Friday after Trinity XII - Devotion in semi-Exile
Lection for Friday after Trinity XII
2 Kings 2:1-18 Ephesians 4:1-24
2 Kings 2:1-18 Ephesians 4:1-24
In this text from Ephesians
we read: “Be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of
peace.”
Someone say that this means, “Let us put aside the differences that separate us; Christ wants us to be united. If I believe that God has given me the gift of being able to find love in the arms of more than one woman, who are you people to tell me it is wrong? God has given me this gift, I know it in my heart.”
“Be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Someone else declares, “We must have unity at all costs, the differences between us are not great enough that they should cause us to go separate ways. So what if I believe God was feminine, and you don’t. Don’t you believe that God is big enough to embrace both our understandings of God?”
Is it acceptable to God to believe that Father and Son were actually mother and daughter? Are we allowed to change who God has revealed Himself to us as? Is it acceptable to say that in 2020 we are wiser than God, and we now know that sexual relationships outside of the marriage bed are acceptable? Is it acceptable to teach that there is no resurrection of the body? Can we deny the miracles in the Bible as just myths? Is it appropriate to teach that Mary was actually pregnant with Jesus because a Roman soldier raped her?
Someone who believes such things comes to you and says, “Ephesians teaches us, “Be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Let us have peace between us, let us come to the altar together, what we have in common is more important than what separates us. We all believe in the same Jesus, no matter what denomination we belong to, nor how differently we believe. As long as our children go to church, as long as it is a Christian church, that is just fine. We are all OK.”
That is the common theme of many who claim to be a part of Christ’s church today. And, of course, it is the rallying cry for almost all of those outside of Christendom today.
You might be thinking to yourself, “Well, Pastor, that’s what the text says.”
Is it?
To stop with only that small portion of one verse is to miss the entire counsel of God. We must take that portion of that verse and listen to it in context. And, that verse of our text continues:
There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all…
…And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.
There is only one faith, and we are all to reach unity in that one faith. It is for this reason that God gave us the many workers in His church who bring to us God’s Word, that you might hear that Word and be built up into that one faith. We are to grow in our knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
Are you mature? Paul continues by explaining further:
As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ.
So, are you mature? Or are you infants, tossed all over by the waves, carried about by every slight breeze of some new teaching, led astray by the crafty and deceitful scheming, in the trickery of men?
There are many winds of teaching blowing very strong in these days. There are many infants in the church, tossed about every wave and wind that comes along. False teachings, things taught against what Scripture clearly states, by God’s law, by Christ’s own tongue, and fought against by the church for many centuries, are now being brought back and touted as new teachings. Fictional writing is being brought into the church as if it were truth. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
There are teachings out there that are being tolerated in churches which claim the name of Christ, teaching that are more in keeping with the culture. These congregations and even church bodies are tossed about by changing winds of doctrine. In an effort to get along in the world, they go along with the world.
As Paul warned, there are many people who want to have their ears tickled, so they demand teachers to tell them what their itching ears want to hear – or they will leave the church. And so, some pastors and church bodies do just that. (2 Tim. 4:1-6)
How about you, are you tossed about by every wind of doctrine?
It is tempting isn’t it? Tempting to follow the masses which go whatever way the wind blows. Sometimes we have reverted to infancy, allowing ourselves to be tossed about.
Repent!
We can speak of the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. We have One Lord, our salvation, Jesus Christ who came from heaven to purchase forgiveness for us in His own flesh. He personally came and sought us, He made each of us a new creation through water and the word. It was with His own blood that He bought us all, joining us together into one body, His church. It was for this, for the life of His church that He died - for you, for me, that we might be one.
Someone say that this means, “Let us put aside the differences that separate us; Christ wants us to be united. If I believe that God has given me the gift of being able to find love in the arms of more than one woman, who are you people to tell me it is wrong? God has given me this gift, I know it in my heart.”
“Be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Someone else declares, “We must have unity at all costs, the differences between us are not great enough that they should cause us to go separate ways. So what if I believe God was feminine, and you don’t. Don’t you believe that God is big enough to embrace both our understandings of God?”
Is it acceptable to God to believe that Father and Son were actually mother and daughter? Are we allowed to change who God has revealed Himself to us as? Is it acceptable to say that in 2020 we are wiser than God, and we now know that sexual relationships outside of the marriage bed are acceptable? Is it acceptable to teach that there is no resurrection of the body? Can we deny the miracles in the Bible as just myths? Is it appropriate to teach that Mary was actually pregnant with Jesus because a Roman soldier raped her?
Someone who believes such things comes to you and says, “Ephesians teaches us, “Be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Let us have peace between us, let us come to the altar together, what we have in common is more important than what separates us. We all believe in the same Jesus, no matter what denomination we belong to, nor how differently we believe. As long as our children go to church, as long as it is a Christian church, that is just fine. We are all OK.”
That is the common theme of many who claim to be a part of Christ’s church today. And, of course, it is the rallying cry for almost all of those outside of Christendom today.
You might be thinking to yourself, “Well, Pastor, that’s what the text says.”
Is it?
To stop with only that small portion of one verse is to miss the entire counsel of God. We must take that portion of that verse and listen to it in context. And, that verse of our text continues:
There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all…
…And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.
There is only one faith, and we are all to reach unity in that one faith. It is for this reason that God gave us the many workers in His church who bring to us God’s Word, that you might hear that Word and be built up into that one faith. We are to grow in our knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
Are you mature? Paul continues by explaining further:
As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ.
So, are you mature? Or are you infants, tossed all over by the waves, carried about by every slight breeze of some new teaching, led astray by the crafty and deceitful scheming, in the trickery of men?
There are many winds of teaching blowing very strong in these days. There are many infants in the church, tossed about every wave and wind that comes along. False teachings, things taught against what Scripture clearly states, by God’s law, by Christ’s own tongue, and fought against by the church for many centuries, are now being brought back and touted as new teachings. Fictional writing is being brought into the church as if it were truth. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
There are teachings out there that are being tolerated in churches which claim the name of Christ, teaching that are more in keeping with the culture. These congregations and even church bodies are tossed about by changing winds of doctrine. In an effort to get along in the world, they go along with the world.
As Paul warned, there are many people who want to have their ears tickled, so they demand teachers to tell them what their itching ears want to hear – or they will leave the church. And so, some pastors and church bodies do just that. (2 Tim. 4:1-6)
How about you, are you tossed about by every wind of doctrine?
It is tempting isn’t it? Tempting to follow the masses which go whatever way the wind blows. Sometimes we have reverted to infancy, allowing ourselves to be tossed about.
Repent!
We can speak of the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. We have One Lord, our salvation, Jesus Christ who came from heaven to purchase forgiveness for us in His own flesh. He personally came and sought us, He made each of us a new creation through water and the word. It was with His own blood that He bought us all, joining us together into one body, His church. It was for this, for the life of His church that He died - for you, for me, that we might be one.
You and I are One not because
we deny our differences, but because we embrace that which brings true unity -
our sinfulness and our need for a Savior, Jesus Christ. Yes, we have one Lord,
one faith, one baptism. For it is true, it is only as God is over all, through
all, and in all of us that we are one. Thanks be to Jesus Christ our Lord.
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