This week the Good Morning Girls studied Ephesians 5:1-20;
"Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints; and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which ware not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them; for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of the Light (for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth), trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them; for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret. But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light for everything that becomes visible is light. For this reason it says, 'Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you.' Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father." (NASB)
This passage further specifies how we are to live; imitators of God who walk in the Light and are filled with Spirit. This kind of life is characterized by sacrificial love, wise use of time seeking to accomplish the will of God, uplifting speech, and a gracious attitude. We are to be vigilant against those who would deceive us into putting worldly things above God (resulting in immorality, impurity, greed, "unfruitful deeds of darkness").
Personally, I can be too easily deceived into loving things of this world. I live a pretty charmed life and am surrounded by good things. Sometimes I can get confused into worldly pursuits and forget what is important. Too often I fail to see how dark and destructive sin is and wonder why God says not to do _____. It is a frequent prayer of mine for God to give me His eyes so that I can see things in light of the truth.
This week God has allowed me to see the affects of sin through a variety of circumstances including death, a sermon on Jesus' crucifixion, and a couple of graphic accounts of the depravity in this world. God gave me a glimpse of the depraved world outside of my charmed little life, and even allowed me to deal with personal loss within my charmed little life. For this reason, it's been a tough emotional week that has driven me straight to God for comfort and hope, when sometimes it seems like there isn't any hope left in this world.
As scary and depraved as the world looks sometimes, it makes me want to retreat into my safe little bubble. But this passage doesn't say to avoid the rest of the world, it says to be a Light in the darkness. To allow our sacrificial love, wise use of time, uplifting speech, and gracious attitudes to expose the darkness.
Yesterday a friend was telling me about Kony 2012 and the injustice going on with children in Africa being abducted and forced into violence. After the week I have had, I just didn't want to hear one more thing like that. I already felt overwhelmed and incapable of doing anything to change the world so I just didn't want to know about it. My friend on the other hand felt inspired and empowered by the same information. She was inspired by people that are actively trying to make a difference and got excited about how she could be a part of that. I hope that God will strengthen me so that my response to the worlds depravity will be more like hers!
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