the way we were

I thought of the title of a movie from years ago after reading the beginning of Ephesians, chapter 2.  "The Way We Were"...all I remember is that it starred Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand...some kind of love story.  But this chapter gets into the heart of "the way we were" before our encounter and embrace of Jesus as savior:

Ephesians 2:¹ Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. ² You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. ³ All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God's anger, just like everyone else.

I think the idea that captures me this morning is that phrase in verse 3, "All of us used to live that way..."  There is a style of living that is most pervasive in the world...so much so that to trust in Christ is to break free from all that is familiar and comfortable in a sense.  Satan has firmly entrenched himself in our midst and drives our culture through the sin nature inherent in us all.  He has us building castles and empires around ourselves, creating what appears to be the Garden of Eden just beyond our reach, when all the while it is a mirage, backed by the reality of a black eternity.  And yet the world remains comfortable in pursuit of the mirage.  This truly has aggravated our Creator.  Imagine you are God and you fashioned us all in your image only to see each of us squandering our lives and following foolish and fleeting fancies.  He wants us to wake up and smell the incense of eternity that lies just beyond and outside of our five senses.  We are not "the masters of our fate" and we are not "the captains of our destiny".  Too many of us are willing pawns in the clutches of all that is wicked and deceptive.  Our only hope is focused in God's only Son who gave His only life to redeem us from the train wreck each of us heads for when we discover the mirage is really a "black hole".  When all the world is going a certain way...you can be almost certain they are going astray.

 

blessings (please wake up and smell eternity),

Rob Smith