EXPLORE IT - Ephesians 1:3-14 - In the Manner of Jesus

Ephesians 1:3-14; Isaiah 53:7

Back in 2007 I had the opportunity to spend two weeks in Egypt and Israel with a group of my classmates and a handful of our professors.  Our Old Testament professor and our New Testament professor were among those who joined us.  For two weeks I drank from a firehose of knowledge.  I was so overwhelmed, I would love to go again someday in order to fill in some of the gaps of my memory where my brain stopped working!

One experience I will never forget was on a Saturday afternoon.  Saturday is the Shabbat or Sabbath for Jewish culture.  They are not allowed to work at all on their Sabbath (including using electronics, so the “Shabbat Elevator” stopped on every floor at the hotel so you wouldn’t have to push the button!) so the roads were very secluded as we headed out away from the city to a secluded farming community.  We had been talking about the sacrifice Jesus had made for us during our bus ride and as we arrived, we learned that we would be slaughtering a lamb together and then sharing a meal with our hosts.

As we gathered around, our host family selected a lamb from the flock and silently led it out of the pen.  This gentle lamb too was silent, as if it knew its destiny.  You could feel the tension among my classmates.  Some began to silently weep as we witnessed this sheep silently die.

Whenever I read Isaiah 53:7, “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth,” I think of my experience in Israel.  I think about the sacrifice that gentle lamb made so we could eat, but it also leads me to think about a gentle Jesus who sacrificed his life so that I could have eternal life with Him!  In our passage this week, Ephesians 1:3-14, Paul speaks to the fact that through redemption in Jesus blood, our sins are forgiven and our salvation is sealed.  If we accept this gift from a gentle Savior, who “was led like a lamb to the slaughter,” our sins will be forgiven and our salvation will be sealed.

Spend time today reflecting on our gentle Jesus, the one who’s sacrifice on the cross leads to our redemption.  If you haven’t accepted this gift from Jesus, ask Him today!  And then let us know so we can celebrate your new life in Him!!

Blessings,
Pastor Amy