Ephesians 2:1-10: Discovered All the Good We Can Do

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. - Ephesians 2:1-10

Paul wants to draw out the clear difference between who we were and what we deserved, who we are and what we received and who we will be and what we can do.

We were "dead in our transgressions" and "deserving of wrath". Without the leadership of Christ in our lives, our default setting is to follow the ways of this world and its ruler who leads us into his path of disobedience.

We are "alive with Christ" and "seated with him in the heavenly realms" because of his great love for us. It isn't something we work for ourselves or something that we bribe God to get or something that we extort from him, it is a gift--freely given.

We will be doing "good works" and witnessing the full extent of his "handiwork", the "incomparable riches of his grace" because that's what God has "prepared in advance for us to do."  We certainly weren't created to lounge about on clouds in heaven. Where's the challenge in that? No, we were created to discover all the good that we can do now that we are redeemed

Ephesians 2:4-5: Competing Responses to Disruptions

The most holy and necessary practice in our spiritual life is the presence of God. That means finding constant pleasure in His divine company, speaking humbly and lovingly with him in all seasons, at every moment, without limiting the conversation in any way. ~ Brother Lawrence 

How do we practice the presence of God? During a panel discussion "Less Disruptions, More Presence" this past Sunday at our church there seemed to be two competing strategies towards coming into God's presence. The first is the path of solitude. The second is the path of rhythm.

One of the underlying assumptions in all of these discussions is that the presence of God is not a normal part of human existence. We don't naturally experience him, the kingdom of heaven or, indeed, much of anything spiritual.

And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. - 1 Corinthians 2:13-14 (ESV)

When choosing sin, we lost our spiritual sense-the sense that allows us to experience directly God's kingdom. Elisha asked and God enabled a servant to see the horses and chariots that surrounded them. We often speak of the God (through his Spirit) speaking with us or stirring us or nudging us. What sense are we using? We lack the vocabulary to even describe it, so we borrow other sense words: "Hear the Lord." "Taste and see that the Lord is good."

There is a sense-a spiritual sense. We were not born with it, but we are all capable of it through regeneration in Christ. It was there in Eden, and part of God's design for all humans and it died with sin. 

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. -  Ephesians 2:4-5

But this sense-even among the regenerate-is atrophied. So while hearing the Spirit (what word should I use!?) through this reawakened sense is startling and sweet, we are not used to it. Think of it as a drinking nectar through a micro-pipette. While we have been conditioned from birth to experience the world through our five senses, we have relatively little experience sensing spiritually. As a result, we often don't notice, or if we notice, we misinterpret what we experience. So the presence of God and the voice of God get drowned out by a thousand other sensations that pour into our brain every minute.

The path of solitude addresses this deficiency by removing distractions. Solitude uses silence to allow the "still, small voice" to break through into our consciousness. We can, with practice, hear God and enter his presence and, over time, widen our sensitivity so that the information that we can handle widens from a micro-pipette-sized flow to a straw-sized flow to maybe even a fire hose. In the same way that physical therapy restores an underused muscle to full capacity, the practice of solitude can restore our underdeveloped spiritual sensitivity to a greater capacity to hear and sense God.

One of the spiritual directors (Dan Maust) on Sunday related this path to "prayer dreaming". It takes advantage of the silence, where our brain will naturally wander-sometimes in predictable and sometimes in unpredictable. Rather than fighting this, he suggests that we pray and ask God into each of the items that pass into our thoughts during silence. I have found that long periods of silence, such as those in long drives or airplane flights, often provide the quiet that creates the context for God to speak and me to listen.

I think this is important because we are often too busy, even in our "quiet" times. Why? Because we have filled it with books and Scripture chapters and prayer lists that never leave room for God to speak because we have pre-determined the agenda.

The path of rhythm addresses this deficiency differently, by inviting God into the craziness of everyday life. Rather than removing distractions, it strives to invite God into the distraction using a "familiar, humble and very affectionate conversation with the Lord Jesus." Brother Lawrence comments:

The time of business does not differ with me from the time of prayer; and in the noise and clatter of my kitchen, while several persons are at the same time calling for different things, I possess God in as great tranquility as if I were on my knees. ~ Brother Lawrence

Both of these paths are important. We must widen the channel that flows between us and God. The path of solitude helps with that. But the path of solitude takes a rather negative view of disruptions. Should we reject disruptions as moving us away from God's presence-a posture of retreat in the face of what is happening in the environments where God has placed us?

No, rather the path of rhythm takes these "distractions" or "interruptions" as a beat in the musical score. We converse with God at these situations and attune ourselves to his voice.  The problem with an over-emphasis on this approach is the risk of allowing the external world to determine the agenda, rather than allowing God to insert his agenda.

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. - John 10:25

Spend time in quiet. Invite God to each situation.

John 1:23: Slow Train Coming

I've spent a lot of this past week on trains, both in Taiwan (to Jiaoxi and Taichung) and between Sacramento and the San Francisco airport. So its not surprising that I was reminded of chapter 14 of Rick Mckinley's book This Beautiful Mess, which is entitled "Slow Train Coming" The chapter refers to the iconic Bob Dylan album of the same name which features a picture of a rail crew laying track before an on-coming train. In this section, Mckinley talks about the already-here but not yet aspects of the kingdom of God.

Cover Art for Slow Train Coming by Bob Dylan

But to me it also reflects the already-here but not yet aspects of my work within the kingdom of God. On one hand, Jesus has already gone before me. As it says in Hebrews: "...Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. (Heb. 12:2a) He blazed the trail that I am following and prepared the way for me. Paul says: "For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." (Eph. 2:10).

On the other hand, God has called me to break ground for those who would follow behind me in the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is coming up behind, the "slow train" and I'm laying track. Talking about calling! John the Baptist said this: "Finally they said, “Who are you?" ... John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’” (John 1:22-23) This is interesting, because only in John's biography of Jesus does it mention this appropriation of the prophecy as his mission. The others merely mention he was fulfilling it (cf. Mark 1:3, Matthew 3:3, Luke 3:4).

I sense that John's mission is my own: the make straight the way for the Lord. The prophecy John cited continues in the original (Isaiah 40): 

Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together. (Isa 40:4-5a)

There are many ways for this mission to take shape, but it the result is clear: the extension of the rule of God and the blessings of God where God has called me. Riding on the train, there are places where the track hugs the shoreline, and there are places where it strikes out easily across the plains. But the east side of Taiwan is rugged, mountainous country. Make the railway smooth enough for the train requires some major engineering and restructuring of the landscape. Look at Isaiah's language again: valleys raised up, mountains made low, rough become level, rugged becomes smooth.

So Jesus has blazed the trail, but now we lay the rail for the kingdom of God to come.

Amtrak Train Arriving At The Station

Ephesians 2:8-10: Make The Most Of My Rescued Life

The Wall Street Journal reported how the town of Rikuzentakata, Japan is recovering from the devastating tsunami by pushing through with their annual "fighting star" festival. Each year, for over 900 years, on the 7th of August, floats sponsorted by each of the town's four hamlets would come together and joust. Each float carries decorations made of bamboo branches and notes bearing the wishes of the townspeople.

But this year was different. The tsunami wiped out three of the four floats. The traditional route for the floats is lined with rubble. There are more wishes. One banner read, "We will not be defeated." Another note read, "I want Rukuzentakata to return to the way it was; a town overflowing with smiles."

The message that caught my attention, though, was the one that said: "I will strive to make the most of my rescued life."[1]

What will I do with my rescued life? I've been rescued by God. Rescued-a synonym for saved. Rescued from a wasted, self-focused, death-bound life. I was saved for a purpose--not on accident, but with gracious intent.

You did not save yourselves; it was a gift from God. It was not the result of your own efforts, so you cannot brag about it. God has made us what we are. In Christ Jesus, God made us to do good works, which God planned in advance for us to live our lives doing. - Ephesians 2:8b-10 (NCV)

God has granted me today for a reason. I don't know what it is yet. But there is a reason. How about you?

Pray: "God, you have rescued me for today. Help me make the most of it. Show me and strengthen me for that purpose today. Amen" What will God do? Here are some further places in the Bible that talk about it: Rom. 11:13, 2 Cor. 2:12, Gal. 6:10, Col. 4:5.

[1] The Wall Street Journal, 8/8/11, pg. 7