Author: Aaron Hufty

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 6:17-20 (day two) With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints, v. 18

If you have the time, start your reading a few verses earlier today and re-read the complete passage regarding the armor of God. Armor is not something you throw on. It takes time. It must fit properly, or it will not do the job it was created to do, think of the shepherd boy David when he tried on King Saul’s armor. As you put on the armor you become aware of how it fits, and where you are exposed. This should be a deliberate process, so that when you are in battle, you are ‘on alert’ as Paul concludes. Every part of this preparation is designed to slow you down, and to consider how the Lord is calling you to participate in the work he has called you to. There is not a sense of hurry or rush in this passage. As you prepare to face your day, your job, your family, or this season may you be on alert for all that will come your way. May that alertness come from a dedication to love and serve the Lord through continuous communion with him.

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 6:10-17 (day two) 

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. v. 10

Paul’s final exhortation to the Ephesians is to get ready for the coming days. Whether from without or within, there will be conflict and struggle. He also give a not so subtle reminder that to be strong is to allow the Lord to go before you. It is not your strength, it is his. Time spent in prayer, scripture, all doctrine point to the author and perfecter of our faith. These images of armor can give a false impression that we are fighting. The Lord fights for us. We are called to be his ambassadors and we are the conduits for the Spirit on earth, but every piece of armor that we put on is evidence of his protection for those he loves. Be strong and courageous. Arm yourself well with the strength of the Lord.

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 5:15-21 (day two) 

speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; v. 19

Although the Bible study literature stops at verse 18, it should not surprise you that I am happy to include the next two verses. It also shouldn’t come as a shock that Ephesians 5:19 was a verse I learned early in my musical studies. To think that scripture was so explicit about the role of music in our daily lives,  not to mention its profound role in corporate worship, I was delighted and humbled. We were all created to sing, that is a maxim not requiring debate. Whether you sing as well as I is immaterial. God did not misspeak when he commanded his children to sing praises to him. You have breath in your lungs, and you have a voice to sing.

None of this should come as a surprise coming from a worship pastor, but I would challenge you to think of music as a barometer of your spiritual health as well. There are chapters of my life where I have struggled and felt hopeless or depressed. Times where I really struggled with my purpose. I have noticed that in those times I didn’t want to sing. I didn’t have a soundtrack running through my head, and nothing sounded right. This was a clear indication to me that I was allowing myself to drift from who and what God called me to be. Since those days I have become more mindful to listen to the music of my heart to help diagnose my spiritual health.

Your song may not always be peppy and upbeat, but allow the Holy Spirit to fill your mind, heart, and voice with the songs of Heaven to help navigate this journey. Don’t allow the adversary to steal your song.

ADDENDUM: This is already a longer post than usual, so please forgive the extra addition. Today is Election Day. I want to encourage you to pray. Not that your candidate win, but that the Lord’s will be done. Our hope cannot be tied to a person other than Jesus. If we do that and that person loses, what does that say? Jesus cannot lose. Pray that God would give you strength and courage to Love Your Neighbor more fiercely tomorrow that you did today, and may we all be secure in the purpose and plan of God.

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 5:8-14 (day two) 

for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light  v. 8

The people who walk in darkness
Will see a great light;
Those who live in a dark land,
The light will shine on them. Isaiah 9:2

This passage from Isaiah is one used every year during Advent, so you can imagine how quickly I made the connection to it. We have been neck deep in preparations for the season for quite a while now. The idea of being ‘children of light’ has always resonated with me. Paul has just reminded the readers not to rely on former ways of thinking and acting, but to be transformed by who Christ has called them to be. It is in this knowledge that light is being shone on every thought, word, and deed. We must measure everything by that light. It will be one of the distinguishing characteristics of believers in the world. It’s one of the reasons I love big bright sanctuaries. I want there to be an abundance of light to remind us that we are no longer to cower in shadows, but to live out our faith in the glorious light of Christ.

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 4:17-24 (day two) 

Paul’s encouragement to ‘renew the spirit of your mind’ gives us the sense of movement and growth. Earlier in the passage he speaks about how we were formerly, and how we are to put those ways of thinking and acting behind us. There seems, however, to be more required. If we are to renew, we shouldn’t be static. There is no indication this was a once and done scenario as in; you were made new and that’s that. No, this seems to indicate a continuous process. It is the spiritual concept of sanctification. We should not be who we were before Christ, but even more than that, we shouldn’t be who we were yesterday. This should be our desire. If we are aren’t growing in our faith, what are we doing? If care isn’t given we fall into complacency when we should be seeking renewal.

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 4:11-16 (day two) 

for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; v. 12

As I consider worship planning each week, this verse serves as a guiding principle. Worship leaders have a responsibility to the gathered body of believers they are called to shepherd. One of the great tasks in worship is to edify the saints. To build you up for the coming task you are being sent to accomplish through the work of the Spirit. Each prayer, scripture, song, and text is designed to focus the collective to one purpose. After glorifying God, building up the saints is next on the list.

This may seem surprising to some, but I believe this is what we are called to do in gathered worship. Don’t get me wrong, I feel strongly about evangelism, but I also feel that if the gathered body of believers honor the Lord with their worship, and are edified through the service it serves as a clarion call to the lost to be a part of this sweet aroma of praise. My constant prayer for you is that you leave each service equipped to go and tell.

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 4:1-6 (day two) 

Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, vs. 1

Each of us has a high, holy calling. We are reminded throughout scripture of our inheritance, of our royal priesthood, and our adoption as sons and daughters of the king. This, however, is not a call to haughtiness, or exclusion. The world might expect you to assume an air of superiority as you accede to a royal position. Paul reminds us that with our new title comes the expectation of humility, mercy, and grace. The same formula that was shown to us by Jesus is the one he will use to measure us. May we never forget the state in which Jesus found us, and may that forever inform how we love and serve others.

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 3:14-21 (day two) 

…and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, ¹⁸ may be able to comprehend…

From the distance of a TV screen or newsfeed we have all just witnessed the awesome power and devastation of a hurricane upon the Southeastern United States. In the coming days efforts will be made by many to help those  affected to begin to piece together what remains of their belongings, their homes, families, and lives. It is an awesome sight to behold the destruction of such wind and rain, and yet there are some things that somehow withstand those forces. Often, they are centuries-old trees whose root system extends almost as deep as the tree is tall. This system of grounding, designed by the almighty, was fashioned to serve the purpose of withstanding adversity.

Paul reminds us this grounding also allows us to comprehend God’s full love. Without proper grounding in God’s love, we cannot appreciate God overwhelming goodness. The incredible fact is that the more you are grounded in his love, the more you are able to comprehend, thus creating a greater desire to know and love him more. Dig deeper. Love hard. Witness the majesty of God.

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 3:1-13 (day two) 

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles – vs. 1

Paul experienced captivity in both a literal and figurative sense. He was held in chains for his bold preaching and unwavering message of the gospel, and Jesus had captured his heart to this purpose. Because of Jesus, Paul was turned around in a manner that was truly jarring to those who knew him, or knew of him before the Damascus Road encounter. His encounter with Jesus was so transformative he was willing to change everything to focus on the Savior. How captured and captivated by Jesus are we? What does radical transformation look like in the church? Paul clearly understood his assignment to make the message of the cross available to everyone. If Paul was willing to surrender everything; if he was willing to endure incarceration; if he was willing to re-think how to treat and love others, what are we being called to do?

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 2:19-22 (day two) So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, vs. 19

Unworthiness may be one of the toughest hurdles to overcome when considering trusting Jesus. When we come to the place of examining our lives before the majesty of Jesus, who are we that he would consider us fellow citizens? What do we bring? How are we made worthy? Only through the cross, only through Jesus’s sacrifice is any of this possible. We must reconcile that we are not worthy, and any impostor syndrome we may experience is justified, until we understand God’s intent to make us co-heirs with Christ. It is a feeling that I wish would go away the longer I walk with the Lord, but it is a truth I must struggle with every day. I am unworthy, but he is faithful. Don’t let your sense of self-unworth determine your value in the Lord.