I’ve seen a lot of life over the past several years.

Travel.

College.

Marriage.

Market crashes.

Miscarriage.

Children.

Career changes.

Relocation. (A LOT of relocation)

Loss.

Laughter.

Change seems inevitable. They say the only two constants in life are death and taxes, but I disagree; God is the only true constant. Whether we follow Him or refuse to acknowledge Him, He is still present at all times and in all ages.

In all the vicissitudes of life—every mountain-top moment and every lonely valley—God has been my constant helper. His presence has comforted me; His grace has covered me; His love has guarded me.

If I have learned anything, it is that we should live with an eternal perspective. If we seek happiness in this life only, we will miss the eternal prize.

Paul, by inspiration, says it best:

“But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭20:24‬ ‭ESV‬‬

And in 2 Corinthians:

“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

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2 Corinthians‬ ‭4:16-18‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Dear friends and family, I am so thankful to have you in my life. I thank God for bringing your encouragement and teaching, your kindness and counsel. I am thankful too, for the dear brothers who taught me and loved me in my younger years, who are now at home with Jesus.

May you be blessed to be renewed day by day for the eternal joy awaiting us in heaven.

Ephesians 1:15-23

Paul continues his opening of this letter by moving on from the glorious things he has been saying about our redemption into giving thanks for it. Yet as we continue reading this section, I’m sure that you, like me can’t help but notice the contrast this prayer of thanksgiving has with the ones we usually hear today.

It would be useful for us to notice here that things aren’t going particularly well in Paul’s life; at least not on the surface, for he is sitting in prison as he writes. So, there he is, a prisoner, and do you see a single word about his situation?

No, not a single word; Paul is giving thanks for the Ephesians and their growth in the faith.

Beginning with verse 17, he tells us of his prayers that the Ephesians will grow in their understanding, that they will know God better, that they will know the riches of “the hope to which he has called you.” As he continues his thought, Paul does an amazing thing; he brings it all back to the church, His Body.

He mentions the “riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people” and how, by the same great and mighty power with which God raised Jesus from the dead, the power that not only raised Him from the dead, but that placed Him in authority above every power, is being used for the benefit of His people both now and in times to come. How does God do this? He does it by using that awesome power not just to put Jesus over every authority and power, but to make Him the “head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.”

Did you catch “for the church?”

Why was Jesus placed above every power and authority? For the benefit of the church; His Body.

Think about that… Here is this guy Paul sitting in jail awaiting trial because he preached the gospel. His trial will take place in front of Nero of all people, and he is boldly telling the Ephesians about this hope that Jesus is above all authority “for the church”.

Paul understands, as most today do not, that what becomes of him is of little account, for God Almighty is fully engaged to accomplish His purpose through the church and no matter how things might appear on this earth, He does not intend to fail. Thus, the very same awesome power that raised Jesus from the dead and elevated Him to the highest of all high places will ensure that our inheritance in Christ will be realized; the issue is not in doubt.

Indeed, it shames me when I think about the prayers I hear today, prayers for this and that little thing, prayers for comfort and ease, prayers for an easy life, and it shames me even more when I think about how often the voice I hear praying these prayers is my own. Just think, dear reader, of the power that would be unleashed if we approached prayer with the same attitude as that of Paul, who focused his attention on the purpose of the church, rather than upon his personal situation, who focused his thanksgiving and prayer upon the redemption and spiritual understanding of others, rather than upon his own relief.

I can’t help but think that if we allowed ourselves a more mature orientation, that God would do even greater things through us for His purpose in the here and now.

Salvation is not about escaping something, it’s about finding Someone. It’s not about jumping through the hoops of religion, it’s about accepting an open invitation to something both strange and absolutely wonderful beyond our ability to imagine. Because of what Christ has done, we’ve all been invited to participate in nothing less than His divine life (2 Pet.1:4). 

The New Testament bookends with this invitation. The very first thing Jesus preached publicly was to tell His people they needed a paradigm shift in thinking. The J.B. Phillips Bible paraphrases this more clearly than the traditional renderings.

^14-15 It was after John’s arrest that Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the Gospel of God, saying, “The time has come at last—the kingdom of God has arrived. You must change your hearts and minds and believe the good news.” (Mark. 1:14-15 PHILLIPS *)

This paradigm shift is μετανοέω (metanoeō) in the original Greek. We traditionally translate this word “repent” in English. This is somewhat confusing because it sounds like re-penance, which is not what the word means at all (see my post, “A time to be re-formed” for further explanation).

It’s fitting that Jesus makes this proclamation when John the Baptist was arrested. John represented the last of the Old Testament prophets. He represented the closing of one age; Jesus was the beginning of something altogether new.  Jesus was telling His first century audience to open their hearts and change their mindset. They needed a new perspective. The Kingdom has come…stop thinking that God wants your bull and goat offerings and, instead, believe the good news that brings great joy.

Paul said something similar to the Gentile philosophers in Athens….

³⁰ Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent” (Acts 17:30 *)

As Robert Capon said, Jesus was announcing the end of our religion.

The truth is, whether Jew or Gentile, God never really wanted our pagan-like sacrifices (Psalm 51:16-17; Isa. 1:11, 16-17; Jer.7:22-23). All He ever wanted from the beginning was our heart—to receive His overtures of affection, His other-centered, self-giving love, and then to walk in that same love toward others. This paradigm shift means moving away from trying to appease God with our religious scapegoating, and toward believing Him and living our lives in response to His love instead.

So, what is this good news that brings great joy? The New Testament ends with the following invitation that expresses it beautifully.

¹⁷ And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely. (Rev.22:17 *)

In the New Testament, this “water” represents the Spirit that has come to make His home in us (John 4:14;7:38-39). This “life” is the Greek word zoe (ζωή ), which in this particular context doesn’t refer to our biological life, it refers to “God’s very own life.” 

To understand how profoundly wonderful this invitation is, I ask you to suspend what you might’ve assumed about the Gospel for a moment. This is not talking about why Jesus went to the Cross, but what He accomplished for us there. See if what I’m saying makes sense.

The invitation is to simply “come.”

The qualifications are: whoever hears…thirsts…desires.

If that’s you, the door is already open wide. Simply enter into the spacious life of God. You’ve been invited to drink freely of this life to the fullest extent of your heart’s desire. But if your heart is closed, then this door is closed. It’s closed to His life. But it’s only closed in your mind.

The choice really is yours.

^28-30 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (Matt.11:28-30 MSG)

* New King James Bible translation unless otherwise noted. All emphasis added

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Galatians 5:22-23 NIV

I finally grasped the difference between busy and fruitful at some point in the last few years. I once ran myself ragged trying to do far too much and none of it to my satisfaction. I now realize fruitful doesn’t equate to a steady stream of productivity coming off a line.

As in my garden, there are times in the process of bearing fruit that seem barren. It looks like nothing is going on. There are dry patches and periods of dormancy. Then there are times when the storms of life inundate us, and we feel like we will never feel the warmth of the sun (or Son) again. Yet, it is all part of the process.

Few things of any substance grow without considerable changes to their environment and a substantial amount of time.

Some things sprout overnight, like the weeds I’d rather be rid of. I’ve grown wary of anything that offers instant gratification. Things that are truly valuable like fulfilling relationships, accomplishing goals and realizing our dreams tend to take time and attention to not only develop but to also keep those things alive.

  Thankfully, God rewards faith and patience as evidenced by Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Joseph, Moses and a slew of other flawed yet willing figures in the Bible. And God rewards us as well.

If we do not give up on those dreams God plants within us, we can eventually yield the promised harvest if we trust and obey. This also means keeping the faith when we are pruned (as were our heroes of the Bible) so we can eventually produce something good!

Pruning is painful and leaves lasting scars. But it is necessary. God would have us reach for the new things He wants to give. Instead, we often hold fast to dead dry things. When we are stubborn, God simply rips away the very things (or people) we are clinging to for our own good.

Left to ourselves, we can produce a lot of different things.

Doubt. Fear. Worry.

But that is not what God ever intended. Our Father wants more for us in this life.

From the fruit of their lips people are filled with good things,
and the work of their hands brings them reward. Proverbs 12:14 NIV

So, my brothers and sisters, you also died to the law through the body of Christ,
that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead,
in order that we might bear fruit for God. Romans 7:4 NIV

I’m striving to produce those things our Father desires, not just whatever happens to come to mind.

I’ve also learned that becoming fruitful means enduring temporary pains to produce long-term gains. I’ll admit that lesson probably took a lot longer than it should have to learn.

Thankfully, God is patient. God’s power working in and through us can produce a harvest that truly glorifies Him and even allows us to love one another in the process.

What are you bringing forth?