Paul’s an interesting character. He often doesn’t quite say things as we might expect; while he uses the same words as the rest of us, he seems to string them together according to completely different rules of grammar and syntax, as though he shares our language, but grew up in a different Culture.

Paul opens his letter to the Ephesians with understandable enough words of praise:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, … (Eph 1:3ff)

… and the sentence goes on seemingly interminably. But, of course, that is part of Paul’s point: the blessings of God in Christ are so rich, so broad and deep, so expansive in scope, that they force us to pile explanatory clause upon explanatory clause.

But when Paul finally gets to identifying the purpose for God so imprudently lavishes the riches of his blessings upon us in Christ, he uses an interesting expression:

… so that we … might be to the praise of his glory. (Eph 1:12)

The English teacher in me wants to suggest a correction: “that we may sing praises to his glory.” But that is NOT what Paul has in mind. He is not concerned merely to suggest that we sing his praises, (though it is certainly wrapped up in his thought) but that since we have been reconstituted by the riches of his blessings in Christ, our very lives bear the radiance and image of his glory in a dark world. By the blessings of God in Christ we have become, in our very being, the embodiment of praises to his glory.

As we gather together this weekend by his gracious invitation, He is quite literally gathering up the praises to his glory so that the world may see, hear and know the Truth of his super-abounding grace in Jesus Christ. Reflecting on the riches of his blessings by which we have been made new in Jesus Christ, come let us gather together with rejoicing as the praise to his glory.

Order of Worship for 02.01.09