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Lenten Observations, March 20 Wonder v. Wonder

 Ephesians 2:4-7 - But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus

I memorized this in the Authorized Version in 1974. It could be the gospel in a nutshell, although perhaps some doctrines are explicitly mentioned.  

St. Paul makes this statement in a written document to a community of Christians in Ephesus while he is in jail in Rome in the late 50s A.D. We have easy access to it today; how many documents from then are read by massive of people today? We could read historical accounts and government edicts, plays and poems of the Roman Empire at that time, but very few of us actually do. 

Despite its familiarity, we still might say, "This is too good to be true! A perfectly loving God who loves us perfectly asks us to believe His plan and we will know the 'exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness'?"

Well, only if we include the "with Christ" and "in Christ" parts. 

It should cause us to wonder . . . 

How could English evolve so many words with two meanings that mean the opposite of each other: cleave, sanction, oversight, overlook, peruse, fast, clip, and dust?

Here’s another: Wonder

Wonder – awe, marvel, amazement, set back on our heels, overwhelmed, surprise at something beautiful, inspiration, admiration

Wonder – question, doubt, lack of knowledge, unsurety, uncertainty, suspicion, lack of sureness, curious

Almost completely different. One is the core of worship, a prerequisite to it and a result; the other a barrier to worship.

Tolkien wrote the famous line we used to see on bumper stickers: All who wander are not lost. I would add “All who wonder are not lost.” They are not lost spiritually, or otherwise, in either version of wonder: the awe, worship, amazement sense or the uncertainty, doubt, and questioning sense. 

I think God knows this is is too much for our brains. He knows we are dust. 


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