June 29 | St. Albans, UK [David Neal]
Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is Paul at his best. Take what we know as the first chapter for example, which reminds me of a recent short-haul flight into Europe. Instead of the small and ageing Airbus A319-200 aircraft (which I have flown on more times than any other plane – and at times which very much feels like a bus), Finnair uses the mighty Airbus A350-900 for some flights between London and Helskinki – a magnificant plane if ever there is one.
Cleared for take off
The Airbus 350 experience reminds me of Ephesians 1.”Grace and peace from God, our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 1:2). This line in itself is the ‘cleared for take off’ message. With all engines running, the power of the Trinity, working together on behalf of humanity is secure and we are rolling!
The magnificance of this spiritual aircraft is now at full throttle as we begin to move. “Blessed be the father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Here we go, and powered by one “who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing.” Hurtling down the runway, the power of these two engines is unbelievable! And where does this spiritual blessing take us? Upwards! Into ‘heavenly places’, (1:3) and we are already off the ground soaring upwards, gliding effortlessly into the sky ‘thrust upwards’ by two powerful Rolls-Royce Trent XWB turbofan engines.
And we just keep soaring into the sky – up, up, and up more. “In love he predestined us for adoption through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will… In the original Greek, what we know as Ephesians 1:3-14 is just one long sentence. “Paul! exclaims his scribe – can’t you stop and take a breathe just for a moment? I can’t write this fast!” But Paul doesn’t stop because he has a story to tell about God the Father extending his love to humanity, who pours out grace, and more grace, and even more grace with an eternal plan for us, in and through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
From ‘Me’ to ‘We’
Wanting to talk about the church – and how it should be, he’s already aware of trouble in the local church between the ‘us’ and the ‘them’ group (Jews and Gentiles). “Forget it – it’s over”, he says. “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus… (Eph 2:10). The key word here is ‘we’, because the message of the Cross demolishes ‘us’ and ‘them’. We are a new community sealed with the promise of the Holy Spirit – who guarantees every promise made. The walls of envy and strife have come tumbling down. Not the result of Artemis, or some other pagan god to whom great temples are made, but because of the continuing living presence of Jesus Christ. It is the story of the gospel with a capital “G”.
Are You Ready for Baptism?
The late Anglican minister Richard Bewes, tells of the time when he was a small child living with missionary parents in East Africa. His mother’s role was to prepare women from the Kikuyu tribe for baptism.
On one occasion Bewes remembers an old lady who came to their home for baptism preparation. Watching his mum ask the lady questions about her knowledge of the gospel, it was clear she knew next to nothing. An old lady with a shawl over her head, she looked ill and old, so his mother said to her, “Tell me just one or two things about Jesus Christ. Tell me some of the things He has said”. “It’s no good asking me” the woman replied shaking her head, “I can’t tell you, I can’t think of anything.”
His mother replied, “Well tell me something He ever did – just something about Jesus Christ – what did He do?” “I can’t think”, she said, “I’ve never been to school. How could I know? I can’t read. I don’t know the answer to that, How could I know?” So his mother tried an easier question. “Tell me the name of the mother of Jesus”. At that point Bewes’ older brother was riding his small bike around the house, so he hissed into the ear of the lady as he passed by and said “Mary”, and so she said – “Mary”!
“Well, yes”, said his mother, “but then my little boy told you that. Maybe we ought to delay your baptism for a little while until we are sure you are further on, otherwise it would be a pity to baptise somebody without a testimony.”
At the word ‘testimony’, the old lady flung the shawl off her head and looked into his mother’s eyes. She said “Testimony! Testimony! You say I have no testimony! How can you say that, when the Lord Jesus Christ by His blood has delivered me out of bondage from the darkness of witchcraft and brought me into His wonderful kingdom of light of love and forgiveness! Why can’t I be baptised?”
For Bewes’ mother, there was only one answer she could give. “You can be baptised!” It is a wonderful reminder, that the way into God’s kingdom is not determined by what you know, but about who you know. Paul couldn’t say it better to the small Ephesus church. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not of your own doing; it is the gift of God, not the result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9 ESV).
Jesus Is Alive – Unlike Artemis
It would be easy to fly over these familiar words before we conlcude without reminding ourselves of the context. It was a small group of Christ followers in Ephesus from both Jewish and Gentile backgrounds, living in a city whose skyline is dominated by the huge temple double the size of the Athens Parthenon (130m length x 68m width). Its size seemed to symbolise how great and powerful a god Artemis is. Known for being the immortal ‘godess of wild nature’ (among other things) she punishes harshly, creating a culture full of superstition and magic – and of course who has to be appeased. But for all its dominace and power, Ephesus was going through a process of social disintegration.
Unlike Artemis, Jesus Christ is ‘alive’, and who gives the gift of the generous Spirit, with an 11 times repeated invitation for the Ephesus Christ followers to live in distinct contrast to their neigbours – by living ‘in Christ’ or ‘in Him’. That’s radical, that’s new – that’s the church! Small the Ephesus church may have felt, but living and mighty is Christ’s Spirit!
What is grace all about? A favourite word to be defined in the bible study class or small group for a good discussion? What does it mean to come alive ‘in Christ’? What does it mean to belong to the global and universal family of God called ‘the Church’? What does it mean when Paul (1:4) talks about ‘back before the foundation of the world’?
Sabbath School Q3
For the next 14 weeks we have the immense privilege (yes privilege) to think again about these questions in our Sabbath School study groups, with the potential for something beautiful to happen – if only we would let it! Imagine if we were to read again the Ephesus letter, and discover the implications of God’s grace for ourselves, for our families, and for our church. Imagine how the church could look! Imagine how it could look for children and the picture of God they pick up from us. Imagine how youth and young adults would connect to the mission of the church with great enthusiasm and imagination – rather than exiting as they do so quietly and frequently. Imagine the ‘salt’ and ‘light impact of the church in our local community.
As for any series of Sabbath School lessons – the key to the study is the scripture under consideration – not the curriculum guide, which is designed to serve as only a ‘study guide’. Fourteen weeks may seem a long time – but wouldn’t it be wonderful if we experienced teachable moments over the next 14 weeks, and truly grew together ‘in Chist’?
For further study:
- Pine Knoll Sabbath School A weekly discussion of the Seventh-day Adventist Sabbath School lesson driven by always asking, “What does this say about God?” (and by having a commitment that each person can and should discover the truth for himself or herself).
- Read the Ephesians letter from beginning to end in one read, and to discover the ‘read again’ experience, use the Message translation.
- The Sabbath School Lesson Companion book, authored by John K. McVay is a most helpful background read.
* Book of Ephesians Animated Summary, courtesy of ‘The Bible Project’, a ministry dedicated to make the biblical story accessible to everyone everywhere.
https://bibleproject.com/about/
[Photos: Shutterstock]
