People of Hope, Inheritance, and Power

Scripture — Ephesians 1:17-20 (NRSV)

I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places.

Devotion

Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed!

You may be wondering why I’m using the traditional Easter greeting on the Tuesday after Easter. Did I get my days confused? No, not really. Let me explain.

For one thing, it’s theologically appropriate for Christians to use this greeting on any day of the year. After all, the truth of Christ’s resurrection matters every moment, not just for a few hours on Easter Sunday. But I’m using the Easter greeting today not in a general way, but because we are in the Christian season of Easter or, as it is sometimes called, Eastertide. This season, which begins on Easter Sunday, lasts for fifty days, running right up to Pentecost Sunday. (I realize that thinking of Easter as a season may seem strange to you. If you’d like to learn more about Eastertide, you can check out an article I wrote on this subject.)

Since I’ve started thinking of Easter as a season and not just a day, one benefit has been the chance to reflect more deeply on the meaning of Christ’s resurrection. On Easter Sunday, we tend to focus mainly and appropriately on the fact that Jesus rose from the dead. Perhaps we hear a sermon on one particular and glorious implication of the resurrection. But there is so much more to consider, so much more to reflect upon, so much more to learn, so much more about which to wonder, so much more to celebrate. The season of Easter urges us to engage with the “so much more.”

This “so much more” shows up in Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 1:17-20. Verse 20 mentions the resurrection of Christ specifically, linking it to God’s power in our lives. But verses 18 and 19 assume and, indeed, are based on the reality of the resurrection. We can have hope and we will have an inheritance because Jesus rose from the dead. Had Jesus remained in the tomb, we would have no reason to claim a special hope, a special inheritance, or a special power.

We see a similar juxtaposition of themes in 1 Peter 1:3-5: “By his great mercy [God] has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (emphasis added).

In several future Life for Leaders devotions, I will take time to consider how the prayer in Ephesians 1:18-20 helps us discover the difference Easter makes in our life: Because of the resurrection, we can be a people of hope, inheritance, and power.

For now, let me invite you to reflect on this passage and how it speaks to you today.

Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project’s online commentary. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: Resident Aliens and a Royal Priesthood (1 Peter 1:1–2:12).