Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.
Ephesians 4:1-2
- What is the therefore there for.
- What is Paul referring to when he uses the logical conjunction “therefore”?
- What is the connection between these two verses?
- What follows and what has gone before it?
- Did you go back and look at the possibilities for the connection?
Start from the immediate context and work your way backwards.
- The first possibility you encounter is the content of Paul’s prayer at the end of the 3rd Chapter. It is possible Paul is saying, because of all the amazing blessing in God, because of the huge potential in Him, for that reason lead a life worthy of your calling.
- Maybe it is the reason for which he fell to his knees to pray. Remember the “for this reason” // “for this cause” element of 3:1 or 3:14. The task of bringing the Gentiles into the family of God. Or going back a little further to the end of Chapter 2 with the Jews and Gentiles being built into the one house. The mystery of Gospel which can include both Jew and Gentiles, things so disparate. I.e. Because you Gentiles have been brought into relationship with God, knowing now its significance you ought therefore to lead a life worthy of what you have been given. It is even probable that it is more than Gentiles involved here. Remember we have the element of the Church involved too. 3:10 and 3:21. It is more likely that Paul is talking to Gentiles and Jews, the Church universal when he says I beg you lead a life worthy.
- Or the link goes back to 1:15 where Paul says it again – for this reason, for this cause. The cause or reason keeps unfolding in layers. It is all connected. It is the summation and significance of the one long Greek sentence, at the same time it is the outworking of God’s will as expressed in Eph 1:9 & 10.
It is for this reason that we have the continuing unwrapping of layers of “the reason, the cause”. The inference then is that Paul is referring to all of these things.
Now I leave it up to you to decide what you think about it all and how you think it all fits together. But I warn you, you will need to take it ALL in and be willing to hold your thoughts in tension as the pieces fit and fall into place. I know what I think but I am not going to tell you what I think. I will leave you to work out what you think.
Jesus said, “ask + you will receive.” For crying out loud, don’t go to the ocean with a teaspoon? At least take a bucket!
Rick Godwin
I would rather fail in a cause that will ultimately triumph than to triumph in a cause that will ultimately fail.
Woodrow Wilson
He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.
Friedrich Nietzsche