THE PRE-EMINENCE OF CHRIST: Ephesians 1:20-23

By Ted Schroder,
Trinity Sunday,
May 26, 2013

The Sunday after Pentecost in the Christian calendar is celebrated as Trinity Sunday. The coming of the Holy Spirit in power, and the resurrection and ascension of Jesus, caused the Christian church to develop a Trinitarian understanding of the nature of God: that "there is but one living and true God, everlasting, without body, parts or passions; of infinite power, wisdom and goodness; the Maker, and Preserver of all things both visible and invisible. And in unity of this Godhead there be three Persons, of one substance, power, and eternity; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit." (Article I, Anglican Articles of Religion) This understanding was enshrined by the early Church Councils in the Apostles', Nicene and Athanasian Creeds to clarify the Apostolic Faith in the face of false teaching. Modern Unitarians do not accept this Trinitarian understanding of God, and seem to have little interest in God. Their primary interest is in social justice and human affirmation.

SPIRITUAL BLESSING - POWER - Ephesians 1:19,20

By Ted Schroder,
Pentecost, May 19, 2013

On the day of Pentecost the apostles received power when the Holy Spirit came upon them, as Jesus prophesied (Acts 1:8). That power - a game-changer for followers of Jesus - was intended for all Christian believers. St. Paul prayed that "you may know God's incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms." (Eph.1:19,20) We are meant to experience the same divine, mighty power that raised Jesus from the dead. What does that mean for us today?

SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS - VISION: Ephesians 1:15-18

By Ted Schroder,
May 12, 2013

"I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened..." (Eph.1:18 NIV)

"I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can see something of the future Christ has called you to share." (Eph.1:18 TLB)

"I ask God to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for us Christians." (The Message)

SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS - HOLY SPIRIT Ephesians 1:13, 14

By Ted Schroder,
May 5, 2013

Antoinette and I spent the New Year's holidays of 1969-70 with dear friends in Jedburgh, Scotland. After celebrating Hogmanay (New Year's Eve) I proposed and we became engaged to be married. Our hosts recommended Alexander Blair, Watchmakers & Jewellers in Kelso, to purchase an engagement ring. Kelso was described by Sir Walter Scott as "The most beautiful if not the most romantic village in Scotland." We spent a delightful time with Sandy in his shop in the city square near Floors Castle, the ancestral home of the Dukes of Roxburghe, and selected a sapphire and diamond antique ring for Antoinette to wear. Thirty years later, when we were revisiting those friends, we stopped into Sandy's shop and bought a guard ring to match it. In his eighties, Sandy was upstairs in the office where we first selected Antoinette's engagement ring.

How much of God do you want?

Dr. Ken Chant
http://www.visioncolleges.net
April 30, 2103

In the end, it must be everything or it will be nothing. We are not free to pick and choose among the promises and commands of God. We cannot embrace one promise but disdain another; we cannot express willingness to obey God here, but not there; we cannot desire this blessing from the Father while rejecting that.

Think for a moment - how long will a marriage last if one spouse says to the other: "I want only some of your love, some of your care, some of your strength"?

SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS - INHERITANCE Ephesians 1:11, 12

By Ted Schroder,
April 28, 2013

On Sunday, October 1, 1967 I was inducted as Curate of All Souls Church, Langham Place, London. My parents were present on that day - they had travelled from New Zealand for my graduation from Durham University, and my ordination in St. Paul's Cathedral - but it wasn't until I discovered my mother's travel journal after she died in 1996 that I learned of her impressions of that occasion.

She wrote: "Went to 11 o'clock church. It was Ted's induction. He read the lessons and also read his induction lines. He has a good voice and looks lovely (a mother's view I suppose). We were proud of him and hope he will do the Lord's work well. Knowing him I'm sure he will do his very best." My mother was ordinarily extremely sparing in her praise, so these words were exceptional and meant a lot to me when I read them 29 years after the event.