April 1, 2024

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient.  Therefore, do not be partners with them.” (Ephesians 5.5-7)

REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

[Author’s note: Recognizing that attempting to make a distinction between the worldly “Easter” celebration conducted by the world and the Church dovetailing the “gospel of resurrection” into it creates angst for even many Christ followers, I have not shied away from doing so. In this regard, I accept the prophetic role of “speaking the truth in love.” Jesus said that doing so will make some others very upset. I am reminded of Matthew’s “Little Apocalypse” as Jesus shares teachings about the “last days and end times.” From it we get an inkling of what has become the “proposal of rapture.” I am speaking, of course, where Jesus says that while we would find one person in a place where there were two we would also consider that one person was not where there once was two. There will be, because of the gospel, parents turned against children, spouses against each other, etc. all for the sake of holding fast to the faith of believing Jesus is the truth and thus the authentic Messiah. John would say it this way, repeating the teaching of Jesus on the night He would be arrested “I AM [is] the only way, truth and life which leads to heaven and is the means by which abiding in the eternal presence of God without fear of death is attained.” Faith in Christ is a great terminus, a dividing line between what is truly right and what is awfully wrong; what is authentically good and what is terminally evil. So, as I read posts yesterday of those who were elated or saddened by their “Easter” celebration or the lack of it, I was struck by the benchmarks used to make such determinations. Most of them had to do with the worldly conventions now assigned to “Easter.” They had no real intention of celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus because they know that in actuality rabbits and chocolates and egg hunts with brightly colored baskets have nothing to do with the “gospel of resurrection.” For those who attended a worship service during the weekend, the hour reminder and remembrance was satisfactory to check the “I have been spiritual” box in remembrance of Him. What came next was the worldly, and very commercialized practice of, “Easter” as reflected in systems of cultures that had no basis in Christian faith to begin with. So, I ask, “What is the truth and what price are we willing to pay for it?” What builds up the gospel of Christ culture so that it stands adamantly, but lovingly, against the false information of “what Easter is all about and why and for whom”? The price of such commitment is “life-changing.” Isn’t that what Jesus came to oppose, the things that changed the Word of God to self-service and self-aggrandizement? He did so not by opposing it but by promoting the life and culture of authentic righteousness. He so believed in it that He gave up His life as an atonement for those who previous choices enslaved them to a system of “have nots.” Christian faith is the freedom to celebrate what it is that we do have according to the design, word and will of God.]

Now Paul’s watchword to the Ephesian Community of Faith in Jesus as the Christ is straightforward: no empty words. Human language is full of empty words. I call these “suitcase” words because for the most part they carry more emotion than reason. Not to say that those who use such words don’t have a “reason” to use them but the words themselves are so filled with emotional expression that they original meaning of the word has been lost. I am sure that you can think of a few of those words yourself. What we do know is that God’s word is filled with authentic meaning beginning the Jesus Christ Himself. When John wrote “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God and the Word became flesh and dwelt among humankind,” he was quite clear that no ambiguity existed in Jesus as the Christ. Equally, there should never be any misunderstanding as to the meaning of Jesus as the Christ on earth as He is in heaven. But, we do know those who are wont to express themselves with “Jesus Christ” and they do not mean it as a voice of praise. We ought to be careful of those words used to express extreme emotion but whose definitions and usage span the entire spectrum from left to right. When we used words to simply express vehement emotion instead of being clear ourselves with a vocabulary that is unambiguous, the intent is more to influence others to fear us instead of understanding the reason that moves to rectifying and reconciling a troubling problem.

But, Paul was also speaking about the practice of merely “saying words” and not really meaning them. He especially wanted to warn those who “said one thing and did another (or nothing at all).” We might call them hypocrites which we see plenty of in the world today inside and outside of the Church. We are guilty of hypocrisy ourselves from time to despite our efforts to the contrary. James urged (James 1.22) “Be doers of the word and not hearers only.” Suffice it to say that James would have included “…and/or not speakers only.” There are a lot of “talking” Christians who fail in the lack of effort to put the word in action. John’s introduction to his “Gospel of Jesus the Christ” makes it perfectly clear that God not only “talked the talk but walked the talk out in a real-life walk.” We are just one day past the celebrating the fruit of that spiritual integrity revelation as we reflected upon all this past week. It culminated with Resurrection Sunday which was not only the “first day of the week” but the “eighth day of holy week.” How significant it ought to be for believers to grasp the contrast drawn between the “eighth day of creation” and the “eighth day of consecration.” Anecdotally, the “eighth day of creation” speaks to the presence and temptation which Satan offers to Eve and Adam with “Surely God did not mean you will die.” Yes, eating of the forbidden fruit brought death into an awareness at many levels. God did indeed mean “we will die” when we empty our lives of the truth of obedience to God’s word. Such death becomes an undeniable truth for those who affirm Jesus of Nazareth to be the Christ of God and Messiah. The consequence of sin is death at every level. Jesus experienced such a death as He took on the penalty of all our sins for which He could not repent because He did not “do them.” And to accentuate the point of His obedience to God the Father, He emptied Himself out with a word following His commending His Spirit to God saying “It is finished. It is done.” Jesus was not only dead but He was dead dead. The reanimation of Jesus’ life could only happen by the love of God who would resuscitate Him spiritual by infusing the surrendered Spirit into Him. To do so, however, Jesus had to die. In order for us to have the opportunity for eternal life, Jesus had to die. He couldn’t pretend to die. He couldn’t fake death. He had to die as the only sacrifice that would bring about our forgiveness which we ourselves could not speak nor act into being.

But, on the “eighth day of consecration,” Jesus was raised from the dead just as the Word of God declared in the Law and the Prophets. Where “in Adam all people will die; so in Christ all people can live.” 1 Corinthians 15.22f) The power of the word of “sin” was defeated. It is still a temptation alive and well in the world today but “in the name of Jesus” that word is defeated and the death sin brings is overcome. Where death came in on the eighth day as an inescapable reality which drove Adam and Eve from the Garden, so life comes in on the eighth day as an everpresent reality which opens the Gate wide for all who will believe in their heart and say with their mouths “Jesus Christ is Lord.” But, we are warned that “on THAT day” which Jesus will appear again coming to claim His own to take them where He is now, those who merely mouth the words “Lord, Lord” will find themselves unsatisfyingly empty of all hope. He will respond to their empty praises with the hollow truth “Depart from me, I have never known you.” I pray that fewer and fewer people will hear those words from Him. It can only be fewer and fewer if more and more of us bear witness to the truth of God’s Word in action and in testimony, teaching those who would be disciples all that Jesus has taught to us. We must be careful, as Paul put it to the Ephesians “to partner with those who speak and act out empty words.” Those are the words which do not promote a godly life but which promote one’s self above and before all others. Equally, they are the words which put down others so that we might be lifted up. It is Jesus Christ alone that we should lift up just as He was lifted up: first, on the cross for our salvation and then second, in the ascension of confirmation that He was from God and returns to God so that He will return again to join us to Himself forever and ever.

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.