Wake Up, little Sleepyhead!
After a cold and dark month, with our share of snowy days, today is going to be warm and sunny! Can you feel the difference? Darkness and depression, and being lazy, and watching TV, and eating too much......they all seem to go hand in hand.
On the other hand, sunlight and warmth are refreshing and rejuvenating to the soul and the spirit. But you have to open those curtains, and open those eyes and wake up to let that light in! The sun is shining, so bask in it!
In Ephesians 5 we continue through the practical side of relationship with Jesus. Filled with examples of what life - our "walk" - as Christians should be like, we will look at two morein this message.
Imagine a two year old just before waking up. Eyes half closed, hair all mussed, silent and still half asleep.
So why a reference to a tired little tyke who is looking so rough? Well, for Paul, our identity is central to our behavior. Our walk reflects who we are. We have been given a new reality, and exchange the darkness of the old life to embrace the light of the new. That little person needs waking up to take on the day!
The illustration in Eph 5 is of a person, or church, sleeping like a corpse while sun is shining. His challenge? It's is time to wake up, sleepyhead, so you can let the life changing light into your life! What does that mean, practically speaking? You will have to.......
View and see....
Steve
Ephesians 5:1-14
February 24, 2021 • Pastor Steve Feden
Ephesians 1:1-6
November 18, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
Ephesians has only six chapters and is not written to address a specific issue or problem among the Ephesians believers. Rather, Paul knows that in order for them to have future ability to live as children of God in the middle of Ephesian culture, they will have to gain a deeper and deeper experience of God's love! This is what he is addressing. We will dive right in and watch as the great, methodical, theological mind of the Apostle Paul is overcome with impassioned gratitude over the deep ways God has touched his -- and our -- lives! WARNING: Anyone who actually reads and believes the things we will talk about is likely to experience greater depth of transformed relationship with God and the people in your life! View and see! Steve
Ephesians 1:7-14
December 2, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
What does "relationship with God" really look like? I mean, we talk about the fact that Christianity is a "relationship" and not "religion", but what is the real difference? Doesn't Christianity often feel like religion? Obey the commands, do this, don't do that, and so on. I am fully convinced that Ephesians is a "relationship guide". The first chapter is filled with the foundational blocks of relationship with God as HE designed it to be. If we can comprehend Ephesians 1, it will forever impact our understanding of what relationships are supposed to be, and what the basic building blocks of healthy relationships are! Last week we saw the Father's plan. This week we will how the Son (Jesus) participates and how the Spirit participates! View and see! Steve
Ephesians 1:15-23
December 9, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
A few years ago, Helga and I enjoyed a long bike ride with friends. We started in Munich Germany and ended in Venice, Italy. It was an epic journey for which we spent time studying maps to prepare. I don't think I need to tell you that the experience of the ride itself was the hope and the joy and the thrill. The map was useful, but could never be a substitute for the ride itself. To this point, in Ephesians 1, Paul has given us a map of healthy relationship with God. Being chosen, adopted, accepted, redeemed, forgiven, and secure have been points on that map. Great stuff, right? Yes, but it is still a map! What do I mean? Starting in verse 15, we read Paul's prayer for the believers in Ephesus. The prayer is filled with Paul's desire for these precious Jesus' followers. The gist of his prayer? I would love to tell you, but you will need to tune in. I promise it will be worth it. Just like the map is no substitute for the experience of the ride, so the study of doctrine and intellectual knowledge of God are not the end in themselves. This remarkable passage of scripture is sure to stretch your imagination (hint hint). View and see! Steve