A group of quail is called a covey or a bevy. Then there's a brood of hens, a gaggle of geese and a colony of penguins. Here are some new ones on me -- a charm of finches, a dole of doves and a wisp of snipe. (Yes, you CAN go on a snipe hunt.) The loveliest, perhaps, are the pheasants when flushed from their cover; they are a bouquet of pheasant. Apparently some birds have a rotten reputation that I was not aware of; they huddle together as a deceit of lapwings and a murder of crows. Thank goodness for the plovers. They gather in a congregation.
When it comes to people, there is surely some truth to the cliche, "Birds of a feather flock together." Culture, age and affinity have a great deal to do with the way people associate. But what I find most enjoyable and noteworthy is the diversity that comes together around the gospel of Jesus. I see people of differing cultures relate as one around the faith and hope they share in Christ. I see unity among young and old, male and female, nerds and bohemians, forged by the Spirit they all possess in common. I love when I meet a believer for the first time in a far off place and we embrace each other like family.
Paul had quite the wisp of fellow workers. We hear of Timothy and Epaphroditus in today's text. We know he also ran with Luke and Silas, and Phoebe and Priscila. He had Jewish friends and Gentile friends. He hung with his peers and with the young punks. (Poor Demas; he flew the coop. Must have been a lapwing.) A diverse raft of ducks, and yet all seem to fly in the same way. They fly to one another when there's a need. They move easily from one habitat to another; the cause of the gospel is greater than their comfort. They expose themselves to dangerous snares, and find refuge in one another's nests. They rise on the thermals of God's love. They rejoice and sing -- oh, how they sing!
What sort of company do you keep? Be done with the deceit of charm and the murder of gossip. Find a congregation like Paul's. Bond across the diversities of outer display, the differences of color, of call, of preference for canyon or lake or seashore. Form a colony of heaven. Uncover the bouquet of joy that comes from living together under the wing of the Almighty. In time, we shall all mount up on wings as eagles.
Pray: God, who looks down from the precipice of heaven, lead me to a group of people that I can bless and be blessed by. Bring me to that brood which shares your holy values. Grant me a congregation I can sing with and soar with.
September 30 - Philippians 1:27-2:18 - Author! Author!
Think about the authorial revolution recent technologies have accomplished. With desktop graphic arts software and satisfactory small-scale printing quality, digital photography and videography, and broadband internet capabilities, we can all become publishers, filmmakers and broadcasters. Production and distribution of all that we author has never been easier. Checking my Blogger stats page, I see that this blog of mine has been viewed in Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Tanzania, as well as in the US. I'm an international author!
It’s easy to see how this authorial power has gone to our heads. Over 500 million people are publicly journaling their lives on Facebook alone. What would that number be if we included, MySpace, Flickr, and YouTube? Along with being an author come feelings of authority. I set my own tone, my own pace; I choose my own topics and air my opinions. As the author, I am in charge.
So, what if you were asked to surrender all of your authorial prerogatives? Not just what you might be publishing or broadcasting, either. What if you were told you could no longer say or do anything of your own initiative? That someone else would now author the story of your life? This idea of fully surrendering authority is what’s behind today’s text regarding Jesus Christ.
For Jesus, equality with God was not something He had to strain after and grasp at; declaring His deity would not be a reach or robbery. Jesus was indeed fully God. From the beginning. Always was. But in the incarnation, Jesus came in human form and the text says, He “made Himself nothing.” A more literal translation – “He emptied Himself.” Then He “took on the very nature of a servant … and became obedient unto death…” In John’s gospel, chapters 5 and 8, Jesus tells us that He can do nothing of His own initiative. God the Father is the author of Jesus’ life story. Jesus had surrendered all His authorial prerogatives and was sticking strictly to the script His Father had penned for Him. Even when the Father wrote, “Go to Gethsemane." "Go to Calvary.”
That’s mind-boggling to ponder, but then what does the text say? “Your attitude should be the same as Christ Jesus …” My attitude? My attitude has to be that self-emptying, humble servant, obey-at-all-costs Jesus-attitude? Wow, so now I know why Paul follows that up with “continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” Yes, lots of trembling with the Jesus-attitude. Lots of fear in the obey-no-matter-what mindset. Thank the Lord only one had to die for the sin of the world, and that One wasn’t you or me.
So, in light of what Christ gave up and endured for our sake, what shall we continue to work out for His sake? How about conduct worthy of the gospel? How about standing firm in unity as we contend for the faith? How about being a church that shares the same mind, love, spirit and purpose? How about setting aside selfish ambition and considering each other better than ourselves? How about doing everything without complaining or arguing? How about holding out the Word of life to a crooked and depraved generation, and so shine like stars in the universe?
If the Scriptures exhort us to maintain an attitude like Jesus’, then there comes with it the promise of achievability. God will not ask us to do something we can’t do. Verse 13 tells us that God is already working in us the will and the ability to do it.
Line by line, God is authoring a divine script of faith, courage and victory. And you are the star.
Shine!
September 29 - Philippians 1:1-26 - Rejoicin’ In All Y’all
From July 1981 to August 1987, I lived in suburban Atlanta, Georgia. You can learn an awful lot in six years in the South. You can learn how to drive like Bill Elliott up the Connector to Spaghetti Junction. You can learn that “barbecue” is not a cooking appliance or a way of cooking or an eating event; it IS the food. You can learn that you can never learn all the street names that contain the word, “peachtree.” And you can learn some very creative turns of pronunciation and vocabulary -- like the first syllable emphasis: “The only INsurance I got against GOrillas is the POlice.” (OK, I never heard a Southerner say that exact sentence.) Then there’s “mess,” which means a whole lot of something, and “fixin’ ta,” which means I am ‘about to’ do something. You learn to say ‘Sir’ and ‘Ma’am’ a lot, and of course, you learn to say “y’all.”
After reading today’s text, I couldn’t help but see how many times Paul said, “all of you.” Now, Paul WAS born on the Southeastern shore of Turkey, so I wonder if the more accurate translation would be “y’all?” But here’s what this did to my reading. I investigated and discovered that the wonderful encouragement of Philippians 1:6 was not a singular encouragement. The “you” in “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion” is a plural! And the verse comes quickly on the heels of his reference to the Philippians’ “partnership” with him in the gospel.
The good work that God does, He does - not just in each of us, but between us all and among us all and through us all. There’s thanksgiving and joy and confidence in this life that can only come from the fellowship of God’s grace and the partnership of shared ministry. There is great longing and affection for those who have labored with you, shoulder to shoulder for the Lord. Serving together forges a bond that is unique. It shows up in unbroken intercession, even when the miles separate you. It lifts up, inspiring courage. And it never gives up; “I will continue with [y’all] for [y’all’s] progress and joy in the faith.”
In the next few days, be especially sensitive to the dynamic of God working His good work in your groupings. Try not to think in the singular. Think in the plural. Consider your family, your small group study, your task team, your co-workers, your ball club. What kind of progress and joy is God producing in your midst? What depth of affection is His creating? What in the name of our Lord Jesus is He fixin’ ta do in y’all? I reckon a whole mess of good!
Prayer: May your love abound more and more
in knowledge and depth of insight,
so that you may be able to discern what is best
and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ,
filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ
—to the glory and praise of God.
September 28 - Ephesians 6:1-24 - Dress For Success
"Get dressed and ready for a big fight!"
Without more information than that, I might not be appropriately attired when I arrive at the fight. If the fight is a boxing match, I might arrive in trunks and boxing gloves, shirtless and with high tops laced tight. But, what if I’m supposed to be the referee? Then I’ve got the dress all wrong. And if I’m supposed to host a visiting dignitary who requested to attend a boxing match, I’ll be wearing something altogether different again. If the big fight is against a wildfire, I’d better show up in firefighters gear. Black and white silk shorts are definitely not going to cut it out there.
In today’s text, Paul wants to give us enough information so that we show up in the right attire to fight the right fight. Life is a struggle, but our main adversary is not other people. When we focus on flesh and blood opponents, we dress ourselves with our intellect and our attitude and our sharp tongue and our cleverness to overcome their threat. But God’s Word lets us know that that is the wrong opponent and the wrong attire. Our first and most dangerous adversary is spiritual. The same Satan that cunningly brought calamity to the human race in the beginning brings his forces into conflict with all of us still. To be strategic about defeating these foes, we must dress for victory.
There are six pieces of armor that Paul identifies as the proper dress for spiritual success.
Truth is a belt. In Paul’s day, a soldier’s belt had armor resting on it and hanging off of it. The belt was the foundation for the rest of the ensemble. Is your life well-seated in Truth? Jesus is Truth. God’s Word is Truth. Satan is a liar. He is the father of all lies. To be able to win against evil, we must first identify the lies that we have been hanging our lives on. Wrap yourself up in Jesus and the Word and strip off the lies that are contrary to them.
Righteousness is a breastplate. It protects the most vital organs from injury and mortal wounds. We are most vulnerable to serious spiritual injury when we dabble in unrighteousness. Sinful, unholy behaviors take our defenses down and open us up for major casualty. Righteous, holy behavior keeps the breastplate in place; it protects us from the spiritual enemy Jesus named, “Killer."
The gospel of peace is a pair of shoes that makes us ready for this fight. But we have to be fitted with them. The gospel is the good news that Jesus has already defeated Satan, won this war, and set us at peace with God. Only after we have accepted that gift of peace with God through the cross are we in any position to fight a good spiritual fight. Are your gospel shoes on? Are you standing ready in the shoes of repentance and faith in Christ?
Faith is a shield. The evil one will assault you with some hellacious blows. “Flaming arrows” is what the text calls them. When the battle becomes a conflagration, how will you survive? You will survive by faith. You will trust that God is with you to wield that shield. You will trust with a faith that is drenched with the water of His Word. Then the fiery darts will be extinguished against your Word-soaked shield of faith.
Salvation is your helmet. The helmet protects your brain, the command center. Know who you are; know who you’re fighting under and with; know that you are able to access the mind of Christ; know your enemy and his tactics; know that the war is already won! The mind that has been renewed by the transformation of salvation can think clearly and stand against the wily mind-games of the devil.
The Word of God is also the Spirit’s sword. This is the one offensive piece of the spiritual soldier’s ensemble. This is the dragon slayer! Want to see how it works? Jump back to Matthew 4 and Luke 4 and read how Jesus overcame the temptations in the desert. He wielded the Word like a brilliant swordsman. Satan’s attempts to defeat Christ were blocked and he was routed in the Battle of the Judean Wilderness.
Pray: Commander of the host of heaven, lead me to victory against my prime adversary, evil in the spiritual realm. Help me to say to the people in my life, “You are not the enemy,” especially when I am at odds with them. Help us to lock arms as comrades and fight the good fight together. Help me put my armor on and keep it on every day.
September 27 - Ephesians 5:1-33 - A Genuine Imitation
Did you know that the word ‘oxymoron’ is itself an oxymoron? It’s a compound word from the Greek that joins ‘oxy,’ meaning sharp with ‘moros,’ meaning dull. But, I’ve met people who are at the same time very bright and very boring. That would make them both sharp and dull. No oxymoron there. Any group of objects laid down in sequence would have an order, even if they were laid down randomly – so ‘random order’ isn’t really an oxymoron. Nine minus six equals three, and ten minus seven equals three – ‘same difference.’ No oxymoron there. People who are squinting at the ceiling and scratching their heads while reading this are ‘clearly confused.’ The confusion on their part is clearly expressed, so again, no oxymoron.
What about ‘genuine imitation?’ I suppose it qualifies if you’re talking about designer clothing knock-offs. But, I actually like the idea of a genuine imitation – that is, a sincere attempt at emulating the way of a mentor or role model. Much of my parenting was aimed at genuine imitation. I behaved in ways that were constructive and noble so that my children would imitate me, and develop a genuine appreciation for those same values. In today’s text, Christians are charged to “be imitators of God.” I’m sure from the Gospels’ treatment of Phariseeism that a superficial imitation is not in view here. What is being called for is a ‘genuine imitation.’
So what does genuine imitation of God look like? First, it’s living a life of love. Three forms of the word ‘love’ are used in the first sentence of this chapter of Ephesians. Imitating God means prioritizing love and understanding it’s sacrificial nature. We must learn to live for the benefit of others and for the pleasure of God; a “fragrant [love] offering.”
Second, it’s living as light. Light is a metaphor for truth, goodness, and righteousness. If we commit ourselves to honest living, doing good to others, and conforming our behavior to God’s holy standards, then we will be living as light. Light also pierces darkness and makes things plain and clear. By living as light we can help others to see and pursue the life of light.
Third, genuine imitation involves living as wise. There are a lot of tempting activities and deceptive justifications for them out there. The life of selfishness and dabbling in the dark beckons. But that is the way of sleepwalkers. “Wake up, O sleeper, and rise from the dead …” To live comfortably with greed, obscenity, and disobedience to God is the way of spiritual unconsciousness. It’s dead living. (And that’s not an oxymoron, either.) Be constantly renewed by the Holy Spirit and maintain a heart filled with music and thanksgiving. This is evidence of the life of wisdom.
Finally, imitation of God involves living to serve. The text comes full circle as the imperative to “submit to one another” fleshes itself out in terms of love and respect. We submit to, or serve, each other as an act of worship. Jesus is the ultimate submitter/servant. He submits to the Father’s plan and serves all, even unto death on the cross! To honor Christ is to love as He loved; submitting to God in truth, goodness, and righteousness, disdaining and exposing the darkness of evil, and walking in the Spirit and in wisdom.
To live in genuine imitation of God would be awfully good … um … oops … I mean, awesomely good.
Pray: Loving, All-Wise, Father of Light, make me like you. Teach me, help me, guide me, discipline me. Keep filling me with your Spirit. Wake me up. Raise me up. Shine on me!
September 26 - Ephesians 4:17-32 - Get It Off Of Me!
Let me know if you get a little claustrophobic watching this video.
Man, I’m glad ol’ Matt McAllister didn’t have a heart attack in the middle of that. Can you imagine trying to do CPR through 155 layers of cotton and polyester? Glad you made it, Matt. Congratulations on your Guinness Book World Record!
What you don’t see in the time lapse is Matt’s team of helpers. You don’t think he put on all those shirts by himself, do you? And just think how much he had to trust his team, since he wouldn’t be able to take them off by himself, either? What if they had just walked away; left him in that 100 lb. strait-jacket? (I’m feeling that claustrophobic feeling again.)
Spiritually speaking, we are born bundled like Matt McAllister. We don’t need a team to put us in a sin-nature strait-jacket; we come that way by nature. I never taught my children to be selfish, disobedient, or sneaky. They showed out with those attitudes and actions all by themselves. Paul calls that state of natural unrighteousness “your former way of life” and “the old self.” Once people have experienced the new birth, through confession of their unrighteousness and acceptance of Christ’s forgiveness, they begin a new way of life with a new self. In the former way of life, we had no power to remove any of the layers that bound us. In the new way of life, we are divinely enabled to strip the old layers away and become more like holy God. We have a team of helpers now – the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and our “new self” brothers and sisters.
It’s divine enablement because it’s a super-human task to put off the old self and put on the new. Ignorance, hardness of heart, insensitivity, impurity, lust, deception … this is just the beginning of Paul’s description of the layers we must strip off. God begins the good work of putting these things off, but His plan is that we participate and cooperate with the renewal. We must show God that we appreciate His calling of us, out of the old self, by a disciplined pursuit of holiness. We’ve got to rein in the lies, the anger, the larceny. We’ve got to clean up our language. (I don’t think putting asterisks between the “F” and the “K” on our f******k page really qualifies as wholesome talk.)
Today’s text tells us that being lax about our foul mouth, our bitterness, slander and malice, grieves the Holy Spirit. Deep idea – grieving the Holy. Grief comes from loss. When we are careless about stripping off the layers of the old self, we remain bound to our unholiness. So there is a loss of kinship with God’s Spirit, because holiness and unholiness are strangers. That’s heavy. Heavier than 100 lbs. of cotton and polyester. When I sin, God loses. When I ignore the call to strip off the former ways, I insulate myself from the Lord.
I’m getting that claustrophobic feeling, again…
Pray: Holy God, get it off of me! Enable me to remove all the old ways of my old self. Help me keep my discipline and my appreciation for the value of Your calling. Keep me moving toward my new self, created to be like You in true righteousness.
September 25 - Ephesians 4:1-16 - Live a Life Worthy of the Calling
Have you noticed how action and quality of action is often dependent on who requests the action? What I mean is – well – take Johnny for instance. Johnny’s 16 years old and lives in a middle class neighborhood nearby to his buddies from school, and smack dab next door to Susie. Susie’s cute. Susie’s 16, too. Johnny wakes up mid-Saturday morning, runs a quick ‘get ready for the day’ routine and heads for the door.
“Hey, John,” his Father intercepts him, “I’ve got a policy sales appointment today, and I was hoping to make a good first impression when I roll up. You got time to wash my car this morning? Just a quick one?”
“Oh, man, sorry Dad, Ricky’s parents let him turn their basement into a game room with a 52” HDTV. And the Penn State/Ohio State pre-game comes on in 15 minutes. All the guys are going to be there …”
“Alright. I suppose I can run it through the car wash before the meeting. Have a good time. Say, ‘Hi’ to Joe Pa’ for me!”
“Thanks, Dad!” Johnny rocks the house with a slamming front door, flies down the steps and cuts hard left up the sidewalk. An errant scooter can’t slow him down as he hurdles over it. Then, comes the voice his neighbor, Susie Cute, and she freezes him in mid-air.
“Hi, John. Can I ask you something?”
“Sure, Susie.”
“I’m supposed to take my driver’s test today, but my dumb brother went off-roading last night and the jeep is a mess. I can’t show up at DMV like this. Could you come help me wash this nasty thing? Please?”
“Absolutely. No problem. Let me show you how to really make it shine!”
See what I mean; action and quality of action dependent on who requests the action. That’s why Paul urges the Ephesians, “Live a life worthy of the calling!” It’s one thing to be called by Susie Cute, by the Penn State football program, by the U.S. Marine Corps … you name the call. But when the call comes from the Master of the Universe, comes from the unsurpassed riches of His glory, comes at the price of the body and blood of His Son, and with the guarantee of His abiding Spirit – that would be the calling beyond all callings!
Has God called you? Called you by name and frozen you amazed in your tracks? Has He redeemed you, renewed you with the grace of His call? Has he cast a blessed future with the promise of His call? Then how will you live? What does a life worthy of His calling look like. Paul begins to paint the picture.
It is a life of humility, gentleness, patience, forbearance, and love.
Are you cringing already? Already on your knees, bowing repeatedly before Jesus, wailing, “I’m not worthy!” There’s more. It’s a life of peacemaking and unity-keeping; of expressing the grace of God through my giftedness to the Body. A life devoted to building the church up, so that EVERY member might enjoy unity in the faith, maturity, and utter Christ-likeness.
Speaking the truth in love, building each other up in love – these are the actions I’ve been called to. What will be the quality of my actions? As Paul says at the close of today’s text – the blessings don’t come unless every member does it’s part.
Pray: Lord, help me to do the work and live the life that shows the depth of my appreciation for Your calling. Lord, help all the parts to do their work.
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