Ephesians WEEK 5
Monday
There are some church traditions that focus on sin. People go to church expecting to be reminded of their sinfulness, they hear a call to repentance, and leave with the renewed gumption to live more righteously.
Though that is common in some churches, discussion of sin is becoming less common in many other churches. It is rarely addressed, explored, and considered as a crucial aspect in the Christian life.
Today, we are going honor Scripture by talking about sin.
Sin is not merely failing at God’s list of do’s and don’ts. Sin takes place when we neglect the first verse of this chapter. Sin happens when we do not follow Jesus’ example nor Christ’s way of love. Departing from Christ’s example and his way is sin. Disconnecting from Jesus’ life and path has many names: in this passage we find sexual sin, impurity, greed, obscenity, foolish talk, coarse joking, disobedience. Though there are many words to describe sin, each remind us that we need to turn back to Christ. We turn to Jesus because, even in our sin, we still are “dearly loved children.” That identity goes deeper than our sin.
So, read back through those verses. Have you veered from the “way of love” and the example found in Jesus? Where is sin evident in your life?
Beloved, turn to Christ and allow him to shepherd you back on the path of life.
Tuesday
“Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
Be very careful, then, how you live - not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.
Ephesians 5:14-16
This week’s sermon was focused on our proclivity to fall into spiritual slumber. Spiritual epiphanies tend to fade away. Mountaintop experiences seem to stay on the mountain. As people, we have a tendency to fall asleep spiritually. Numbed by the monotony of our days, by our devices pulling us out of this present moment, and by a learned hopelessness, we can fall asleep. Perhaps this is what Paul means when he says that “the days are evil.”
Yet, the light of Christ can wake us up. To help us to rise us!
Ephesians 5:14-16 is the passage we speak to parents when they baptize or dedicate their child. We recite these verses, and we give parents a jar with around 1,000 marbles: one marble for every week until that newborn turns 18. The invitation is to have the parent pull one marble out per week and consider the question, Did I partner with God to make this week count for my child?
We need these sorts of reminders to help us wake up.
What can you do today to help you wake up – to remind you to make the most of this day? You could carry with you an item (e.g., a marble) throughout your day. Perhaps set a reminder on your phone morning, midday, and evening to pause and return to God with this prayer: “Wake me up. Help me to make the most of this day.”
Friends, let the light of Christ shine on you!
Wednesday
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Ephesians 5:18-19
Have you noticed that Austin has become a more boozy town? From the late-night life on 6th Street or Rainey Street, to fancy wine bars, to overpriced craft cocktail lounges, to the many microbreweries peppering the Hill Country, Austin has no shortage of beverages. What fuels this culture of consumption? Some use alcohol to escape. Others enjoy a drink as an opportunity to gather with friends. Others will sit down with a friend to share a glass of solidarity as they go through a hard time. Or maybe, people drink to get through UT’s football season.
Though there might be many reasons why people drink (good and not so good), two reasons come to mind today: People can drink to numb, and others drink to loose their inhibitions. When times are tough, it is easy to turn to a bottle. When someone doesn’t feel confident in their own skin, a little liquid courage will do. Though many think drinking helps people to get the most out of life, what we know is drunkenness actually pulls people out of life. You can’t numb the pain without also numbing the joy. Though drinking might take away people’s inhibitions, it can also cause much regret.
What could we do in its place? Paul says, “Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” For those who need refuge – turn to God’s presence. For those who need courage – turn to the One who is near.
To be filled with the Spirit is a posture of becoming more and more open to God’s presence. It is a learned reliance upon God. Being filled with the Holy Spirit is not a one-time occurrence. It is a continued returning to God’s provision – much like daily bread.
So, what is your need today? Where do you feel weak? Where are you hurting?
Go to God now. Spend a moment and ask that God would fill you today.
Thursday
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Ephesians 5:18-19
One of the ways we remain spiritually awake is to “speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit.” Notice two elements in this sentence. One is the use of psalms, hymns and songs from the Spirit. Most scholars think these are three different type of songs that the early church used in worship.
What significance does worship music hold in your life? For some, worship through music is incredibly important. For others, they could leave it behind. Yet there is a reason we worship through song. Music, like all art, helps us connect at more than an intellectual level. It includes our emotional and spiritual identity as well.
What is a song that has marked your spiritual life? Maybe it is a song from your childhood, a song from a particular moment with God, or a favorite recent song of worship.
But there is another element to Paul’s encouragement. Notice it is speaking these hymn and songs to one another. We need a community to remind us of Christ’s truths, to encourage us to live well, and to help us stay spiritually awake. Part of our calling as a church family is to speak these words of encouragement to one another.
So today, do two things:
Identify a song that speaks to your soul, provides you encouragement in Christ, and reminds you of what is important in life. Set aside some time and listen to this song.
Second, share that song with at least two people. Text them a link to a YouTube video or Spotify song to share this with them.
Friday
“This is why it is said: ‘Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.’ Be very careful, then, how you live - not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” Ephesians 5: 14-16
We need something to take us out of our spiritual slumber. For those who heard the sermon on Sunday, Mark shared about his role model, Bill Murray. Bill Murray is known to do many bizarre things to ordinary people in ordinary moments. When asked why he does this, he responded, “To wake people up!”
Jesus was masterful at many things. But one of the things we see him doing over and over again was creating moments that woke people up! Bill Murray had nothing on him. A normal day would change someone’s life, their eternity. A woman would go get water in the heat of the day. A man finished another day fishing on that same boat in the same sea. A tax collector hoped to get a glimpse of a traveling teacher. A paralyzed man who gave up hope on walking again was waiting by a pool… but through words of love and acts of extraordinary kindness, people came alive. People woke up! This is the work of Jesus in our lives.
That is what Paul is saying to this church, a church like ours. Wake up! Don’t waste your life! Live full lives! And let Christ shine on you!
This video shares one of the moments where Bill Murray sought to wake people up. In the spring of 2009, construction workers building the new home for Poets House had their day interrupted when Bill Murray decided to come in and recite some poetry. Listen to the words, watch the faces, and especially notice the ending. What is being awakened?
Finally, don’t only consider what it would have been like to be a construction worker in this scene. How can we enact the same type of work that we see Murray and more importantly Jesus do in this world. How can we awaken others’ hearts and souls for God?
Saturday
The end of Ephesians 5 (and the beginning of chapter 6) have been problematic for many people. Why? Concepts like submission are loaded. Also, this passage has been interpreted to condone marriages that do not represent the way of Jesus.
When terms are cloaked in “Christianese” or have unintended meaning, we can turn to scholars and interpreters to help us get a different angle on the text. Read Ephesians 5:21-33 from The Message (Eugene Peterson’s translation).
Out of respect for Christ, be courteously reverent to one another.
Wives, understand and support your husbands in ways that show your support for Christ. The husband provides leadership to his wife the way Christ does to his church, not by domineering but by cherishing. So just as the church submits to Christ as he exercises such leadership, wives should likewise submit to their husbands.
Husbands, go all out in your love for your wives, exactly as Christ did for the church—a love marked by giving, not getting. Christ’s love makes the church whole. His words evoke her beauty. Everything he does and says is designed to bring the best out of her, dressing her in dazzling white silk, radiant with holiness. And that is how husbands ought to love their wives. They’re really doing themselves a favor—since they’re already “one” in marriage.
No one abuses his own body, does he? No, he feeds and pampers it. That’s how Christ treats us, the church, since we are part of his body. And this is why a man leaves father and mother and cherishes his wife. No longer two, they become “one flesh.” This is a huge mystery, and I don’t pretend to understand it all. What is clearest to me is the way Christ treats the church. And this provides a good picture of how each husband is to treat his wife, loving himself in loving her, and how each wife is to honor her husband.
What stands out in this passage?
How does this passage give us a different take on concepts like submission, headship, and leadership?
What would a marriage look like with both partners living and loving this way?
What problems remain for you?
For those whom are married or in a relationship, consider reading this passage together in the Message translation. Humbly ask the other how you could love better.