December 10, 2021 — Ephesians 4:17–32  

“Therefore, having laid aside falsehood, each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on the cause of your anger. Do not give the devil an opportunity. The one who steals must steal no longer; rather he must labor, doing good with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with the one who has need. You must let no unwholesome word come out of your mouth, but only what is beneficial for the building up of the one in need, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. You must put away every kind of bitterness, anger, wrath, quarreling, and evil, slanderous talk. Instead, be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ also forgave you.” Ephesians 4:25–32  

Be Angry? Be angry, Paul says — but then he gives a caveat—but do not sin! For some people of faith who have a highly sentimental feeling and view toward their religiosity, they may believe that any type of anger is a sin. Paul surprises us here by recognizing that anger has its place. He also says that it has its limits. Even those with a superficial knowledge of the Bible recognize that there are many references about people (even G-d) who are moved toward anger. The prophets (Amos for example) can hardly contain their outrage at the way the people of Israel have violated G-d’s covenant. G-d argues with Moses that G-d should smite the Israelites after the “Golden Calf” incident. Jesus was upset when he overturned the tables of the moneychangers — and when he encountered almost any form of self-righteous arrogance in religious leaders. And Paul himself was furious with the church in Galatians as it fell back into seeing the law as a way to please G-d (Galatians 3:1-3). Indeed, G-d may be slow to anger but this does not mean G-d is never angry. G-d gets upset — but even we know that, when love is betrayed, then there can be outrage. 

Yet we must be careful. Paul warns the Ephesians not to “let the sun go down on your anger”. He recognizes that anger can quickly become obsessive, intrusive, infectious, and insidious. Instead of being upset over a thoughtless word or deed, we have a tendency to make it “personal” in a hurry. We nurse a grudge and cook up schemes for revenge. Once we have slipped into this realm we have opened the door for the devil. The well-being of the community then becomes secondary and our main purpose is simply to get even. Thus Paul reminds us of the need to let forgiveness have the last word “…be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ also forgave you.”  

I guess what needs to be said is this: there is a place for all emotions in the church and the life of the believer, but if we do not keep them in check, especially those that fall on the negative side of our emotions, then we allow Satan to work his ways with us.  

Let us pray,

Lord Jesus, we need you help to not let the sun go down on our anger. In all things we need your love and grace. Amen.

Pastor Dave 

December 9, 2021 — Ephesians 4:1–16  

“I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live worthily of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you too were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he captured captives; he gave gifts to men.” Now what is the meaning of “he ascended,” except that he also descended to the lower regions, namely, the earth? He, the very one who descended, is also the one who ascended above all the heavens, in order to fill all things. It was he who gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, that is, to build up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God – a mature person, attaining to the measure of Christʼs full stature. So we are no longer to be children, tossed back and forth by waves and carried about by every wind of teaching by the trickery of people who craftily carry out their deceitful schemes. But practicing the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ, who is the head. From him the whole body grows, fitted and held together through every supporting ligament. As each one does its part, the body grows in love.” Ephesians 4:1-16 

Paul, here uses two metaphors to express the joining and the resulting closeness with G-d: Jews and Gentiles form one body with Christ as its head, and a oneness with Christ as its cornerstone. This is the unity the church should reflect, or at least try to reflect. But Paul also makes clear that the perfection of the church is a process — not a completed event. Christ has equipped the church with gifts so that the church as Christ’s body may reach maturity.

The body metaphor of verses 12-16 is fully in line with Paul’s thinking: the church is depicted as growing into its own body. Christ is already “mature” (the Greek that the NRSV translates as “maturity” is more literally “the complete man”). Yet the church, which is Christ’s body, must build up the body until it arrives at the “maturity” of Christ. Likewise, in verses 14-15 the image evoked is that of the body growing up to meet him who is the head, Christ. Paul then sees that the church is already the body of Christ, even as it continues to grow toward Christ as the head of the church. 

Every church should keep this is mind — we are in a process of growth to full maturity — even if we are in the declination of life, as people, and as the church. We will never complete the journey until we die — both us as individuals and we, the body, the church. 

Let us pray,

Lord Christ, you are the head of the church. Help us to remember this when we proclaim to be the church, the body of Christ. You are mature in all things, while we continue to grow and learn and mature in all things. Amen

Pastor Dave