March 5, 2024

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“Therefore, each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. ‘In your anger do not sin’; Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry. Do not give the devil a foothold” (Ephesians 4.25-26, 27)

REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD

1. Don’t let your anger become the reason others will not relate to you or to God. Sometimes, our passionate response to a troubling situation becomes ramped up emotionally. When that happens our investment in “what is right and good” becomes more like adamant justice or worse- vengeance. It is best to ask ourselves “Why am I angry? What am I hoping will change? What can I really do about the situation to effect the change that is needed? Is the change ‘of God.’” Take the “Jesus clears the temple marketplace” scenario through those four questions and see what you discover about yourself.

2. Don’t let the day pass without putting your anger in the proper perspective. Sometimes in our overinvestment we say and do things that may have crossed the line. I am not speaking of “pleasing everyone” but “offending others” should be held in check with the counter of mercy, compassion, wisdom and humility. Allowing our anger, and the consequences of our “anger,” to go unchecked, unresolved and unreconciled only widens the chasm that is fixed between us. Prayer at the end of the day is a good spiritual discipline to practice in review. Including in it, the recognition that some things cannot be best addressed by our own words and actions should be added. Here is where that past axiom “Let go and let God” might be a stroke of wisdom.

3. Then Paul adds the third layer of “putting off falsehood and speaking truthfully to the neighbor.” That layer of wisdom urges “Do not let the devil gain a foothold.” It would seem that the “one-two” punch already mentioned (pursue righteousness, pray without ceasing) should be a sufficient counter-balance in bringing the community of faith together as well as keeping it together for the good of all people and for the glory of God. Yet, Paul insists that we must keep ourselves aware of “tolerance” which allows what may seem insignificant to flourish and become acceptable. We certainly are seeing the fruits of those seeds gaining momentum in today’s world. We have even allowed “semantics” to become the excuse for inclusion, entitlement and evil to be common everyday maxims of reality. I wonder if the image me, and I offer it to you, is something like this: “don’t give the devil a foot up so that he rises above us.” You know what I mean. In helping someone reach, we cup our hands so that they can put their foot in it and we hoist them up. Sometimes that happens when we remain silent. Our acquiescence or assent by standing apart or looking the other way even when we are looking directly at it fosters acceptance of, as the prophet Isaiah said “…calling evil good and exchanging truth for a lie.” We excuse ourselves by saying “Well, I wouldn’t do that but hey- it’s a free world!” And we have said it many times. Doing so equates with “giving the devil a foothold.“

Mighty ones of God in Christ Jesus our Lord, we must accept responsibility for our lives and for the thoughts and actions we consider remain unchecked. Are we weighing them with the measure of righteousness? Are we spending time in “listening” prayer to gain objectivity and wisdom? Are we allowing erosion and the chipping away of the spiritual moral fabric with which our lives have been knitted since before we were in the womb? Ultimately, we all need to be well-versed in that “one, two punch” mentioned above. But, without the “knockout punch,” the devil will continue to be a roaring and prowling lion crouching at our door ready to devour. Time to stop “feeding the kitty” and put the “beast in its place.” Let’s yank a knot in the tail of the serpent and leave him hanging for all to see as a warning.

TODAY’S PRAYER IN RESPONSE TO GOD’S WORD:

Father, before we were conceived in the womb, You had already formed us in Your love and by Your Spirit spoke us into being. Each one of us is blessed with the opportunity of doing right, being good and producing the fruit of the Spirit so that others may be fed the truth of that same love so that the two will become one. It is our soul’s sincere desire to embrace the oneness You have in mind that we would know that we are Your people and that You are our God. Lead us in that discovery of the truth and the manifestation of that love for us all. In Jesus’ name, we pray. AMEN.