Do you know people (maybe even yourself) who talk their
Christianity but don’t really walk it? Have you ever said “well, THAT wasn’t
very Christian!”? Or have you found yourself wondering how we are supposed to
behave in uncomfortable situations? If we’re honest, we know that we’ve said
and done these things on occasion. This study will give us insights to the way
God expects us to walk.
As we go through this study, you may have questions or
prayer requests. Feel free to post your questions on the blog – you can do so
anonymously – or email me. I will reply quickly! If you have prayer requests,
you can post them on the blog, or you can email them to me. I would be honored
to pray for you.
Take a few minutes to think about (and possibly write your
answers) these questions.
How should we walk in relationship to our family members?
Our friends? Our enemies?
What standards should we uphold? What moral values should we
hold dear? Are there absolute moral values?
How should we act toward the Bible? Toward God?
These questions form the basis of our Christian worldview.
It’s the outward signs of our Christian faith that others see. These signs can
turn people toward or away from God. It’s important that we understand how God
wants us to walk, not the way our society says we should behave. Frequently,
those behaviors are at odds with one another.
Let’s start by looking at what God thinks about us. To
really understand what God wants us to do, we need to slow down as we read His
Word. We need to observe through inductive study – discovering the “five Ws and an H” – who, what, when,
where, why and how. Only then will we begin to deeply understand the riches of
His Word, and that Word will seep into our very souls, changing our lives and
behavior forever.
Paul, an
apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, to the saints that are at
Ephesus, and the faithful in Christ Jesus. Eph
1:1 (ASV)
Let’s really look at this verse! Who is writing? Who
is he? How did he get to be who he is?
To whom is he writing? What are they called? How are they
described?
This verse is one that is easy to gloss over when going
through your devotions. It doesn’t seem to have a lot of bearing on us – it was
written a couple thousand years ago. But look closer.
Paul is an
apostle of Christ. He is an ambassador and messenger for Christ. This gives his
position in the body of Christ, and shows we need to pay attention.
…through the will of
God. Paul is who he is because God ordained it. Paul did not choose his
position. He was not elected, nor did he earn his position by birth. He was
made an apostle by God Himself. If that isn’t authority, I don’t know what is!
He writes to the
saints at Ephesus. Before Christ’s first coming, the Jews were called saints,
because they were separated from other nations and consecrated to God. After
Christ’s death, the word is applied to believers, because we are reconciled to
God and purified through Him. The Greek word from which the word 'saint' is
derived signifies 'to cleanse,' and also to consecrate. So, Paul is writing to
the saints – which includes you
and me, if we are saved and cleansed by the blood of Christ, and by the
renewing of the Holy Spirit. When we are saved, we are separated from the world
and consecrated to God.
Paul describes the saints as faithful in Christ Jesus. Our outward expression of God’s free gift
of salvation is our faithfulness in Christ and to His teachings.
Read the verse one more time:
Paul, an
apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, to the saints that are at
Ephesus, and the faithful in Christ Jesus. Eph
1:1 (ASV)
Does this verse say anything more to you now than it did the
first time you read it? God, through Paul, has reached through the very fabric
of time and included us in this instructive letter to a long-ago church. What
an amazing book!
Many of you are involved
in the Read Through The Bible Challenge. I challenge you to take one verse from
tomorrow’s reading of Exodus 37-40 and apply the
5 Ws and an H. Let me know which verse you choose and what you’ve found! We can
all gain new insights from slowing down and really examining God’s Word.
See you Wednesday!
No comments:
Post a Comment