Deep in Scripture Radio

Building up the Body of Christ, Ephesians 4:7-14 (Part 1)

In Ephesians 4, St. Paul describes the unity that we have by grace, “one body, one Spirit, … one hope…, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father of us all.” This is a unity that indeed exists in His Church, yet we donʼt have to look very far to see that today Christians are far from united. What is wrong? And is this possibly why, as St. Paul begins to describe how baptized believers must actively live out this unity, that he immediately takes off in a different direction. He states, “But grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift … for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith…” This is part of what we will discuss today on Deep In Scripture.

Ephesians 4:4-6 - Marcus Grodi and Jim Anderson

In the Gospel of John, chapter 17, we hear Jesus praying to the Father, “Holy Father, keep them in thy name, which thou hast given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.” Scripture also teaches in James 5:6 that “The prayer of a righteous man has great power in its effects.” Well, who is more righteous then our Lord Jesus who was not only without sin but the Son of God, second person of the Trinity. So, where then is this unity for which Jesus prayed? Everywhere we turn, on every corner, we see Christian churches divided even at times in battle with one another. This is part of what we will discuss today on Deep In Scripture.

Ephesians 4:1-6 - Marcus Grodi and Jim Anderson

St. Paul made many deep statements that have layers of meanings, but one particularly deep even brash claim is found in 1 Corinthians 12:3: “ … no one can say ʻJesus is Lordʼ except by the Holy Spirit.” Now at one level, any one can merely recite those words, “Jesus is Lord,” without any movement of the Spirit or any personal conviction at all. But as one contemplates what St. Paul truly meant, the layers of meaning become almost unfathomable. And to bring the significance of this difficulty home, Father Cantalamessa wrote, “In todayʼs situation, rarely, or never, do baptized people reach the point of proclaiming “in the Holy Spirit” that “Jesus is Lord!” And because they have not reached that point, everything in their Christian lives remains unfocused and immature.” This is what we will discuss today on Deep In Scripture.

Ephesians 3:20 – 4:3 - Marcus Grodi & Jim Anderson

One of the biggest problems throughout the 2000 year history of Christianity involves the struggle of believers living according to what they say they believe, or to use the common phrase: walk the talk. We believe that God the Father through His Son Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit has redeemed us by the power of Christʼs blood, that He has made us alive again when we were dead in sin, that He has reconciled us to one another, we are one in Christ. This is true, but sadly Christians donʼt always live as if this is true. Why not? God has done His part; now itʼs time for us to do ours. This is what we will discuss today on Deep In Scripture.

 

Ephesians 3:1-21 (Part 4) - Marcus Grodi and Jim Anderson

You are a different person. I don’t mean different in the sense of strange, but rather if you have heard, believed, and were sealed through baptism in the Holy Spirit, then you are a different person. As it says in 2 Corinthians 5:17, if you are “in Christ” then you are “a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come.” But this was not to be understood only as a one time event—a rite of passage that happened many years ago in our lives—but the beginning of a life-long journey of faith, growing in holiness and in intimacy with Christ our Savior. In fact, St. Paul proclaims that we are to “be filled with all the fullness of God.” This is what we will discuss today on Deep In Scripture.

Ephesians 3:1-21 (Part 3) - Marcus Grodi and Jim Anderson

Marcus Grodi and Jim Anderson continue their discussion of Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians.

Ephesians 3:1-21 (Part 2) - Marcus Grodi and Jim Anderson

Marcus Grodi and Jim Anderson continue their discussion of Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians.

Ephesians 3:1-21 (Part 1) - Marcus Grodi and Jim Anderson

Most of us, especially here in America, have been aware of the basic Christian message all our lives. Most of us were brought up in churches, received some form of Christian education, maybe even heard all the stories of the Bible and the life of Christ through movies and books. Most of us may feel we have a firm handle on the great Mystery of our Faith, the Mystery of Christ, and what this requires of us on a day by day basis. But is it also possible that, even in spite of all these influences or possibly as a result of them, we’ve taken a large part of our faith for granted? This is part of what we will discuss today on Deep In Scripture.

The Effects of Baptism, Ephesians 2:11-22 - Marcus Grodi and Jim Anderson

There is a very common misunderstanding, which to a certain extent could be called a heresy, running rampant amongst Christians today. Even you listening might be a victim of this misunderstanding. Those encouraging this may not intend to do so; they may not even realize they are doing so; though there are many who truly believe this heresy and promote it, from pulpits, television, radio, and in print. The danger of this heresy is that it is a subtle truncation of the full Gospel message: what this heresy teaches is true; it is what it leaves out or ignores or even denies that is the problem. This is part of what we will discuss today on Deep In Scripture.

Are You Dead or Alive, Ephesians 2: 1-10 (Part 4) - Marcus Grodi and Jim Anderson

Marcus Grodi and Jim Anderson continue their study of Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians.