The apostle gave a continuous improvement program for every believer
By Dean Collins
“What have you heard?” Sometimes the question is simply to get a better understanding of a problem or situation. Other times it’s to gain information about a particular issue. Unfortunately, sometimes it is nosiness that feeds an addiction to gossip. But it might be a good question to consider that will help guide our faithfulness.
Here’s a rephrase of the question. What have others heard about your faith in the Lord? Is our faith so foundational that others can’t miss it? We certainly don’t want the kind of faith that distracts from Jesus or hides his grace and mercy. But that could happen if our faith translates into behaviors that suggest superiority. If we appear to be super spiritual or better than others, those who don’t know Jesus will surely miss what Jesus offers. Sometimes we who identify with Jesus may actually come off as stubborn, prudish, arrogant, or uncaring if our faith has the vibe of a know-it-all or as one who is better than another.
A faith that is known
In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he wrote he had heard about their faith in the Lord Jesus and about their love toward all the saints. Paul’s statement is consistent with the teachings of Scripture. Faith expresses itself in love. How we love others is evidence of our faith and our transformed life. Believing that there is a God and even that he sent his Son to pay the penalty for our sins must translate into a love for others consistent with how Jesus loves us. I think it’s what James was talking about when he said “faith without works” is lifeless or dead.
When Paul heard about the faith of the Ephesian church and the love they had for others, he began to pray for the believers in Ephesus. As time went on, he couldn’t stop praying for them.
A process for improvement
Many businesses have what is known as a CIP, a continuous improvement process. Depending on which methodology you use, you have a four- or six-step process for constantly improving the quality of products and/or services. Usually, a CIP aims to increase productivity, build better teamwork, improve agility, have less waste, increase efficiency, improve customer satisfaction, and achieve greater profitability.
In order to experience continued improvement, you must have a plan, be willing to act, analyze what you did, and implement a change to make it better. Sometimes you must change the approach completely.
I think Paul may have given us a spiritual continuous improvement process as he opens his letter to the Ephesians. It goes something like this:
1) Determine to express your faith by loving others
2) Your faithfulness will activate some other believers to hear about your faith and love
3) Hearing about your faith will trigger others to pray for you
4) The prayers of others will engage the Holy Spirit in your life to accelerate your good works and identify areas where you need to improve
5) By using Paul’s prayer as a guide, discover the wisdom of God, deepen your understanding of him, and realize immeasurable results
6) This should lead back to step one where you have greater determination to share your faith and express your love for others.
If we of faith agree to live faithfully, we might just activate a continuous improvement lifestyle that not only better reflects our Lord but also will accelerate his return because of how many have come to experience his love, grace, and mercy.
Your time with God’s Word
Ephesians 1:15-23 ESV
Photo by William Warby on Unsplash
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