Eph 6 Today

Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

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Ephesians 6:1-24 -
Children and Parents
1Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. 2"Honor your father and mother." This is the first of the Ten Commandments that ends with a promise. 3And this is the promise: If you honor your father and mother, "you will live a long life, full of blessing." F12
4And now a word to you fathers. Don't make your children angry by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction approved by the Lord.
Slaves and Masters
5Slaves, obey your earthly masters with deep respect and fear. Serve them sincerely as you would serve Christ. 6Work hard, but not just to please your masters when they are watching. As slaves of Christ, do the will of God with all your heart. 7Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. 8Remember that the Lord will reward each one of us for the good we do, whether we are slaves or free.
9And in the same way, you masters must treat your slaves right. Don't threaten them; remember, you both have the same Master in heaven, and he has no favorites.
The Whole Armor of God
10A final word: Be strong with the Lord's mighty power. 11Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil. 12For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms.
13Use every piece of God's armor to resist the enemy in the time of evil, so that after the battle you will still be standing firm. 14Stand your ground, putting on the sturdy belt of truth and the body armor of God's righteousness. 15For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News, so that you will be fully prepared. F13 16In every battle you will need faith as your shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan. F14 17Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians everywhere.
19And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words as I boldly explain God's secret plan that the Good News is for the Gentiles, too. F15 20I am in chains now for preaching this message as God's ambassador. But pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.
Final Greetings
21Tychicus, a much loved brother and faithful helper in the Lord's work, will tell you all about how I am getting along. 22I am sending him to you for just this purpose. He will let you know how we are, and he will encourage you.
23May God give you peace, dear brothers and sisters, F16 and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24May God's grace be upon all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.
FOOTNOTES:F12: Exod 20:12; Deut 5:16. F13: Or For shoes, put on the readiness to preach the Good News of peace with God. F14: Greek by the evil one. F15: Greek explain the mystery of the gospel. F16: Greek brothers.
Copyright Statement: Holy Bible, The New Living TranslationCopyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

~ Lena’s Journalin’ ~
All of this word in the form of exhortation is about love, and what love does willingly, even when not deserved.
Children obey because…. Not because of how one acts or does or does not deserve to be obeyed, but because this is what is pleasing to the Lord. It pleases the lord when we show love for ones of earth, when we show the unconditional love and respect due people who are made in the image and likeness of God. God wants us to win the world to Him, not because they deserve it or deserve His unfailing love, but rather because He loves them no matter how mean or ugly they are.
But isn’t respect earned? By the world’s standard yes, by the standard of God’s word, it is given - period. It is given as though one is respecting the Creator by respecting the creation.
We are all God’s children, good, bad or otherwise, and we are the objects of His Divine love. This is in no way based on our performance or who much we can or ever will be able to earn His love.
Who shows this true love of God in our world? God? Yes, He does, by Divine revelation, but what about in human understanding, in a see, taste, touchy world? He shows and proves His word through living vessels who desire to give it in a visible form to an undeserving people. Why? Only because His great love has been revealed to the individual who is doing the loving and can extend their souls. Can you extend your soul beyond yourself and give to one not deserving? If so, you are just like your Father-God.
Yes, Yes, Yes, people should all do as God’s word deems, all should behave in a manner fitting of Christ’s body, but they all do not, and they all do not choose to, so what then? Reciprocation? Sowing and reaping? Yes. Sow what you’d desire to reap, no matter what. Don’t give back for what is evidently given you. If we live that way, we are only citizens of the world and have not changed spiritual residencies yet. Kingdom ambassadors live to please their Boss as they represent their kingdom.
Some may remain in slavery naturally speaking. Situations may not really change. There may still be an unfair ruler in your home who does not choose to love without condition, or a boss at work who is always taking from your love bank, when you did not authorize withdrawals! Just because you got saved did not mean your whole world is now prepared to become Christian. It means you are a Christian inside of your world, the very kingdom you came out of, God is sending you back into to show salvation to and to lead to Christ. Do you think that will happen by fairness and recompense? That’s the same way you lived and acted before Christ. The thing that will change is you, or salvation may not have yet come to your world.
So go on strike? No, rather serve willingly anyway. THIS is the way of Christ. Complain about how unfairly you are treated and how you now being a new Christian, deserve better; As though God now has given you such favor and blessing that all of life is now a rose bed? We’ll guess what baby? The roses have, Thorns. Yes they are beautiful, but this is God’s garden and we must be very careful to be able to enjoy it. It is not about the giving of blessings into our lives now, but our displaying blessings to a lost world.
Who is your Master anyway?
How in the world will I ever be able to do this? Not alone, that’s for sure! How can one live this way? Only by loving the one who supplies the love, being in his awesome life changing presence enough to change and get so full, you can spill out and fill the earth with like kind. Get covered, cover your earth nature over with the spiritual nature of God. We are NOT fighting people? Can you get that? Our fights with people are a smoke screen. The real fight we are engaged in is one in the spirit, one of satan and God, 2 kingdoms at war against one another. Light and darkness. We win. If we look like Him to the end.
Who’s are we anyway? That is evident in whom we obey, who we take orders from, who we look and act like, In the spirit realm it is very easy to see which side you are on. It’s not by saying, it is by doing.

Daily Repetitive Verses:

Isaiah 58:12 – in multiple translations….
The Amplified Bible
And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of [buildings that have laid waste for] many generations; and you shall be called Repairer of the Breach, Restorer of Streets to Dwell In.
The Holy Bible, New International Version®
Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language
You'll use the old rubble of past lives to build anew, rebuild the foundations from out of your past. You'll be known as those who can fix anything, restore old ruins, rebuild and renovate, make the community livable again.
The New King James Version
Those from among you Shall build the old waste places; You shall raise up the foundations of many generations; And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In.
GOD'S WORD
Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the foundations of past generations. You will be called the Rebuilder of Broken Walls and the Restorer of Streets Where People Live.
New Life Bible
And your cities which were destroyed long ago will be built again. You will set up the stones of the bases of the old buildings. You will be called the one who builds again the broken walls, and who makes the streets on which people live like new.