Seated in the Heavenly Places

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus . . . . (Ephesians 2:4-6)

These three verses are a description of God’s gracious solution to the human problem detailed in the verses that begin the chapter (Ephesians 2:1-3). Two weeks ago, we looked at the problem as it affects our children, but it applies to us all—young and old, believer and unbeliever—although for the believer, it’s a “once were” situation, while for the unbeliever, it’s still a “now are.”

For the solution to our “by nature” problem, we are entirely dependent on God’s action. God, out of the mercy that flows from his love, takes those who are dead in trespasses and sins, and makes them alive, raising them, and seating them in the heavenly places. He does this all “in Christ.”

These events have already occured in the life of Christ: He has risen and ascended to heaven where he sits at God’s right hand. What once took place with Christ affects those who are in him, too. Those who belong to Christ are a risen people. They have new life—spiritual life.

The phrase in this passage that intrigues me most is this: “seated us with him in the heavenly places.” Even though Ephesians 2:1-10 is one of my favorite passages, and one I’ve spent plenty of time studying, I’ve never been sure I understood exactly what it means that I—or perhaps more precisely, God’s people corporately, including me—have been seated with Christ in the heavenly places.

Reading what commentators say doesn’t help me much either. Some think this refers to something that believers possess, at least in part, in this life. The ESV Study Bible notes on this phrase, for instance, say that even now, God’s people “share in a measure of the authority that Christ has, seated at the right hand of God . . . .” Others think this refers to the future hope of eternity with Christ, a hope so certain for those who belong to him that Paul can refer to it as if it has already happened. 

Either way, it’s a phrase that should bolster our assurance. If it is pointing to an inheritance still waiting, our blessed future is sure—as sure as our own own past regeneration (being “made alive”), and better yet, as sure as Christ’s past resurrection, ascension, and present session at the right hand of the Father. If it means we presently possess a share of our future heavenly blessings, it's all of the above and this, too: What we have now is a promise of more to come.

This life here will always be a struggle. Our faith is never what it should be; we are never what we should be; and our bodies are dying little by little, day by day. It isn’t very heavenly, is it? 

Yet, if we are in Christ, God sees us as if we were already seated in the heavenly places. Our inheritance is settled because we are united to the One who was raised and now sits at God’s right hand. We can bank on this!

Forgetting

For a few months now, I've been posting every other Monday at this blog. I try to think of my posts ahead of time, but it doesn't always work that way. Several times I've had to write a post late on Sunday night.

This time, though, was going to be different. I was thinking about my post this past Wednesday. I had my topic and three main points. I was doing laundry at the time, so I decided to write it down later. Then came the July 4th holiday. Then a weekend trip to my hometown to visit with cousins at my late grandparents' farm. Then a day with my in-laws. And the post? Poof! Gone. Whatever feeble imprint it left on my memory vanished in the course of the busy weekend.

So first off, let's just imagine it was the greatest blog post ever written and mourn the tragedy.

Memory is a funny thing. I can remember the phone numbers for most of my childhood friends, my grandparents, and the restaurant my parents ate at most Saturday nights when I was growing up, but I can't remember my husband's work number to save my life. And this isn't so much that I've gotten older, because I've always had a tendency to remember trivial things but forget important things.

Our recurring nightmares often involve forgetting things. Many people have a variation of the "test" dream. I don't have that nightmare, probably because I had the actual experience more than once in my academic career. But when I was pregnant with our oldest child, I dreamed several times that I would forget about the baby. In the dream I was usually in the grocery store, and it would occur to me that I hadn't seen or cared for the baby in days. I would wake up each time in a terrible panic.

Once he was born, the dream proved to be ridiculous. Not only was our son quite capable of making everybody in the house aware of his presence, I was also changed. When he cried in the night, my eyes would open immediately. And though I was occasionally disoriented, and it often felt like I had just fed him a few seconds ago, I never once forgot about him.

But sadly, it is possible. This time of year we read the tragic stories of a parent who has forgotten a child. My heart breaks when I read these stories, because though it is rare, it is possible. We are human, and therefore fallible. We are capable of forgetting important things, and making horrible mistakes.

Our Heavenly Father, though, does not forget. Isaiah 49:15 takes the strongest human bond that exists--that of the mother and her nursing child--and says God's love is stronger.

He never forgets us. Even when we don't understand what he's doing, he's in control with a plan. Even when we forget him, his love for us never changes. Even when we are exhausted and aren't quite sure how we're going to get through the next week's to-do list, his love for us is perfect. Even when I woke up this morning in my parents' guest room, disoriented and groggy and not quite sure where I was, his watch and care over me never paused (Psalm 139:2).

God's care for me never ceases. If God's love for me depended on me, I would definitely mess it up. I forget blog posts and birthdays and important appointments, but he never forgets about me.

Melancholy and the hope of the gospel

In high school I was part of the youth choir at my church, the highlight of such participation being the annual choir tour. My senior year we spent a week in Canada doing backyard Bible clubs, performing in various venues, and sightseeing (the highlight being Niagara Falls). At the close of the week our choir director honored the graduating seniors by presenting each of us with a hymnal with a personal inscription on the flyleaf. As he presented each hymnal he related a specific hymn to each senior. For me that hymn was "Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee".

I've thought of that often, not the trip to Canada so much, but that particular hymn and what may have prompted the director to choose that title for me. See, "joyful" isn't exactly the sort of word one would choose to describe me. Not now, at least, and I suppose we all assume the way we are now is the way we've always been. And the me that I am now, well, I am more melancholy than merry.

Not only is my general disposition toward the less-than-joyful it seems that the older I get the more prone I am to occasional bouts of deeper melancholy. Being in the dumps, down, depressed, whatever you want to call it, this funk-y state often sneaks up on me thanks to my hormones. Sorry, guys, just keepin' it real. If you'd like to click away, please do but I promise this isn't a post about hormones. It's about the gospel. And persevering when I'd really rather sit on the sofa and feel sorry for myself.

To borrow John Piper's term, I must fight for joy. "Joyful, joyful" is not my default emotion but I can fight for the kind of settled conviction that dispels the darkness of my despair. I'm not talking about happy, happy euphoria but something deeper: hope, peace, and, yes, joy. Here's what helps me fight the fight...

I am proactive. My low bouts are generally expected--I know when I am vulnerable--and I try to be wise in my fight. I do the things I know help: I get off the sofa, I walk my dog, I engage, I eat chocolate.

I preach to myself. I talk to myself rather sternly and I tell myself that it's only the hormones, that it's only emotions, that it's not real. Sometimes this helps but most times it only makes me sad and mad both, sad because it is the hormones and mad because I hate suffering the whim of something as inconsistent and erratic as the hormones of a 40-something female.

Sigh.

I talk to myself and I make myself get off the sofa but really, all that sustains is this: the gospel. So not only do I sternly remind myself of the fleeting nature of hormones and of feelings but I also preach the gospel to myself. When my emotions tempt me to despair, I must hold to something higher, something stronger, something more sure, more solid, more true. I must hold to Jesus and He promises He will not let go. I cling to Him, to His promise to save and sustain, to His grace and forgiveness, to the hope I have beyond hormones and depression. There is more and it is in Christ.

I seek perspective. These struggles with melancholy point me to my true home where there will be no sadness and no tears, only joy and light and that light and that joy being Jesus Himself, yes and amen! In the face of such future hope my melancholy makes me yearn for the satisfaction that I will know when I see Him. What a glorious gift to see this world as wanting and know the sure glory of the next!

While I struggle with emotional lows and even suffered a season of post partum depression after my last baby, I don't pretend to know the enduring darkness which some of you may suffer. I know my inability to climb out of the sadness, but my sadness only lasts for a few days, maybe a week. To those who suffer prolonged periods of depression I offer the hope of the gospel as well as the encouragement to seek professional help. There is no shame in getting the kind of help you need be it medication or some other form of treatment. Please, talk to your doctor or engage a professional Biblical counselor.

Two resources that have been a great help to me are John Piper's When I Don't Desire God: How to Fight For Joy and D. Martin Lloyd-Jones' Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Cure. Even if you do not struggle with these types of funks I think both titles will serve to encourage and edify.

Whether you are naturally disposed to joy or, like me, are more-melancholy-than-merry, we have a hope that endures. There is joy beyond the sorrow! Let us hold fast, sisters, for He who promised is faithful.

Joyful, joyful, we adore thee,

God of glory, Lord of love;

hearts unfold like flowers before thee,

opening to the sun above.

Melt the clouds of sin and sadness;

drive the dark of doubt away.

Giver of immortal gladness,

fill us with the light of day!

~Henry Van Dyke

Help for the blindsided

Have you ever been blindsided by your past? You could be driving down the road, reading a book, or listening to music. Something triggers a memory and suddenly BAM!

I was recently blindsided with memories of a very un-gospel-like incident. As I replayed the scene in my mind, shame, regret, and sorrow washed over me. How could I have done that? How could I have said those things? Who do I think I am?

After the tears dried, I had two choices. I could beat myself up or turn that un-gospel-like recollection into a gospel moment. Thankfully, I chose the latter. So at the risk of stating the obvious, here is what I preached to myself:

- If I was so hardened that I couldn't acknowledge any wrong, what a tragic state to be in. So praise God for godly sorrow. It's a sign my conscience isn't seared and that the Holy Spirit is working in my heart. (2 Cor. 7:10; Rom. 2:4)

- Forgiveness is available for Christians, too. I needed it the day I was saved, and I'll need it every day for the rest of my life.  (1 John 1:6-9)

- There is no condemnation in Christ. Not because God turns a blind eye to my sin but because His just wrath was poured out on Jesus in my place. (Rom. 8:1-4)

 - My sanctification isn't derailed. God has not thrown His hands in the air saying, "You were progressing so swimmingly. What am I going to do now that you've messed things up? You've set Me back at least 10 years." Nonsense. God will present me blameless and holy to Himself, not because I've been a model Christian in my own right but because He has promised to do so in His Word. (Phil. 1:6; Jude 24-25)

- Nothing can separate me from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. Not the times I've blown it in the past. Nor the times I will fail in the future. Absolutely nothing. (Rom. 8:31-39)

- There is hope for my brokenness and those I have hurt. Jesus came to heal and bind up our wounds. Reconciliation is possible through the gospel. (Is. 61:1-3; 2 Cor. 5:16-20)

So I apologize that I don't have anything "new" to share. But when the past wallops me from out of nowhere, it's tempting to wonder who I am and if I will ever be a good enough Christian. It's tempting to question whether God's work is enough to compensate for what I've done. It's times like these I need to hang on for dear life to what Jesus has done through His life, death, and resurrection. It isn't a psychological pep talk to cajole myself into feeling better, but the declaration of reality - who God is, what He has done, and who He declares me to be in Christ.

This is the truth that sets me free.

Resources for Teens: On The Go Devotionals

Throughout the Fight Like a Girl Series, I cited various resources that parents of teens might find helpful as we navigate the waters of adolescence. In the coming weeks, I'd like to highlight some resources our teens might find helpful as well. While not all of these resources are written specifically for teens, they deal with many issues teens face.

Contentment. Purity. Trust. Joy. These are the four topics of Lydia Brownback's On the Go Devotional Series. While the series was written for women, the books are also suitable for teen girls. In fact, I believe they are a valuable resource for several reasons.

First, each book has a singular focus, which allows the reader to contemplate one topic for weeks at a time. Teen girls benefit from repetition, letting the concepts really soak in so that they can make useful application of that they've learned.

Second, the devotions are compact and powerful. Each day's reading averages 1 1/2 pages, drawn from a short Scripture verse or passage. In this case, good things do come in small packages! Brownback's to-the-point, don't-mince-words style is quick to pierce the heart.

Third, Brownback has a gift for exploring each topic from various, perhaps unexpected, angles. For example, Purity discusses a pure heart and its fruits (feminine purity, a pure body, sexual purity, and pure love). Even though a reader might spend 5 - 6 weeks in a book, she will not feel as if she's been hammered over the head with the same topic over and over again.

Finally, a girl could go through each of these books several times and still learn something new, depending on what's going on in her life. This makes the series ideal for women and girls alike.

Mothers, if you are looking for some conversation starters with your teen daughter, I highly recommend the On the Go Devotional series. Order a couple of copies of one of the books, and watch your relationship with your daughter - and both of your relationships with God - grow.