I began the fall season at Element with a four-week series on Ephesians 2 and my time with that passage still haunts me like the jovial ghost of Christmas present. Something about the way Paul charts the transformation of salvation moves me like nothing else (save other portions of Scripture on the same topic :-). It is because Paul does not shrink back from describing our sinful lives as ugly as they are. And it's because the thrill of what it means to be joint-heirs with Christ is palpable in Paul's writing. He can't help but pour on just how awesome it is, and when believers are reading his words well, they sense that awesomeness too.
I see the change simply described thusly:
Once we were dead, self-indulgent, sinful Satan-followers.
Then: Jesus.
Now we are reconciled with God, a loved member of his family, and filled with the Spirit.
Love that.
1 comment:
I absolutely love the 3 words you used to describe the transformation in Ephesians 2. Once...Then...Now. Very logical and exceptionally Biblical.
It reminds me of what Martyn Lloyd-Jones said of Ephesians 2:4..."This is the gospel in two words: But God."
I really enjoyed your Christ-centered focus and content. Keep challenging us in the blogosphere!
Soli Deo Gloria Jared.
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