Readings:
1 Kings 19:4-8; Psalm 34:1-8; Ephesians 4:25-5:2; John 6:35, 41-51

Collect:
God of glory,
the end of our searching,
help us to lay aside all that prevents us from seeking your kingdom,
and to give all that we have to gain the pearl beyond all price,
through our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

Reflection - Ephesians 4:25-5:2 – sacrifice for Christ’s Sake
In earlier verses of Ephesians Paul speaks of Christ being the head of the church (1:22 23) – i.e. head of his body, you and me, the local church members. So it is, that Paul then embarks on a series of ‘therefore’s’ and ‘so’s’ referring back to the reason we should behave (or not behave!) as he is now describing.

Writing this, as I am, in the middle of Watling Valley Holiday Club at Christ the Sower, it is very reminiscent of things we are talking to the children about from the Gospels: Peter’s declaration of Jesus being ‘Messiah, Son of the living God’, disciples following Jesus, hearing his words and putting them into practice, building our lives on Jesus, the Big Rock (cornerstone in Eph 2:20), and not building our lives on sand (futility and darkened understanding in Eph 4:17 18). 

Paul, in another metaphor, declares that we should submit to his lordship by putting off the old self and putting on the new. He also encourages us to keep unity with each other in the Holy Spirit, each of us using our God-given gifts to build up the church, and to that end, not to do certain things that will hinder that. He cites specifically:

25) Falsehood – being true to our word, and not ducking an issue if we’ve got it wrong.

26-7) Anger – i.e. rage. There is righteous anger – Paul expresses it, Jesus expresses it. But this word refers to rage, the sort that causes people to behave irrationally and violently.

28) Reviewing a doubtful job or organisation we are involved in, in the light of Christ. Many can give testimony to major changes here, made in the light of coming to know Christ.

29) Swearing – breaks down relationships, because it betrays what is going on in the mind and puts us on a downward spiral. We all fall foul of this from time to time, and need to pick ourselves up on it. James has much to say on the matter! (Jas 3:5-12) 

30) Grieving God/Holy Spirit. Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:19) so anything done against your body is against Him, whether inflicted by another or by ourselves.

And then, right at the end of this section, he comes to the positive stuff! (4:32 5:2) Compassion, forgiveness and love – these all build up to be a fragrant offering and sacrifice. Forgiveness is God’s agenda – that’s why Jesus came. That’s what’s so amazing about his grace. So it is that in the Lord’s prayer we pray to forgive others as he forgives us. Love of this type – agapé love – is sacrificial. 

That brings us back to the point in the gospels where Jesus says to eat and drink of himself – of his sacrificial nature. For as we take him into ourselves, experience his sacrifice made for us, so it is that we reflect or emulate that sacrifice in our lives. As he sacrificed himself for his church, so we, too, in following his example, and living in the strength he gives, offer ourselves as living sacrifices by the way we live, and the way we love. 

Thinking again of Holiday Club, a large number of people have made significant sacrifices in their holiday time, in a lovely sunny week, working together in the love of Christ, to bring Jesus’ message of salvation to children who may never otherwise hear it. This is an example of what it is to follow Jesus in our world.

May we each continue to be strengthened in that love, as we live out our lives built on The Rock, day by day!

Dave Talks