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Ephesians 1:20-21: Far Above All Authority


Ephesians 1:21–23
[21] far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. [22] And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, [23] which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. (ESV)

How do you view Jesus?  I was watching a movie with my family the other day, and in that movie there was a quote about God where someone said, "God and I are the best of homies."  We all laughed at how ridiculous that sounded.  But, how do we think of Jesus?  We know that he loves us. We know that he gave his life to save us and protect us from God's wrath.  But, I fear that we sometimes treat God trivially like he is our buddy in the sky.  He is there to do what we want him to, and he is never unhappy with us.  But, the Apostle Paul describes for us who our Savior is in these closing verses of Ephesians 1.

He is above all rule and authority, power and dominion, forever!  And as to the church, he is the head of it.  Period.  This word authority is hard for us.  As rebellious humans we do not like to submit to authority. Jesus Christ is the greatest authority in, and rather, above, the universe.  There is no one you should show more respect to than him.  I wonder if you give your boss at work more respect than you do the Savior.  When it comes to decision-making is Jesus the first one you consult?  Or do you fill him in on what you have decided to do, and hope that he approves.

I am not suggesting that we need to be terrified of Jesus.  Rather, we should come to him, knowing that he loves us so much that he sacrificed his very life for us.  But, I also think that we need to come with respect, recognizing that he is the greatest authority in our lives, and that we need to submit to that authority.  Perhaps, we struggle in our walk with Christ because we disrespect him without even realizing it.  Jesus is not your homey.  He is your Savior.  And he is worthy of all respect, worship, and love.

How do you view God?  Have you trivialized him?  Is he the authority in every aspect of your life?  Do you give your boss at work more respect than the Savior?  How can you change how you approach the Savior so that he is honored?


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