Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ... Ephesians 1:3
Blessed be...who has blessed us with...blessing... Have you ever wondered what bless really means? What it means to be blest? I mean, how can we bless God and what does it mean when God blesses us? And if we are blessed with blessings, what in the world does that look like in our day-to-day lives. And for that matter, which is it anyway, blessed or blest?
I looked it up in my handy-dandy Fund & Wagnalls and here's what it says:
bless (bles) v.t. blessed or blest, bless-ing 1. consecrate; make holy. 2. honor and exalt; glorify. 3. invoke God's favor upon (a person or thing). 4. bestow prosperity upon; make happy. 5. endow, as with a gift. 6. guard; protect: Bless me! [ME blessen consecrate]
bless-ed (BLES id) adj. 1. made holy. 2. enjoying the happiness of heaven. 3. blissful; happy. 4. causing happiness. Also spelled blest. bles'sed-ness n.
bless-ing (BLES ing) n. 1. an invocation or benediction; grace. 2. the bestowal of devine favor. 3. that which makes happy or prosperous.
So, first of all and least importantly, blessed and blest are interchangeable, or so it seems to indicate (even though Blogger's spellchecker is unhappy with blest).
But the definitions are quite interesting to me, and although the true meaning of the whole deal still eludes me just a wee little bit, I want to try re-stating today's verse while avoiding the word "bless" and any form thereof, just to see if I can clarify the meaning as I understand it. I'm not promising anything, but here goes my attempt:
Exalted be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has endowed us with every spiritual favor in the heavenly places as a gift in Christ.
Maybe, huh? I'm not sure that really cleared it up for me, but it helped a little.
The point is that God has in Christ Jesus given us everything he could possibly give to make us happy, every spiritual blessing. He has bent over backward for us, so to speak, and Paul is taking this opportunity to give God glory and praise (blessing) for all he's done for us.
A friend of mine once asked me this question after we had a conversation about Jesus and salvation and such. He asked, "If God loves us so much, how can he sit back and let us go to hell? I mean, if you saw me drowning, wouldn't you rescue me? Why doesn't God do as much?"
In a rare moment of inspiration (from God, without a doubt) I answered, "Why, of course, I would do everything I possibly could to rescue you, my friend. And the fact is that God has already done everything he possibly can to rescue you, too."
And it's true. God, in Christ Jesus, has done everything he can to bring us back to him. Everything. There's nothing more he can do! He has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus. Every. There's nothing more he can give!
How can we not praise him? How can we not bless him? (And this is where Paul is going for the next couple of chapters, but I don't want to get ahead of myself here.)
Bless your holy name, Father God. I love you so much. You have given me everything. Everything. Every spiritual blessing. And I praise you, Father. It is my desire to make my life a blessing to you, and that you would bless others through me. Help me to understand what that means and to live it out every day, every moment.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
to you
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 1:2
Of course, if you've ever read through the New Testament, this verse might seem familiar, since it appears in most of Paul's epistles in one form or another, and it's easy to simply pass it over as nothing more than Paul's usual way of saying "hello." But let me see if there isn't something I can learn from Paul's ubiquitous greeting this morning.
When all else fails (not that it has in this case), I use the standard 3-question approach to scripture reading. Namely, I read the verse and ask myself these three questions about it:
God grants grace and peace. That's the first thing I notice and it seems profoundly important and makes me think of a passage from another of Paul's letters, his epistle to the Romans, chapter 5, the first few verses:
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
So, according to this verse, God grants grace through faith in Jesus, whereby we have peace. Peace with God, that it, as opposed to opposition against him.
Notice that it goes on to talk about our sufferings as if they are something to be expected. So the peace he talks about has nothing to do with our situation in the here and now. I mean that our peace will not come about as a result of peaceful circumstances. Just the opposite, I guess - we can have peace in spite of our sufferings because we have peace with God...through grace...through faith...giving us an eternal hope that will not disappoint no matter what this life throws at us.
So when Paul says hello by saying "grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ," it isn't really the same thing as when I wish someone a "good morning." He is stating a fact, that peace is ours through the grace of the loving Father, which he has lavished on us (as he says later in this same chapter...which I'll get to one of these days) through faith in the cross of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
He isn't wishing us grace and peace, he's saying that we already have it, if we'll only accept it.
At least that's what I think.
Father, thank you for the little verses that I sometimes overlook. Thank you for helping me to think about your grace and peace today, and help me to live in your peace through your grace by faith in your son. You are an amazing God and I love you and am awed by your grace. And as I face today's inevitable sufferings, whether great or small, help me to be focused on your presence in my life, your love for me and the certain hope I have through faith in you. Keep my mind ever present with you today, Lord. I want to include you in my every thought. I love you, Father.
Of course, if you've ever read through the New Testament, this verse might seem familiar, since it appears in most of Paul's epistles in one form or another, and it's easy to simply pass it over as nothing more than Paul's usual way of saying "hello." But let me see if there isn't something I can learn from Paul's ubiquitous greeting this morning.
When all else fails (not that it has in this case), I use the standard 3-question approach to scripture reading. Namely, I read the verse and ask myself these three questions about it:
- What does the verse teach me about God?
- What does the verse teach me about me and/or my relationship with God?
- Is there anything about the verse I don't understand or something that challenges me?
God grants grace and peace. That's the first thing I notice and it seems profoundly important and makes me think of a passage from another of Paul's letters, his epistle to the Romans, chapter 5, the first few verses:
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
So, according to this verse, God grants grace through faith in Jesus, whereby we have peace. Peace with God, that it, as opposed to opposition against him.
Notice that it goes on to talk about our sufferings as if they are something to be expected. So the peace he talks about has nothing to do with our situation in the here and now. I mean that our peace will not come about as a result of peaceful circumstances. Just the opposite, I guess - we can have peace in spite of our sufferings because we have peace with God...through grace...through faith...giving us an eternal hope that will not disappoint no matter what this life throws at us.
So when Paul says hello by saying "grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ," it isn't really the same thing as when I wish someone a "good morning." He is stating a fact, that peace is ours through the grace of the loving Father, which he has lavished on us (as he says later in this same chapter...which I'll get to one of these days) through faith in the cross of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
He isn't wishing us grace and peace, he's saying that we already have it, if we'll only accept it.
At least that's what I think.
Father, thank you for the little verses that I sometimes overlook. Thank you for helping me to think about your grace and peace today, and help me to live in your peace through your grace by faith in your son. You are an amazing God and I love you and am awed by your grace. And as I face today's inevitable sufferings, whether great or small, help me to be focused on your presence in my life, your love for me and the certain hope I have through faith in you. Keep my mind ever present with you today, Lord. I want to include you in my every thought. I love you, Father.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
a new start...maybe
Okay, here's what I'm going to do. One of my favorite books out of God's Word just happens to be Paul's epistle to the Ephesians, and I had an idea that maybe I'd take that book verse by verse, more or less, and jot down some thoughts that occur to me...assuming they will. So, I'll start at the beginning, I guess, because it wouldn't make much sense to start anywhere else:
"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
To God’s holy people in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus" Ephesians 1:1
If I remember correctly from all my long years of Sunday School, Ephesus was not exactly what you'd call a Bible belt town. It's where Paul got into a lot of trouble for disrupting the sale of silver Artemis idols to tourists who came to see the big Artemis temple there by preaching the one true God and the good news about Jesus. So Paul's address here, "To God's holy people in Ephesus" might not have included a very big group. But I'm not sure.
In a way, old Ephesus and the rag-tag group of the faithful there sort of remind me of America today, you know? I mean, there are still a heck of a lot of the faithful here in America these days, it's true, but don't you agree that it sometimes feels as though this country is slipping into some kind of pagan abyss?
Maybe this will make me sound like the old dude I really am, but I'm talking here about things like the disintegration of marriage, where today's generation seems to think that marriage in a sexual relationship is optional...a nice thing to do after you've lived together for a while, but hardly important. And not to mention the whole idea of same-sex marriage...which I just mentioned, didn't I?
Have you noticed the emphasis lately in our culture on acceptance of "family" in whatever form it happens to take? Like a person's "family" can be the people he works with or his neighbors or a friendly old man down the street, while "real" families (i.e., Mom & Dad & kids) are more often than not shown as dysfunctional. Hey, I'm all for making kids feel okay about their situation in life, but it seems like in the process we're devaluing the importance of the real deal here and giving lousy parents a way to opt out of their responsibilities by telling them that junior will be fine as long as his teacher or Aunt Martha is around to watch out for the little tyke.
And there's this. On most television shows these days, if there happens to be a character who is a professing Christian, or worse yet, a preacher or priest, I can just about guarantee that he or she will be the murderer/rapist/child molester/crook/bad guy in the end. And, on the other hand, every prostitute on television these days has a heart of gold, loves her children and is really a much better mother than the blond suburban soccer mom christian...who is probably a murderer anyway or at least has an entirely dysfunctional family.
The good has become bad while the immoral has become the expected. I remember watching an episode of Cold Case a while back about a high school girl who had been murdered. It seems as though she belonged to a club on campus that practiced abstinence and vowed to stay that way until they were married. When the main characters (police detectives) on the show were told about the club, they literally rolled their eyes and smirked at each other. And yes, the teacher/chaperone of the group turned out to be a pedophile and the girl had been murdered by the rest of the members of the group because she threatened to blab. Or something like that. But it was a perfect example of how our culture has turned away from something that is obviously good and made it something suspicious.
So then, what am I saying? Am I just lamenting the loss of our Christian heritage here in America. Well, maybe a little. But let me get back to the verse up there, specifically where Paul refers to God's people in Ephesus as "holy" and "faithful in Christ Jesus." See, I can't really do much about what's happening here in our culture these days, and complaining about it is counterproductive at best, but the thing I can do is to remain faithful and to be holy.
I can take one day at a time and remember that no matter what, God is in control. I can remember that he loves me and that he loves America and indeed the whole world (remember, "For God so loved the world..."), putting my trust and faith in God and living each day for him. I can set myself apart and do whatever I happen to be doing for his glory, as an act of worship to God.
I might live in Ephesus, but I want to be one of God's holy people, faithful in Christ Jesus.
Lord, I live today for you, no matter what I do. I pray for this country, that your people here will be faithful and holy...that I will remain faithful and holy, and that your grace will be sufficient for the days ahead, whatever they may hold. Thank you for this country and for your presence here, touch the lives of those I come in contact with today and let your grace be seen through me. I love you, Father.
"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
To God’s holy people in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus" Ephesians 1:1
If I remember correctly from all my long years of Sunday School, Ephesus was not exactly what you'd call a Bible belt town. It's where Paul got into a lot of trouble for disrupting the sale of silver Artemis idols to tourists who came to see the big Artemis temple there by preaching the one true God and the good news about Jesus. So Paul's address here, "To God's holy people in Ephesus" might not have included a very big group. But I'm not sure.
In a way, old Ephesus and the rag-tag group of the faithful there sort of remind me of America today, you know? I mean, there are still a heck of a lot of the faithful here in America these days, it's true, but don't you agree that it sometimes feels as though this country is slipping into some kind of pagan abyss?
Maybe this will make me sound like the old dude I really am, but I'm talking here about things like the disintegration of marriage, where today's generation seems to think that marriage in a sexual relationship is optional...a nice thing to do after you've lived together for a while, but hardly important. And not to mention the whole idea of same-sex marriage...which I just mentioned, didn't I?
Have you noticed the emphasis lately in our culture on acceptance of "family" in whatever form it happens to take? Like a person's "family" can be the people he works with or his neighbors or a friendly old man down the street, while "real" families (i.e., Mom & Dad & kids) are more often than not shown as dysfunctional. Hey, I'm all for making kids feel okay about their situation in life, but it seems like in the process we're devaluing the importance of the real deal here and giving lousy parents a way to opt out of their responsibilities by telling them that junior will be fine as long as his teacher or Aunt Martha is around to watch out for the little tyke.
And there's this. On most television shows these days, if there happens to be a character who is a professing Christian, or worse yet, a preacher or priest, I can just about guarantee that he or she will be the murderer/rapist/child molester/crook/bad guy in the end. And, on the other hand, every prostitute on television these days has a heart of gold, loves her children and is really a much better mother than the blond suburban soccer mom christian...who is probably a murderer anyway or at least has an entirely dysfunctional family.
The good has become bad while the immoral has become the expected. I remember watching an episode of Cold Case a while back about a high school girl who had been murdered. It seems as though she belonged to a club on campus that practiced abstinence and vowed to stay that way until they were married. When the main characters (police detectives) on the show were told about the club, they literally rolled their eyes and smirked at each other. And yes, the teacher/chaperone of the group turned out to be a pedophile and the girl had been murdered by the rest of the members of the group because she threatened to blab. Or something like that. But it was a perfect example of how our culture has turned away from something that is obviously good and made it something suspicious.
So then, what am I saying? Am I just lamenting the loss of our Christian heritage here in America. Well, maybe a little. But let me get back to the verse up there, specifically where Paul refers to God's people in Ephesus as "holy" and "faithful in Christ Jesus." See, I can't really do much about what's happening here in our culture these days, and complaining about it is counterproductive at best, but the thing I can do is to remain faithful and to be holy.
I can take one day at a time and remember that no matter what, God is in control. I can remember that he loves me and that he loves America and indeed the whole world (remember, "For God so loved the world..."), putting my trust and faith in God and living each day for him. I can set myself apart and do whatever I happen to be doing for his glory, as an act of worship to God.
I might live in Ephesus, but I want to be one of God's holy people, faithful in Christ Jesus.
Lord, I live today for you, no matter what I do. I pray for this country, that your people here will be faithful and holy...that I will remain faithful and holy, and that your grace will be sufficient for the days ahead, whatever they may hold. Thank you for this country and for your presence here, touch the lives of those I come in contact with today and let your grace be seen through me. I love you, Father.
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