no place in the life of a Christian. How can we watch closely how we live if we are drunk? Consumption of alcohol is not necessarily a sin, but we surely must warn against its dangers and abuse.

Drunkenness — to say nothing of alcohol addiction — is a major problem in our society. This is clear in the problem of drunken drivers, of drunkenness as a form of escapism, of binge drinking (especially by students), and by our society’s strange notion that to have fun we ought to get drunk. We spend a lot of time trying to get people not to drink and drive. If it impairs judgment so much, maybe we should just say, “Don’t drink.” Nothing makes more sense for a faith that emphasizes the development of the mind and human discernment.

The distributors and sellers of alcohol spend enormous amounts to persuade people to drink, while warnings of addiction and abuse are whispered. Why does our society complain bitterly about the abuses of the tobacco industry but say nothing about the alcohol industry? Consumption of alcohol has become acceptable for Christians, with the result that they too are guilty of laxness and over-indulgence. Drunkenness and addiction are not a mere innocent loss of control; they are the destructive waste of a life that ought to be lived unto God. Paul’s real concern is the avoidance of “debauchery” — excessive and wasteful indulgence. If we as Christians choose to drink alcohol, we must make sure that it is a carefully monitored amount and that our witness is not compromised by our actions. The greater the abuse in a given culture, the less Christians should take part.

v.20

In addition to singing, life in the Spirit is characterized by giving thanks (5:20). Many Christians lack appreciation of the importance of thanksgiving in the New Testament. Even more than Ephesians the sister letter to the Colossians stresses thanksgiving repeatedly (Col. 3:15 – 17; 4:2). As we have seen, Romans 1:21 views the failure to give thanks as the root cause of sin. With such a theology, it is not surprising that thanksgiving is associated with life in the Spirit. Thanksgiving is the believing acknowledgment of God and his purposes for good in Christ. Obviously such giving of thanks points to a lifestyle and not just to spoken words.

The House Codes (5:22 – 33)

Christians had to treat these subjects, at least in part, because they were accused of destroying society with their focus on freedom, love, and following Christ. Non-Christians needed to know that this was not the case, and Christians needed to be taught the relevance of their faith for their primary social relations. Unlike other house codes, Christian house codes focused not only on wives, children, and slaves, but also on the responsibilities of the more powerful persons (husbands, parents, and masters).

Instructions to wives (5:22 – 24, 33b). We must begin by emphasizing that the instruction to wives to submit to their husbands is only the first example of the mutual submission required of all Christians. The word “submit” is not even used in the Greek text of verse 22.

Christianity brought with it significant change for women, and apparently their freedom was a source of offense to non-Christians. In Galatians 3:28, for example, Paul wrote that distinctions like male and female no longer determined value. In 1 Corinthians 7:15 he counseled Christians that they did not have to stay with an unbelieving spouse who wanted to leave. That he would have granted wives such privilege would have been surprising to non-Christians, for the assumption of the day was that a wife would take the gods of her husband. It is understandable, therefore, that in Titus 2:5, Paul instructed women “to be subject to their husbands so that no one will malign the word of God.”

Verse 23 is surely one of the most abused and debated texts in the New Testament. Its focus is not on the privilege and dominance of the husband, and Paul never intended to suggest that wives were servants, compelled to follow any and every desire of the husband. The text does not tell women to obey their husbands, nor does it give any license for husbands to attempt to force submission.

[…]

Still, Ephesians 5:23 does not focus on authority, but on the self-giving love of both Christ and the husband. “Head” in this context suggests “responsibility for.” The husband has a leadership role, though not in order to boss his wife or use his position as privilege. Just as Jesus redefined greatness as being a servant (Matt. 20:26 – 27), Paul redefines being head as having responsibility to love, to give oneself, and to nurture. A priority is placed on the husband, but, contrary to ancient society, it is for the benefit of the wife. The activity of both wife and husband is based in their relation to Christ and in his giving himself for the church.

Instructions to husbands (5:25a, 28 – 29 a, 31, 33a). Since wives are asked to submit, one might expect the text would ask husbands to rule in an appropriate way. It does not; instead, it asks husbands to love and give themselves with the same self-giving love that Christ had in giving himself for the church. Both the directions to the wife to submit and to the husband to love only make specific commands that had already been given to all Christians in 5:2 and 21 (cf. 4:2).

Ancient sources, surprisingly, do not speak frequently of husbands loving their wives. Why he did not ask wives to love their husbands is unclear. Is something different intended with the command for husbands to love than the command for wives to submit? No, for both commands are Christologically grounded and require giving oneself to the other person. In the final analysis, submission and agape love are synonymous. If anything, the stronger language is used of the husband’s responsibility. The command for him to love his wife as himself is an application to husbands of the expectation of mutual submission required of all Christians (5:21).

[…]

Analysis of the other house codes in the New Testament shows a great deal of concern for testimony to unbelievers. Colossians 4:5 (parallel to Eph. 5:15) encourages Christians to walk wisely with respect to those outside the church (cf. 1 Cor. 10:32). Likewise, 1 Peter 2:12, 15; 3:1 – 2 encourage behavior that will stop slander against Christians and bring people to God. Such apologetic motivation must be considered in applying these texts in a society that views family relations differently.

This commentary was taken from: Snodgrass, Klyne. “Ephesians 4:1 – 16” In The NIV Application Commentary: Ephesians. By Klyne Snodgrass, 193-228. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, © 1996.

Sunny Kim:

O:  What does Paul insist on with the Ephesians?
To no longer live as the Gentiles do

D: How does Paul characterize living like the Gentiles? In what ways, can I
be living like the Gentiles today? He characterizes them as people who have lost their sensitivity b/c they have developed a habit of giving into their own sensuality, through indulging in every kind of impurity. It started with their thinking becoming futile and their understanding of the truth which became darkened. What was the net result of such thinking? It separated them from the life of God.

Commentary says:
“Ephesians 4:19 could have been written this morning as a telling commentary on us. We give ourselves to trivialities and diversions. Our minds are given to sports, movies, and sitcoms to avoid thought. Our self-centeredness alienates us from God. We do not acknowledge our need of God, do not have time for him, and if we think about him at all, our thought is juvenile. Having lost sensitivity to God and fellowship with him, we give ourselves to sensuality, trying through pleasure and especially through sexual avenues to recover that intimacy for which we were created. We are caught in an increasing downward spiral of serving ourselves. Pleasure and enjoyment are not illegitimate, but when they become the focus of life, they distort and corrupt.”

How true these words are! How much I see so many people give their precious minds to overindulgence in sports, youtube, facebook, blogs, reading about random people’s lives at the expense of avoiding thought and deeper thinking. This is esp. rampant among college students these days. Like the commentary says, pleasure and enjoyment are not illegitimate, but when those things become one’s focus of life, they ultimately distort and corrupt what life in God was meant to be. Hence, I need to be wary of the “Gentile like”
ways in my own life where I engage in frivolous activities to avoid thinking
of weightier issues. If I continue like this I will eventually lose any
sensitivity or intimate fellowship I have been created to exp. with God. I
want to take warning from Paul’s words and put off these former ways of my
old self.

D: What are the things Paul says to put off and then, put on?
Paul commands the Ephesians to put off all that characterizes their old
self, their former way of life, that continues to be corrupted by their
deceitful desires. He says to put off their old self that includes falsehood
and speaking unwholesomely.

A: What are the “old ways” of my former life that I need to put off?

———————————————-

Margaret Chen, Gracepoint Austin:

Notice all the cause and effect words or relationships. Hardening of their hearts = ignorance, darkened in their understanding, separation from the lifeof God

O:  What does hardening your heart cause you to be like?  Darkening in your understanding with regard to spiritual truths, separation from the life of God, and ignorance.

A:  What does it mean to possess a hardened heart?  Means that you are not responsive to spiritual realities and truths.  It’s an attitude of unwillingness to consider any other viewpoints but your own.  Rejecting truth – not wanting to be touched or addressed by it.  Stubbornly holding onto your philosophy and approach to life.

A:  How does one end up hardening their hearts?  To have a hardened heart, I think you would have to be very wedded to your desires and what you want to get out of life.  As you feed and obey your desires and let that become the dominant pattern in your life, you become more hardened in your heart and unwilling to consider anything else let alone truth.  Paul refers to “darkened in their understanding” as well.  When your heart is hard, the more you will twist truth so as to justify yourself and your choices.  You become spiritually dense or “ignorant” as Paul states.  I experience this when I give into my desires.  When I give into my desires, I cultivate a certain attitude that is opposed to the truths and values of God.   Thankfully, this wrong attitude will surface in something that I will say or do and someone more spiritually mature or sensitive will pick up on it.  Yet, even then, the seriousness of what I’ve done is not apparent to me at times which is why I’ll need someone else to react properly and so mirror for me the gravity of what I’ve done.  Once I repent, the shock of what I’ve done will come to me.

App:  How can I avoid the hardening of my own heart?  I need to avoid the hardening of my heart by guarding myself against my deceitful desires.  In v.21, it says that the Ephesians were taught “in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.”  I need to be steeped in God’s truths and the word of God.  It’s through focused time in the word of God regularly that will renew the proper attitude in my own mind.  After even just one day, I can feel so worn down, weak, scattered, and susceptible to my wrong desires.  It’s through my DTs and prayer that I can then put on the new self and be renewed in my commitments and desire to do God’s will rather than succumb to my own will.  These are really non-negotiable times because without them, wrong attitudes that oppose and dishonor God will gain viral strength inside my own heart.  The word of God, however, has the power to cleanse all that away for me.

Another way that I can avoid the hardening of my own heart is through the body of Christ.  Paul refers to how we must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to one another because we are all members of one body.  He encourages the Ephesians to commit themselves to each other and be the church.  It’s hard to live honestly and truthfully with one another but as I strive to do that, my wrong desires become more pronounced either for me to see or for others to see and call me on it.  It can be painful at times, but there is no alternative as Paul refers to the fact that there is a greater enemy (the devil) who is seeking to destroy us and so we need to help each other in this way.  I pray that I can be a person of humility that comes to the word of God and prayer daily with the recognition that it’s like critical medicine for my heart.  I pray that I will have the humility to receive truth from other people in the body of Christ knowing that it is God’s chosen way of purifying me to do His good works and become a person who can love others with His love.

What would be commensurate with living a life that is worthy compared to the calling that you have received?

The calling is presumed by Apostle Paul to be a high calling, to preach the Gospel, to make plain the mystery that is the church.  This knowledge of the Gospel and of the church is so precious not only for eternal life but for how life is meant to be lived here to ultimately experiences the riches of His blessings.    What I have come to know is a precious treasure and in the kingdom parables it is a treasure that is worth selling everything for.  To live a life ‘worthy’, then, would mean to live in such a way that would hold this calling central, of utmost importance, where I am prioritizing and living out this calling above all other ‘lesser callings’.  This means whatever those other callings are, whether it be seeking acknowledgment from people, and building up my own life for my own gain, financially, materially, with respect to worldly status, catering to my emotions of what I feel to be comfortable or soothing, that those motivations take a smaller place in my heart.  There are a lot of other ‘callings’ or purposes for which I can expend my time, energy and resources, but to live a life worthy of the calling I have received means that I need to maximize my life to achieve this purpose of spreading the gospel and building up the church.

What are the ways that I can live my life ‘worthy of the calling I have received’?

I have to not get distracted by other things that may take me away from my primary purpose.  Being out here in Austin, and being a part of this church plant, I see how easy it is for me and others to get distracted from the calling that we have received.  I will never forget the day 2 years ago when we were sent out at the Oakland airport with much tears, well-wishes and prayers.  It is a picture I hold onto to this day.  How dishonoring it would be if I was sent here and I ended up pursuing some other calling.  We have been given the task by God and by others who through love and prayers sent us here, to help build up the church, this amazing ‘mystery’, that had been previously unknown to the generations prior to Apostle Paul, and to spread the Gospel.  It would be so tragic and inconceivable that given the high calling that we would then turn around and expend our energy to build our own lives here, to upgrade our standard of living, to make a name for ourselves through academic pursuits, to enjoy the city life and all the offerings, to take advantage of all the resources we have been given and then use it to live selfishly, indulgently, buying nice things, finding solace in different forms of entertainment, while a city and a campus stews in the juices of the terrible party culture.  It would be wrong if any of us were to have come out here with one primary calling only to then pursue our own agenda.  I have to be careful then, that me, nor the team doesn’t get distracted from our primary goal.  Intellectually we all understand why we are here.  I understand that I need to live my life worthy of the calling I have received, but to live that out is another story.  With the heat here, the myriad of options at my disposal, the temptations of the culture, it only takes small decisions and steps, and subtly, the focus of my life changes.  I need to be wary, then, of things like small purchases for myself, of taking in extra sleep, of finding solace in material goods or anything that is not ultimately useful for spreading the gospel or building up the church because once that small decision is made and I justify it somehow by saying it was ‘necessary’ for me, and for the sake of the Gospel, I am going down a slippery slope and will end up dishonoring His name.  So I need to remain vigilant, in the practical areas of money, time, personal resources, and be careful that I am using it to invest in the church and the spreading of the Gospel.

To live a life worthy in building up the church, it is again so inspiring at the surface, but in the practical day to day lives, difficult. Apostle Paul says, ‘Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. ³ Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”  This means in our context, where we see each other practically every day, being patient when people’s weaknesses and character flaws come out.  I am sometimes surprised that people you thought you knew, you realize was a wrong presumption because lot more comes out in a small community.  Even small things like anywhere between the way people laugh funny, or tell bad jokes, to more weightier characteristics such as how a person works, or uses their money, all comes into sharper focus and becomes the source of much annoyance.  So I can understand Apostle Paul when he says, ‘be completely humble and gentle, patient, bearing with one another in love’.  As we try and build up the church, it starts with making the effort with one another and that is not easy, especially when you are irritable in this 100 degree heat here in Texas and you have to do set up.   Making effort to keep the unity is a challenge, but I need to keep the goal of what we are to do in mind.  The goal is build an Acts 2 community and knowing how mightily God used that church to be a blessing for others is something I need to keep in mind.  We have a long way to go, but to know the vision of what we can be will help me to bear with one another, knowing that the church will be the primary vehicle through which salvation is ushered into people’s lives.  I have been called out here to do what we as a church have agreed we should do, to plant a God-honoring church, and out of respect for the church, for God, I need to make choices that is worthy of that calling.

—————————————————————

Submitted by Conrad Chu, Gracepoint Berkeley.

What did Paul identify himself as? He called himself a prisoner of the Lord.  Meaning, he was unequivocally sure that he was in prison because of the Lord.  It was not for crime, but for belief and conviction that led him to be in that prison cell.

What did Paul urge the church of Ephesus to live up to? He urged them to live a life worthy of their calling.

What does it mean to live a worthy life? There is an idea of worthiness when it comes to living life.  It is not merely a relative standard, but one set by the calling you have received.  For the previous chapter, Paul’s calling was to preach the gospel to the Gentiles and to that end he endured much suffering, even prison.  Paul’s current situation provides proper context to his urging to live up to the calling you have received.

What do I need measure my life by? Apostle Paul is not talking about worthiness in some general sense, like living a generally good life.  Often, the temptation for me is relative and measure of well-lived life in very humanistic terms.  It’s so easy to set relative terms that fit my own liking and comforts.  Unfortunately, the force of  Apostle Paul’s exhortation is in the context of the demands of the gospel, and for him, it was prison.  That really provides the proper lens from which I need to measure my life.  He speaks from the context of real suffering, real cost to his life in living up to his calling.  I imagine if Apostle Paul said what he said from a privileged seat of comfort, his urging would be sapped of any power or meaning.  To that extent, I need to pay attention to the fact that “living a worthy life” will involve suffering and personal cost.  So much of the world excludes suffering from the so-called good life, and there is much of that that has come to influence me.

Following his exhortation, Apostle Paul provides me some of the measures of life: humility, gentleness, bearing with one another in love, unity in the Spirit, and unity with the body of Christ.  He concisely boils down how I ought to examine my interior and exterior life.  Based on this past Sunday’s message, I’m drawn to think about the two interior aspects that Apostle Paul highlights: humility and gentleness.  The opposite of humility is of course pride and this Sunday, I think I needed to once again re-calibrate my view of myself.  Pride is a gradual thing, and I realized my view of myself had shifted towards a positive light and I thought of myself more highly than I ought have.  Just recent events in my life, I realize how through proud blind I am to my own motives in terms of what I say or do.  A side-comment to my wife for example can be laced with pride and abrasiveness, yet I was really blind to it.  As I carefully reflect on my conduct, my issues of pride and abrasiveness emerge throughout in my relationships. I have a long way to go in terms of my own character and I should not think with complacency that I’m okay here.  I need a fundamental shift in my attitude towards myself.

What and who are we called to united under? We are called to be united under one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God.  There is a single authority over all, which can be summed up as the gospel.

What are the different roles that Apostle Paul mentions? He said God gave “gifts to men”, and to each, bestowed grace.  It materializes in different roles we play, for he gave some to be apostle, prophets, evangelists, pastor and teachers.  Though joined together under the unity of the gospel, we are nevertheless playing different roles to prepare God’s people for work of service.

What are the roles all focused to do? All the roles are focused towards building up the body.  They’re not for individual glory or individual ascension.  Their end is to mature the body.

How do we to avoid being like infants tossed about by every wind of teaching? Apostle Paul says we are no longer infants when we become mature, through the preparation and efforts of spiritual authorities (apostles, prophets, teachers, evangelists, teachers).  I think often times we discount how much spiritual authority is necessary to shape us to become more mature.  We misinterpret intentions of leaders.  We forget that it is their end to mature us so that we won’t be blown here and there by every wind of teaching and deceit.  It happens through speaking the truth in love, and truth-telling, though not comfortable is what grows us up to be united and strong.  Apostle Paul paints this picture showing how our best chance of standing up to the temptations and cultural waves around us is to be open to shaping from those who are more mature in the faith and to be open to truth spoken to us.  Perhaps he who balks at authority and chooses to do it solo is in fact the flimsy one who is most vulnerable; certainly, not the idea of individual fortitude that the world elevates.

With the translation “the calling you have received,” the NIV loses the text’s double emphasis on election (lit., “the calling with which you were called”). Paul reminds the reader of the description of salvation in chapters 1 – 3 and especially of the doxology in 1:3 – 14. If God’s love is so great, if his salvation is so powerful, if God has granted such reconciliation, then believers should live accordingly. They should value God’s love enough to be shaped by it. Note that “calling” is used of the salvation and responsibility of every Christian, not of the “professional ministry” or an elite group. This one call is for all Christians to live in accord with what God has done.

The NIV’s “bearing with one another in love” sounds archaic and loses the force of the text. A more appropriate translation is “putting up with each other in love.” The Christian life is a life of putting up with other people, and this tolerance finds its ability and motivation in love (cf. Gal. 6:2). “Love” and “putting up with each other” are intertwined and mutually explanatory.

Application requires accepting the challenge to live out our faith. So often Christianity is presented as if nothing is required of believers. We place so much emphasis on human weakness, on our inability to do anything profitable, and on the necessity of God’s actions in salvation that no room is left for human responsibility. The New Testament never gives this impression! Human responsibility is wedded to God’s action, but we are responsible. We must expect something of ourselves. If God’s salvation is so good, live like it. This requires an act of the will and a determination to follow through. As Philip Spener said, “It is by no means enough to have knowledge of the Christian faith, for Christianity consists rather of practice.”

Our problem is that we have a million dollar salvation and a five-cent response. We seem unimpressed with God’s salvation. We protest that no one can actually live worthy of this calling and express our fears of perfectionism.

Unity Is Motivated by Theological Oneness (4:4 – 6)

Christians must maintain the unity of the Spirit because everything they hold of any significance they hold with other people. Seven items are preceded by the word “one,” and in each case the oneness expresses both the uniqueness of the item and its foundational value for unity. All seven express the reality that there is only one gospel and that to believe that gospel is to enter into the unity it creates. Christianity is a shared faith. No separate or merely individual faith exists, nor is there a different salvation.

vv.14-16
Living the truth in love is no abstract exercise; it is personal, practical, and all-embracing. No other foundation exists for healthy living. We as humans prefer to live in delusion, hiding from ourselves and thinking we are better (or worse) than we are. We lie to ourselves, to each other, and to God. The entertainment industry consciously hides reality and creates an illusion in which people seek to live. As one actor said after being caught in a huge indiscretion, “I don’t believe in truth. I believe in style.” With so many lies, it is not surprising that people are like corks in storm-tossed waves, being carried in every direction (4:14). But sooner or later, the delusion falls apart, and we and our relationships suffer. We need to speak truth with God — even if it is to express our doubts and fears — with ourselves, and with other persons, and then we need to live the truth.

Whether dealing with the shallowness of a self-proclaimed “good” person or with someone struggling with cancer, truth in love is all we have.

Speaking the truth in love may require confrontation, which many of us seek to avoid out of concern for our own security. But in a fallen world confrontation is necessary to love. The command to love one’s neighbor as oneself is even preceded by the admonition, “Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in his guilt” (Lev. 19:17 – 18). Both patience and tolerance also have their roles. Wisdom is required to discern when service to others means speaking or “the ministry of holding your tongue.”

Living the truth in love requires confronting the lies society hands us. Alcohol is not required for a good time. Pornography does demean women, and no, the majority of people are not promiscuous. Poor people are not necessarily lazy. None of us is independent and self-supporting. All Christians are not hypocrites, and no, you cannot worship God just as well by yourself.

The Old Life of Futility (4:17 – 19)

Ephesians 4:19 could have been written this morning as a telling commentary on us. We give ourselves to trivialities and diversions. Our minds are given to sports, movies, and sitcoms to avoid thought. Our self-centeredness alienates us from God. We do not acknowledge our need of God, do not have time for him, and if we think about him at all, our thought is juvenile. Having lost sensitivity to God and fellowship with him, we give ourselves to sensuality, trying through pleasure and especially through sexual avenues to recover that intimacy for which we were created. We are caught in an increasing downward spiral of serving ourselves. Pleasure and enjoyment are not illegitimate, but when they become the focus of life, they distort and corrupt.

Learning the Messiah (4:20 – 24)

The wording of verses 20 – 21 is unusual, almost harsh, and the nuances of the text are difficult to convey. Literally, verse 20 reads: “You did not learn the Christ this way.” No parallel exists for learning a person. More is intended than mere learning facts about Christ. That is, the readers have been schooled in the Messiah. They know him, have firsthand knowledge of him, and know how radically different his life is from that of the Gentiles. The implication seems close to 1 Corinthians 2:16; they have, or should have, the mind of Christ.

The old being fit the former way of living, and its ongoing corruption was fueled by “deceitful desires.” Paul’s thought is related to 2:3, which spoke of disobedience caused by following fleshly desires, although no mention is made here of the ruler of the air. The old being is the human self without God, deluded and deceived into a downward spiral by fleshly desires. The solution requires ongoing renewal and a new creation — two phrases that we would have expected in the reverse order. But Paul’s emphasis on continual corruption seems to have brought the corresponding emphasis on continual renewal first.

Lying and Anger (4:25 – 27)

That the sun is not to go down on our anger is a way of saying that anger must not endure. It must be dealt with quickly and then set aside. The word “foothold” in verse 27 is literally “place.” That is, we must not give the devil room in our lives to operate. Anger is one place of inroad for him, a Trojan horse for his attack. In other words, anger usually leads to other sins.

Christian Ethics (4:25 – 5:2)

Some Christians worry about such specific directions for living, for they fear it may lead to legalism, but this thinking is far from the New Testament. Texts like this do not endorse legalism; they are descriptions of life in Christ, which is never without content. Christian living requires certain and specific actions. The Christian faith is not a passive religion; it is an aggressive pursuit of the productive and beneficial.

[…]

All of us come into the world for a brief time, and we spend most of it yelling “Pay attention to me!” We feel justified in satisfying ourselves, even at cost to others. From the time we are old enough to recognize objects, we want what the other person has — if for no other reason, so that they will not have it. Ephesians 4:28 ignites a bomb under all our self-centered thinking. Our goal is not enjoyment; it is productivity so that we can give. We do not exist for ourselves, but for relations with other people and with God.

[…]

We live in a society of takers, one that mocks the “Puritan” work ethic. But we have been created in the image of God to enter into his creative activity, that is, to work. In failing to be productive we fail to live up to our vocation as humans. Possibly the strongest witness Christians can make is to become givers. The concern is not about giving money, which is at most ancillary to the text. The concern is working to benefit others.

Be like God (5:1 – 2). The command to imitate God is breathtaking to us, but it is a thoroughly biblical idea and not unusual in Jewish or Greek thought. Although other texts may not be this explicit, the Bible assumes that God’s covenant people take their character from him. Leviticus 19 is perhaps the most striking text, for the Israelites are commanded to be holy because God is holy. At least fourteen times in that chapter a command to Israel is followed by the words “I am the LORD,” to show that ethical action is determined by God’s character. Similarly, in Matthew 5:43 – 48 Jesus commanded his disciples to love their enemies in order to be like the Father and to be perfect as their heavenly Father is perfect. Elsewhere Paul urges readers to imitate him or to imitate him as he imitates Christ.

This commentary was taken from: Snodgrass, Klyne. “Ephesians 4:1 – 16” In The NIV Application Commentary: Ephesians. By Klyne Snodgrass, 193-228. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, © 1996.

What is the great mystery which for ages past was kept hidden but now has been revealed? What is this cosmic mystery that Apostle Paul sets up with such lofty, broad words?  Apostle Paul crescendos to this climax, and the grand answer that he gives is v.6 — that the church unites Gentiles and Israel, members together with one body.   And God’s intent was that “now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known” (v.10).  The church is that great cosmic mystery.  During my lone-ranger days, I had no idea how important the church was supposed to be.  I had just assumed that the church was an accessory to Christian life, something that I can tack on or buy into if I saw the need.  But that’s not the vision of the church that God has.  The church is God’s idea, and it’s the climax of history of mankind, the vessel through which the gospel will be spread to the world before the Second Coming of Christ.  The church is IT.   It’s not some poor second-rate club; it’s not a man-made institution that was thought up in our own heads, because we happened to think that it was a good idea to gather Christians together.  I still remember the revelation that came into my heart and mind when I realized this cosmic calling of the church.  It really was like a “mystery” that was revealed to me.  I had been living my Christian life in such an impoverished way by going it alone.  The gospel message wasn’t supposed to be just a message in a bullet point format — it is supposed to be embodied in the church.

As I remember back to my lone-ranger days, I can trace back my dismissal of the church to a few incidents of disappointments with the church, especially the hypocrisy that I saw.  It was the disappointment that came from seeing that the church was no different from the world.  The preacher could say all he wanted about how the church is supposed to be the light in the darkness, a city on a hill, how it’s not supposed to be some kind of a social club.  But what I saw in the parking lots, what I saw in the fellowship halls of some of the churches, what I heard in the living room conversations after the worship services — they all pointed to the fact that the church was nothing more than an hour-per-week social club.  Having been disappointed, I did the typical teenager thing — I took the high road and said “forget this!”  But now that I see that the church is really God’s plan for the world, I can see my cynicism was altogether inappropriate and exceedingly proud.

Now, I find myself in our church where I learned about this grand calling of the church, and I find myself in the midst of people who are actually trying to live out this grand calling.  Our church is not the only one, but from my experience, I know it’s rare to have a church that has the proper self-understanding to be the cosmic body of Christ.  I need to really treasure that.  Before immersing myself in the church, my experience of God, my experience of spiritual struggle, of obedience to God, etc..   They had all been mostly in the abstract.  But within the body of Christ, I got to experience God in such concrete ways that I didn’t know was possible.  God’s love, God’s admonition, God’s forgiveness — all these I have experienced so concretely through the church.  I didn’t know that my relationship with God could be this embodied, this dynamic, this exciting.   I need to understand this and embody this “mystery”, so that the future generations can also embrace this mystery and fulfill God’s intent for them.

That means that I need to invest into the body of Christ.  I need to invest my time and energy into the church.  That means the church is more important than any company.  It’s more important than any educational institution.  Companies and schools are not God’s mysteries made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms.  It’s sad to see Christians who would acknowledge all this in their heads, but when it comes down to it, they think it’s so strange if someone moves to another city to plant a church whereas it’s perfectly understandable to do that for a company or school.  But the biblical truth is that the church has a high calling, and I need to embrace God’s vision for the church and do what I can to make that vision a reality in my life.  I might not be able to make a difference in all the churches in the world, but I can obey God where I am, so that my church can become the church as God intended.

——————————————————————–

Submitted by Joe Song, Gracepoint Berkeley

What is God’s intent for the church?

God’s intent for the church was that His plan of salvation for all people, both Jew and Gentile, would be made known to everyone.  This plan was previously a mystery, not revealed even to the prophets.  But through Christ, God revealed his plan of salvation for all people, the basis for unity for all people in the cross.  The role of the church is now to make known the wisdom of God, this great mystery that was hidden from the fall of man all the way to the cross.  The church is entrusted with spreading the most important news of all time, God’s master plan of salvation for everyone.

How actively am I fulfilling God’s intent for the church through my life?

As one entrusted with a task and responsibility as important as God’s plan of salvation, there is nothing that I can allow to stand in the way of fulfilling God’s plan.  As I recently went to Uzbekistan and saw some of the Christians there, I was so challenged to see how they faithfully serve God despite huge obstacles and suffering in their lives.  One brother leads a church, a rehabilitation center, and works a full-time job to support his family.  I met several women who faithfully serve at an orphanage, doing the physically and emotionally difficult work of caring for and loving many disabled children in the midst of their own personal tragedies and pains (e.g., one woman’s baby daughter recently died when a doctor cut open her throat to remove a chicken bone).  In general, the Christians there have to be constantly wary about a government that is increasingly cracking down on churches and fining and arresting Christians.  They endure all this and still remain faithful to God’s work because the gospel is that glorious.  It’s this same awesome plan of salvation which motivated our church to start three new church plants this summer.

(Gracepoint San Diego & Gracepoint Riverside Church Plant Send-Off)

And it’s the same plan of salvation that I get to participate in and which deserves all of my strength, energy, and time.  As I look to another year of college freshmen ministry in the fall and another year of meeting people at the dining commons, playing ultimate Frisbee several times a week, taking students on trips to SF, etc. I am reminded by this DT passage that I do this all because God’s plan of salvation is so awesome and I have been so blessed to know this plan and be a part of it.  It’s worth everything I can give, and so many Christians throughout the world are giving so much more for the sake of fulfilling God’s great purpose for the church.

v.2  “Paul speaks of grace in ways unfamiliar to us. He says he was given responsibility for the “administration” of grace, became a servant by grace through the working of God’s power, and was given grace to preach to the Gentiles. Whereas we usually limit grace to God’s gift of salvation, this text forces us to realize that grace is also the gift of ministry. The gift always comes as a task. Grace always brings responsibility; it never is merely privilege. This was already present in 1:4, but now we are told how it worked in Paul’s life.  Paul viewed himself as a manager of grace. His ministry to the Gentiles was unique, but all Christians are to be managers of grace. All who have received grace should extend it to others (see also 4:7; esp. 1 Peter 4:10, which instructs all Christians to administer God’s grace faithfully). To receive grace is to be taken into its service. Grace connects, enlists, and empowers. It will not allow us to be passive, for it is God’s power at work in us (1 Cor. 15:10).”[2]

v.4  “In Col 1:27, the “mystery” is Christ’s residence in or among believers, giving them an expectation of future glory. Here it has to do with the inclusion of the Gentiles as those who now inherit such promises (cf. vv. 3, 6).”[3]

vv.7-8  “In 1 Corinthians 15:9, Paul referred to himself as “the least of the apostles,” while here he is “less than the least of all God’s people.” For all his sense of the privilege of being an apostle, Paul had no great sense of his ability or of a high rank. He felt he should have been rejected because he persecuted the church, but he was chosen — a choice not based on his ability, but on God’s grace. Anything he accomplished was a result of the power of God at work in him.”[4]

v.9  “Paul felt a strong responsibility to make the mystery understood (note the parallel between vv. 2 – 5 and v. 9). He wanted everyone to know the secret hidden in God but now made known, that the Gentiles are accepted by God as equals with Jewish believers. The mention of creation in verse 9 and the focus on God’s eternal purpose in verse 11 underscore the continuity between the new creation in Christ and God’s original creation and actions throughout history.”[5]

vv.10-11 “The focus in Ephesians on “the rulers and authorities” has to do with evil powers, not good angels or human institutions. This verse should thus be understood in the context of the display of God’s glory even to those who oppose him. In 1:19 – 22 and Colossians 2:15, Paul announces the defeat of the powers in Christological terms, based on the cross and resurrection. Here he does not need to repeat this announcement. Rather, he focuses on the majesty of God demonstrated in the unity of Jews and Gentiles. The church’s very existence and conduct are making known how great God’s plan of salvation is — both to people and to the powers. This gives an unparalleled importance to the church.                    “His eternal purpose” is literally the “purpose of the ages,” which connects to “for ages past” in verse 9 and to the discussion of God’s purpose in 1:9 – 11. Note the past tense “accomplished.” The “not yet” part of faith is still there, but God’s purpose has already been accomplished in Christ. What remains is an unfolding of what has already been established.”[6]

vv.16-17 “Paul’s prayer indicates God’s people should be aware of the need for the Spirit, attentive to God’s purposes and leading, at work on the interior life, and ready to be obedient. The entire letter — both the theological descriptions in the first three chapters and the ethical instruction in the last three chapters — assumes that instruction, understanding, decisions, and effort are all required for people to enjoy the work of the Spirit. The doxology in 3:20 emphasizes that God is at work in us, but implies that we need to be more aware and more expectant of his work. Ephesians 5:18 instructs us to be continually filled with the Spirit. We are responsible and active in this process. Passivity does not fit with Christian faith.”[7]

“We might say that in the breadth of its sweep, the love of Christ includes every individual of every kind in every age in every world; in the length to which it would go, the love of Christ accepted even the cross; in its depth, it descended to experience even death; in its height, he still loves us in heaven, where he lives always to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25).  No one is outside the love of Christ; no place is beyond its reach.”[8]

vv.20-21  “The presence of the people with God, made possible by Christ, will be a cause for eternal praise. This is what Paul had in mind in 1:18 with the expression “the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints” (see also 2:7).  In verse 19 the love of Christ is beyond understanding, and in verse 20 the activity of God is beyond expectation or thought. The heightened language throughout the prayer shows the depth of Paul’s emotion. […] This doxology sums up the intent of the first half of the letter. We should praise God for his astounding work in Christ Jesus. Paul’s point is not merely that God is able to do beyond what we expect. Rather, this power is already at work in us (cf. the similar language in Col. 1:29, which describes God’s work in Paul’s ministry). God does not fit the limitations of our expectations. The language is reminiscent of Isaiah 55:8 – 9: God’s ways and thoughts are exceedingly beyond our ways and thoughts. God is at work and eager to work in us to achieve his purposes for salvation.”[9]

“The church is not an optional part of Christianity. Rather, it is the place now and throughout eternity where God is given honor and glory. Just as Christ is the evidence of God’s redeeming love, the church is the evidence of God’s transforming and uniting power (cf. 2:7). […] So often the church demonstrates more evidence of human depravity than of God’s transforming and uniting power.”[10]

[2] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 166.

[3] Gaebelein, Frank E., Gen. Ed. Expositor’s Bible Commentary CF (Grand Rapids, MI” Zondervan, 1992)

[4] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 162.

[5] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 163.

[6] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 164.

[7] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 186.

[8] William Barclay, The Letters to the Galatians and Ephesians Daily Study Bible Series, Rev. ed. (Philadelphia:  Westminster Press, 1975) 153.

[9] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 183.

[10] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 191.

In what ways does my old identity as a “foreigner” and “alien” still persist, despite the fact that I am now “fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household?” Despite experiencing a restored relationship with God and becoming “fellow citizens with God’s people and member of God’s household,” my old identity as a “foreigner” and “alien” has not fully been abolished in my life. I think my old identity persists through my deep-seated desire to call the shots over my life and my pride and fears that leads to unwillingness in my heart to fully surrender the control of the specifics of my life to God. And ultimately, I perpetuate my own sense of being an “alien” as I default to my fears and maintain the wall I’ve built around my life and heart. I see a picture of this folly daily as my 2 year old fails to see why I do not let him climb onto high places, put coins into electric sockets, make him take baths, etc. It’s amusing for me to see him acting as if he knows what is best for him and not as amusing when I have to convince him forcefully that daddy knows better.

Taking this analogy to my relationship with God, He has made me a member of His household but my own fears and ideas of what is best for me allows my old identity to persist despite the good God desires for me to experience if I let him do so.

How have I experienced the process of “being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit” with others who are “members of God’s household?”   What do I need to do to further accelerate this process? I have experienced the process of “being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit” with others who are “members of God’s household” through the rubbing of lives with the brothers and sisters of our church. I have had the privilege of being at Gracepoint for the past 18 years with the same pastor and leaders and peers through these years. It’s through the long-term commitment to the church and to people in my life that God has been able to work in me despite my issues, and I have personally experienced God working in my heart through the extended church around me. I am also experiencing this acutely today as I have been sent out with 20 other brothers and sisters to start our new church in Minneapolis. I am experiencing the acceleration of the process of being built together as a church as we are literally building a new church together in this new city for all of us. We are literally seeing each other daily and doing everything together – helping each other settle down, praying for each other, eating together, and everything else required to build our new church. And as I recognize the fact that I am here on a mission and as I desperately cling to the other members of the team, I realize there is nothing more powerful in experiencing being built up as a church than having this common vision and mission together in a “I really need God and everyone else” mode. So as I continue to rely on God and not succumb to my old isolationist ways, I look forward to experiencing even more “God building up our new church to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.”

v.3, “His concern is not that Christians merely lived among the disobedient, but that they also lived like them, determined by the old order. The blame is not placed on the ruler of the old realm, even though he is at work. Rather, it is placed on the “sinful nature” […] It usually refers to that which leaves God out of the picture, that which is merely human and left to its own devices. Implicit is the thought that without God, desires are the lord in control. They must be gratified and followed. In the former life we lived by our sinful desires, doing whatever they told us. “Cravings” and “desires” refer to legitimate human needs that are distorted, subverted, and heightened to produce an irrational self-centeredness […] The picture the text paints is bleak. Because of sins, humans are the living dead. They live in keeping with a world order that ignores God and in keeping with a tyrant who works to cause disobedience. In their enslavement they follow desires and distorted reasonings that leave God out of the picture and, therefore, they are under God’s wrath. But, the main point of Ephesians — and especially of 2:1 – 10 — is that God will not stay out of the picture.”[2]

“The meaning of ‘flesh’ will vary from person to person.  One person’s weakness may be physical desire and the risk may be sexual sin; another’s may be in spiritual things and the risk in pride; another’s may be in earthy things and the risk unworthy ambition; another’s sin may be loss of temper and the risk in envyings and conflict.  All these are sins of the flesh.  […] The flesh is anything in us which give sin its chance; it is human nature without God.  To live according to the dictates of the flesh is simply to live in such a way  that our lower nature, the worse part of us, dominates our lives.”[3]

v.4, “The picture was bleak, but God acted because of his love and mercy. That salvation is a gift and does not come as a result of anything in the receiver is made explicit in 2:8 – 9, but it is already implicit in 2:4. Mercy and love are revelations of God’s being, not a response to something that merits love in the individual. God acts in mercy because he is that kind of God.”[4]

v.6, ” Not only have Christians been raised with Christ, they have also been seated with him in the heavenly realms. What is true of him (1:20) is true of us. If he is exalted to God’s right hand, so are we. We are joined to him so that we are where he is.[…] The intent here is to underscore the life believers now have with Christ, and with that life come privilege, honor, security, and responsibility. This is not, however, the same as saying we are actually seated in heaven. As we saw in connection with 1:3, 33 “in the heavenly realms” is not merely a synonym for “heaven.” […] The phrase points to the heavenly- i. e., the spiritual — reality of God and his work in Christ.[5]

v.8  “Christians are saved by God’s grace, not by their faith. Faith is the only means by which this grace is received. […] Faith cannot be limited to mental assent or to believing certain ideas. […]  Paul assumes this two-sided nature of faith in his discussions of salvation. Faith is relational, describing reliance on a reliable God. Faith is a covenant word, expressing the commitment and trust that bind two parties together. Throughout Scripture, God by his grace makes promises and commits himself to his people. They in turn are to trust those promises and live in light of them. God shows himself faithful and people are to respond in faithfulness.[…]  People who believe do not merely assent to certain ideas; they are bound to God and live in response to him. […] Salvation does not come from believing ideas or an emotional decision, but from being bound to Christ.[6]

v.9   “Works” refers to any human condition or accomplishment by which one thinks to gain status or privilege before God. In reality, however, nothing we do grants standing before God. Humans in and of themselves have no claim on God.   Boasting is actually a determinative part of Paul’s theology. Much of his concern is to make sure that praise goes only to God. He seeks to destroy any conceivable ground for human beings boasting in themselves. Humanity is left with every mouth silenced and no claim or defense before God. The only legitimate boasting is in what God has done (1 Cor. 1:31).”[7]

v.10 “The purpose of God’s creative activity is not merely to have a people, as if he were constructing a work of art. Rather, this new creation is to be active and productive like the Creator. Christians are “to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do”.[8]

“Good works can never earn salvation; but there is something radically wrong if salvation does not produce good actions.  It is not that our good deeds put God in our debt; rather that God’s love lays on us the obligation to try throughout our lives to be worthy of it.”[9]

v.11  “The labels “the uncircumcision” and “the circumcision” were common Jewish ways of referring to Gentiles and Jews respectively. 10 The former expressed disdain for the nonelect and disobedient, while the latter was a title of honor and privilege for those belonging to God’s covenant. […] Although the Jews were bad-mouthing the Gentiles as “the uncircumcision,” in Paul’s mind Jews were no better off, for the circumcision in which they boasted was a mere human circumcision. They too were “in the flesh.” They lived in the same realm as the Gentiles, even with their circumcision.”[10]

v.16 “In New Testament texts, God is always the one who does the reconciling. Human beings are reconciled; God (or Christ) reconciles. The initiative always lies with God. The cross is God’s act to reconcile people to himself, not an act by which he is reconciled. Even when people are hostile to God and God is angry, he loves and works to restore relations.  The result of reconciliation is “access” (2:18), the privilege of entering into God’s presence.   The term was used of an audience with a king, but the more likely nuance derives from temple ideas of access to God.”[11]

vv.21-22, “In the treatment of 2:1 – 10 we saw that Christians can no longer view themselves merely as individuals. They are part of Christ and of each other. In 2:11 – 22 this theme is emphasized once again, with “one new being” and with the “body” and “building” imagery. The problem is that modern Christians — especially in the Western world — seem to know only individualism. We must change our outlook. This passage confronts our individualism and asserts our involvement with Christ and with those in him. We cannot separate our relation with God from our relation with other people. The two are so interwoven that they do not exist in isolation, even if we rightly argue the relationship with God is primary. The horizontal and vertical dimensions interact with and define each other. Even in approaching God in confession and repentance, we have already acted on the horizontal plane.”[12]

[2] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 98-99.

[3] William Barclay, The Letters to the Galatians and Ephesians Daily Study Bible Series, Rev. ed. (Philadelphia:  Westminster Press, 1975) 116.

[4] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 99-100.

[5] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 102.

[6] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 104.

[7] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 106.

[8] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 107.

[9] William Barclay, The Letters to the Galatians and Ephesians Daily Study Bible Series, Rev. ed. (Philadelphia:  Westminster Press, 1975) 121.

[10] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 126-27.

[11] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 135.

[12] Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996) 146.

What 3 things does this text say exercise control over unredeemed man?  In what ways did I follow these things before I became a Christian?

The cravings of our sinful nature, our desires, and our thoughts exercise control over unredeemed man.

Before I became a Christian, I was quite insecure and was enamored with the idea that perhaps I was some special person waiting to be discovered by the world. Therefore my constant cravings and desires were for human approval and recognition.  I craved the attention of people in whatever way I could by the way I dressed, talked, by trying to study hard in school, or by just trying to be a nice and pleasant person. My desires were fixed on how I could build up a good reputation before other people to win their respect and friendship to drown out my sense of worthlessness.  So my thoughts were often very complicated, second guessing people’s responses towards me and reading into people’s “true” motives.  These thoughts eventually led to a very warped perspective about people, myself, God, and just life which brought upon many heartaches to myself, hurt towards others and rebelliousness against God.

How have I experienced being “made … alive with Christ?”

I was so enslaved to my cravings and desires for recognition before people to the point that I felt so hopeless and “dead” inside because I had reached a point where I didn’t know who I really was or what I was supposed to live for.  But I experienced being made alive in Christ when God’s Word confronted my obsessive, self-centered ways and I was convicted that I was wicked sinner who was defying God and His rightful place in my life as Creator and Lord who alone deserve all recognition and praise. This was a piercing realization but it was also liberating at the same time.  When I was finally able to honestly own up to my self-centeredness as rebellion against God and cried out to Him for forgiveness through the cross of Jesus, I experienced not only my guilt and shame being lifted but also all the “chains” of my self-centered cravings, desires and thoughts being loosened as well.  Ever since I was convicted that my worth as a person did not come from how people viewed me through my performance or anything I do but from God’s unconditional love and grace, I am continuing to be made alive with Christ as He enables me to die to my desires for significance and approval and instead and be used by Him to bring others like me to Christ.

vv. 17-18 – What did the Apostle Paul pray for the Ephesians?
• that they might be given the Spirit of wisdom and revelation
• that the eyes of their heart may be enlightened

What should the eyes of their heart being enlightened lead to?
knowledge of:

• the hope to which he has called me
• the riches of the inheritance I have in the saints
• God’s incomparably great power

What would characterize a life where the eyes of the heart are not enlightened or remain darkened?
• hopelessness
• feeling impoverished
• feeling weak or a lack of power / strength

Application:  Are the eyes of my heart enlightened or darkened? There are many times when the eyes of my heart remain darkened or I have a tunnel vision, focused on myself and my own abilities or lack thereof, and so as I look at myself as a minister of the Gospel, I feel inadequate, I feel a sense of lack and I lack the resources to make things happen.  I lack the power to change myself and those around me; I feel hopeless about my circumstances and about the depravity and brokenness in the world.  I feel my weaknesses very acutely, even as I try to serve God.  In that way, the eyes of my heart are darkened.

• On the other hand, I have also experienced the eyes of my heart being enlightened, as I lift them up to see GOD, and Him at work, and all that HE is doing in and around me, the ways that He answers my prayers for the church plant team jobs or housing needs, the way that He’s working in our Interhigh ministry, the way that He’s gathering Impact students for us to minister to, the ways that He’s expanding our hearts and sphere of concern to embrace the elderly, the needy, children.  Then I experience His incomparable power to change the world through the Gospel, and I experience the riches of my inheritance in the saints, as we all work together towards a common cosmic goal, and I experience a hope beyond the brokenness of this world, the hope He has called me to and that I can now help to call others to as well.
• Lord, please open the eyes of my heart so that I can see beyond myself to all that You are doing, so that I can experience the spiritual blessing You have in store for me.  Thank you for blessing me so richly and undeservedly.

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Submitted by Phil Choi, Gracepoint Hsinchu

Apostle Paul prays that the Ephesians would know God better, specifically regarding these 3 things in v.18:

1.      To know the hope to which he has called us

2.      The riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints

3.      His incomparably great power for us who believe

Throughout this section Apostle Paul uses lofty words, describing God as “the glorious Father,” and wants the Ephesians to know “the riches of his glorious inheritance” and his “incomparably great power.” One thing that is clear is that Apostle Paul’s view of God is elevated and full of amazement. To Paul, God is not small or one-dimensional. Rather, God is big, colorful, dynamic, and worthy of such lofty words, and it’s this God that Apostle Paul desperately wants the Ephesian church to know.

What allowed Apostle Paul to know God is this kind of way? I believe it was through his personal experiences in life. In 2 Corinthians 11 he lists many of the things he had to suffer because of the Gospel, and while some people might take pity on him for those things, Paul has no such self-pity. Instead, he boasts about his sufferings because through suffering he experienced God in a deeper, more personal way. The more he suffered, the more God became real to him, and that is why he is able to use such words to describe God. You do not get the sense that he is using “Christian jargon” to describe God. Instead, these are personal descriptions of God based on personal experience. I realize that its through obedience and personal suffering that God becomes more real and personal. It’s true of any relationship; the more you go through difficulties with a person, the more intimate your knowledge of that person becomes.

I realize that this true for me as well because it was through times of personal struggle and learning to sacrifice that I came to know God in a deeper, more intimate way. Before coming to Taiwan, I had a lot of time to think about my memories of Davis the past 11 years and all the ways God has led me, and one characteristic of God that is more real now than before is God as my Redeemer. There were times in the past when I felt so hopeless against my sin, and I had a lot of regret because of things I had done. And while I could not see then how God could ever make good out of that, somehow by His grace He has turned those things in memories by which I can actually give thanks to God for. One way He has redeemed my sin is by giving me a more sensitive heart and a fear of sin that makes me more humble and on guard. But another way is by giving me a more compassionate heart towards others who struggle with their own sin. And now when I view the students under me, I see them through a completely different lens than before. I see people bound by their sins, and whether they know it or not, it’s destroying them. And my heart goes out to them because I know what it’s like to be in that position. And that’s what fuels my heart with passion to do ministry, because as I have been saved by God’s grace, now I need to help rescue others. I am able to share Paul’s excitement because I have experienced God as my Redeemer, to be personally true.  So I can share with others that God is truly my Redeemer with a lot more conviction.

In this introductory passage of Ephesians, Paul uses a number of related words in describing the course of God’s unfolding His salvation plan, from the creation of the world to the future.  In verse 4, it says that He “chose” us before the beginning of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.  Eons before I came to exist, God somehow foresaw me coming.  But how am I to be “holy and blameless” in His sight when I am a sinful person?  Paul next writes in v. 5 that we will be “predestined” to become the adopted children of God trough Jesus Christ.  Our sins will be forgiven, and thus reaching holiness and blamelessness in God’s sight, from redemption through Jesus’ blood. And this too is “in accordance with” (v. 7) God’s overall salvation plan.  Thus the mystery of God’s salvation plan is “purposed in Christ,” or that Christ’s incarnation, death and resurrection are the centerpiece of God’s salvation plan; the linchpin that makes all things possible.  And finally, the time will come into the future when the fulfillment of God’s entire salvation plan will be made real, when God will bring all things in Heaven and on earth under His sovereign domain.

In other words, God’s salvation plan for mankind is the plan that He is currently unfolding in my life.  This is a plan that began to unfold in the beginning of time, all the way back in Genesis 3 after Adam and Eve sinned, when God said that the offspring of the woman will crush the serpent’s head.  This salvation plan reached its climax at the death and resurrection of Jesus, and it will ultimately complete on the day of Christ’s return when God will re-establish His reign or earth and finally reverse the fallen state of man.  And as I find myself caught up in the middle of God’s unfolding salvation plan, it gives me encouragement as I think about my life and the sins that are still in me and that I am still struggling.  Sometimes it gets tiring and discouraging as I think about the fact eleven years after I became a Christian that same pride, self-centeredness, image-consciousness and other sins are still a part of me.  But this passage reminds me that just as God is in control of the grand salvation plan for the entire humanity, He is similarly in control of the still unfolding salvation in my life.  Though I still struggle with sin and those lingering aspects of my old nature, the day will come when the good work that was begun in my life will be brought to completion in Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6) and I will be “made perfect in Christ.” (Colossians 1:28).  God is in control of my life, and I can cast my eyes upon Him and trust in Him to continue to lead me.  Instead of focusing on my sins and thinking, “How come I am slow to change?” I can focus on God and trust that he will continue to mold me and sanctify me until the day when I will be “holy and blameless” in His sight.

This passage also gives me encouragement as I think about the work of the Great Commission that our church is engaged in this world.  Sometimes the world seems to be ever darkening, as secularism, moral desensitization and idolatry seem to be growing more rampant not only in the lives of the people here in Taiwan, but also in the States.  Increasingly Hollywood pumps out worse and worse garbage that young people consume without discretion.  Relational brokenness, divorces, cohabitation without bothering to get married become more and more commonplace.  Truth claims become more and more unpopular while relativism twists the definition of tolerance into the new standard of the day.  And as I try to reach out to students in the midst of all these, sometimes I don’t feel so encouraged as the work is replete with frequent rejections and people losing spiritual interest.  But against all these the Word of God reminds me that God is in control.  His salvation plan for mankind in this broken world has been going according to plan and will be fully fulfilled on that day when every brokenness will be made whole and the New Jerusalem will be established.  So knowing that God’s victory over sin in this world is certain and predetermined, I can have confidence in the work that I am doing.  I can be passionate and zealous in continuing to serve God and reaching out to the people.  Our church can continue to plant more churches and enter into more spiritual harvest fields, because in the end we know that God will be victorious and not sin.

Submitted by Andy Tung, Gracepoint Hsinchu

(God’s hand is on the right, reaching out towards man)

Here is the recommended personal devotions schedule.

Bible Passages for June 14-20, 2010

Monday                 6/14            Ephesians 1:1-14
Tuesday                 6/15            Ephesians 1:15-23
Wednesday           6/16            Ephesians 2:1-10
Thursday               6/17            Ephesians 2:11-22
Fri-Sun                  6/18-20     Psalm 107-125
Click here to download the Inductive Bible Study Training Guide.

Click here to download the Inductive Bible Study Packet for June 14-20, 2010.