“The Departed” – Rewind
Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, Ephesians 4:1-2 NASB 1995
Worthy – Jack Nicholson delivered a memorable line in the movie The Departed. “In the end we all die. Act accordingly.” That’s the essence of the Greek word axiōs. From Paul’s perspective, we have been rescued, redeemed from the verdict all sinners rightfully deserve. Act accordingly. Live today in the light of your freedom to exhibit God’s grace. Demonstrate what it means to be called into His kingdom, to know that your life is worth more than the few years you will spend in this age. Do something praiseworthy. Honor the one who gave you another chance.
We all raise our hands and shout, “Hallelujah!”
The meeting ends. The celebration fades. We return to normal relationship friction. “Act accordingly” seems like a distant dream now. Today we’re just trying to survive the emotional trauma of being misunderstood, blamed, and rejected. Not all the time, of course. We vacillate between moments of harmony and connection fatigue. We want to love and be loved. We want to be worthy of being understood and accepted. But life is often a flail (you can look that up in a medieval dictionary). We seemed to be connected to the ones who cause the most gashes, spill the most blood, and produce the most pain. Now we wonder if the solution isn’t exactly the opposite of Paul’s exhortation. Pull back. Retreat. Protect. No more blows of abandonment. No longer a desertion victim.
Except that doesn’t work either. Life in an insulated shell is empty. Just going through the routine of the day, trying not to feel alone, the teeter-totter takes over. One moment we manage to reach out. A splinter of joy pokes us and we hope again. The next moment a harsh word, a critical look, and we’re right back there, sinking. Up and down, never really getting anywhere except discouraged. How can Paul (or the Messiah, for that matter) expect us to walk in a manner worthy of eternal grace when we live in a world of temporal despair? It seems as though the only thing Paul’s words offer is the guilt of knowing we are failing to do what God asks.
Perhaps pursuing “in a manner worthy” is not the right approach after all. Perhaps we need to concentrate on humility, gentleness, patience, and tolerance—and then discover that worthiness is the by-product of these other actions. In fact, worthiness isn’t something I can produce, but I can practice (as best I can) humility, gentleness, patience, and tolerance. If Brené Brown is right, worthiness is a state of mind, not an object of performance. What do you think? Want to try humility, gentleness, patience, and tolerance and see if worthiness comes along behind?
Topical Index: worthy, axiōs, Ephesians 4:1-2
