By means of his one Spirit, we all said good-bye to our partial and piecemeal lives. We each used to independently call our own shots, but then we entered into a large and integrated life in which he has the final say in everything. (This is what we proclaimed in word and action when we were baptized.)  (I Corinthians 12:13, The Message)

The apostle Paul received a revelation that has revolutionized the Church ever since then.

It is so simple, yet so profound.

The Church is “the Body of Christ.”

That’s it. Period.

Please note, Paul does not say that the Church is LIKE a body. He says that the Church IS the Body of Christ.

He is not offering an analogy. He is stating a reality.

It is a reality into which we entered when we chose to be baptized.

Sometimes we describe baptism as a rite of initiation.

Actually it is an act of incorporation.

The word “incorporation” literally means “to be united into one body.” (The Latin word for body is “corpus”).

In I Corinthians 12, Paul lists a number of consequences of being part of Christ’s body.

All of them are meant to hammer home one unmistakeable fact.

We are no longer independent. We are interdependent.

No body part can function on its own. Every body part needs every other part to do its part!

What one part does affects every other part in one way or another. For good or for bad.

What one Christian does affects every other Christian. For better or for worse.

We usually become aware of this when something extraordinary happens somewhere in the Church.

We hear about someone like a Mother Teresa who lays down her life to serve the poor, the destitute and the dying.

The rest of the Body of Christ is inspired by her infectious example to serve Jesus in the face of the “least of these” as well.

At the other end of the spectrum, a scandal comes to light. Whether it involves sex, money or abuse, the rest of the Body feels the pain, doesn’t it?

You may be familiar with The Butterfly Effect, an idea used in chaos theory, that a very small difference in the initial state of a physical system can make a significant difference to the state at some later time

So, for example, a butterfly flapping its wings in Brazil could set off currents that might ultimately cause a hurricane in Texas!

In other words, a seemingly insignificant action can have significant repercussions to those who are not part of the immediate surroundings.

Whenever the Church is rocked by yet another scandal, I often wonder whether the individual(s) involved ever stopped to consider their interconnectedness in the Body.

If we were to simply pause to consider how our actions trigger a Butterfly Effect of sorts within the Body, would we not reconsider anything that might have a negative impact?

By the same token, would we not also be motivated to know that a simple gesture of love offered to a homeless person in downtown Toronto has a positive effect on the Body of Christ in Tokyo?

Paul’s revelation in I Corinthians 12 reminds us that we need to live with a heightened awareness of the incorporation that took place at our baptism.

We do not live our lives in isolation. We are connected with one another. Even our destinies are intertwined.

For we are now part of the Body of Christ.

During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. (Acts 16:9-10)

Did you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day today?

Sulojana and I did, even though we are not Irish (not even close…lol!) or have any fondness for corned beef, cabbage or green beer!

No, we did not go to church dressed as shamrocks either! Sulojana did wear an outfit that had shades of green. I wore black pants and a red shirt with no hint of green whatsoever.

Soooo, how then did we celebrate?

Actually, we took some time to study the life of St. Patrick and how he came to be the patron saint of Ireland.

Here is what we discovered.

Patrick was born in Britain to a relatively wealthy family. He was not religious as a youth and, in fact, claims to have practically renounced the faith of his family.

While in his teens, Patrick was kidnapped in a raid and transported to Ireland, where he was enslaved to a local warlord and worked as a shepherd.

It was while he was a slave that he started praying to God and received a revelation of God as He truly is—Father, Son & Holy Spirit. According to some sources, he would later teach this revelation of the Trinity using the three leaves of the shamrock.

After six years of slavery in Ireland, Patrick had a dream in which he heard a mysterious voice: “Your hungers are rewarded: You are going home. Look, your ship is ready.” He escaped, but had to walk for 200 miles to eventually get on board!

A few years after he’d returned home, he had another dream. Victoricus, a man Patrick knew in Ireland, appeared to him in this dream, holding countless letters, one of which he handed to Patrick.

The letter was entitled “The Voice of the Irish.” Upon reading just the title, he heard a multitude of voices crying out to him: “Holy boy, we beg you to come and walk among us once more.”

He was so moved by this that he was unable to read further and woke up. He tried to ignore the dream, but it kept on recurring over and over again.

Eventually Patrick told his dismayed family of his plans to return to evangelize Ireland and soon began his preparations for the priesthood.

When he finally returned to Ireland, he went about preaching the Gospel, baptizing converts, confirming them and appointing clergy to disciple them.

He personally baptized over 120,000 people and planted 300 churches during the 29 years he spent in Ireland.

Wow! No wonder he is considered the patron saint of Ireland.

Were you aware of his story?

When we discovered how Patrick was obedient to God’s promptings in dreams, we couldn’t help but think of how the apostle Paul responded to the vision featuring “a man of Macedonia.”

Like St. Paul, St. Patrick chose to obey the call of God…and the rest is history.

Now you know why celebrated St. Patrick’s Day today by discovering his story, sharing it with others in church and giving thanks to God for his life and witness.

Whether you are Irish or not, whether you celebrated St. Patrick’s Day the traditional way or not, you too can still praise God for St. Patrick, amen?

In the DWOD for Feb. 27, 2013 we shared how we realized the need to “do away with the pointing finger and malicious talk” (Isaiah 58:9) when we started fasting during Lent a year ago.

During this year’s Fast, as we have been reflecting on Ephesians 4 for five days now, the Lord reminds us once again to pay special attention to the words we speak.

“Let no corrupt speech proceed out of your mouth, but only what is good for building others up as the need may be, that it may give grace to those who hear.” (Ephesians 4:29)

Let’s do a study of some of the key words in this passage, shall we?

The Greek word “sapros” which is translated “corrupt” in this passage is used in three primary ways in Scripture and elsewhere to describe that which is:

• rotten, putrefied
• corrupted by one and no longer fit for use, worn out
• of poor quality, bad, unfit for use, worthless

No matter which meaning you choose, it is clear that there is nothing good about the impact of speech that is “sapros” upon the recipient.

Now we know why Paul urges us not to use any word that falls into one or more of these three categories.

He then goes on to describe the kind of words that the Lord wants us to use.

“Only what is good for building others up as the need may be.”

The Greek word “oikodomen” translated “building” literally refers to the act of erecting a building.

Metaphorically, it refers to words that edify, build another up, promote another’s growth.

This, of course, is in stark contrast to words that tear someone down.

Paul does not stop there though. He goes on to describe the effect our words need to have on the listeners.

“That it may give grace to those who hear.”

“Charis”, the Greek word for grace appears over 150 times in the New Testament, in one form or another. It is the same root from which we get words such as “charismatic” which simply means one who is gifted.

Theologically we often define grace as unmerited favour, a gift we do not deserve.

At a very basic level though, grace is defined as “that which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness.”

Perhaps this is what Solomon meant in Proverbs 16:24: “Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.”

Notice how the word “gracious” comes out of the same word “grace!”

Would you like to try an experiment?

Using your phone or other portable device, record every word you use to talk to others or describe others in your conversation for an hour, a few hours or an entire day…

Now go back and classify them using the three criteria from Ephesians 4:29:

• “Rotten” words
• “Edifying” words
• “Grace-imparting” words

Would there be some pleasant surprises? Nasty shocks?

Is the new Pope named Francis?

Better still, what if we would pause for a few seconds and watch our mouth before we speak into the lives of others?

“Sapros” words would never see the light of day.

Only words that build others up will make it past the door of our lips.

Those who hear them will respond as though they had just tasted honey.

Wow!

The Lord will smile upon us as we fulfill his command: “Let no corrupt speech proceed out of your mouth, but only what is good for building others up as the need may be, that it may give grace to those who hear.”

Amen?

Look at these three translations of Ephesians 4:27:

“Do not give the devil a foothold.” (New International)
“Nor give place to the devil.” (New King James)
“Do not give the devil an opportunity.” (New American Standard)

They all agree on two key words: “give” and “the devil.”

It is the third key word on which there seems to be considerable variance.

Checking a Greek lexicon provides some clues.

The Greek word that has been translated in these three different ways is: “Topos.”

You may recognize “topos” as the root of such English words as “topography” and “topology.”

The literal meaning of “topos” is geographical space or place.

In other words, Paul is warning against giving the devil room to enter a space that is rightfully ours.

Don’t give him any ground.

Hence the translation “nor give place” to the devil.

You can see how “foothold” is also related to physical space.

Don’t give the devil an opening to get his foot in the door, so to speak.

The metaphorical meaning of “topos” is opportunity.

Don’t give the devil any opportunity to get a foothold in your life.

Please notice also that he cannot invade your personal space without your consent.

This is clear from Paul’s choice of the word “didomi” which is translated “give.”

This word literally means “to give of one’s own accord.”

We are not forced or coerced into it.

We give it to him voluntarily.

How do we make such a voluntary contribution?

Paul’s list in verses 25-31 includes a number of possibilities:
•    Lying
•    Staying Angry
•    Stealing
•    Laziness
•    Unwholesome talk
•    Bitterness
•    Rage
•    Brawling
•    Slander and
•    Malice.

Every time we commit these and similar offences, we give the devil grounds to enter our sacred space.

Needless to say he takes full advantage of every opportunity that we offer him.

What begins as a foothold can soon end up as a stronghold.

Footholds can be kicked out easily. Strongholds need to be demolished with difficulty.

Clearly, it is preferable to close off every possible access point, such as those on Paul’s list.

As we continue our journey through this season of Lent and the 40 Day Fast, perhaps now is the time to examine ways in which we may be allowing the devil access into our lives.

Would you ask the Holy Spirit to show you how you may have unwittingly provided grounds for him to gain a foothold?

Repent. And then “get rid of” whatever he shows you.

Then replace it with some new behaviour.

“And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” (v. 32)

You have just removed all grounds for him to gain any ground.

Hallelujah!

“Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:3)

Consider a family where there are six people who share the same last name—say a father, mother and four children.

The six of them already have a unity that comes from being part of the same clan. Their bloodlines, genes, history have already created a unity that is indisputable.

However, since no two people in that family are alike, there are times when conflict is bound to arise.

These differences of opinion can result in disputes that disrupt the unity that they have.

As a matter of fact, they can downright destroy the unity, not to mention the family…

Unless someone makes an attempt to work through the issues, and keep the family unit  intact.

Sharing the same last name, gene pool, etc. is not an automatic guarantee of unity.

It takes time, effort and energy to maintain that unity, especially when disagreements arise.

Something similar happens within the family we call the Church too, doesn’t it?

The Voice Translation puts it this way: “Make every effort to preserve the unity the Spirit has already created, with peace binding you together.”

Yes, we are united by the spiritual DNA of Jesus. We share, as Paul reminds us in verses 4-6: “one body and one Spirit…one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all.”

Regardless of all that holds us together in unity, there are also times when conflict arises and threatens to pull us apart.

On the one hand, unity is a given, a fact of life, a created reality.

Yet, on the other hand, unity cannot be taken for granted. It needs to be re-created so to speak…over and over again.

It takes work to make this happen, doesn’t it?

The Amplified Version stresses this: “Be eager and strive earnestly to guard and keep the harmony and oneness of [and produced by] the Spirit in the binding power of peace.”

Conflict has arisen on many an occasion in my life over the past 55 years of being a son and a brother in a biological family as well as a husband and father in the family that formed when Sulojana and I got married nearly 30 years ago.

Ditto for the 30 plus years of service as an ordained minister in the United Church of Canada.

While we have worked our way through most of that conflict constructively, we must also admit that not all of it led to happy endings.

Although conflict is inevitable in any family where there is honest and open communication, how we deal with it can make all the difference.

That is why, even before getting to the part about “making every effort to preserve the unity”, Paul says:

“Be humble and gentle in every way. Be patient with each other and lovingly accept each other.” (v. 2)

Before we get into conflict resolution or seek mediation, Paul calls for a character evaluation.

• “Am I humble and gentle in every way?”

• “Am I patient with my brothers and sisters and lovingly accept everyone of them?”

If the answer is “Yes” to both questions, rejoice!

If not, it’s time to repent, amen?

Shall we make a conscious attempt to turn around and change by the power of the Holy Spirit?

That would be taking the first step in making an “effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”