11 Feb 2018. Pascha is less than 50 days away. The church I attend has decided that fellowship among the congregation members will be the central theme of Lent this year. Sunday messages will revolve around individuals who were present at Jesus Christ's crucifixion. But as members we are encouraged to do things together outside church on Sundays - especially with people we don't already know. The importance of this fellowship with other Christians was the focus of today's message.
One passage quoted was Ephesians 3: 14-19 (my formating)
As usual, when I read the passage in Ephesians, other parts reverberated in my mind. The last part "that you may be filled with all the fulness of God" is quite stunning actually, and I must think a lot more about it. But more, my mind was caught by the previous clause, which suggests that our knowledge and experience of God's love grows "with all the saints." I asked myself, how does this work in practice, in reality?
In my work I was often required to lead advanced training programmes in subjects that I had never studied myself, and in which participants were far more educated - I have a Masters degree, many course participants had PhDs in the course subject. How could I teach them anything? I couldn't. So what I did instead was to throw out challenging questions or statements and get them to discuss them, in full session (there were usually 25-30 only), among themselves, followed by deeper more focused discussion groups.
What happened was that every one had some particular angle or thought that others didn't have. As they opened up they learned from each other. Not only so, in many cases, the more in-depth group discussions that followed, led to entirely new insights and ideas that all benefited from. Often I was quite amazed at the way this happened, over and over again. (And I - the dumb one - sat back and soaked it all in. Talk about getting paid to learn!)
It seems to me that this is what happens when believers get together and share their life experiences of following the Lord Jesus. One discovers how wide the diversity of backgrounds Christ has reached, from how low in status, mood or behaviour, as well as how high and haughty the people that he can speak individually to and transform, how incredibly far that transformation can go. Listening humbly to one another we begin to understand just how remarkable God's love and grace is; also how incredible its power to change lives; and how unifying and inclusive it can be. Seeing this in others, we can allow that love to touch us directly so it affects not only our minds, our heads, but our hearts. This level of "heart knowledge" can take us to true experience for ourselves, that is way beyond straight forward "head knowledge."
If we spent more time with other "body members," focusing on what Christ has done and is doing for us, not sitting passively in church pews, or arguing about the correctness of some doctrinal "truth," we would no doubt come a lot farther towards being "filled with the fulness of God."
One passage quoted was Ephesians 3: 14-19 (my formating)
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named,
The part in bold text was the part the speaker focused on, emphasising that God works in and through the body of Christ, even when He works with individuals. Acts 2: 43-47 about the early believers living and doing things together was another text used.- that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with might through his Spirit in the inner man, and
- that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith;
- that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have power to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge,
- that you may be filled with all the fulness of God.
As usual, when I read the passage in Ephesians, other parts reverberated in my mind. The last part "that you may be filled with all the fulness of God" is quite stunning actually, and I must think a lot more about it. But more, my mind was caught by the previous clause, which suggests that our knowledge and experience of God's love grows "with all the saints." I asked myself, how does this work in practice, in reality?
In my work I was often required to lead advanced training programmes in subjects that I had never studied myself, and in which participants were far more educated - I have a Masters degree, many course participants had PhDs in the course subject. How could I teach them anything? I couldn't. So what I did instead was to throw out challenging questions or statements and get them to discuss them, in full session (there were usually 25-30 only), among themselves, followed by deeper more focused discussion groups.
What happened was that every one had some particular angle or thought that others didn't have. As they opened up they learned from each other. Not only so, in many cases, the more in-depth group discussions that followed, led to entirely new insights and ideas that all benefited from. Often I was quite amazed at the way this happened, over and over again. (And I - the dumb one - sat back and soaked it all in. Talk about getting paid to learn!)
It seems to me that this is what happens when believers get together and share their life experiences of following the Lord Jesus. One discovers how wide the diversity of backgrounds Christ has reached, from how low in status, mood or behaviour, as well as how high and haughty the people that he can speak individually to and transform, how incredibly far that transformation can go. Listening humbly to one another we begin to understand just how remarkable God's love and grace is; also how incredible its power to change lives; and how unifying and inclusive it can be. Seeing this in others, we can allow that love to touch us directly so it affects not only our minds, our heads, but our hearts. This level of "heart knowledge" can take us to true experience for ourselves, that is way beyond straight forward "head knowledge."
If we spent more time with other "body members," focusing on what Christ has done and is doing for us, not sitting passively in church pews, or arguing about the correctness of some doctrinal "truth," we would no doubt come a lot farther towards being "filled with the fulness of God."
