Dear Family at Christ Community,

     
     This Sunday we will partake of the sacramental means of grace at the Lord’s Table. We will need the spiritual power represented by the broken bread and overflowing cup as Paul calls us to be strong in the Lord and stand firm clad in the armor of God in Ephesians 6:10-20. The nourishment that we receive in the power of the Holy Spirit as He reminds us of our forgiveness and reconciliation through the death and resurrection of Christ will empower us to stand firm against the schemes of the devil and the powers of darkness. The elements will also in the power of the Holy Spirit grant us the strength to live out and advance the kingdom for the glory of God and the life of the world clothed in the means of grace.  While all of this discussion of spiritual warfare and militaristic preparation sounds supra-ordinary and fantastic, it proves to be deeply ordinary and everyday as Paul lays the greatest weight on prayer in the Spirit in 6:18. We fight not against those that surround us in our spheres of influence, but we fight for them in the spiritual realm as righteous ambassadors for Christ in faith with the truth of God’s word before the very throne of grace in prayer. This will be reflected tangibly in our relationships with those we’re praying for in daily, ordinary acts of love and grace. Timothy G. Gombis in The Drama of Ephesians: Participating in the Triumph of God captures the everyday quality of the fight: 

When we are faithful to our call as God’s alternative, new creation people, we radiate God’s triumph throughout the cosmos. This cosmically significant calling transforms our daily acts of love and grace. Our simple love for others and our cultivation of cruciform lives is our spiritual warfare, empowered by the risen exalted Lord Jesus. May God indeed be glorified in the church and in the Lord Jesus Christ!

     
     Pray for the Holy Spirit to grant you opportunities to apply what you have learned throughout the Ephesian series as you live out being in Christ in and for the life of the world. Ask the Spirit to bear fruit in the lives of those who currently reside in and of those invited into our faithful community. Pursue reconciliation with those where walls once divided you that have been torn down in Christ. Fight for unity within the church with the means of grace. Come expecting the presence and blessing of our Abba Father who defeated sin and death in Christ to reconcile us to Him as His children who have access to all of the heavenly blessings in the Spirit!

In Christ,
Cameron