Friday 31/5/13

Ephesians 6:14 ESV

Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

Truth is our belt, the equipment to keep our armor stay in place. Without the belt, the armor will become loosy and easy to fall apart. With it, every pieces stay firm regardless of twist and turn. Without truth, our spiritual armor is just fake. It will fall apart when attacks come. With truth, it remains steady and in place even when the evils blow and twist.

Righteousness is our breastplate, the equipment close to our body to keep us from harm. Without the breastplate, any attack that we fail to block (e.g. with shield) will be fatal. With it, although we may not see the evil attack coming and fail to block, we remain unharmed for our righteousness protects us.

Friday 24/5/13

Ephesians 6:13 ESV

Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.

As our battle is in spirit, against the spiritual forces of evil which are ruling the heart of men, we must equip ourselves with spiritual weapons - the armor of God:

_ the belt of truth.

_ the breastplate of righteousness.

_ the shoes of the Gospel of Peace.

_ the shield of faith.

_ the sword of the Spirit of God.

We will win the spiritual fight not by our own strength, but by holding fast to these spiritual weapons God has given us and stand firm. As long as we keep to these, the evil will gradual lose.

Thursday 23/5/13

Ephesians 6:11-12 ESV

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

We are not fighting a physical battle, but a spiritual battle. We do not wrestle against men of flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of evil who are ruling and holding authority in the spirit & mind of men in this world. Therefore, we must armed ourselves with spiritual weapons - the armor of God - so that we can stand against the attack of the devils, spiritually via scheming and materially via motivating men under their control. Our goal is not to win physically, but to liberate souls from the evil spiritual rulers via the Gospel of God.

Monday 20/5/13

Ephesians 6:7-8 ESV

rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free.

All that we do for other people, for our company or for the poor and the aliens, are the service we do for the Lord. We are not doing that service for men, even though men are the receivers of it, and our rewards are not from men either. We do it for the Lord, and we will receive our reward from the Lord. The Lord is our judge, our employer and rewarder.

Thursday 15/5/13

Ephesians 6:4 ESV

Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

God ordained the father as the head of the family. However, fathers are not to rule by force and tyranny, suppressing the children. Instead, they must guide and lead, teach and instruct the children the Word and wisdom of God. As the heart of men is prone to evil, the fathers also must use discipline to keep their children in the right path and turn away from sinful things and evil thoughts.

Tuesday 13/5/13

Ephesians 5:31-33 ESV

"Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. "

Husbands are commanded to love their wives. However, we are also commanded to love God with all our heart, mind and strength, and love our neighbors as ourselves. So what's the different between loving God & neighbors vs husbands and wives?

Here the Bible says husbands and wives must be as one flesh. They must be like just one body, everything in unity under one head. God has given the husband the headship, as Christ to the church. Therefore, the husbands must lead and plan for the good of the whole family. The wives must respect and listen to their husbands.

Friday 9/5/13

Ephesians 5:28-30 ESV

In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body.

Here the Bible instruct husbands to love their wives as their own bodies. Elsewhere the Bible also instructs us to love our neighbors as ourselves. It means we should not separate others from ourselves, their suffering from our suffering. Like in the story of a rich man and Lazarus, who is partying luxuriously next to the suffering poor will be put into hell. We should treat others as with our own, starting from our family members to people around us.

Thursday 9/5/13

Ephesians 5:25-27 ESV

Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

The Bible calls the church and all Christians as the bride of Christ. Christ so loves the church that He gave Himself to save and sanctify it, teach it and guide it with water and with the word. It is so that the church can be purified, from a group of sinners to the congregation of saints, without spots or blemishes

In the similar way, Christian husbands ought to love their wives (and guide them & teach them?)

Wednesday 8/5/13

Ephesians 5:22-24 ESV

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.

Submission to the leadership is a virtue. As an army has to follow the leader in order to win, each soldier must submit to his commander instead of his own idea. Even if the commander makes sub-optimal decision, there is strength and safety in number and in unity. The army still can overcome the obstacle better than a disunited army.

Therefore, we all must submit to the leadership. The church members  submit themselves to Christ and to church leaders. The family members submit to the family leader - the husband. Even of the leadership may not always make the best decision, there is strength in unity which is stronger than better decision but act in disunity.

Tuesday 7/5/13

Ephesians 5:20-21 ESV

giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

As all good things we have come from God, indeed a man cannot have anything unless it has been given to him from heaven. From our breath of life, to the creation we live in, to the forgiveness & salvation in Christ, to any good thing we have ... all are the free gift from God. We just do a little part in getting it. Therefore, we ought to give thanks always for everything we cherish. Not just for good things, but for evil things also. They also come from God to teach us faith, patience and reliance on Him.

Knowing that all we need and have come from God, we should seek to please Him, seek His righteousness and His Kingdom rather than our own achivements or status. As Christians ought to work together for the common purposes of God, we need to submit to the leadership and to one another in God's name. God ultimately is the one who ordained the leadership and authority, we need to submit ourselves to the ordinance of God, and keep the unity in fellowship. We submit because God has put the leader in the leadership position, and we submit to God's decision.

Monday 5/5/13

Ephesians 5:18-19 ESV

And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart,

People like to drink wine for enjoyment. However, wine makes us unable to control our thoughts and actions which may lead them to sin and debauchery. Therefore, Christians ought to refrain themselves from getting drunk with wine.

Instead, Christians ought to be filled with the Spirit, meaning having a mind filled with the Word of God and a heart to practice them cheerfully. To become so, we should diligently study the Word of God, singing psalms and hymns and making melodies in our heart to God. These make our heart glad and rejoice in the Spirit of God, and make us ready to do God's will.