Ephesians 2.11-18 (2)
Pray Psalm 32.1, 2.
Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered.
Blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit.
Sing Psalm 32.1, 2.
(Hendon: Take My Life and Let It Be)
Blessed are they whose sins the LORD has forgiven by His Word!
Pure their spirits are within; them He charges with no sin;
them He charges with no sin!
Read Ephesians 2.11-18; meditate on verse 13.
Read verses 11-13 aloud slowly. What words jump out at you? Meditate on these briefly.
Preparation
1. What were we in before “now”? What are we in “now”?
2. How has that happened?
Meditation
I enjoy reflecting on favorite scenes from movies. Not whole movies. Just favorite ones. Some scenes leap out at me as instructive and worth revisiting.
One is the scene in The Wizard of Oz, where Dorothy’s storm-wracked, storm-lifted little black-and-white house suddenly comes to rest with a THUD. Bang. You see Dorothy bounce a bit; she sits there for a while, probably thinking, “What now?” Then she gathers up Toto, walks to the door, opens it, steps out, and begins to walk around. And she says…..? Yes, you remember, and what a great line: “Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.”
She had a new now. A more wondrous, mysterious, and challenging now than she had ever known. Before, she was far off from this place, living in the beautiful farmland of Kansas. But now, through tumult, turmoil, trouble, and trial, she was in a new now. And that now would change everything.
We have come through tumult, turmoil, trouble, and trial into a new now as well. But not our tumult and trial. The trial and trouble that has brought us to this new and wondrous and transformative place is the blood of Jesus. Through Him God the Father has brought us near…to Himself! And to His Kingdom, which is far more glorious than that of which Dorothy dreamt. We can never forget that our “now” was not always so full of wonder and possibilities for glorifying God. But that was then; this is now. Our new now, into which we have landed through the power of Him Who rules the winds and summons the storms, brings new life to us and, through us, to all who receive His grace through faith and obedience.
And don’t go looking for some ruby slippers as the sign you’ve arrived. You have been sealed to God with the Holy Spirit of promise, full of gifts and power and fruit to serve up to your world. Do you want to feel like you’re not in your old now anymore? Look to Jesus in His Word; draw near to Him, and let Him show you the way to know fullness of life and love in Him now, today, and every day of your life.
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.16
Our dear brother Peter also experienced a resounding “Thud, bang!” in his changing life.
Peter, albeit close in proximity to Jesus, was still far off in many ways. For example, “Peter followed Him at a distance to the high priest’s courtyard” …and then he was terribly frightened by the confrontations of a servant girl (see Matt. 26.58-75 for the entire embarrassing episode).
But then Jesus came close to Peter, after His resurrection, and gave him three opportunities to be sorry for his denials and to come close, to draw near to His Savior.
“Do you love Me?” (Jn. 21.15, 16, 17).
“Yes, Lord, You know that I love You” (Jn. 21.15, 16, 17).
Then. “Follow Me” (Jn. 21.19).
And follow Him, he did. Obediently waiting in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit to come upon them, to give them power to follow Jesus boldly, carefully, courageously, and fruitfully (Acts 1.8).
In Peter’s new “now” he became a new creation. Just as Jesus promised he would (Jn. 16.13).
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away;
behold, all things have become new” (2 Cor. 6.17).
Instead of cowering before youngsters, he was throwing down the gauntlet to anyone who would listen.
“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know—
Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God,
you have taken by lawless hands,
have crucified,
and put to death;
Whom God raised up,
having loosed the pains of death,
because it was not possible that He should be held by it” (Acts 2.22-24).
And God will be as enthusiastic over our “now” ministry, in our Personal Mission Field,
as He was about Peter’s. We have the same power within us as Peter did.
For it was God Who worked in Peter, and
“Who works in [us] both to will and to do for His good pleasure” (Phil. 2.13).
“But now in Christ Jesus
you who once were far off
have been brought near
by the blood of Christ” (Eph. 2.13).
The Majestic God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—the forever God of infinity past and future; the God of there and then and here and now; the God Who changed our hearts and gives us power:
“The LORD sat enthroned at the Flood, and
the LORD sits as King forever.
The LORD will give strength to His people;
the LORD will bless His people with peace” (Ps. 29.10, 11).
He is our God—still King forever—metamorphosizing us into our new now.
“Thud, bang!
Reflection
1. In what ways does your “new now” differ from your “old now”?
2. In which aspects of your “new now” are you most working to grow?
3. What’s the benefit of concentrating—in prayer and meditation—on all the many spiritual and other blessings we have in our “new now”?
Salvation is far from the wicked; but God is a help at hand to his people; and this is by the sufferings and death of Christ. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Ephesians 213
Pray Psalm 32.3-9.
Thank God for the grace of forgiveness whereby He has landed you in your new now. Pray that He will use you to help others know the transforming Presence and power of Jesus.
Sing Psalm 32.3-9.
(Hendon: Take My Life and Let It Be)
When in silence I remained, groaning in my sinful pain,
You Your hand upon me lay; all my strength You drained away,
all my strength You drained away.
I confessed my sin to You; You forgave me, ever true!
Let confession’s pleading sound reach You while You may be found,
reach You while You may be found!
When flood waters threaten me, You my hiding place will be.
O’er them I will rise above, buoyed by Your redeeming love,
buoyed by Your redeeming love.
Teach me, LORD, how I should live; sound instruction ever give.
Let me never stubborn be; let Your eye watch over me,
let Your eye watch over me.
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest this week: In our ReVision series on “The Kingdom Economy” we are immersed in the first of 14 studies on “grace economics”. This week our Read Moore podcast begins a tour of the exaltation of Christ and His work in the here and now from our book, What in Heaven Is Jesus Doing on Earth? In our Crosfigell series on Brendan of Clonfert, the saint presses on in his journey to reach The Promised Land of the Saints. Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you.
And please prayerfully consider supporting The Fellowship of Ailbe with your prayers and gifts. You can contribute online, via PayPal or Anedot, or by sending a gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.
Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
