Oh, Grow Up!

Ephesians 4:1-16
Our reading from the Letter to the Ephesians for today includes these words: “But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love” (Ephesians 4:15-16). For the author of Ephesians, a life in Christ begins and ends in love. There is a time and place for righteous anger, sorrow is an appropriate response to many events in our lives, joy and happiness are blessings, but all of our emotions and feelings must be bound up in love if we are to become the people God has called us to be. As John Lennon sang, “Love is the answer, and you know that for sure.”

Consider the inability of many in our world to regard others with even a modicum of respect. TV commentators, editorial writers, politicians, entertainers, heads of organizations and lobbying groups, neighbors, even some who claim to be serving the church seem completely incapable of loving those with whom they disagree. Tom Lehrer, the satirical singer/songwriter, has quipped, “…I know there are people in the world that do not love their fellow human beings and I hate people like that.” Point taken. How are we to respond to the anger and animosity of others? Is it not typical to get angry ourselves? Yes, but it shouldn’t be, and this is where the message of Ephesians might be boiled down to the simple call to “grow up!” For growing up in Christ means doing our very best to love one another as Christ first loved us. As we seek to love one another we will find ourselves less and less capable of causing each other pain. The challenge is to see and affirm what it is that makes a person—even someone with whom we differ greatly––lovable, and in doing so, to set aside our anger, our insults, our hatred and speak in terms that express our convictions but at the same time seek to build a community of dialogue.

Why would a member of the National Rifle Association ever say a kind word to a member of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence? Why would a liberal Democrat ever waste a compliment on a conservative Republican? Why? Because that is what God calls us to do. God challenges us to “grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ…”and that means to be “built up in love,” because “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son… Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him” (John 3:16a, 17).

Prayer: Lord, help us to love one another just as you have loved and cared for us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Storms of Untruth

Ephesians 4:1-16

Most of us have been misled at one time or another, told something that was not true as though it were fact. When such falsehoods begin to cascade from person to person they can become difficult to stop. The development of the internet has only made this phenomenon more potent, but rumors have long been a part of our culture. (For an example of how one sort of rumor—celebrity deaths–has played out in the past you can visit this site:

http://theweek.com/article/slide/217373/10-celebrity-death-rumors-a-visual-history#)

The writer of Ephesians was aware of the problem, too, and warned his readers not to be affected by everything they heard. “We must no longer be children,” he wrote, “tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people's trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming” (Ephesians 4:9). It is the phrase “every wind of doctrine” that offers the most powerful image for me. It refers to fads or crazes, any pseudo-religion that gets passed from person to person. The swell of such falsehood can take the shape of a raging storm blowing in all directions and dislodging even the most deeply held convictions. The immature in faith are the most susceptible to such storms and indeed can be “tossed to and fro and blown about.”

To withstand the gale we must become mature in faith by turning our attention to Jesus Christ. In him we find the strength, the courage, and the resolve to remain steadfast. In him we find the community that is his body and the love that binds believers together. The storms will continue to rage around us and untruths will swirl on all sides, but if we cling to Jesus Christ and the power of the gospel we will find the shelter we need.

Prayer: Lord, deliver us from the deceit that lies so close at hand and help us to live with maturity and courage, focused solely on Jesus Christ in whose name we pray. Amen.

Is That Really Necessary?

Ephesians 4:17-32

“Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy” (Ephesians 4:28). When I read this verse I always chuckle to myself. This may be the most obvious admonition to be found in all of scripture. Did the author of Ephesians really need to tell us that stealing is wrong? Not if we’ve been paying attention to the rest of the Bible. But then we arrive at the next verse, “Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear” (v. 29), and I begin to get antsy.

Theft is wrong–and obviously so–but what we say about and to one another often falls into a grey area; or so we’d like to think. Politicians call it “pointing out distinctions” between themselves and their opponents. Groups and organizations based on hate or racism offer their viewpoints in crass terms called “protected speech.” A joke told at a party, a comment made to a coworker, a bit of gossip shared at a potluck supper all pass as “polite conversation.” Few of us would ever endorse theft, but depriving others of their dignity is just as bad and robbing a community of its cohesion is no better. The problem is that while I can see what it means to steal I don’t always choose to see what harm I’m doing by what I say. The author of Ephesians offers me no room to wiggle. Theft and the use of language lie side by side and challenge me to take my actions seriously.

I feel confident that I will not steal today, but what words will I use and what language will I convey? Evil is evil, but perhaps the subtle wrongs are the ones to be feared most for they are the ones we have the most trouble avoiding.

Prayer: Lord, help us to live lives of faith and truth today and always. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Make Up Your Mind Already!

Matthew 11:16-24

Jesus’ frustration is obvious on a number of occasions in scripture. Our reading from the gospel today is one example. Jesus said, “For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon’; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’” (Matthew 11:18-19). How slow we are to accept that which does not fit our own view of things! As I look at the church today, including my own denomination, I see conflict and confrontation on all sides. It is not enough to acknowledge “One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all…” (Ephesians 4:5-6). Even a cool form of civility would be better than the disdain we have for one another.

“What do you want?” Jesus wonders. “What more can God do to earn your faithful obedience? You said that John the Baptist was crazy, but then you say that I am promiscuous. Make up your minds! Which way is it going to be?”

When I read Jesus’ words I am convicted: I am more a part of the problem than the solution. I carry grudges, assign blame, make excuses, and find ways to avoid God’s call for unity. May God both forgive me and lead me to change. In the mean time I feel a strong sense of call in my ministry to hold myself and others accountable for the blessings we have received, for the responsibilities that we share, and for the unity that God—what’s a good word here?—demands. If you feel that there is far too much finger pointing and too little responsibility-taking, if you feel that it has become too popular to break covenant with one another instead of praying with and learning from each other, if you feel that Jesus’ lament has been too long ignored, then you and I, whoever you are, must acknowledge that we have something in common. Then we must listen seriously to Jesus’ words again and again and again until it all sinks in.

Faith really isn’t about what we want! It is about what God wants!

Prayer: Lord, forgive me when I fail you by failing your people. Help me learn to obey your will. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.