As We Begin “Ephesians”

With great joy and expectation, I’m planning to begin preaching through Paul’s letter to the Ephesians this coming Lord’s Day.  What a glorious portion of God’s Word this is, revealing the fullness of believers’ identity and calling in Christ, and the practical implications of how we’re to walk worthy of that calling.

 

The central message of Ephesians is heralded by Paul early on.  In Eph. 1:9-10, as Paul recounts the unsearchable riches of God’s blessings in Christ, he declares that all of this is “…according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth…”.

 

In his excellent commentary on Ephesians, P.T. O’Brien observes:  “This text provides the key for unlocking the glorious riches of the letter, draws together into a unity many of its major themes, and enables us to gain an integrated picture of the letter as a whole.”  (The Letter to the Ephesians, Grand Rapids:  Eerdmans Publ. Co., 1999, pg. 58).

 

Beloved, as we plan to “camp out” in Ephesians for many months to come, let me  encourage you in a couple of ways:

 

  • Be regularly reading Paul’s letter to the Ephesians – both on your own, and/or with others.  With only 6 chapters, there are numerous ways you could plan to do this.  The key is to try and saturate yourself in the context and thought of the letter, which will greatly aid your understanding and application.
  • Be regularly praying the prayers of Paul in Ephesians (1:15-23; 3:14-21) – both for yourself and for other believers.  If you’re not sure about the meaning of these prayers, keep praying and reading!

 

May God do among us “…far more abundantly than all that we ask or think…”, for the glory of His great name in Christ!

 

Grace upon grace,

Greg

Genuine Worship Includes Gathering with God’s People

God’s word makes clear that genuine worship which pleases Him is that which is “in spirit and in truth” (Jn. 4:22-24), and that which encompasses all of life, all the time (Rom. 12:1-2).  With slight modification to a definition of worship offered by David Peterson in his excellent book Engaging With God, we can say that genuine worship is “faith in God through Jesus Christ, expressing itself in adoration, dependence, and obedience” (pg. 283).

 

Because genuine worship of God is “all of life, all the time”, and not just something that happens on Sundays from 10:30am-12:15pm, we might ask:  why do we need to gather together weekly at all?  Isn’t it enough for me to just read my bible on my own, listen to sermons online, play Christian music on my iPod, and worship God through all my life, all the time?

 

Here’s the short answer:  no, it’s not enough.  When God brought you to faith and life in Christ, He joined you to Christ and His people.  He made you a part of His church…a member of His body (see 1 Cor. 12:1-31).  And God’s purpose in gathering His people weekly in local churches, around His word, is to encourage and strengthen our faith in God through Jesus Christ.  All of this so that together, we might adore, depend on, and obey Him all the more, giving glory to Him.  This is why the writer of Hebrews has so much to say about the supremacy and sufficiency of Jesus Christ for His people (Heb. 1:1-4), and why His people must not neglect meeting together, so as to encourage one another in the hope of Christ:
“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”  (Heb. 10:24-25)

 

Beloved, God has given us great privilege and responsibilities in our corporate and weekly gatherings as His people!  What a joy to share life in Christ together with you at RCG – I can’t wait to gather again with you this coming Lord’s Day!

 

Greg

Into the Sanctuary of God

What a joy it was to feast together with you this past Lord’s Day on Psalm 73.  As Asaph came to learn through his experience, God is good…always!

 

Asaph’s candid testimony reveals his doubts about the goodness of God, brought on by his envy of the wicked (see vs. 2-16).  The turning point which delivered him from embittered despair to exuberant praise is identified in vs. 17 – “…until I went into the sanctuary of God…”.  When Asaph returned to the regular worship of God, with God’s people and under God’s word, he then saw the truth of God’s goodness more fully and accurately.

 

John Calvin paraphrases Asaph’s statement in verse 17:  “Until God become my schoolmaster, and until I learn by his word what otherwise my mind, when I come to consider the government of the world, cannot comprehend, I stop short all at once, and understand nothing about the subject.”  (John Calvin, commentary on Ps. 73:17)

 

Beloved, how necessary for our minds to continually be transformed by God’s word, rather than squeezed into the mold of this world’s godless thinking (Rom. 12:1-2)!  And this is one of God’s primary reasons for having us gather weekly in corporate worship – that he might shape and mold us through His word.

 

Looking forward to gathering with you again this coming Sunday, even as we eagerly await that great and eternal gathering with Christ in heaven!

 

Greg

Doing Our Part, Today

A healthy practice for believers is to regularly read the Book of Acts (along with the rest of Scripture)!  With 28 chapters, Acts could be read monthly at a pace of one chapter a day.  Or it could be read quarterly by reading 2-3 chapters a week, or almost twice a year by reading a chapter a week.  You get the idea!

 

I say this is a healthy practice because Acts keeps before us the reality that our Lord Jesus Christ is STILL ACTIVE in building His church!  Even now – by His Word, through His Spirit, with the participation of His people, and amid the pains of His providence – Jesus Christ is sovereignly working to gather, shepherd, and multiply His flock.

 

The question the Book of Acts continually holds before us is this:  are we doing our part in the work Christ has for us today?  Specifically, as we saw exemplified in Paul’s life and ministry last Lord’s Day (which is the focus of 17 of the 28 chapters of Acts), are we increasingly confident in the hope of the gospel, ambitious in the spread of the gospel, strengthened in the riches of the gospel, and faithful in the proclamation of the gospel?

 

The significance of these questions trickles down to the particular circumstances and opportunities of our daily lives.  Men, women, young, old, single, married, etc. – we’re all in different situations.  So particular points of application will look different for each of us.  And this is part of God’s wise design in our life together as a local church, that we might encourage, provoke, pray for, and learn from one another as we seek to be faithful in the work of Christ among us.

 

Beloved, may you and I ever more fully embrace Paul’s resolved mindset:


But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.”  (Acts 20:24)

 

Because Christ lives, and is returning,

Greg

Word Work

Over the last couple weeks in the book of Acts, we’ve been learning of God’s strategy for world missions.  Simply stated, He speaks!  God accomplishes His work by His living, powerful, authoritative word.  So we have seen throughout Acts that our exalted Lord Jesus Christ is gathering, shepherding, and multiplying His flock – the church.  He’s doing this through the proclamation of His word, in the power of the Holy Spirit, with the participation of His people, and amid the pains of His providence (see these elements at work, for example, in Acts 14:19-28).

 

Because of the indispensable centrality of God’s word in all His work, God’s people must have a relentless confidence in His word.  As Paul exhorted Timothy in 2 Tim. 3:14-17 –

 

14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it 15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

 

Beloved, God saves us through the preaching of His word (1 Pet. 1:22-25); He grows us through the nourishment of His word (1 Pet. 2:1-3); and He designs to use us – all of us – as ministers of His word (1 Pet. 4:10-11).  What a privilege and responsibility we have to share God’s eternal word with others (friends, co-workers, spouses, neighbors, children, parents, etc.), trusting that He will use His word for His purposes (see Is. 55:10-11).

 

To strengthen your delight in, and desire for God’s word, here are the excellent resources I mentioned at the end of last Sunday’s sermon:

 

 

Praying and trusting the Lord to keep accomplishing His “word work” in us, and through us,

 

Pastor Greg