Open Letter

I wrote this letter to my Sunday Morning Bible Study class. The thoughts in it had been on my heat and mind all week. I post this to challenge myself again, and anyone else who cares to read.

Dear ones,

I want to read you this letter, because I want to choose my words carefully. Today is where the “fun” part of the study ends. Ephesians 1-3 are theologically rich, revealing to us who god is and who we are in Christ: what is/has been done in our inner man. Chapters 4-6 deal with what our lives must be like because of the theology previously revealed.

I warn you. As we face these next chapters you have 2 choices. Mind you – these are not one time choices. These are choices we make every day. This isn’t just a one-time moment of placing a stick on the altar (though that is an excellent outward expression of an inward commitment); this is a moment-by-moment day by day choice. But it is one I also challenge you to make today – and keep making every day.

OPTION 1: Allow God to transform you, remember that He has already given us every spiritual blessing in Christ (1:3), we are alive in Christ, and not dead (2:1-5), and He is able “to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us (3:20). We do not transform ourselves – though we may try. I cannot explain how this works – that is part of the mystery of God – how He transforms us, but He can and will do it. Now, if this is the option you want to choose I warn you: This option is not “safe,” or comfortable – it is TERRIFYING and exhausting. God will ask of you more then YOU can give, so that you can walk in His power and know His strength. You will have to lay things down that are precious to you and shed thought patterns and activities which you hold close to your heart. You will have to take up things you’ve never wanted to do, trusting that He will give you the desire for them and change your heart. But I promise you: This is the path to the greatest joy and beauty. Those things we hold on to do not bring us happiness – they distract us from knowing God. God wants us to have the greatest possible happiness that comes from knowing and serving Him in every area of our lives. Yes, it can be terrifying and exhausting – but IT IS WORTH IT!

OPTION 2: Walk away. We don’t have to be changed, we don’t have to grow, we don’t’ have to let go, we don’t have to do anything. We can continue to allow distractions to rule our lives, and continue living in the flesh, we can continue with the same’ol, same’ol comfortable life we’ve always had. We have the option of either jumping off the cliff, or refusing. I am afraid some of us are going to choose this option, maybe not today – but tomorrow or the next day we’ll land on this choice. Still coming to church, still doing the “good Christians things” (church, small groups, choir, devotions, missions trips, teaching Sunday school, BSF, nursery, etc) – but internally we walk away. A choice not to embrace is to reject. Jesus does not give half way points. I warn you: This option may seem safe, and comfortable, but you are trusting in the cliff which could crumble benieght your feet. And God at times (though He does not always) will rip away what you are trusting in so that you have to depend on Him. And it is much less painful to give it up freely. I promise you: This option may not be an un-happy option, but you are missing out. You are as C.S. Lewis said (and I slaughter this quote), “Content to make mud pies in the slums of London, because you cannot imagine what it would be like to take a vacation at the sea.” If you hold on to earthly pleasures – earthly pleasures you will get. Earthly water runs dry – Seek heavenly water (John 4).

My challenge is this:

OPTION 2: If you find yourself here – pray that the Lord will change your heart and mind. I know, though experience, what it is like to walk away from the cliff and say, “Not now Lord, I am not ready.” I know what it is like to live on the edge and never jump because I like solid ground too much. And I do think sometimes (often) the choice to jump isn’t really voluntary, the cliff starts crumbling and we decide it really is safer just to trust God.

I almost hesitate to say this, because I know and love you all, but some of us MAY, I repeat, MAY be caught in option 2 because we do not have the Holy Spirit. We do not have the spiritual blessings. We are spiritually dead. We can’t jump, because we’re a corpse laying on the ground. Many people go to church their whole lives, without ever knowing God. I say this not to have you doubt your salvation – but to open a door for the Spirit to prick any heart in which He does not reside.

OPTION 1: Fling yourself off the cliff with abandon. The scripture doesn’t say, “Don’t live in fear.” It says, “When I am afraid, I put my trust in You. In God, whose word I praise – in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? (Psalm 56:3-4).” Trust me, You’re afraid, I’m afraid. I have NO idea what God is gonna ask of me. But I choose to trust that He is good and kind and if He breaks my heart (which I need), He has the power to heal it. When God heals us – are stronger than when we were before.

I know there will be varied reactions to this letter and to the word as it is taught and later preached today. If any of you need to talk, I am available – Grab me, I will make time to sit down, and hammer this issues out with you.

Fill a Pitcher with the Ocean

I don’t blog often. Only when the topic is something so important/profound I have no recourse but to write. Usually, I prefer to share awesome thoughts verbally with whomever will listen – rarely do I desire to calm myself down enough to sit and type and make myself understood. There is no sure audience, no sure feedback, as a friend of mine said – blogging is like “shouting into the void (sorry If I misquoted you).” But, once and a while – there is a thought or topic which is worth committing to paper. There is something that is worth and uncertain audience – because the truth is greater than I am. I must commit the idea to writing, the concept to paper, so that it will last.

The impact of Ephesians 3:14-21 is one of those passages. This passage, we are all very familiar with. It’s one I’v e heard and thought about, and prayed for years. It wasn’t until today – that I really grasped the meaning.

“¹⁴ For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, ¹⁵ from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, ¹⁶ that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, ¹⁸ may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, ¹⁹ and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

²⁰ Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, ²¹ to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen. (Eph 3:14-21, NASB)”

I don’t know how you have viewed Paul’s prayer in these verses. I’ve often considered them the “God has the power to give me whatever I want” verses. Mind you, that rarely happens. So in my selfish, pouting way I would often add the line “if he wants to” at the end of verse 20, because, God often doesn’t give me what I ask or desire. I want many things in life – and I don’t have them. So is this verse false? Not at all! That is where the beauty comes. This text is all about changing our entire perception of life. Mind you – we cannot understand it without a little context.

Go read Ephesians 3:1-13 – I’ll wait till you’re done. J

Now, consider that verses 14-21 build off specifically of 3:1, 12-13. Paul writes this book to the Ephesian church (and surrounding churches as it was probably circulatory letter) while he is imprison in Rome. He has spent the first two chapters of the book describe to them the work of salvation, and grace. If the audience doesn’t understand those things – the rest of the book has no foundation.

In verse 3:13 Paul’s reveals his purpose for 3:1-13, “I ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory (3:13, ESV).” The Ephesian church loved Paul. He had stayed with them for three years, teaching and discipling that body. It is natural that they were concerned since their beloved pastor/spiritual father/friend was now in a Roman prison. But Paul does not share their viewpoint. He basically says to them, “I wish you could see what I see!” He tells them, “No, no, no! You don’t understand. You see my imprisonment as a bad thing. Hold on, you have to have the whole picture. The grace I wrote to you about in chapter two; God has given me a special part of dealing out that grace. The mystery of salvation and the blended nature of the church (Jews and Gentiles together, I wish I could go on about purity maps and the profundity of this by itself – but that is another blog post) are there to bring a unity which reflects the trinity for the purpose of showing God’s wisdom to the powers that be- both in the earthly realm, but also the Spiritual realm. The devil and his minions are to more fully understand God’s power and wisdom by what happens in the church (take a moment and consider the implications of that, vs. 10). This blended nature requires that gentiles be saved – and I, Paul – the one who persecuted the church – have been given the privilege, the GIFT that I would be one of the primary ones to help this happen. God choice to use ME to put his mysterious plan in order – to work it out! You, Ephesians, see my physical circumstances, you see that I am suffering and imprisoned – you don’t see the glory! You don’t see how I would be willing to suffer ANYTHING. The privilege God has given me is SO SO much greater. It’s so much bigger! Move your focus from the stuff, the troubles of this world – and see what God is doing. You see my imprisonment – I wish you could see what I see!”

On that back of that statement, Paul then prays for the Ephesian church.

Let me back up. This week has been a struggle. It’s one of those weeks where I get out of bed in the morning and fall on my knees crying out to the Lord to move in my life, to change my heart, to make me like him, to give me the words I need to encourage and witness, the strength to work to honor Him, to move in my life, to change my heart, to give me focus where it ought to be, and not where my fleshly desires drag my eyes. This week has been a battle. I’ve been battling guilt (the feeling/emotion of guilt, not always conviction from the Lord – there is a difference) and in so doing – not reveling in His love for me. The emotion of guilt often cancels out the present awareness of God’s love. As it neared Sunday, I had to get ready for my lesson on Ephesians 14-21 – and I didn’t want to. I didn’t want to have to face verse 20, “Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.”

Then, I sat down to study – to outline the first 3 chapters of the book. And the implications of how what Paul was saying to the Ephesian church in verses 1-13 directly affect 14-21 (“For this reason [3:14]” points back to 3:1 & 12-13) became real in my mind, Paul is NOT saying “Now, to Him who is able to give you a new car, and pay your tuition/credit card bills/medical expenses, provide a house/job/apartment/spouse/children/family in a way that is better than you can ever think – if He wants to!!” That is too simple, it’s too earthly focused. Paul just spent the first half of chapter three ripping the Ephasian church’s eyes OFF the earthly circumstances and onto what God was doing in the church, the world, and their hearts through His grace and power.

Suddenly I understood! Paul is praying for the church so that they would first be strong in their inner being because God dwells in their hearts. He is not praying that Christ would go dwell in their hearts – that occurred at salvation along with the sealing of the Holy Spirit. He is praying that the fact Christ was in their hearts would give them strength and power. So that when they crawl out of bed in the morning fully aware of the power of the flesh and throwing themselves at God’s feet – they would rise and stand and face their day walking in His strength.

Paul prays secondly, that they would fully understand the love the Lord has for them. As one of my friends expounded on verses 18-19: Paul is trying to explain the love of God, so he starts with giving measurements – its width and length and height and depth – but Paul gives up, because the love of the Lord is far greater than that. It is indescribable – so he just says “this love that surpasses knowledge (19).” Paul wants his audience to really understand this love. Not just nod an intellectual ascent that “yes, God loves me… *yawn,*” but they would KNOW in every fiber of their being – that the knowledge of it would flow through them like the electrical current in our nervous system. Rather than despairing over the weakness of the flesh, He wants them to revel in the vast ocean of God’s love.

Lastly, he wants them to be “filled with the fullness of God.” Imagine that for a second. Filled with the fullness of God? The God who is greater that then entire universe? The one with more power than all of mankind and the spirit realm combined and multiplied to infinity? That God? Paul wants these Ephesians individually and as a church whole – to be complete, to be filled with the very presence and power of God. I cannot describe this in words. Human speech is such a poor vehicle for some of these concepts. I imagine a pitcher sitting on my kitchen counter – which is empty. Paul wants that pitcher to be filled with the ocean. I see the water being poured in, but it never stops – soon the house and the city is underwater.

These three things build off each other. Knowing the love of God requires strength (huh, that’s a new concept) which can only be gotten from a reliance on Christ who dwells in us. Being filled with God requires an understanding of His love.

I sit here – thinking back over my week in awe of how God providentially works my life circumstances so that I will be receptive to His truth.

The next verse is “Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.” I cannot imagine what a life like Paul describes in verses 14-19 looks like, or feels like. I actually (hate being this honest) am not sure if I could get that life if I asked for it. Yet, Paul tells us God “IS ABLE to do IMMEASURABLY MORE!”

I sit here in awe and reverence and tears.