Ephesians 1:11-23
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
“I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe….” Paul wrote these words to a congregation who, while knowing the love of God in Jesus Christ, were experiencing persecution and heartache; they and others of their community were being arrested and some killed. The power and dominion that Paul described as above all rule and authority (in the following verses), was something far removed from the experience of the Ephesians, in fact they felt vulnerable; they were scared. Paul’s words, were intended to remind them that it was God who held all of the power and to soften the fear, the anxiety and pain suffered by the congregation in Ephesus, but Paul’s words were not “pie in the sky” words offered by someone who did not know suffering and the words did not include a promise of peace and tranquility. Paul understood well their suffering and that feeling of being powerless; it has been recorded in Scripture, the times that Paul himself was beaten, imprisoned, even stoned, but amidst his suffering Pail had gained strength by the one true Spirit of the Lord.
As crazy and violent as our times seem to be today, we are not among the persecuted; we are among the very fortunate, we live in relative safety, sharing in a great prosperity, the poorest among us is considered rich by many in the world; we maintain a certain level of security in spite of our government’s policies and lack of policies to keep our world safe. Many of our world are not so fortunate; it is important that we remember that fact, but Paul did not need to remind his readers, the congregants of the church in Ephesus, of that point, at least not in this message, they needed Paul’s reassurance; they needed very much to be reminded of the power of God over all things, over life itself. We who are among the fortunate, we sometimes, confuse our suffering with persecution. The people to whom Paul wrote were really persecuted and truly needed to understand that power rested not in their persecutors but always in the Lord, and that they were always within the boundaries, within the reach of that power.
Today, there are many within the immigrant population, both legal and illegal that feel the weight of the government upon them, uncertain of its justice and even feeling it, as persecution. Among our African and African American population, they too feel the weight of the government, feeling that the justice system is not treating them justly and may even be targeting them unfairly. I’m not an idealist, I understand that there are some valid reasons for some of the current treatment of immigrants and darker skinned people in our country, but we cannot discount the level of racism and misplaced anxiety that stands behind much of the injustices and the way our population has excused abuses towards these people. Some of us may feel the burden of our taxes and may not like the power that the energy and telecommunication companies hold over us, but they do not threaten our existence. Some of us are burdened by educational costs and college loans; they are often excessive, but we chose them; the banks and loaning institutions likely take advantage of the young and their families and something should be done to help these people them with their debts, but they are not so much suffering from persecution, as they are greed and opportunism, on the part of our banking and loaning industries.
While we are less in need of the hope that Paul offers through the reassurance of God’s power, Paul’s words can certainly speak to us in our not so hopeless situations. We certainly can benefit from the spirit of wisdom and revelation that Paul prays will reach each and every one of us; I know there are definitely times when I seem lacking in wisdom and revelation. Anyone who is honest to his or herself will feel the same. We can all benefit in having “the eyes of our hearts enlightened” by the Holy Spirit; could it be that this enlightenment will give us a sense of empathy for those who suffer? We can all, unfortunately, only imagine how our world would improve were we, and those around us, to make each decision prayerfully, listening for the Spirit to shower us with God’s wisdom and a feeling of empathy for the less fortunate.
Life is not forever, and so all of us need, also, to be reminded of the hope proclaimed by Paul, the hope of a glorious inheritance among the saints of old. To paraphrase a passage that I read, at almost every funeral, “nothing in all creation can separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ our Lord, including even death.” It is important to be reminded that the promise of this inheritance is a promise of salvation and that it is never far from us. One way that we celebrate All Saints Sunday is to remember our lost loved ones, and to entrust them to the love and salvation offered through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It helps us to know that they, as saints are receiving their inheritance, the promise of salvation and the joy of being with the Lord, but that is not the only way that we celebrate All Saints Sunday. We (also) often recognize the newly baptized and we celebrate the lives of all who have been baptized, those we call saints, made so by Christ through baptism.
Again, and again, I have called you saints in this sermon, you are, but don’t get a big head. We are, as taught by Martin Luther, both saints and sinners. That tells me that we are not worthy of Jesus’ love and forgiveness and that we all need the Spirit’s help, the Spirit’s wisdom and revelation, and the empathy, that is offered us. Don’t be foolish; take advantage of all the Lord has promised you. Celebrate Jesus’ love for us and for those who have died and have gone to be with the Lord. Work together, using the gifts the Spirit has given, to make our world a safer and more loving world.