Living in the Spirit
July 9, 2021
Scripture Reading: Ephesians 1:3-14
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; this is the pledge of our inheritance towards redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory.
If my mother, the great egalitarian, made something for one in a group, she did the same for all. Thus, each of her grandchildren has one of her handmade Afghans and quilts. That is also true of her children. Since there are only three children and seven grandchildren, how does the next generation pass down what our ancestors gave us? My house is full. I am not a hoarder. I have no problem throwing stuff away, but I have lived in the same place for over 40 years, and all my closets and draws are full of things I no longer need or use. Thus, I deal with many things by donating them to charities or tossing them in the trash. What do you do with grandma’s quilts? How do you pick who gets them?
I was discussing this recently among the family as we talked about who might want something I had, would females desire some items more than males, and should age be a factor in determining who gets first pick? The question of adoption came up as criteria as I have both adopted children and stepchildren among my next-generation family members. I was considering taking it all to the charities because I did not want to cause a family feud or force something on someone who was not interested in it. These people are carefully arranged on my family tree even though they are not marked as sharing my DNA. My DNA profile has been upgraded twice as the science of studying it has expanded. However, the knowledge that we are all made in God’s image has never changed and answers what constitutes the family of God?
Paul, too, did not want to cause a family feud. The segment of Ephesians above is trying to answer the question. What constitutes a family? In the family of God, all people are members of God’s family, if they choose to be. Some in Ephesus had known God throughout their lives. Others had only recently been introduced to God. With a diversity of backgrounds, these people, us too, are called to be one. Only God’s abiding love can make that happen if we share God’s vision that our oneness is key to the successful functioning of God’s kingdom.
Prayer: Lord, cleanse us of the need to create hierarchies of sharing the blessings of knowing you and being loved by you. Make us lovers of souls just as you are. Amen.
All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.