Spreading the fragrance of God's grace everywhere
A growing network of women are studying the Bible together. You’ll find Bible resources, study aids, devotionals, prompts, service ideas and everyday applications as well as ideas for starting your own online or onsite group.
Power!What comes to your mind when you hear the word power?
What earthly forces are powerful?
Who have been powerful leaders in world history?
How are these things powerful? What made these people powerful? What happened when that power was expressed?
How can peace happen between opposing groups of people?Welcome to Session Three of our online Bible study as we look at God’s blueprint for the Church. This week, we’ll check out Ephesians 2:11-20
Have you heard of separation anxiety? That’s the phenomenon when a baby becomes more aware of the presence and identity of Mommy and is definitely more aware of Mommy’s absence!
God never intended for His people to be separated from Him. He wanted us to have such an intimate relationship with Him that we would want to take daily walks in the cool of the evening with Him just like Adam and Eve did in the beginning of time. he longs for there to be peace between Him and the people He created. He longs for people to experience peace with each other.
The Lord never intended for the division between Jew and Greek to be permanent. Marking one group of people with the mark of circumcision was not supposed to mean that the Jews exclusively received God’s blessings and were superior to all other groups.
In my video this week, I talk about two groups of people who couldn’t get along with each other. Their conflict shows the extent of unrestrained hostility.
Read my blog post, “Rwanda: After the Genocide” to learn more about how that country has sought to bring PEACE to their people.
Barriers exist between all kinds of groups of people. The strongest, most devastating barrier is the one that separates all people from God. The Lord longs to reconcile all people back to Himself.
What is reconciliation? Reconciliation means the restoration of friendly relations. But a lot of work must go into that restoration process.
Read these verses to learn more about God’s reconciliation process:
When we break down the barriers between us and God, what can happen to the barriers between us and other people? How is this possible?
What hinders us from reconciliation?
As we try to reconcile, what is our hope of reconciliation?
I love v. 14!
And v. 17 is wonderful too. God has made His brand of peace available to everyone. All of us have access to God’s lasting, permanent peace.
In verses 19-22, Paul uses the imagery of a building to describe the unification process between God and all people. Why is this a fitting description of the peace we can find with God and others?
Sadly, even though Christ has reconciled us to himself, many people who call themselves Christians are hostile toward each other, whether it’s county against country, clan against clan, or even people within a congregation. This is sad because through Christ, hostility does not have to exist. God has provided a way for us to get along with each other.
In the video, I give three steps toward reconciliation that I see in this passage.
Remember it takes THREE. You do as much as you can to restore the relationship and you make sure there is peace between you and your Creator. If animosity still exists, it is now on the other person. The most important thing is that your relationship is right with God.
What barriers exist between you and other people?
Why do those barriers exist?
What do you need to do to partner with God to begin the process of reconciliation?
If your issue is with a brother or sister in Christ, focus on what you share in common – your mended relationship with Jesus Christ. His blueprint for the Church is that both of you find peace in Him.
What’s the best gift you’ve ever received from another person?This week, we’ll look at Ephesians 1:15-2:10. As you read, look for the gift God offers to us.
On my latest Ephesians Bible Study video, I share about the best gift I’ve ever received. It was a gift that expanded my world and blew open the door to so much more in life. It’s a gift I still use to this day. Am I overstating? Find out what my gift was on the video.
Gift giving is a funny business. [Read more…]
Welcome back to our Bible study of the book of Ephesians. Today, we’ll be looking at Ephesians 1:1-14 which talks about God’s original design for the family of God. Be sure to watch my video on this section of Ephesians and then use the questions below in italics to guide your study of the passage.
In Ephesians 1:1-14, we’ll look at God’s earliest conception of the church. Paul uses the image of a family with adopted children to describe the institution of the church.he world has many definitions of what constitutes a family. So, let’s consider this question: [Read more…]