Thoughts for the Day

* Amphitheatre, Ephesus

I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love towards all the saints, and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

As we saw yesterday Ephesians sets out to teach us what it means to be "in Christ". For Christians Christ is the head of the Church and we Christians are the whole body of Christ. When we hear someone say "The Church ought to be more welcoming!" we have somehow removed ourselves from it. But the Church is people! If the Church is unwelcoming, then you and I need to be more welcoming. Each Christian is a tiny part of the whole body of Christ, and just as God is a part of the Church so He is within each of us who believe in Him.

At the beginning of today's passage above the Church is called to do two things. Christians are to have faith in the Lord Jesus, and show love towards others. We're back to Saint Teresa's poem that we looked at yesterday. The only way we can show our love for God is by showing our love to other people, for we are His hands, His eyes, and His feet.

Paul prays that God gives Christians the ability to understand their calling. Unfortunately just as with our physical bodies there is sometimes a disconnect between the head and the body. After a stroke a relative of mine could not see anything to her left or even accept initially that her arm belonged to her, because it had damaged the neural pathways. In a similar way as members of the body of Christ we can shut off the connection with Christ who is the head of the body. Or we can act in ways that seem the opposite to what Christ wants (like the reflex action that occurs when a little hammer is tapped on a knee and makes our leg jump). But Paul says the body of the Church is to show "the fullness of him who fills all in all". In other words we are each to show God to the world.

Lord Jesus Christ,
help us to have more faith in You
and to show Your love to others.
May we remember that as Christians
we are members of Your body on earth,
and seek only to act in ways
that reflect Your wishes
for Yourworld.
Amen.