All week long we wrote Belong on each other’s palms. We wrote on our fingers, too. Needed and Loved. Safe, Understood, and Purpose.
We wrote it because they’re our deepest longings. Every single one of them in every single one of us.
We wrote it because we wanted to hold on to their truth and each other and the One who would help us find them.
You can hold on, too, with us and with Him. You belong.
Ephesians 2:13-18 Now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace; in his flesh, he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father.
Jesus
You are our peace
You proclaim it
You create it
You bring us near
Without you there is
No safety
No belonging
No nurturing
No identity rooted beyond this dust
Without you we are
Anchorless
Strangers, Aliens
Outsiders, Outcasts, Orphaned
Our need is so deep, so desperate
So beyond us
It took flesh, your flesh to make peace
Your torture puts hostility to death
Your broken body breaks down every dividing wall
Your blood makes us blood
What wondrous truth
What dazzling grace
Bring us near again, Jesus
Help us remember and re-member
Make us one in your generous, fierce love
*****************
This reflection came from a week leading middle school worship at the Warren W Willis United Methodist Summer Camp in Fruitland Park, Florida.
It feels especially needed given the hate and division being promoted in our country.
Should you ever want a gentle ear to listen, or a gentle heart to pray, I would be honored to be that for you.
Ephesians 2:13-18
Now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father.
Jesus
You are our peace
You proclaim it
You create it
You bring us near
Without you there is
No safety
No belonging
No nurturing
No identity rooted beyond this dust
Without you we are
Anchorless
Strangers, Aliens
Outsiders, Outcasts, Orphaned
Our need is so deep, so desperate
So beyond us
It took flesh, your flesh to make peace
Your torture puts hostility to death
Your broken body breaks down every dividing wall
Your blood makes us blood
What wondrous truth
What dazzling grace
Bring us near again, Jesus
Help us remember and re-member
Make us one in your generous, fierce love
*****************
This prayer was born from the Ephesians Reading Challenge. Click Here for more information on the challenge to read and reflect on the entire book of Ephesians 3 times in 3 weeks.
The Ephesians Reading Challenge accompanied a sermon series entitled Sit Walk Stand which was inspired by Watchman Nee‘s bookSit Walk Stand, a study of Ephesians. You will find recordings and notes from this series on the blog as well.
Click Here for more information on the Ephesians Reading Challenge
Read the entire book of Ephesians 3 times in 3 weeks
The main theme of Ephesians: What it means to move with Christ from death to life
Read Ephesians 2:1-3
Paul describes what life is like before we place our trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. It can look like life- doing, accomplishing, living. In reality, life before Christ is basically the walking dead.
Read Ephesians 2:4-9
The passage now shifts from death to life. Notice the descriptions of God’s motivation, God’s character, God’s heart. God is rich in mercy. Rich in grace. God has great love and uses that great love to love us. God loves us even when we are dead. When we have nothing but death to offer.
Death to Life. Jesus raising us up. We are Easter People.
For by grace you have been saved through faith,
and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God. – Ephesians 2:8
Gift Box Illustration
Jesus offers us the gift of mercy, grace, and salvation. We pass it by again and again. How can we receive the gift of God if we are constantly in motion, constantly striving?
We are busy doing life: do the laundry, do my job, go to the grocery store, go to the doctor, cook the meal. We make to-do lists.
Busy doing for God: do my devotions, do my volunteer work, do the Bible study, do my duty and invite my new neighbor to worship
You can only receive when you rest– when you sit; when you stop. This is why it is first. Sit Walk Stand. Sitting is our position in Jesus Christ. It is being before doing.
Faith is depending on what Christ has done and is doing before you do anything. Jesus raises us up from death and seats us. Sit- We receive when we rest.
What would it be like for you to do the Ephesians Reading Challenge? For you to read the chapter from Ephesians and just sit with God’s Word. It’s not about acquiring knowledge, not about getting answers, not about checking off something from your to-do list. Read. Sit with Jesus, the Word. That’s the challenge.
What would it be like to sit with Jesus in prayer? The only thing you say is, “I just want to be with you.”
Matthew 11:28-30
Jesus said, “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
How many of us sit down, even lay down, and we have a monkey mind. Our souls are full of anxiousness. Jesus will give us rest for our body, mind, emotions, and soul. This is why sit is first. We receive when we rest.
Instead of being yoked with the world and the ways of the world, we are yoked with Jesus and His ways. The best way to learn from Jesus is to be with him all the time. Not doing with Jesus or doing for Jesus, but being with Jesus.
What burdens is Jesus inviting us to lie down?
We often think of the burdens of life: sorrow, anxiousness, trouble, stress, pain, overwhelm, grief, worry…
The first burden Jesus invites us to lay down is the burden of our sin. That sin is tied to busyness and distraction.
The sin of trying to save ourselves is Pride. I don’t need what you did in your death and resurrection. I can do it myself.
The sin of trying to be worthy to be saved is also Pride. What you did in your death and resurrection isn’t powerful enough so I’ve got to help.
Can a dead person do anything? No! Jesus makes the first move because we can’t. By grace, we are saved through faith, and this is not your own doing it is the gift of God.
God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. – Ephesians 2:4-6
In Genesis, humans are created and what is the first thing they do? Rest. Created on day 6 and the next day is day 7, the Sabbath, the day of rest. Being before doing. We can only receive when we rest.
Death to Life. See yourself resurrected from the dead and seated with Christ. Receive salvation as the grace gift that it is. You are alive in Christ.
The fear-tombed, nay-saying, people-pleasing
prisoner of scarcity, shame, and threat— that one has died.
The stone of Outcomes has been rolled away.
The linen grave-clothes of Consequences are lying abandoned.
You are free.
Forgiven, accompanied, love-enabled, miracle-powered,
you are a member of the risen body of Christ.
You are those hands with holes in them Jesus shows, and says, “Peace.”
You are the flesh the Spirit moves to do her next wonders.
You’ve already died and gone to heaven,
no mere flesh now, but pure love,
unafraid of death and its useless threats,
with unshakable courage,
nothing to lose, everything in your hands.
Don’t live as if you’re afraid to be crucified.
Live as if you’re already risen
What’s a great way to get over something when you’re scared?
The older I get the scarier the world gets. I’m more aware of things. When you’re little you’re sheltered and that’s a good thing.
So how do you get over things? Some folks would say, “Just do it! Put on your big girl pants!” I’m not always that strong.
In order to get over things I’m scared of I need help. I need great friends to stand beside me, speak truth to me, pray for me, help me take the next step. I need to take a step back sometimes and get some perspective.
There is something about taking a step forward and facing our fears. There’s something about the practice of doing that. It’s a practice. It’s like a little kid learning how to walk. First, they’re stumbly bumbly, then they get a little better at it, and a little better at it, and then they’re zooming around the house.
Part of the practice is remembering how alike we are. This is the beautiful message of this book. The realization that these spooky green pants are actually scaredy pants. They are just as scared as the little bear.
Each one finds the other strange. The little bear doesn’t wear clothes, has no experience with pants. The pants have no experience with bears.
They realize they’re both looking for the same thing.
So when I’m scared, especially when it feels like I’m scared of someone, someone because they’re different from me, they’re probably just as scared of me. Deep down inside we have the same longings. We have the same needs.
Deesis Mosaic of Christ, Hagia Sophia in Turkey
Christ with Hand in Benediction/Blessing
God’s Gang Sign- Three fingers representing the Trinity, two representing the dual nature of Christ (fully human, fully divine), the palm open in blessing, reaching for us.
Association of this hand symbol with the core longings we all have. When we realize we all have them it breaks down the fear and it breaks down the dividing walls between us. People are no longer strange or weird, they have the same needs we do. We begin to see them as human.
The Palm is Belonging. How many of you are longing to belong? Do I belong here? Yes! You are wanted. You are welcome.
The Thumb is Unconditional Love. Life is so different because we have thumbs.
The Pointer Finger is Security. For some of us its the #1 thing we’re longing for. We tend to point at things and people and say, “You’re not safe.” Instead of saying, “Come closer. Let’s talk.”
The Middle Finger is Understanding. Does anybody get me?
You put all these fingers up and the other two down and you get the ancient sign of blessing. This is what we need. This is what Jesus offers. Jesus offers them all to all of us.
Ephesians 2:11-19, NRSV 11 So then, remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth, called “the uncircumcision” by those who are called “the circumcision”—a physical circumcision made in the flesh by human hands— 12 remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
At one time you had the insiders and the outsiders- the Jews and the Gentiles, the circumcised and the uncircumcised. It was like this but now it’s different. You’re not a stranger, an alien, an outsider. You’re not far from God. Because of Jesus, everyone can be brought near.
13 But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
This was so important and so needed Jesus died for it. He bled for it.
14 For he is our peace; in his flesh, he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.
Christ is our peace. The peace between us and God and the peace between one another.
So important it took body and blood, Jesus’ flesh.
15 He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, 16 and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it.
Jesus took on the humiliation, the violence, the hostility so that there would not be hostility between us.
17 So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; 18 for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God.
There are times when our church family are more of a family to us than our biological family. It must be that way in God’s house.
VIDEO: Father Gregory Boyles of Homeboy Industries in California
Worship Resources For God’s Gifts, United Methodist Hymnal #489
O Holy God, open unto me light for my darkness,
courage for my fear, hope for my despair.
O loving God, open unto me wisdom for my confusion,
forgiveness for my sins, love for my hate.
O God of peace, open unto me peace for my turmoil,
joy for my sorrow, strength for my weakness.
O generous God, open my heart to receive all your gifts.
Amen.
We live in a world of dividing walls built on fear and labeling. Jesus breaks down the dividing walls and brings us near. Bringing us near brings in us a change of heart and mind. We no longer see our neighbors as “them” or “those people.” Instead, we see them as an extension of our faith family- as “us.”
Click Here for more information on Dr. Becky Bailey and the Conscious Discipline brain theories and techniques mentioned in this message.
Click Here for the video shown near the end of the message, Remove Labels for Ramadan by Coca-cola.
I look on all the world as my parish; thus far I mean, that, in whatever part of it I am, I judge it meet, right, and my bounden duty, to declare unto all that are willing to hear, the glad tidings of salvation. – John Wesley, journal entry on June 11, 1739
Click Here for Steve Garnaas Holmes’ powerful translation of Ephesians 2:1-10
***********
I’m excited to now offer mp3’s of my Sunday messages. A huge thank you to Leon and my brothers and sisters at Trinity United Methodist Church, Sarasota for all their help in making this possible. If you’re ever in Sarasota, please drop by for worship Sundays at 9am or 10:30am, or drop by during the week for a chat or small group. You and those you love are always welcome.
Ephesians 2:13-18
What burdens is Jesus inviting us to lie down?
Reading of 
Revlisad.com 