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Last week I reminded you about the greeting in the early church. One saint would say to another, “He is risen!” and the other person would respond, “He is risen indeed!”
That word “indeed” is important. In Greek, the word is ontōs—in point of fact, as opposed to what is pretended or fictitious. Our English dictionary says something similar, but adds something I think is memorable: in fact; in reality; in truth—used for emphasis, to confirm and amplify a previous statement.
The word ontōs is only used a few times in the Old Testament. In Jeremiah, God speaks to His people, calling them to return to Him. The people respond, “We will come to You. Indeed the world is deception; indeed You are our salvation” (see Jeremiah 3:22-23).
(Check out all of the Scriptures in this post by clicking here.)
In the New Testament, Paul said that if the law could have saved us, there would have been no reason for Jesus to die on a Cross and be resurrected back to life—Galatians 3:21-22. When He died for our sins, the Roman centurion overseeing His crucifixion recognized that Jesus was indeed the righteous Savior (Luke 23:47; Matthew 27:54). Jesus said of Himself that He came to give freedom indeed (John 8:36).
When we put our faith in Jesus as our Savior, we are indeed saved from the death penalty that our sins deserve. We are justified through our faith in our crucified and risen Savior. We are now free indeed to participate in the eternal life Jesus gave us!
The Bible uses three pictures of the life we are now free to enjoy. Since we camped out in the Book of Ephesians last week, let’s return there to see these three pictures—
(1) The Building of the Lord—Ephesians 2:19-22
We have to stay on the foundation of Jesus, if we want to build something lasting (Matthew 7:24, 26). This means we have to submit to sanctification process of the Holy Spirit (or as I like to say this word: “saint-ification”). When guests come over, you dust and vacuum. If you don’t clean again, dust will accumulate. Jesus isn’t a one-time or occasional Guest, but He wants to abide in us (Revelation 3:20).
(2) The Body of Christ—Ephesians 4:3-6, 12-13, 16
Look a the phrases “…make every effort … works of service … become mature….” These are all ongoing processes which we need for healthy growth (Hebrews 5:12-13). As our physical bodies age, we lose 3-5% of our body’s muscle mass every year unless we are actively working to add muscle. Body building requires (a) protein intake, (b) exercise, (c) rest and recovery—God’s Word applied and resting in the work of the Holy Spirit.
(3) The Bride of Jesus—Ephesians 5:25-28, 33
We don’t want to be like this out-of-touch husband, whose wife said to him on their 40th anniversary, “I remember on our wedding day how you told me you loved me. How come you never say that any more.” The husband replied: “If anything changed, I would have let you know.” We need to be continually falling in love with our Bridegroom! Listen to how Jesus addressed these saints at Ephesus. He tells them they have persevered through the difficult times (Revelation 2:1-3), yet they have forsaken the most important thing: their first love (v. 4). If we’ve done this, we need to remember, repent, and return to Jesus (v. 5).
If we’re not maturing, we’re declining.
If we are only going through the motions, where is the satisfaction? Where is the freedom indeed?
Listen to these tough—but needed—words from John Piper:
“The problem with the church today is not that there are too many people who are passionately in love with heaven. The problem is not that professing Christians are retreating from the world, spending half their days reading Scripture and the other half singing about their pleasures in God all the while indifferent to the needs of the world. The problem is that professing Christians are spending ten minutes reading Scripture and then half their day making money and the other half enjoying and repairing what they spend it on. It is not heavenly-mindedness that hinders love. It is worldly-mindedness that hinders love, even when it is disguised by a religious routine on the weekend.”
Continuing to mature in our faith makes the Building more beautiful, the the Body healthier, and the Marriage more fulfilling! Let’s keep maturing so that we honor Jesus as our Savior and Lord.
If you’ve missed any of the messages in this series, you can check them all out here.
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Craig T. Owens 