Living. A beginning?

Sept. 22nd, 2005
This has so little to do w/the Ephesians study my group is doing. Or does it? I'm not sure yet. I noticed this AM that I had the familiar cravings for "life to really start". You know, that little buzzing gnat in your ear that says, "Life will really start when...". You can fill in your own details. It usually entails a different set of circumstances which include: job, housing, church, companionship, your team winning a game or two.

Paul (Sha'ul to his friends) was moved to say, "For to me, life is the Messiah." (CJB) So, if life is Christ and not all the stuff around me, how do I connect w/that?

Ephesians 1 talks a bit about our "inheritance" which is connected to our trust in Christ. There is a prayer that we will understand "what rich glories there are in the inheritance". (Forgive me if this rambles, my wife thinks out loud, and I think thru typing). So, we are in the Messiah. There is a unfathomably wonderful inheritance as a result of that union with Him. He is Life.

Back to Philippians. Life = zao (2198-Strong's). Zao means "to live, have life, spoken of physical life and existence as opposed to death or nonexistence, and implying always some duration." Hmm...

I'm trying to eradicate this odd idea floating in my mind that "to live is Christ" has the implication of some New Age idea of detachment from reality and floating through life with a Mona Lisa-ish smile on my face.

WARNING!!!: A rush of ideas flowing now... I had in my mind's eye a canvas. It is painted and looks like a scene from this world, whether it's a country vista, or the skyline of San Fransico. Whatever. But, the canvas, the painting "is Christ". All the buildings or trees, or people are what "make up Christ" so to speak. I'm skirting dangerously close to some New Age "all is God" thing. However, Eph 1:23 states that the Messiah "fills all creation"/"...Him who fills all in all"/"Him who fills everything in every way." Comes from the word "pleroo" (4137) which, in this context means to supply fully. In this verse--speaks of Christ filling the universe w/His influence, presence, and power.

So, tie that in w/Acts 17:28 (NAS)"for in Him we live and move and exist(are/be)." Somehow, life is Christ. John 1:4 says that Life is in Him. All the things that I usually describe as life or living (determined for me by the world I see around me aka the Matrix) are but facets thru which He reveals Himself--Christ filling the universe w/His influence, presence, and power. Life is not my job, my marriage, my eating (a lot I hope--hungry!) and sleeping and taking care of this body.

This is all a mystery. Yet Ephesians goes on to say that the Father has revealed this mystery to us. The Apostle says that he prays that we will be able to apprehend the mystery--to wrap our minds, our hearts around it. Life is not the strokes on the canvas that make the picture, it is the picture itself. Is this true? Any thots?

Grace and shalom to you.

KiltedJedi