The New Testament
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Devotional
Weekly Bible Devotion By Books
Dec. 4-9, 2023
Enter the presence of the Lord-
(All) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
(Men) He has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places
(Women) In love he predestinated us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ
(Men) We have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of our trespasses
(Women) In him we have obtained an inheritance
(Men) We have heard the word of truth, the gospel of our salvation
(Women) We are sealed with the promise of the Holy Spirit.
(All) Praise your glory
(selections from Ephesians 1:3-14, NIV)
Adoration
Our heavenly Father, we give you thanks and praises for all you have done for us. Beyond that, we simply feel overwhelmed by who you are. Who are we? yet you have so much loving thoughts toward us. We are in awe for your love, your grace, your purpose, your will, your wisdom and your insight. Praise you. Thank you for loving us so much. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Scripture Reading: Ephesians (NIV)
2:13-16 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, 16 and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.
3:6-11 6 This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus… 10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, 11 according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.
4:11-13 11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
4:21-24 when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
5:15-21 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
6:4 Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
6:14-18 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Thoughts to Share: The New Person and The New Community
What does it mean that we become a Christ believer and follower? Paul in Ephesians tells us that it is not saying we are changed to a “good” person from a “bad” person. Rather, it is about that we are brought into a status of “new self” from the status of “old self”. The new self is the one who has God’s life in him/her. Those new persons’ community is a new human community called as “Church”.
1) Foundation of the change:
God had a plan of blessings to his created humans long before the world came into being. He made that plan with insight, wisdom, love, grace according to his own pleasure, will and purposes. In the fullness of time, he made this plan known and available to us in his beloved son, Jesus Christ. The plan is we will be adopted as his children through Christ. And, in Christ, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses. We will be blessed with every spiritual blessings in the heavenly places.
2) A new human community:
The Gospel of Jesus Christ gives the birth of a new human community. All- the Jews and the Gentiles- are one in Christ. From Christ, we are saved from sins and trespasses. We receive the peace. The hostility in us toward God, ourselves, and others is killed. His peace becomes our peace. We are brought into a new family- God’s family. We are joined together to God himself as the head of our household. The compassing love of God makes such a new human community beyond our human knowledge and ability. Is it possible? Yes, Is it easy? No. Is it instant to achieve? No. Paul reminds such peace and unity takes the work of growth : in all humility and gentleness, in patience, in bearing with one another in love, in the spirit of eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace in Christ, in the teachings and leading of church leaders God set.
3) A new self:
Receiving the Gospel of Jesus Christ initiates a new transformation in any believer’s self. Our mindset is changed. Our heart condition is changed. The old self, that is alienated from the life of God, is taken off and is gone. The new self, like a new cloth, is created, is put on. The new self is the self after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. The new self walks in the love of God, in the light of God.
Paul points out a few dimensions that a new lifestyle is expressed from a new self in Christ.
- Be filled with the Holy Spirit.
- Intellectually: put away falsehood, darkened understanding, speak the truth, discern what is pleasing to the Lord, understand what the will of the Lord is
- Emotionally: anger but not lasting and be tempted to devil
- Socially do honest work with hands, no drank in wine
- Speech: no corrupting call, give edifying and grace; no filthiness, foolish talk, crude joking, empty words
- Relationally: put away bitterness, wrath, clamor, slander, all malice; Replace with kindness, tenderhearted, forgiveness; No sexual immorality, impurity
- Make the best use of time as the wise
- Cultivate godly marital and family relations- love and respect, obedience and guiding in gentleness and wisdom of God
- Adopt godly perspective toward work and workplaces: Do all works as to the Lord. Treat each other fairly and resonably.
4) Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might
The new persons and their new community exist in the same world they came out. They will encounter many challenges in their faith journey. Using the image of “the armor pieces of a soldier”, Paul introduces Ephesian Christians a whole armor of God. This armor of God includes belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, shoes of peace, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit. Then it will be completed with prayers and perseverance. Its ultimate purpose is that all may praise glory of God in the grace of God.
Here let us exit from this epistle for a moment. we recall that after the chosen Israelites came out from the Egypt, God gave them the new identities: treasured possession, a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. God gave them laws in hoping to guide them to live out these identities. But the Israelites failed again and again after their entering the promised land. They even hoped to build their kingdom of God according to their neighboring nations. Later, though they returned to the promised land from exile, their dream for a new nation never came into being. It became a mystery that how they could make a holy nation and kingdom of priests on their own effort by the end of the Old Testament time. Now, let us come back to this epistle to the Ephesians. Here, we see Paul unsealing the mystery of God’s plan. We start to see the continuity of our new self and new human community- church - with God’s ancient desire for his chosen people.
Prayer Suggestions:
Do we understand better what the church is and what a Christian is now?
Lord of our newness, thank you by the blood of your son Jesus Christ so that we can become a new man or a new woman. We can have a new human community. The church is truly a precious gift from you and for you. We are touched by your loving thought that we are yours. You came so that we can have a new life and an abundant life. As we grow, help us to reach to the maturity that pleases you and good for ourselves and for others. Help us to love you and your church more. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Prayer Request
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