Calling

Throughout this week, we have read about God’s plan to unite Jews and Gentiles as followers of Jesus. Today, Paul reminds the Ephesians about a challenge that is inherent with this plan.

Ephesians 4

1 Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God.

2 Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.

3 Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.

4 For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future.

5 There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism,

6 and one God and Father, who is over all and in all and living through all.

Calling. I am challenged by the phrase “I ... beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling”. Paul’s not talking about earning the grace God has given us as if it is somehow “same as cash” and we are on a payment plan. He’s talking about sharing the grace God has given us especially with fellow Jesus followers. It won’t be easy ... humility and patience require effort, sometimes every effort we have. The reason this is so important is that the possibility of God’s grace seems less likely to those who have never experienced when the ones that claim to have experienced it can’t even express it to each other.

Trust

On Tuesday, we read Paul’s explanation of God’s “mysterious plan” that enabled both Jews and Gentiles to experience His grace. Today, Paul offers a prayer for the church in Ephesus ... a prayer that flowed from the thought of that plan.

Ephesians 3

14 When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father,

15 the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth.

16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.

17 Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.

18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.

19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

20 Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

21 Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen.

Trust. Paul’s prayer offers some beautiful “destinations” in our spiritual journey ... strong, love,complete, life, power; but it all begins with trust. Trust is a concept that is easy to claim when life is flowing smoothly and harder to express when life is an uphill battle. I do pray that you experience all of those things in your journey; but more than that, I pray that you will learn to trust Jesus no matter what challenge you face.

Steady

Every Wednesday, we review the previous weekend’s message. This past weekend, Jonathan concluded our Entourage series by taking a look at the story of Aaron and Hur and discussing our need for a prayer partner. Take a minute to reread their story ...

Exodus 17

8 While the people of Israel were still at Rephidim, the warriors of Amalek attacked them.

9 Moses commanded Joshua, “Choose some men to go out and fight the army of Amalek for us. Tomorrow, I will stand at the top of the hill, holding the staff of God in my hand.”

10 So Joshua did what Moses had commanded and fought the army of Amalek. Meanwhile, Moses, Aaron, and Hur climbed to the top of a nearby hill.

11 As long as Moses held up the staff in his hand, the Israelites had the advantage. But whenever he dropped his hand, the Amalekites gained the advantage.

12 Moses’ arms soon became so tired he could no longer hold them up. So Aaron and Hur found a stone for him to sit on. Then they stood on each side of Moses, holding up his hands. So his hands held steady until sunset.

13 As a result, Joshua overwhelmed the army of Amalek in battle.

Steady. One of the most important things we need to do, when we face conflicts and challenges in life, is remain steady in our posture toward God. It is easy, when the conflict or challenge begins to overwhelm us, for us to turn away from God. That is why we need people to stand beside us, through prayer, and help us remain steady until the conflict or challenge has passed. Who is praying for you? Who are you praying for?

Variety

I hope you had a safe and relaxing Labor Day weekend. Today, Paul reveals an important aspect of God’s plan.

Ephesians 3

1 When I think of all this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus for the benefit of you Gentiles . . .

2 assuming, by the way, that you know God gave me the special responsibility of extending his grace to you Gentiles.

3 As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me.

4 As you read what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan regarding Christ.

5 God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets.

6 And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus.

7 By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News.

8 Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ.

9 I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning.

10 God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.

11 This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord.

12 Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence.

13 So please don’t lose heart because of my trials here. I am suffering for you, so you should feel honored.

Variety. You’ve probably heard it said that “Variety is the spice of life.” Apparently, variety is also supposed to be a way of life in the church. Unfortunately, the church has come to demonstrate more of the division than the unity of that variety. We need to ask God “boldly and confidently” how we, as a church, can help eliminate some of that division and restore some of that unity within God’s variety.