Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God. Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people. Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God. You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. Don’t be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey him. Don’t participate in the things these people do. For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light! For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true.
Ephesians 5:1-9
Dear God, I’m always reminded that nothing is new. I mean, technology–namely the Internet and social media–seems to have given sinfulness an exponential boost in the ways we can engage with it, but still. I mean, for Paul to be talking to the Ephesians about dirty jokes, licentious stories, impurity and sexual immorality–and this was to the church!
I was reminded of a prayer I did to you a few months ago about “How Jesus Would Fight the Culture War.” I saw this one quote I pulled from the Holy Post podcast I took it all from:
Phil Vischer question to Mike: How do you define culture wars? Answer: I don’t define culture war but ask the question, “What is the role of the church in the world?” The answer to that question answers the first question. Is the role of the church to transform society or is it to be transformed into the image of Jesus? The answer to that first question is clearly the latter.
Yes, you are calling us to be fully transformed into your image. In fact, right now there is a brewing conflict growing within the ministerial association in our town and it is over this exact thing. The conflict is over how to transform and impact society instead of looking in our own hearts and churches and figure out how you want us to be more like you. Satan is distracting us (including me) with our own sense of how society should work and how we need to fight Satan’s plans instead of starting with making sure we are worshiping you and transforming our individual and corporate hearts to looking like Jesus.
Father, thank you for the way you did the Jesus solution. Jesus, thank you for coming and giving us your example. Thank you for giving us a vision of what we should strive to be, and thank you for the bad examples that surrounded you during your time on earth, including the disciples. Please help me to learn from this. Help me to be the man you need me to be in every interaction I have. Let your kingdom come into the world through your church. Let your will be done in the world from the bottom up, one soul at a time.
I pray all of this under the authority of my Triune God,
Amen
Emails to God 