James 24:7

Wye Huxford, Executive Director of the European Evangelistic Society, recently published the following devotional through the EES email newsletter.  I have known Wye for over 30 years.  He is pastor and scholar.  This particular devotional caught my eye because I have been thinking (and preaching) a lot lately about how we tend to want to distill the Bible down to workable principles rather than to allow scripture to open us up to a more expansive way of seeing the purposes of God.  

We live in a fast food society.  We like to whizz through the drive-through and pick up some "nuggets" and be on our way.  Perhaps that way of eating is shaping our ways of reading.  We whip into scripture, snatch up some "nuggets, and then drive out into our hectic lives.

That's not good.  We need to take time to savor the meal.  In this little essay, Wye teaches us a little bit about savoring the love of Christ, an opportunity that requires time and attention.

You can learn more about the European Evangelistic Society here.   My appreciation to Wye for giving us all something to chew on!

 

Ephesians 3:14-21 comes to the church, according to long-standing tradition, from the pen of the Apostle Paul. That same tradition says that he wrote these words from prison, most likely in Rome. It is likely that he has now been in jail upwards of four years by the time the words are written. The fact that this former Pharisee, a young man who was rising to the top of the social ladder of his day would end up in jail “for the sake of you Gentiles” (Ephesians 3:1) offers convincing testimony to the details of Paul’s conversion. (Acts 9)

This paragraph is loaded with phrases worthy of serious contemplation, but none are more worthy than verses 18 and 19 which say, “I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” (NRSV)

The word that begs for attention in these verses is “comprehend.” Some translations use “grasp” for the English translation of Paul’s word. This same Greek word is found in John 1:5, but is translated “overcome” (NRSV) or “comprehend” (NASB). In John, the issue is that either darkness did not “overcome the light” or did not “comprehend the light.”

Applying those same definitions to the same word in Ephesians 3, the question becomes something like this. “As Christians, do we “comprehend the love of Christ” or do we “overcome, that is, catch up to, the love of Christ?” Could it be that Paul deliberately chooses a word that is a bit ambiguous, thus forcing his readers to “contemplate” the options?

He cleaves no room that would allow his readers to fail to recognize the rather awesome task before them – he is talking about the “breadth, length, height and depth” of the love of Christ. That love “surpasses knowledge.”

I’m not sure I will ever manage to “comprehend” that love. But it does seem to be a reasonable goal in life to try and “catch up” to that love. Thus while I may not be able to explain why God would love us as He does, I can live out my life trying to love my neighbor as Christ loves me.

Comprehend or catch up to? Both are significant challenges. May this be a week where we choose to accept the challenge and be filled with “the fullness of God.”