Ideas of Normalcy- Second Glances at Ephesians

I urge you to walk in manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with each other in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  

Ephesians 4: 1

Paul is quite methodical in his letter to Ephesus.  He starts out chapter one by reminding the church that EVERY follower of Christ is blessed with EVERY spiritual blessing and receives the FULL inheritance of what it means to be a son or daughter of Christ- regardless of gender, race, or age.  Next, in chapter two, Paul reminds the church that we have been shown a huge amount of grace- so therefore we need to show grace to each other because we are all one in Christ.  And then in the following chapters he specifically addresses how to live out this unity and grace within the broken cultural system of the day.  And actually- this letter isn’t just to any old clumping of people- it’s written to a church.  This letter is about how to address the broken cultural system within the church.

The church in Ephesus had a lot of broken systems- but foremost in Paul’s mind was how people interact with one another.   In those days, children, women, and slaves would fall into the category of THINGS- things to be ruled and governed over by men.  Men made the decisions because they were believed to be more fit leaders and armed with more appropriate spiritual gifting to make decisions and rule.  This concept flew in direct contrast to the very first opening chapter in Ephesians- which is that actually ALL followers of Christ have EVERY spiritual blessing- from leadership, to teaching, to giving, to showing mercy.  In writing the letter to the Ephesians, Paul sought to both gently nudge the church leaders towards the relational shift necessary for the blossoming of the church culture while simultaneously reminding those who were marginalized by the current system to not grow bitter but to continue to honor, respect, and serve because they are indeed serving God, not men.  

It’s funny how God is willing to speak in a very direct way if I bother making the time to listen.  This last little while I’ve been percolating over our own church culture.  Some things are great…but some things are broken.  The problem with percolating is that sometimes I end up with an extra-strong coffee that no one can possibly stomach.  I remember my sophomore Western Civilization teacher once saying to me, “Heather, you have a ferocious justice-o-meter.”  The problem being that I easily allow my desire to make things right turn into bitterness- which is exactly what Paul admonishes kids/women/slaves about- their need to continue to honor/respect/serve even in the face of hardship and mistreatment.  It’s also why the final chapter on dressing oneself with the armor of God is so fitting.  The fight is not against our brothers and sisters- against flesh and blood- but against the spiritual forces that would distract from The Point and extinguish compassion and love.

Clearly it is important to Paul that each person have the opportunity to live out the giftings that Christ has given as an inheritance AND it’s important that the unity within the body of Christ is maintained.  It’s one of those tricksy teeter-totter balancing act.  The ability to nudge the church towards a more true reflection of God’s vision of restoration while blocking the ugly arrows of resentment.

It’s something I’ve struggled with- but I also felt like God met me concerning this issue this week.  He reminded me that I DO need to live out the calling to which I have been called- even if it rocks to the boat- but the living out needs to be done with humility and gentleness.  It’s good to be reminded that God is both my champion and defender and also wants me to take each step with wisdom and care.