Deep Creek Anglican Church Blog

Chapter One: Exploring the Drama of Ephesians

We are just getting into Timothy Gombis’ The Drama of Ephesians: Participating in the Triumph of God.  And this first chapter might perhaps cause the reader to pause and recognise how much of our reading of Scripture is governed by a modernist approach of extracting certain truths and arranging them in our favourite systematic theological system.

For Gombis this is the wrong way to read Ephesians:

“Conceiving of the task of Bible reading as the discovery of isolated principles in the text that need to be recognised, extracted and arranged in a systematic outline of theology leaves interpreters in a situation where there is no demand that they experience transformation.”

That is a power-packed statement worth ‘chewing on’!

What is Ephesians then?  Our author’s contention is that “Ephesians has a tightly woven narrative structure that is driven by the pattern of divine warfare.”

Let me unpack somewhat this statement on the nature of Ephesians:

Narrative structure: Gombis comments that “Ephesians is not a doctrinal treatise in the scholastic sense of that term.  It is, rather, a drama in which Paul portrays the powerful, reality-altering, cosmos-transforming acts of God in Christ to redeem God’s world and save God’s people for the glory of His name.”  The reader needs to go with the ‘grain’ of Ephesians – there are several narratives within the Letter (Eph 2; 3) and ‘truth’ is spoken of in dramatic terms in Eph 4:15, 20f.  Truth is not simply a set of facts – the church must act out (perform) the way of Jesus.  In so doing we will embody the life and love of God on earth.

Pattern of divine warfare: When we think of biblical apocalyptic literature, books such as Ezekiel, Daniel and Revelation will no doubt come to mind.  Our author contends that Ephesians is an apocalypse in regards to its function. It gives us a heavenly interpretation of reality (see esp. Eph 1:17-19).  Does Jesus appear to be the cosmic ruler of all things?  Not if we interpret the world and our lives according to our own earthly vision of reality.

Additionally in the apocalyptic worldview of Ephesians, the drama unfolds on both earth and heaven – with a cast of ‘actors.’  Gombis states that “if we ignore the setting of the drama, we will not rightly understand the performance to which we are being called.”

Our author shows that the tightly woven narrative structure of the Letter is driven by the pattern of divine warfare.  He highlights “the strength of His power” (Eph 1:19; 6:10) as providing an inclusio (literary bookends) of Paul’s argument.  Further the thesis statement of the Letter is Eph 1:20-23:

^{Eph 1:20} He exerted when He raised Christ from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms, ²¹ far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. ²² And God placed all things under His feet and appointed Him to be head over everything for the church, ²³ which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills everything in every way.

What is Ephesians then?  I agree wholeheartedly with Gombis’ summary:

“Ephesians, therefore, is also a polemic in which Paul asserts the triumph of God in Christ over the powers that rule the present evil age and explains the manner in which the people of God are to inhabit this victorious drama, letting it orient and shape their lives together as a community.”

And that necessitates the communities of God’s people to be discerning – we live in the crossover of the ages which can cause confusion unless we are shaped by Ephesians and not by this world.

How are you going with living out the drama of Ephesians?

An Opinion piece by Amy Welborn in USA Today looks at Pope Benedict’s recently released Light of the World comprising interviews with German journalist, Peter Seewald.

I haven’t read the book but a few paragraphs by Amy stood out:

“The thing is, he really believes the stuff. Really. He believes that God exists and we exist because God loves us. We’re free to love him back, or not. So the basic job of the church is to be Christ in the world, inviting human beings to find love and truth. To find themselves. As Benedict puts it in Light of the World, the church “communicates the light of Christ…”

“In short, Pope Benedict is saying: It’s not my job to either change the teaching or declare you eternally condemned for your failures in living it. That’s God’s job. And I’m not God.

This pleases hardly anyone, of course. It doesn’t fit with our favored ideologies or our scripts of what it means to be liberal or conservative or even religious. But to an 83-year-old man convinced of the gift of God’s love and truth and who says to his interviewer that when he prays, he really does no more than come as a “simple beggar before God,” it does.

You might even call it … powerful.”

Pope Benedict is a man who clearly loves the Lord and needs our ongoing prayers.

Chapter Six: Light for Dark Nights of the Soul

“God.  Where are you?”  Has that ever been the cry of your heart?  It has been my cry – including in recent times.  Is there really such a thing as the ‘silence of God’?  Does He withdraw His presence from us sometimes; or is it simply our perception, when we are going through times of great difficulties?

The actual or perceived silence of God is not a ‘non-issue’.  In Ps 30:7,  the psalmist says: “You hid Your face; I was dismayed.”

And this is not an isolated utterance in the Psalter:

Ps 13:1  How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever?  How long will You hide your face from me?

Ps 42: 9  I say to God my Rock,  “”Why have You forgotten me?  Why must I go about mournfully, oppressed by the enemy?”

What do we make of this?  This is the experience of one of God’s own.  It has been described by one great figure of the early church as ‘the dark night of the soul.’

Do we feel a little embarrassed by these cries of lament found throughout the Psalter?  They are expressions of disorientation.  As you read through the Psalter, however, you will find that even in the darkest of psalms, psalms of disorientation, never once does the psalmist say he no longer trusts in God.

“God, where are You?”  The question may arise in the believer’s heart for a number of reasons:

• our own psychological state.  We may be depressed, or in some way, disorientated;
• our own impatience for God to act according to our timetable, and not His;
• our own slackness in spending quality time, in communion with Him, in prayer, songs of praise; meditation on Scripture; in fellowship with His people.

Bill Hybels addresses ‘dark nights of the soul’ in this sixth chapter.  It is compelling reading as our author sketches some dark nights of the soul in the development of Willow Creek and in his own life.  Bill’s testifies that notwithstanding the numerous dark nights of the soul that he has experienced, three truths about God have stood out:

1. God is near
2. God actively seeks us out
3. God speaks – Bill shares about the whispers that he has received from God in the midst of great difficulties.  Not whispers that spoke of an immediate change to his circumstances but whispers that reinforced God’s presence and love.

On Sundays, we have just completed a twelve message series from the Book of Proverbs, entitled Living Wisely.  It has been a challenging part of Scripture to preach from, but immensely rewarding.

We have preached thematically, covering:

• Wisdom
• Discipline
• Two paths
• Proactivity
• Honest workers
• Truthfulness
• Anger management
• Family building
• Choosing friends wisely
• Extravagant generosity
• Commitment to God in everything
• Radical ministry of compassion

I found two quite different resources very helpful:

• Good commentary by Tremper Longman III with helpful topical section in Appendix:

• Good applications from Bill Hybels:

What does the New Testament say about women?  Is Christianity oppressive towards women?  Ben Witherington III, Professor of Biblical Interpretation at Asbury Theological Seminary, Kentucky, talks to Simon Smart from the Centre for Public Christianity about the revolutionary nature of Jesus’ (and Paul’s) treatment of women.

Watch it on vimeo.

Here’s one pastor who’s not a big fan of Facebook!

Did you notice the article in yesterday’s Sunday Herald Sun, Anti-Christian song is featured on Christmas CD?   The song writer, Tim Minchin, whose track ‘White Wine in the Sun‘ is featured on the Myer Spirit of Christmas CD pens the words, “I’m not expecting a visit from Jesus.”  The lyrics of this song do celebrate loving, family relationships.

How sad that the Giver of all good gifts (and that certainly includes love, family, relationships, community) should be so disregarded.

Christmas is a time of great celebration; celebrating the world’s greatest gift – the gift of God’s one and only (unique, incomparable) Son.

Join us this Christmas season at Deep Creek as we celebrate What a Difference a Day Makes….

I have just started reading The Drama of Ephesians: Participating in the Triumph of God by Timothy Gombis.  It is very engaging and you’re invited to join in as we journey with our author.

I love Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians.  In recent years I’ve been wondering though whether I’ve been reading it through a too narrow lens of systematic theology.  This question of interpretation became sharper in my mind when I taught a three-week series on Spiritual Warfare in October 2009.  I was unconvinced by the often cited structure of Ephesians: theology ion chapters 1 to 3, and practical exhortations in chapters 4 to 6.  I put down on my ‘virtual worklist’ to one day roll up my sleeves and think more deeply about the underlying, integrating theme of Ephesians.  My sense was that there was an emphasis on God (and then through His people)  dealing with destructive, demonic powers (and their  interplay with our flesh).

Given this background, it is not surprising that the opening lines of The Drama of Ephesians caught my eye:

“Paul’s letter is a narrative account of God in Christ over the powers that have hijacked God’s world, holding it captive and enslaving humanity.”

Gombis argues that Ephesians must be “read through the lens of divine warfare ideology from the Old Testament and the ancient world.”

Our author is not writing another commentary on Ephesians.  He does not treat every passage in the same depth.  Rather, The Drama of Ephesians seeks to get the reader to keep asking:

“How does God intend for the gospel dynamics in Ephesians to overtake our lives and our world and to redeem them for His glory and the good of His beautiful but broken world?”

Let me encourage you to be prayerfully reading Ephesians as you read the posts on Gombis’ book.

Chapter Five: God’s Written Whispers

We return to Bill Hybels’ The Power of a Whisper after a very busy time at church and some serious family health issues.  Bill begins with a lovely personal story about the Lord speaking into his life from Prov 3:5-6, a passage that I preached on today.

I love the simplicity and clarity of Bill’s advice on reading the Bible:

“The most predictable way to hear from heaven is to read and apply God’s Word.  When you increase your biblical engagement, you increase the odds that you’ll hear from God – that’s as complicated as it gets.”

In this chapter, the reader is taken through some of Bill’s favourite memory verses, arranged topically.  We are given personal illustrations of how many of these verse have been used by the Lord to whisper into Bill’s life.  What stands out is that we must have the truth of God in our hearts and minds and then summons it!  Here is some helpful advice:

“You and I must be so saturated with the Word of God that when we’re caught off-gurd by life’s circumstances, we reflexively hear His wisdom, His nudges, His whispers through His wirds that dwell within us.”

Bill shares about his “saturation reflection” approach to Scripture – for example immersing in Romans 12 for 12 months.  Our author’s advice is to slow down the pace of our Bible reading and listen for God’s voice.  God’s Word will instruct us about God, His character and the life He is calling us to live.

This is an encouraging and motivating chapter on living our lives, listening to the whispers of God through His Word.

Scot McKnight has an interesting post on the struggle Christians often have with reading the Bible cover-to-cover.  And his post includes this photograph of a very well used Bible!

Scot suggests that three issues discourage readers:

• Bible is long and some passages “don’t vibrate with people;”
• they have their own systematic theology and “already know what they believe;”
• not knowing how to tie all of the bible together.

I think there is a fourth point -and a big one – we fail to appreciate that as we read the Bible, under the illumination of the Holy Spirit, it is as if God Himself is sitting next to us, speaking to us.

Systematic theology (a human developed synthesis of Scripture around a particular topic) has a place in the believer’s life – but if it is top of the pile, I believe it actually leads to stunted spiritual growth and vitality (and sometimes a prideful self-righteousness).  So I’m with Scot when he says,

“The unity of Scripture, however, is not to be found in our reconstructed theology but in the Story it tells.”

The Bible tells a Story about God’s interaction with His world. And from time-to-time a deep shaft is put down (eg. Romans, Hebrews) and then we need to pause and do some deep digging!

Scot highlights the recently released The Story of God, the Story of Us: Getting Lost and Found in the Bible by Sean Gladding in his post.  The description of the book looks good.  I don’t know too much more about it but here is a thoughtful review and a Facebook wall on the book.