Living the Christian Life

Living the Christian life isn’t easy. Thankfully, Ephesians 4:25-32 provides a few guidelines for Christians to live by. The verses say:

Therefore each of you must put off falsehoods and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every other form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Living the life of a Christian is an ongoing process of studying, learning, putting learning into action, and constantly reflecting and evaluating your actions. It can be a very liberating process, but it can also be very daunting as well.

Getting back to the passage from Ephesians…..first, we are told to be truthful to one another, but notice the same section discusses how we are all members of one body. The reference is to the body of Christ….other Christians, not the body of mankind. I don’t think this is telling us it is ok to lie to non-Christians….not at all, but our Christian brothers and sisters deserve more honest attention from us.

Once we admit with our mouths that Jesus is Lord we are sealed. Nothing can undo the grace we receive at that moment because we are sealed…protected by the Lord. However, our lies and the other negative things we say grieves the Holy Spirit. Thereafter, we should only use our mouths to build each other up.

The part about not letting the sun go down on your anger…I heard my mother spout that bit of advice over and over as I was growing up. Part of her spill was the advice was always something her mother told her. It just makes sense, doesn’t it? It’s amazing all of God’s instructions regarding life make sense. Hmmm….I guess it’s amazing because God’s plan for us is perfect.

Getting back to that anger thing…The longer you wait to settle something with someone the harder it becomes to face the person no matter who was right OR wrong. Anger allows too many other sins to creep in and gain a foothold. One sin that comes to mind is pride.

Work…work not just to provide for your family, but to keep your hands busy. This passage from Ephesians takes the idea of work one step further to becoming Christ-like though. Work to help others….work to be able to provide for others….work to make a difference in the world.

So, let’s see….as a Christian I cannot lie, I cannot be angry with anyone for very long without dealing with the issue, I must work not just to buy stuff but in order to be able to help others, I must watch my tongue and totally turn my back on any type of malice. I must strive to be kind always and forgive others as Christ has forgiven me.

The problem? While I am a Christian, I am also human. Professing Jesus is Lord saves me for eternity, but it does not make me perfect during my stay here on Earth hence the need for the constant study, constant learning, constant putting things into action, and constant reflection and analysis....oh, and constantly praying as well.

No….it’s not easy to be a Christian, but it’s worth it. :)

A Mystery Where YOU Choose the Ending

Growing up I was addicted to the Bobbsey Twin books. Later, I graduated into Encyclopedia Brown mysteries and even later I enjoyed Agatha Christie’s exploits of Mrs. Marple and Hercule Poirot.

As an educator I’ve often used mystery as a way to build curiosity and motivation within students. Weave a set of dry facts into a story filled with twists and turns, add a character that begs for empathy, build the action to a death defying crescendo and then conveniently leave out the conclusion. Instant curiosity!

Lay out some primary and secondary sources, provide a little time for examination, and students become detectives as they analyze possible outcomes in a historical event, or as they make predictions regarding scenarios where there are no right or wrong answers.

The word mystery is used at least 25 times in the Bible with Paul using it the most….a whopping 21 times. However, the word mystery as Paul uses it in Ephesians 3: 4 (By reading this you are able to understand my insight about the mystery of the Messiah) does not refer to a puzzle that needs to be solved or some unanswered question we may never have enough data to answer.

Going back to the Greek used in the original text the word mystery is musterion and it refers to a hidden secret…hidden to those who did not have the secret knowledge to understand the mystery. Musterion referred to a secret which was hidden that is made known.

Knowledge regarding Jesus Christ was not known to men in past generations. The knowledge was a secret….a musterion….kept hidden by God until He was ready to reveal it.

The mystery was revealed not only to Paul by revelation but also to Peter (Acts 11:1-18, mentioned in the prophecy given in Isaiah 49:6, and Jesus speaks of it specifically (Acts 1:8). In my own Bible text (Holman Christian Standard, 2003) a sidebar note states, “The mystery is received spiritually and manifested in the proclamation of the gospel.”

Part of the mystery is that Jews and Gentiles are both able to partake in the promise in Jesus Christ and join together in a new entity….the body of Christ…a New Covenant… the Church. There are no second place citizens in the Church. All believers including Gentiles inherit the wealth of Jesus Christ, and they receive power that never runs out.

Paul reminds the reader that God revealed the mystery to His holy apostles and prophets and even entrusted Paul to spread the word about the mystery. In fact, all Christians are comissioned to spread the word about the mystery, and they have been equipped to do so through the wealth and power of Jesus Christ that is inherited upon profession of belief.

Per Paul God’s multi-faceted wisdom isn’t just for those on Earth. Ephesians 3: 10 states “This is so that God’s multi-faceted wisdom may now be made known through the church to the rulers and authorities in the heavens.” Heaven? That seems strange. Wouldn’t they already be aware of God’s wisdom?

In his book, Ephesians, W.A. Criswell explains that since angels are heavenly beings they cannot experience redemption, however, by witnessing how God saves man and how His redemptive grace builds his Church they can be made aware. I find that truly facinating!

All of the mysteries I enjoyed as a child and as a young adult had something in common. There was always that point in the story when loose ends were tied up and the mystery was solved. Ephesians 3: 1-13 reveals the mystery, but as my title suggests man chooses his own endng. It’s not enough to acknowledge Christ and to acknowledge the purpose of the Church in this world and in Heaven. It takes commitment to to “shed light for all about the administration of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things.”

Dead or Alive....We're in the Driver's Seat

Jon Bon Jovi’s song Dead or Alive has been one of my favorites for years. A couple of the verses and chorus go like this:

Its all the same,
only the names will change
Everyday it seems were wasting away
Another place where the faces are so cold
I'd drive all night just to get back home

I'm a cowboy, on a steel horse I ride
I'm wanted dead or alive
Wanted dead or alive
Sometimes I sleep, sometimes it's not for days
And the people I meet always go their separate ways
Sometimes you tell the day
By the bottle that you drink
And times when youre all alone all you do is think

You can find a live version at YouTube.

I’ve always loved the music that goes along these lyrics, but the lyrics themselves speak volumes. How sad that at some low point Bon Jovi realized he had no real relationship with his fans. All that mattered was whether or not he completed the show and gave the crowd what they paid for. He speaks of wasting away and wanting to go home. He compares himself to a cowboy of sorts riding the trail all alone even though he travels the country with a large number of people, and every night he is in an arena with tens of thousands. In the end all he has is his thoughts because even though he’s wanted it doesn’t really matter to those around whether or not he’s dead or alive.

In the Letter to Ephesians Paul writes about making a choice between being dead or alive. Paul states, and you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. (Ephesians 2: 1-3, NKJV).

Those without Christ are dead.

Dead.

Paul used a very strong word. If you are dead you’re dead. Following the ways of the world and depending on self and other men is a dead existence controlled by evil. To be dead in trespasses refers to missing the mark or target. Our life has a clear purpose and goal from the beginning determined by God. If we choose to get off the main road and sightsee through the worldly countryside, and if we choose to conform to our sinful world, we are following our own desires and serving Satan.

Sometimes I observe students who know right from wrong, and they have the skills to succeed in the classroom, yet they continue day after day to make poor choices. Often when I counsel them because of their youth and immaturity they cannon fathom what I’m trying to tell them. At some point they will run out of time, and they will realize they have missed their target. They will not have the skills and knowledge they need to be successful in high school and be able to enter the college or career path they choose. I have to admit I get angry and frustrated because I have provided the correct path in my classroom, and they choose another. However, when students come to visit a few years later and admit to me they quit school at some point, got in trouble with juvenile court, or lazed their way through class after class I still give them a hug and encouragement. They can still make a choice. They have more time.

Paul tells us in this passage that God will release his wrath or anger upon those who do not choose life over death. Even through the anger, however, God still cares. Making the choice between life and death is simple…you submit and ask for forgiveness. You commit to follow Christ. In a flash the worldly sins we have comitted are forgiven and the Lord immediately provides grace through his mercy.

Why does He do this? It’s simple. God forgives and gives us the gift of grace simply because He loves us. Ephesians 2: 4-7 (NKJV) states but God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raise us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in his kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Notice the importance of the gift of grace…..Paul uses the word not once, but twice. There is a major pronoun switch between versus 1-3 and versus 4-7….the pronoun Paul uses in the first set of verses is “you” and the in verses 4-7 the pronoun switches to “us”. You are no longer wandering aimlessly through the world alone. By choosing Christ you enjoy fellowship of like believers.

Paul then reminds us in verses 8 and 9 the condition of receiving God’s grace in that for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. We live in Christ by accepting God’s gift of grace through faith. We cannot work our way to Heaven. Just as Bon Jovi realized in his song lyrics he had no real relationship with those around him. He was dead. When we choose life we end up with the best relationship of all…one with God.

Finally, Paul explains in verse 10 for we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Our purpose in life is to become more Christ-like and to follow the path that God has for us. While it is true many of us stray from that path we always have choice to return and open the gift of grace.

However, at some point your time will run out…..


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