“The Letter to the Ephesians: Saved by Grace” - Eph 1: 1-14

 July 11th, 2021

Devotional

“The Letter to the Ephesians: Saved by Grace”

        Eph 1: 1-14

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Monday: “The Saints” - Eph 1:1-2

  I love to write letters. To send cards with encouraging notes. During most of college and seminary I would try to send at least three letters or encouraging cards per week and I would sign them with one of two things “You are Loved” or “You are worthy.”

If I had to describe the letter to the Ephesians I would use the same phrases - worthy and loved.  Our scripture this day is found right at the beginning of the letter, as the greeting the greeting issued by the author to the church. The author didn’t waste any time jumping right in and boldly proclaiming the word of God, that Christ and God are to be blessed and worshipped. While we worship God for who God is and not just what God has done for us, the church in Ephesus is reminded of all the love that God has lavished on us through Christ. We know that we are loved by God because we have been adopted into the family of God - not because of anything that we have done or we have earned on our own merit, but because of Christ freely giving himself for us on the cross. It is because of that gift that we have life and have it abundantly. We are forgiven and redeemed and given new chances because of God’s lavish love for us. 

How do you connect being a saint and being loved by Jesus Christ?

Prayer: God, we thank you for loving us and claiming us. Thank you for calling us yours. Let us lean into that love this day and beyond! Amen!

Tuesday: “Chose” - Eph 1: 3-4

The problem is that too many people still haven’t heard about this love. They think that God could never love them, that they would never be welcomed into the family of God because of things that they have done in their past. The truth is we all have done things that we regret. We have all sinned. And God doesn’t view one sin as worse than another. That tends to make church folks a little bit nervous - that a lie or gossip is the same in the eyes of God as stealing. But that’s the way it is. Sin is anything that separates us from the love of God and it all pains the heart of God. We also cannot fix our sin issue on our own - we cannot will ourselves to stop - instead we need a Savior that breaks the power that sin holds in our lives. Enter Jesus. 

God knew that a plan was needed to cancel the power of sin and death in our lives, so God fashioned Jesus, completely God but in human form to walk on the earth and teach us how to live. And when the time was right, Jesus gave his life for us, shedding his own blood as the price for our sin. This is the greatest gift we could have ever been given and because of it we are welcomed into the family of God and called the Beloved.

What does the gift of Christ’s saving love for us mean to you? How did it change you life?

Prayer: Lord, allow us to not just know about your love, but live into it. Let us not keep this love to ourselves, but allow us to go forth and share it for the power of your name. Amen. 

Wednesday: “Beloved” -  Eph 1: 5-7

I graduated from a Christian college. To be accepted you had to write a statement of faith and covenant to grow in your faith while you attended. I transferred from a large liberal arts school with these ideal notions of how much easier it would be to live out my faith surrounded by other Christians, especially these ones who had to write out a statement of what their faith in Christ means to them to even be accepted. I was shocked the first year there, when I found that so many people were struggling with their faith. Shocked that so many people understood in their head that Christ had died for them, but couldn’t quite let it sink into their hearts. 

  During the summer session after my first year I found a book that radically changed by life, Henri Nouwen Life of the Beloved. The book was written by Nouwen, a priest, to one of his non-christian friends about how much God loves them. Friends, Christian or non-Christian, we all need to be reminded about the lavish love of God. So I started to hand that book out to everyone I met who was struggling with the question if God could really love them, really forgive them. I wanted people to know that they were the Beloved of God, not just in their heads, but in their hearts as well.

How do you share with people that they are Beloved by God?

Prayer: Almighty God, you are so good to us. You sought us out, even when we were far from you. You loved us more than we can ever fully know. Let that love shine forth from us! Amen and amen. 

Thursday: “Mystery” - Eph 1: 8-10

Too many Christians are walking around with an unneeded since of shame and feeling like their life is worthless today. If anyone should be singing a song of hope and God’s love, it should be us! But when our faith is all in our head, it makes it really hard to accept with the author of Ephesians is talking about - a God who loved us enough to make a way through the cross. A God who loves us enough to adopt us into the family of God, no matter what we have done in our past. That brothers and sisters is the grace and mercy of God. That is why we are in awe and sing songs of wonder and praise.

  But this love, this Belovedness, is not something that we are to keep to ourselves. Instead we are called to the specific task to serve God and neighbor out of gratitude for what Christ has done for us. Church, will we be remembered as people who shared the lavish love of God? Will we be the people who tell others about the God who has made a way to be set free from the power of sin? Will we be a people who remind people that they are worthy, not because of what they have done, but instead they are worthy because of what Christ has done?

How is the love of Christ made known to us?

Prayer: God of Grace, let us be people who put you and your love first in our lives. Let us be people who seek first your Kingdom and your will. We love, you, Lord. Amen. 

Friday: “Inheritance” - Eph 1: 11-14

Sometimes it can be so hard to rest in the fact that we are the beloved of God. We live in a world that tells us that we need to earn our accomplishments and accolades. But the truth is, we could have absolutely everything that it is possible to earn or that we would want, but still not have the peace of God in our hearts because we haven’t fully accepted the love God is trying to offer us in Christ. Being the Beloved of God isn’t something you can earn, its a gift freely offered by God.

At camp one summer, one of the student’s favorite songs to sing was “How He Loves” by the David Crowder Band. Receive these words, “I don’t have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way Oh, how He loves us, Oh How he loves us. How he loves all.” Have you accepted that love in your life, yet friends? If so, may you find peace today in the assurance in your heart that you are the Beloved of God and may you go forth and live a life that proclaims to others that God is waiting on them with the best gift ever given. If you haven’t yet accepted that love, may you consider doing so this day, praying to God to accept Christ in your life, finding forgiveness for your sins,  and beginning to that voice of love that is saying to you that you are the Beloved of God. 

What is the inheritance we receive as a child of God?

Prayer: God, we thank you that the inheritance we receive is not just what is to come, but is also right here and right now. Continually reveal to us your glory, we pray. Amen. 

Saturday: Preparing for the Word

You are invited to read and pray this week’s text and topic to prepare for worship: Ephesians 2:11-22