Listen

However, God is rich in mercy. He brought us to life with Christ while we were dead as a result of those things that we did wrong. He did this because of the great love that he has for us. You are saved by God’s grace! And God raised us up and seated us in the heavens with Christ Jesus. God did this to show future generations the greatness of his grace by the goodness that God has shown us in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:4-7

Think

Wait, what, we were dead?

In these few words we are given this amazing reminder that the idea and event of the resurrection of Christ means something. Out of even death: death of mind, death of spirit, death of heart, death of the body, God has the power and willingness to offer new life.

While this may seem an outrageous claim and beyond human understanding, it is precisely this idea that the church is being challenged to remember. When our faith becomes habitual, obligatory, or devoid of passion and conviction, we can slide back into ways of being that are no longer worthy of the gift that is and was the life, death, and resurrection of the one we call Jesus.

So while previous verses may seem harsh in tone, we are given an invitation to remember the reason we chose this faith from the beginning. We’ve received God’s grace, goodness, and love, and God calls us to abundant life.

Bruce Reyes-Chow

Question to Ponder:

What feels dead in your life right now? How might God be offering new life?

Pray

Inhale: God, you are here.

Exhale: Grant me the courage to receive the gift that is hope.

Go

Go forth into the world with justice and compassion in your heart.

Amplify voices of the long silenced.

Name strength in that which has been deemed weak.

Hear one another.

See one another.

Care for one another.

And love one another.

It’s all that easy.

And it’s all that hard.