May 24, 2024

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“Find out what pleases the Lord. 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. Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.” (Ephesians 5.10; Ephesians 6.18-20)

REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

As we look at those closing verses of Ephesians, chapter six, we will see those valued predictors which create a life that is pleasing to God and functional in fostering a life in others that does the same: prayer, alertness, discipling and fearlessness. Let us look at the call to “fearlessness” which pleases God.

The Apostle Paul was well acquainted with “fear.” His name, Saul of Tarsus, was befitting a “Most Wanted” posting for the fledgling movement called The Way. His fervency for Judaism, that version which the Pharisees promoted in stark contrast to that of the Sadducees, was so adamant. He loathed this movement of Jews and Gentiles who pursued the teachings of Jesus. Their passion for the gospel, their belief in the resurrection and the commitment to being one in Christ through His Holy Spirit was an anathema to Saul. Even after his conversion on the Damascus Road along with his being discipled by Ananias, Saul/Paul was feared for having the authority to put them in prison or worse to execute them as martyrs. I find it interesting that we do not hear of how his kindred Pharisees or the associates of the Temple leadership responded to the news of Saul’s conversion. To them, Paul must have been seen as a traitor, a heretic, a lunatic and by all means an adversary. As “one of them,” Paul would have known their secrets, their facades, their weaknesses and their sinful intentions as collaborators with Rome, whose citizenship he claimed as a defense against them. They feared Rome, perhaps, more than they feared the former Saul of Tarsus.

But there was another side to fear which Paul knew well. From the moment when the resurrected Jesus appeared to him on the Damascus Road in full glory which blinded him, we know of Paul’s “fear of the Lord.” It was not the fear which inspired a sense of retribution, judgment or execution. It was the fear of awe, wonder and absolute overwhelmedness by the God whom he loved and now more fully understood. I have to believe that it was this experience that began to shape his understanding of agapao, agape or “God’s love,” of which he wrote to the Faith in Christ Community of Corinth. The kind of fear which acknowledged that duality of God’s love as merciful creator and absolute judge, One who can lift up and most assuredly put down, One who could give life and as easily take life, One who would welcome us into Heaven and most assuredly with absolute sorrow send us to Hell. As the teaching of Jesus was recorded in Matthew (10.28), “Fear not those who can kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul; rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Paul understood the fine line between the Law and Grace. The Law was perfect in establishing blame with limited ability to be redeemed from it. The Law speaks to the mind conceptually and demands absolute perfection in its actualization. Who can do that? Well, there is Jesus; but apart from Him who could, can and will be able to fulfill the Law and its expectation of perfection? Those who deny and ignore the Law believe they can do that by default of there being no fault since none exists according to their perspective. Grace, on the other hand, extends the latitude of gratitude and the aptitude of attitude for those who are willing to confess their imperfection while professing they are willing to submit to the perfect One who can work all things together for good. So, while we can fear failure because we lean upon our own understanding, we can find success by being in fear of the Lord in whom we should trust explicitly.

As mighty ones of God, we should accept the call to live in fearlessness which is to accept the truth of “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” Whatever place we find ourselves in, with whomever we are confronting and sharing life’s truth with, by whatever trial or tribulation that may confront us, we should pray for the fearlessness of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit comforts us, inspires us, instructs us, teaches us, directs us and protects us as well as bring healing to our souls regardless of the wounding the world may desire to inflict upon us. Trusting in God and being fearless in our witness of faith, hope and love will certainly please God as well as bring blessing to us in our embrace of the eternal life given to us by Jesus who is the Christ.

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 brought 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.