This chapter is kind of like being a kid in a candy store. There’s so much here to talk about, how do you pick a few? But, my goal in doing these daily studies is not to give everything there is to give, but to whet your appetite for more. To give you a taste and let you take the initiative in extra helpings.. so here we go.

Ever wanted to be in on a really big secret? Have you ever wished that you could be on the inside getting the scoop on what’s really going on like and FBI agent, or James Bond, or Maxwell Smart? Well, after you read Ephesians 3, consider yourself in on the biggest scoop of all - Jesus Christ has made himself and the power of heaven available to all who have called him Lord. Let’s jump in!

Let’s dive right in to Chapter 2….

VS 1-3, A LITTLE GOOD IN EVERYONE? - How often have we all heard that phrase? I have no idea where it began, but I’m pretty sure that it’s an effort to bypass the need for Jesus Christ. If all we have to do is embrace that good that we each have in ourselves, then that’s probably all that’s necessary to get to heaven, right? But Paul pretty much slams the door on that concept here.

There are days that a team just feels a bit out of synch. That was our locker room yesterday. It started with an unusually large number of our team being gone on various trips for a variety of perfectly normal and legitimate reasons. But there is a tangible difference when many of your teammates are missing. The energy level is different, the level of enthusiasm is somewhat diminished. The environment created for guests is effected.

Wow, talk about hitting the motherlode. Reading through Ephesians is like one of the old California Gold-Rushers hitting a vein loaded with gold. I can almost hear Daffy Duck running around hollering “I’m rich! I’m rich! Woohoo!” Ephesians is packed with boulder-sized nuggets. I’ll share a few of the ones I dig up, and I hope you’ll take the time to share a few that you find in your own mining expedition.

Short and to the point. Most guys like things that way. Let’s get to the heart of the matter. Don’t dance around the mulberry bush. Just shoot straight. Well, the Apostle Paul is right in the wheelhouse of most guys with his letters. They are typically short, but packed with useful and important information. Chapter 4 closes out the book of Colossians and Paul has a few powerhouse points left to make…

Ever watched a movie or cartoon where someone is trying to make a decision and out pops an angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other? It’s sort of supposed to be funny, but there’s some reality there as well. As followers of Christ, we are never fully free from the two natures that are within us. One is the flesh nature we are born with (which of course is represented by the devil on one shoulder), and the other is the spirit nature we receive when we accept the gift of Jesus Christ (which is represented by the angel).

Do you remember when you were younger and couldn’t wait to grow up and be an adult? Funny thing about that… if you’re reading this now, that actually happened. And you didn’t even have to work for it. There might have been some “growing pains” along the way, but eventually you reached your full height and stature without even trying.

In Colossians 2, Paul lets us know that spiritual growth and maturity don’t just happen. We don’t wake up one day fully developed as followers of Jesus Christ.

On the 4th of July, our family enjoyed an evening on the riverfront and a front row seat to a phenomenal display of fireworks. Last year we viewed fireworks at Mt Rushmore on the 4th and to my surprise, little ol’ Peoria may very well have matched if not exceeded Mt Rushmore. There was one firework in particular that was fired off several times that literally filled the sky. It set off golden sparkle trails that looked like a giant weeping willow tree. It was literally breathtaking. And those in combination with many others provided a sense of wonderment and gratitude. As I set there I couldn’t help but think that all of this was totally unnecessary.

“Hi! We’ve never met, but I love you and you should listen to me!”

It sounds like one of these spam emails from some “God-fearing” person with tons of cash that needs your help and will reward you handsomely to do so. But it’s really the gist of Colossians. Paul never went to the church found in Colosse. In fact, he wrote this letter while in prison in Rome. But Paul had heard much about them, and had a few things to share with them based on what he had heard.