Ephesians 2:21-22

Ephesians 2:21-22 - In him the whole building is joined together and rises
to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together
to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

These two small verses are jam-packed with both individual and corporate meaning. Just prior to these verses, Paul proclaims Christ as the Chief Cornerstone to a household of believers that have been gathered and built through the centuries on His foundation.

The foundation of Christ is essential in our lives. Corporately, as a church, our feet must rest firmly on Christ. Pastor Neil Cole said, "The core reality is Jesus Christ being followed, loved and obeyed. Christ alive, forming spiritual families and working with them to fulfill His mission...the church really is an embodiment of the risen Jesus." (Organic Church: Growing Faith Where Life Happens, 2005) As individuals, we should so thoroughly soak in the love of God, allowing ourselves to be filled with His Spirit that we can't help its overflow into the lives of those around us.

When we assemble as Christians, God is joining us together to become a holy movement for His purpose. "Simply gathering a group of people who subscribe to a common set of beliefs is not worthy of Jesus and th sacrifice He made for us." (Neil Cole, 2005) We must bear fruit. That fruit isn't seen in pews being filled or membership growing, it is seen in the transformed lives of those we have found and discipled in the ways and love of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ.

From the very beginning, God's blessing to Abraham found in Genesis 12:2-3, was a blessing that gives a foundation to our Great Commission (Matt. 28:19-20).

God says to Abraham, "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless
you;I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those
who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you."

Today, we as believer's share in that blessing. We learned in Ephesians 1 that we have been adopted into that blessing. As we are blessed, we are called to be a blessing. Pastor Andy Lauer, shared with us in one of his sermons that there has got to be something more. "If not us, then who?" Who will be the hands and feet of Jesus today? We as a church and as individuals are called to bless others because of the blessing that is being built within us through the Holy Spirit.

God has joined us together so that we might be about His business, that we might be fulfilling His purpose not our own! So that through Christ we can be someone else's hope! That is the foundation that Paul is talking about. Christ is our Chief Cornerstone, in Him we can do the will of the Father who sent Him. How can you be someone's hope today? Are you looking at life through the eyes of Jesus? Are you seeing people with the compassion and grace that God saw you?

Ephesians 2:11-20

Read Ephesians 2:11-20.

Paul begins here talking about circumcision. The Jews were required by their law to circumcise their male children. It was by this mark that one would "prove" they were a Jew. I've often wondered how it is that circumcision would be an outward sign of a relationship with God. My mind wonders how that is outward at all, being covered by clothes and robes? Anyways, Paul tells us point blank that circumcision was a physical thing, not a spiritual act. It wasn't a change of heart, just a change of physical characteristics that made them who they were.

Remember these baby Christians in Ephesus were being told (not by Paul but by other converts), "you have to become like us." "It's not good enough just to believe, you must become a Jew, you must act like us, you must look like us." Paul combatting that mentality says, No! Christ died to break down barriers between people. You can be in Christ a new creation and not have to become a Jew.

Today, many in our world are so hopeless. They know nothing of God and the hope that is offered through Christ. How can we witness today of God's love to the hopeless? How can we follow Paul's example? Is it by loving and accepting people without forcing them to become like us - to dress like us, to worship like us, to look like us. Expecting a change, because we are promised to be new creations, but to allow them to be who Christ says they are, instead of who we think they should be?

If we go back to last weeks lesson, we begin to see that Paul was saying, remember who you were and the hopelessness that you had because people all around you are in that position today and need to be loved. In him "our hostility toward each other was put to death." Christ died so that all may live in Him, not so all would be like alike, like little clones of each other. First Corinthians 12 points out how in Christ we are all different, given different gifts and yet still one body in Christ.

It is because of Christ's sacrifice we can come before God as a family of great differences and yet as holy because Christ makes us holy. What great joy we have in knowing that we have a Father in heaven who loves us for who we are. That He saw us where we were and sent His Son to redeem us and give us new life.

Got Blood? Give Some.

On Thursday, May 28th, Hope Community hosted its first Red Cross blood drive! We collected 18 pints of blood! Enough blood to save up to 54 people! Praise God!

Thank you to all our donors and potential donors and to all of our volunteers through out the day! We would not have been able to do it without you!!! Thank you!

Our next drive will be October 9th. Here are some picks of our fabulous day!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Ephesians 2:1-10

Our reading this week is Ephesians 2:1-10. This passage is packed with power and meaning for our lives today. Instead of a link to the passage, it's here for you from the Amplified Version.

"AND YOU [He made alive], when you were dead (slain) by [your] trespasses and sins in which at one time you walked [habitually]. You were following the course and fashion of this world [were under the sway of the tendency of this present age], following the prince of the power of the air. [You were obedient to and under the control of] the [demon] spirit that still constantly works in the sons of disobedience [the careless, the rebellious, and the unbelieving, who go against the purposes of God]. Among these we as well as you once lived and conducted ourselves in the passions of our flesh [our behavior governed by our corrupt and sensual nature], obeying the impulses of the flesh and the thoughts of the mind [our cravings dictated by our senses and our dark imaginings]. We were then by nature children of [God's] wrath and heirs of [His] indignation, like the rest of humankind." Ephesians 2:1-3

It wasn't until quite recently that I began reading the Amplified Version of the Bible. And before hand I really had no clue what was meant by "amplified", in essence, as you may have noticed, it's not a matter of just adding more descriptive words just to do so, but they went back to the original language and expanded on what those original words would have meant to the original readers. They added more context to the passages we would normally read and perhaps miss little things. It is a really neat version of the Bible and available at www.biblegateway.com if you're interested in reading more of it.

Let's remember that Paul is writing to believer's in the city of Ephesus. These believer's lived in what could be called a pagan megacity of the time. They were submersed in a culture of perversion and sin and no doubt struggled in their faith. Not so much different from us today. We also learned last week that Paul sincerely loved these Christians. He prayed for them passionately and fervently. So Paul in this part of the letter starts writing to them about the things that God saved them from. He's reminding them of where they came from.

Often today, we spend a lot of energy running from the past, hiding where we came from or who we are or the things that we did. And somehow we sometimes find ourselves forgetting why we needed God's forgiveness in the first place. Oh, it's not intentionally. It just happens. We forget that we were once like those that surround us, until someone became our Hope, until someone named Jesus Christ reached out and touched us.

I don't think we have it right. I don't think we are supposed to forget our sins and our pasts. I believe God calls us knowing who we are and He calls us with a promise to use that brokenness for His glory. How, if we've left it all behind, forgetting it ever happened, can He use our story to touch the life of someone else? This is what Paul's doing here in this passage. He's reminding them of who they were. He's reminding them that all this sin that is going on around them, was once their lifestyle and once their reality. As we'll see a little later, Paul was telling the Christians in Ephesus to remember who they were, so they can know who they are now in Christ and use that power to change their world, to be someone else's hope.

So let's like Paul take a stroll down memory lane:

Think back over your past, before you met Christ in what ways were you dead?

Paul talks about following the course and fashion of this world and how that influences our lives. What are some of these behaviors and how do they impact your behavior? How do those behaviors reflect Christ in your life or not?

Fred Allen said, "Most of us spend our first six days of the week sowing wild oats; then we go to church on Sunday and pray for a crop failure." Think about it. Are we still living with one foot in the world? Are there areas in your life that you have felt the displeasure of God? Rev. 3:15-17 talks about God spitting the lukewarm out of His mouth. Or have you completely 'sold out' for Jesus Christ seeking Him at every turn and moment in your life?

Paul didn't just throw their past in their face and run away, leaving them to fester in guilt or shame. In keeping with the spirit of remembrance, he showed them their past and reminded them of their present and the future in Christ. You know, the after picture is always much better than the before picture. Who we are after the Christ encounter is so much prettier than who we were before and it is only because of God's love, mercy and grace.

"But God-so rich is He in His mercy! Because of and in order to satisfy the great and wonderful and intense love with which He loved us, Even when we were dead (slain) by [our own] shortcomings and trespasses, He made us alive together in fellowship and in union with Christ; [He gave us the very life of Christ Himself, the same new life with which He quickened Him,] for it is by grace (His favor and mercy which you did not deserve) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ's salvation), And He raised us up together with Him and made us sit down together [giving us joint seating with Him] in the heavenly sphere [by virtue of our being] in Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed One). He did this that He might clearly demonstrate through the ages to come the immeasurable (limitless, surpassing) riches of His free grace (His unmerited favor) in [His] kindness and goodness of heart toward us in Christ Jesus. For it is by free grace (God's unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ's salvation) through [your] faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves [of your own doing, it came not through your own striving], but it is the gift of God; Not because of works [not the fulfillment of the Law's demands], lest any man should boast. [It is not the result of what anyone can possibly do, so no one can pride himself in it or take glory to himself.] For we are God's [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of tiem], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live." Ephesians 2:4-10

Think about it, we are raised up and sat down together with Christ! What does that mean to you? Does it give you hope and optimism?

God's grace is the most optimistic thing in the entire world. Grace gives us hope and it allows anyone to be changed. We leave this passage with hope. The last portion tells us that God is preparing us for something good. Can you feel it? Are you conscious of what God is doing in your life? And are you being obedient to His plan for you?

A New Addition

A lot has been going on in the life of Hope Community in the last couple of months. We have had a new addition to our family, Pastor Brandon Williams, his wife Bethany and two sons Camden and Corban have arrived. We are living in the midst of a momentous time in our culture in which we have the opportunity to reach the unreached in new and exciting ways. We look forward to working alongside our new pastor and his family making disciples in our community.

To help make Bethany feel welcome, we decided to step out of our normal box and host a baby shower for her and her new son, Corban. It was a great time of fellowship last night as we celebrated the new beginnings of a young life and of our church family. We took a few moments to focus on what blessings we have been given in our lives and on the eternal blessing of God and His plan and purpose for us.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Ephesians 1:3-23

Last year was an exciting time, my youngest daughter started preschool. As a mom, there are tons of mixed emotions when your children start spending half of the day with someone other than you. But she was excited and I was excited for her. Never had she been more excited than when she was chosen to feed the classroom fish. A small job but for a 4 year old, it seemed the greatest honor. She was very proud of the job she had been given. Have you ever been chosen for something? How did it make you feel?

Before we read this weeks passage, let's look at several words that will surface and perhaps need a little explanation. Paul uses 5 words in this passage that are filled with rich context and definition: Chosen - God's chosen people are the Jews, starting with Abraham in Genesis 12 and because of Christ's sacrifice today, you and I can be part of God's chosen people. Once you believe in and receive Christ you are Adopted into His family. God had you in mind before you knew Him. God is at work in the lives of His precious creation, wooing us to Him, He predestines that all of His creation would come to Him. Forgiven: Only God is able to remove our guilt and sin. He is the only one who can judge us. God sent Jesus Christ to be the final sacrifice and to be our freedom from the penalty that we justly deserve because of our sin. Through Jesus Christ our sins can be forgiven. Inheritance: Like the concept of inheritance today, once we accept Christ and are adopted in to His family, forgiven of our sins, we are partakers in His inheritance, an eternal inheritance.

Let's see how these terms play out in our passage. Read Ephesians 1:3-23 (you can follow the link for the passage).

Verses 4-8 discuss spiritual blessings that are given in Christ. What are some of these?
What do these blessings mean to you?

Verse 4 says that God's intent is for us to be holy and blameless, what does that mean? How do we become holy?

Verses 9-14 go on to discuss God's purpose, plan and pleasure. What do these mean? And do you know what God's purpose is for your life? Have you accepted that and starting moving towards the destination He has for you?

When we get to the final verses of this passage, we find Paul pouring his heart out in prayer for his friends in Ephesus. What specific things does he pray for them? How would it make you feel to know that someone is praying like this for you? Do you have a prayer warriar in your life?

Paul also speaks of "the fullness of Him who fills everything in every way." What do you think Paul means by fullness? Do we live life knowing that God has filled us with His very presence, that he goes with us? How has God's power been demonstrated in your life?

As you go through this week, think about how God is working in your life. The ultimate joy of salvation is not what He has saved us from, but what He has saved us for. He has given us new life for a purpose, for His purpose. Are you responding to His plan for your life?

Adapted from: Lectio Divina Bible Studies: Listening for God through Ephesians.
Heer, Ken. Lectio Divina Bible studies: Listening for God through Ephesians. Indianapolis, IN: Wesleyan Publishing House and Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City, 2006.