|
|
|
|
|
|
〝From death to life〟 Eph 2:1-5 August 10th 2008
死んでいた者を生かす神様
|
|
John Taylor |
|
|
Can you remember what your life was like before you became a Christian?
For some of you, it was not that long ago, so you can remember very clearly.
For others, thinking back several years, it might be a little more difficult!
Question ? did you feel dead? Of course not!
If you are not a Christian this morning ? do you feel dead?
I would be very surprised if you said, “Yes!”
But on reflection, there might be other things you could say about your condition without Christ ? “Something was missing”,
“I was tired, weary!” “I was vulnerable, not safe,” “weak”, “burdened”. “I was at the end of the road ? going to church was my last chance!”
Dead 死んでいた
Paul says here that you used to live, or walk, in “transgressions and sins”.
“Transgressions”罪過 is a word that means crossing the line and doing something that is wrong.
“Sins” 罪is missing the target 的に当てそこない? failing to do what is right.
So he is saying that in our old way of life we both deliberately did what was wrong, and we failed to do what we knew was right.
So (1)”You were dead” even while you “walked”歩んでいましたor “lived”(2).
Meaning you were dead towards God - spiritually dead.
It may have looked to others as if you were alive, but the reality of spiritual death showed itself in the tiredness, weakness, feeling unsafe, or that something was missing.
When you look at the personalities芸能人、タレント on TV, you see wittyとんちのある people ? laughing, lively people.
There are professors教授 and experts専門家 who are very intelligent.
This week watching the Olympics we will see many people with bodies in top condition, competing to be the best in the world at their sport.
They are very much alive, and yet most of them, Paul tells us, are “dead in their transgressions and sins”.
Enslaved奴隷にされた
What is behind this condition?
Following three things that deeply affect our behavior, even if we do not want it to.
We are in fact enslaved to:
1) the world. 世の流れThe ways of the world.
Living according to a society that is organized without God.
Companies organized for profit often have little regard for the employee, and less for his family.
At the same time, corporate leaders are seen giving bribes to get contracts, and hiding money from the taxman!
Materialistic物質に基づいている価値観 values set off competition between people as to who has the best, or latest
? be it cars, clothes, or the latest i-pod! Moral values道徳 decline, as other people are seen as objects to be used for my own benefit, perhaps especially seen in sexual behavior among young people.
It can be seen in attitudes of discrimination差別 ? whether against people of other races, invalids or homeless.
2) the devil. 空中の権威を持つ支配者 The ruler of the kingdom of the air
? the devil (he does exist, and is not the scary person we see in cartoons).
Also described as “The spirit at work in those who are disobedient”.不従順の子らの中に働いている霊
We can trace all evil悪の源 back to his activity. Sometimes we have seen inexplicable evil at work when someone wants to experience what it is like to kill,
or goes out to kill indiscriminately on the streets of Akihabara. There is also the violenceテロリスト暴力 of terrorist acts, whether in 9-11, Iraq, Afghanistan, Western China, or wherever else!
It would be right to see the devil behind such activity. Violence in the home家庭暴力 When pressure is put on Christian people to compromise or forsake their faith, the devil is at work,
and not just the families who do the coercing強制して妥協させる.
3) the flesh (sinful nature). Following its desires and thoughts.
Unrestrained lust抑制されていない色欲 satisfied in comics, magazines and internet. Violence
? power over others enjoyed in the same places.
Intellectual pride知識的なプライド, false ambition不正確な野心, malice悪意 and vengeance復讐、しかえし are all sins of the flesh, where “self”自我is set both against God and man.
It is very much alive in modern Japan, and is strong evidence of spiritual death. As a result we are:
Condemned神様の裁きを受けた
Objects of wrath.- as all the rest of mankind! (3b)
God’s anger ? what is it? Not like you or me when we “get angry”.
It is not rage憤り or malice悪意 or revenge復習! It does
not depend on his moods気分!
It is God’s righteous, personal response to evil, confronting and condemning it.
He is angry at sin in the world because of the damage it does to you, the ones he made, and whom he loves.
It is “by nature”生まれながら that we are in this terrible plight!
It is not that we have done something wrong, and so we are punished.
There is no room for us to think that some are better than others, and not deserving of punishment.
“ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We are all part of this because we are part of the fallen堕落した human race.
We are helpless, and unable to do anything by ourselves to lift us out of condemnation.
BUT God’s anger against sin is because of the damage he knows sin does in the lives of the people that he loves.
He does not reject those who are condemned, but loves us! “Wrath” in verse 3 is immediately followed by “love” in verse 4. ? “great love”
Loved愛された
But God made us alive生かされた.
Because of his love and his mercy.
See that this is the “great love” 大きな愛of God who is “rich in mercy.
” 哀れみ豊か We were dead, but God made us alive with Christキリストとともに生かされた.
Saved from slavery and condemnation by the grace of God神の恵みによって救われた.
Follow what is written here. Verses 1-3 are like nails釘 in a coffin棺桶!
Then v. 4, “BUT”! The righteous judge is also the loving father.
Rich in mercy, he could not leave us in the consequences of our sin.
Because of his great love, he did not spare his own Son（ローマ8:52）, but gave him up so that we can be made alive.
Though we were spiritually dead, God’s grace made a way for us to receive spiritual life.
By the work of that grace, we who were tired, burdened, weak and vulnerable have been saved and will be saved.
Note that does not happen when we have made some progress in getting better ? it was “even when we were dead in our transgressions”!
Praise God! Next week we will look a little more closely at what it means to be “saved by grace”
死からいのちへ エペソ2：1-5
死んでいた者
罪過
罪
(霊的に死んでいた)
奴隷にされた
世の流れ
空中の権威を持つ支配者
自分の肉の欲
神様の裁きを受けた
御怒りの子ら
生まれながら
愛された～キリストとともに生かされた
哀れみ豊かな神
神の大きな愛
あなたがたが救われたのは、
ただ恵みによるのです。 |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
