Ephesian 1:7-13

 "In Him we have redemption [that is, our deliverance and salvation] through His blood, [which paid the penalty for our sin and resulted in] the forgiveness and complete pardon of our sin, in accordance with the riches of His grace which He lavished on us.  In all wisdom and understanding [with practical insight] He made down to us the mystery of HIs will according to HIs good pleasure which He purposed in Christ, with regard to the fulfillment of the times [that is, the end of history, the climax of the ages]--to bring all things together in Christ, [both] things in the heavens and things on the earth.  In Him also we have received an inheritance [a destiny--we were claimed by God as His won], having been predestined (chosen, appointed beforehand) according to the purpose of Him who works everything in agreement with the counsel and design of His will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ [who first put our confidence in Him as our Lord and Saviour] would exist to the praise of Hi glory.  In Him, you also, when you heard the word of truth, the good news of your salvation, and [as a result] believed in Him, were stamped with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit [the One promised by Christ] as owned and protected [by God]."

Ephesians 1:7-13 Amp

Think about all of the gifts we have received from Christ's sacrifice for us:

7a - We have complete and total pardon from our sins.

7b-8a - We are "lavished" with grace.

8b-9 - We have been given His wisdom and understanding regarding His will.

10 - We specifically know His will to bring all things together in Christ at the end of the ages.

11-12 - We have an inheritance and destiny, having been chosen as His to give evidence of His glory.

13 - We have been adopted in His family and are protected by Him.

I'm sure we could find more gifts just in this small section of the Word.  And there are so many more we can find as we continue to study His Word!

Ephesians 1:3-6

"Blessed and worthy of praise be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ, just as [in His love] He chose us in Christ [actually select us for Himself as His own] before the foundation of the world, so that we would be hold [that is, consecrated, set apart for Him, purpose-driven] and blameless in His sight.  In love He predestined and lovingly planned for us to be adopted to Himself as [His own] children through Jesus Christ, in accordance with the kind intention and good pleasure of His will-- to the praise of His glorious grace and favor, which He so freely bestowed on us in the Beloved [His Son, Jesus Christ]."

Ephesians 1:3-6 Amp

God chooses to love us.  Despite all that we are and do, and He knows everything that we are and do, He chose to love each of us. You can see patterns of phrasing in the Bible where it says God hates 6 thing and finds 7 repulsive.  In the list that follows the final thing will be a person.  In Proverbs 6:16-19 God hates a proud look, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that creates wicked plans, feet that run to evil, and a false witness.  But God only finds repulsive one (a person) who spreads discord.  Despite all of our sin, sin that God hates, He still chooses to love all of us.

He gave us a way out of the penalty of our sin.  After Adam & Eve sinned, He could have left them to the penalty of their sin.  Death.  But He chose to give His son, Jesus, that we might still be able to walk with Him.  He gave man everything, twice.  First when He placed Adam & Eve in Paradise.  And second when He sacrificed His Son that we could join Him in paradise.  He chose to redeem us.  I've heard some say that that choice is the reason that Satan hates us and God.  Go chose to redeem Man when he could have chosen to redeem Satan and the angels that rebelled against God.

In short, He set us apart, sacrificed his son for us, and then adopted us as children.  

A Deliberate Act of Will

“How do you develop such a hunger for God’s word?”

“You make a decision, a deliberate act of your will. You then prioritize the time, and you stick to it. Just like exercise tones and strengthens the body, consuming God’s word tones and strengthens the soul. You’ll see a difference. Guaranteed.”

The Old Man and the Tea - McMillian Moody

A few years ago I found a book series on Amazon Kindle about Elmo Jenkins, a young man finishing up seminary with a church internship.  The books follow his journey through a life of ministry.  I reread the books every couple of years. They aren't a deep read but they are funny and have spiritual nuggets like above.

This one hit me hard last night.  I've been trying to develop a consistent time of bible reading.  But honestly, I haven't been very successful.  I'll go stretches of reading every day followed by stretches of not reading.  I have my alarm set to get up thirty minutes early.  But I'll end up going back to sleep or playing games on my phone.

Not this morning.  I was tempted to go back to sleep, but the words "deliberate act of will" ran through my head.  So I got out of bed and read the bible.  A chapter of proverbs.  Several chapters of psalms.  Some time in prayer.  Got the kids off to the bus and then spent some time in Ephesians.  It was a good morning.

Now it's time to stick to it.  Each morning my alarm will go off and I will make another deliberate act of will.  And in time it will become easier.  And I will develop that hunger for God's word.

 Ephesians 1:1-2

Paul, an apostle (special messenger, personally chosen representative) of Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed), by the will of God [that is, by His purpose and choice], to the saints (God's people) who are at Ephesus and are faithful and loyal and steadfast in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace [inner calm and spiritual well-being] from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I like this definition of peace.  Inner calm and spiritual well-being.

Not calm, but inner calm.  Everything could look crazy and reckless on the outside, but inside is calm.  Usually, we try to portray an appearance of peace while we have tremendous turmoil on the inside.  People say that's like a swimming duck.  Everything above the water looks smooth and easy but under the water those legs are moving like crazy!  

I would say this inner calm is like an eagle clinging to a tree branch in a storm.  That eagle is being buffeted by rain.  The tree and branch are swaying to and from in the wind.  But because of that firm grasp the eagle has on the limb it isn't concerned.  It's just sitting there riding out the storm.  Calm.

Not just inner calm, but inner calm and spiritual well-being.  Have a connection to our God and Savior that will stay strong through our trials and tribulations.  

Think back to that eagle.  What if that eagle was clinging to a dead tree?  It's still calm while it's clinging to that branch.  But at some point in time that rotten branch is going to break.  When it does break, whether in that storm or the next, that eagle will lose its calm until either the storm is over or it finds itself clinging to another branch. That what it's like when someone is clinging to another religion.  That rotten branch may hold for a while, but eventually a storm will come along that will break it.  Only our connection to Christ is able to stay true and strong through any storm that may come along. 

Or the eagle's grasp on the limb may not be as strong as it should be.  Whether because of weakness, laziness or shifting feet, a gust of wind could come along at just the right time and blow the eagle off of the strong branch.  The same can happen to us if we become weak in our connection to Christ.  We become too lazy to keep the connection strong. Or we turn away from him at just the wrong moment.  The storm comes along and makes a mess of us until we focus on reattaining that strong connection to Christ.  And it always seems to take more effort to get back to the place of peace we had before being knocked about than it would have taken to maintain a strong, enduring connection to Christ before the storm knocked us off of our, unknown to us, precarious perch.  

Keep your connection strong.  Don't get lazy.  Don't lose focus.  Stay in Peace.

Consecration & Holiness

2 Timothy 1:9 AMP

[For it is He] Who delivered and saved us and called us with a calling in itself holy and leading to holiness [to a life of consecration, a vocation of holiness]; [He did it] not because of anything of merit that we have done, but because of and to further His own purpose and grace (unmerited favor) which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began [eternal ages ago].

Society defines us by our vocation, by the work we do. Are you a firefighter? A doctor? A plumber? A waitress? Unemployed? But those are not the vocations by which God defines us. God's job is for us to be holy.

I've been meditating on this scripture for over a week now. I keep asking myself, "How much effort do I put into living a consecrated life? How much do I work at the job of being holy?" It is effort and work. If it wasn't difficult then life wouldn't be such a struggle. There are too many lies, distractions and tricks from the devil keeping us on our toes for us to say our lives are easy. Too many trials and tribulations for us to think we're sailing through our time on this earth. So how much effort are we putting in? Are we choosing to live our lives according to God's Word?  Or are we taking the easy way and living according to the world's standards?

As the choices come between the world's values and God's values I have to admit that there are times that I don't make the right choice. It is a daily and even hourly struggle. But I hope that as my life goes on I am choosing God's values more and more often. And I find that the more time I spend reading my bible or meditating on God's instruction the easier it becomes to choose God's values. 

I choose to live a life of consecration. I choose a vocation of holiness.

I Am Ashamed

"Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God,"
2 Timothy 1:8

How often do we back down from sharing Christ's sacrifice with others? We always have an excuse. It wasn't the right time. They wouldn't have listened. I didn't know what to say.  We say to ourselves that we are not ashamed of our belief, but we are afraid of how others will think of us when they know the depths of our faith. And that is being ashamed.

I am ashamed of the testimony of our Lord...

What suffering would we endure today? Lack of Respect? Sideways glances at the water cooler? Ridicule?  How does that compare to what Timothy and the Apostles went through? Jail? Beatings? Torture? Death? And those things didn't just happen in the Apostle's time. There are Christians dying for their faith in Sudan, Iraq, and China. I have a friend who was a missionary in China who at least once had his bags packed to leave at a moment's notice because the police were asking everyone around him about his activities. How small I feel when I compare the fear of possible ridicule to others fear for their family's life and safety.

I am ashamed of my shame and fear...

Fan the Flame

"For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands,"
2 Timothy 1:6

I know I've asked God to increase my desire for the Word. To build up the fire in me. But that is not his job. He has placed in us the spark. And we are to cultivate that spark. It is up to us to build the fire. 

We won't have to do it alone. There will be people that help us protect the spark when it is small and fragile. Some will tend the fire with us. Some will give us fuel when it looks like the fire is dying. And we will do the same for others.

That doesn't mean we don't do our part in building the fire. We can't rely on others to build, tend and maintain our fire. It is OUR fire. And it will take time. A good fire isn't started with gasoline. That will burn out too quickly. You start with tinder. Slowly feed it twigs and sticks. Then put on the logs. Then you have a fire that will that will last. 

Spend time with God in prayer and study.  Meditate on His Truth.  Worship Him with everything you do.  Build up that spark until it is a roaring bonfire that jumps and spreads onto others.