Podcasts by Lift Your Eyes Archives - Forget the Channel
Lift Your Eyes is a series of reflections covering every sentence in Paul
Further podcasts by Lionel Windsor
Podcast on the topic Christentum
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Lift Your Eyes: Please rate, review, share from 2020-04-15T03:10:05
A quick request to all my subscribers, to ask if you'd be willing to help others find out about the podcast by rating it, reviewing it, or sharing it.
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Translation of Ephesians from 2020-01-28T18:55
This is the complete translation of the Apostle Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians for the series Lift Your Eyes: Reflections on Ephesians.
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Reading Ephesians (Ephesians 6:21–24) from 2020-01-21T18:55
Paul’s closing greeting in Ephesians is a good opportunity to summarise what the letter is all about and to remember why it’s worth reading and reflecting on it.
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Prayer: the heart of evangelism (Ephesians 6:17–20) from 2020-01-14T18:55:58
One of the best things we can pray for is that the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ will go out to the world, both through us and through others.
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The importance of being a struggling Christian (Ephesians 6:14–16) from 2020-01-07T18:55:49
Do you ever feel like the Christian life is a struggle? Struggling is normal for Christians. In fact, it’s not just normal. Christians should be struggling!
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Stand your ground (Ephesians 6:10–13) from 2019-12-31T18:55:44
It’s easy to ignore the spiritual realities of life. But Paul reminds us we should live our ordinary, everyday lives in light of spiritual realities.
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The gospel for the boss (Ephesians 6:9) from 2019-12-24T18:55
Authority implies responsibility. Christians, who have a heavenly Lord and Saviour, have a special reason to be responsible in the way we use our authority.
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The gospel: beyond freedom (Ephesians 6:5–8) from 2019-12-17T18:55
What do you do if you find yourself in a situation of limited economic freedom? Paul shows how that situation can be transformed by the gospel.
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The gospel and fatherhood (Ephesians 6:4) from 2019-12-10T18:55
Fathers: Do you sometimes wish your children were born with an instruction manual? Being a dad is a big responsibility. Paul here provides valuable direction.
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Paul the Apostle does children’s ministry (Ephesians 6:1–3) from 2019-12-03T18:55:43
Children’s ministry is important. Paul’s short instruction to children is deeply soaked in theology, biblical theology, and the gospel of Jesus Christ.
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The gospel and marriage part 2: Husbands (Ephesians 5:25–33) from 2019-11-26T18:55:31
The gospel of Jesus Christ teaches husbands to take initiative to love and give themselves to their wives. This radical teaching involves both actions and attitudes.
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The gospel and marriage part 1: Wives (Ephesians 5:22–24) from 2019-11-19T18:55:23
What Paul says in Ephesians about Christian wives and submission only makes sense in light of what he’s already said about the gospel of Jesus Christ.
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Submitting to one another (Ephesians 5:21) from 2019-11-12T18:55:05
In Ephesians, the Apostle Paul says to “submit to one another through respect for Christ”. What does he mean? What does he not mean? And how can we do it?
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Christian singing: Why and how? (Ephesians 5:19–20) from 2019-11-05T18:55:56
Why do Christians sing together? How should we do it? Christian singing should involve several dimensions: horizontal, personal, and vertical.
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What’s wrong with drunkenness? (Ephesians 5:18) from 2019-10-29T18:55:36
Believers in Christ have a profound reason to avoid drunkenness. That’s because believers in Christ have a reason to live, hope, and act wisely.
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Watch how you walk (Ephesians 5:15–17) from 2019-10-22T18:55:58
It’s good to have ambitious goals for our Christian lives. But we mustn’t be naïve or unprepared. We need to be deliberate and careful about how we walk.
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Living light (Ephesians 5:11–14) from 2019-10-15T18:55:19
How should Christians relate to the world around us? Should we withdraw, or should we engage? How do we know which action to do when?
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The test that matters (Ephesians 5:10) from 2019-10-08T18:55:20
We live in a world full of tests and measurements. Believers in Christ should also test our lives. But when we do, we need to use the right standard.
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Children of light (Ephesians 5:8–9) from 2019-10-01T19:55:22
Believers in Christ have had their very identity changed: once darkness like the world, but now light. The challenge is to believe it, and to live it.
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What do you want to become? (Ephesians 5:5–7) from 2019-09-24T19:55:30
Our dreams drive our daily actions. In 5, 10, 20 years, what will you have become? Living in grace as an imitator of God, or a partner with the world?
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Holy talk (Ephesians 5:3–4) from 2019-09-17T19:55:43
Often we try to fit in with others by the way we speak. But God calls believers to be holy, not filthy, in our speech, even if it sounds strange to others.
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Imitators of God (Ephesians 5:1–2) from 2019-09-10T19:55:59
Christians are God’s dearly loved children, raised from death to life and secure with him, now and forever. This is what gives us the power to sacrifice.
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The power of forgiveness (Ephesians 4:31–32) from 2019-09-03T19:55:29
Believers are to forgive, as God has forgiven us. Forgiveness is not only possible for believers, it’s also powerful for our lives and relationships.
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Words with purpose (Ephesians 4:29–30) from 2019-08-27T19:55:01
Christians have a whole new reason to speak. Instead of rotten words or selfish words, we are to speak good words: word that build and give grace.
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The gospel for criminals (Ephesians 4:28) from 2019-08-20T19:55:41
Paul preaches the gospel to thieves. God’s grace gives us a new identity. That means we have work to do: not so we can take, but so we can give.
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Grace and anger (Ephesians 4:26–27) from 2019-08-13T19:55:58
Whether our anger is right or wrong, we can’t deny it’s there. But because we belong to Christ, we must make it a priority to deal with anger. How?
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Telling the truth (Ephesians 4:25) from 2019-08-06T19:55:04
Truth is a rare commodity in our world. But Christians are people of the truth. The gospel of Christ demands that we value and speak the truth in every situation.
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Become who you are (Ephesians 4:22–24) from 2019-07-30T19:55:58
The gospel teaches us to change—to put off the old and put on the new. This change doesn’t save us, but it matters. It’s all about becoming who we are.
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Learning Christ (Ephesians 4:20–21) from 2019-07-23T19:55:25
Christian communities are places of learning and teaching. This isn’t just about transmitting information: Christians are people who “learn Christ”.
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Turn around and walk the other way (Ephesians 4:17–19) from 2019-07-16T19:55:50
Darkness, futility, and desire: this is the way the world walks. Paul doesn’t write these things so that we can gloat or judge. He writes so we can repent, and live.
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Playing your part (Ephesians 4:16) from 2019-07-09T19:55:09
Paul’s vision for Christ’s body is unity in diversity. It’s not just flat uniformity, nor is it just diversity for the sake of diversity. It’s diversity for a common purpose.
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The truth in love: A key principle for church growth (Ephesians 4:14–15) from 2019-07-02T19:55:33
Paul’s principle for the growth of Christ’s body isn’t about presentation or organisation. It’s more fundamental: “speaking the truth in love”.
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Christ’s body: A brief history (Ephesians 4:11–13) from 2019-06-25T19:55:20
Paul didn’t write Ephesians 4:11–13 to give us a detailed blueprint for how to organise our ministries. He wrote these verses to point us to God’s grace in Christ.
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Christ: Up there and down here (Ephesians 4:8–10) from 2019-06-18T19:55:58
In these verses, Paul makes a big deal of Christ going up (to heaven) and down (to be with us by his Spirit). Why? to encourage believers as we face all the ups and downs of living for Christ. Listen
Gifted beyond measure (Ephesians 4:7) from 2019-06-11T19:55
How should Christians think about our own individual ‘giftedness’? We need to see our own gifts in the light of God’s wonderful, superabundant grace.
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The one and only God (Ephesians 4:4–6) from 2019-06-04T19:55:29
In this part of Ephesians, the apostle Paul makes an unavoidably scandalous claim: The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is the one and only God.
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This unity (Ephesians 4:2–3) from 2019-05-28T19:55:39
In the classic film Monty Python and the Holy Grail, the King of Swamp Castle issues an appeal for unity: “This is supposed to be a happy occasion. Let’s not bicker and argue about who killed wh...
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The truth on the ground (Ephesians 4:1) from 2019-05-23T19:55:18
Our step by step living, in all the details of life, really matters for Christians. It’s not an optional extra; It’s intimately connected to our calling.
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God: Beyond us—and with us (Ephesians 3:20–21) from 2019-05-20T19:55:17
God is nothing like the Elf on the Shelf. God’s power is far beyond us. Yet God’s power is at work in us. So God’s glory is our joyful goal.
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This is huge (Ephesians 3:18–19) from 2019-05-16T19:55:56
God’s plans for his world, and his love for us in Christ, are vast and awe-inspiring. They change everything. That’s why need prayer to grasp them.
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Where does God live? (Ephesians 3:16–17) from 2019-05-13T19:55:45
Can God’s presence be with us? If so, how? In bread and wine? In a tangible experience of worship? In Ephesians, Paul speaks about how Christ dwells among us.
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Who are you praying to? (Ephesians 3:14–15) from 2019-05-09T19:55:58
Most people pray. But not everyone prays in the same way. Your view of God will have a profound effect on your prayer life. Who are you praying to?
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My afflictions, your glory (Ephesians 3:12–13) from 2019-05-06T19:55:52
We can react to suffering by avoiding or escaping or denying or rationalising it. For Paul, the gospel of Christ leads to a profoundly different reaction.
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God’s multidimensional wisdom (Ephesians 3:9–11) from 2019-05-02T19:55:01
Do you think being a Christian is boring? If so, maybe your view of God is one-dimensional. But Paul sees God and his purposes in vivid multidimensional glory.
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The meaning of ministry (Ephesians 3:7–8) from 2019-04-29T19:55:54
Christian ministry is hard. So why be involved at all? Pragmatics and techniques alone can’t answer that question. We need to know the meaning of ministry.
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The open secret (Ephesians 3:4–6) from 2019-04-25T19:55:50
How can we know God’s will? Some try to see God’s will in the progress of history. But this is disastrous. God’s will is something we can’t work out by ourselves.
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The prisoner lifts his eyes (Ephesians 3:1–3) from 2019-04-22T19:55:36
It’s so easy for Christians to play the victim, and to define ourselves as victims. But Paul, even in prison under Roman rule, lifts his eyes to God’s grace in Christ.
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Built together (Ephesians 2:20–22) from 2019-04-18T19:55
Is every church on its own? How are Christian believers connected with other believers with whom we don’t meet regularly: in our region, nation, and world?
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No second-class Christians (Ephesians 2:19) from 2019-04-15T19:55:35
Even if we don’t say it out loud, we can often act as if there are different classes of Christians. But the gospel teaches us there are no second-class Christians.
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Christ the missionary (Ephesians 2:17–18) from 2019-04-11T23:55:37
Christ is a missionary. Christ does stranger evangelism. Christ preaches to the choir. Christ crosses cultures. Christ brings peace. So says the Apostle Paul. What does he mean?
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Christ the wall breaker (Ephesians 2:14–16) from 2019-04-08T23:55:49
In this broken and rebellious world, our healthy boundaries often become hostile walls. But the cross of Christ breaks down walls and brings reconciliation.
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The blood that brings us close (Ephesians 2:11–13) from 2019-04-04T22:55:51
Despite our best desires and efforts, we humans are not very good at living up close with others. This has become devastatingly obvious in the recent Christchurch shootings. Yet in his letter to...
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Good works and salvation: What’s the connection? (Ephesians 2:8–10) from 2019-04-01T22:55:12
A joke letter from an Australian church offering its financial donors priority access to heaven raises questions for all of us. Do our good deeds give us access to heaven? Or are our good deeds ...
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A question of security (Ephesians 2:6–7) from 2019-03-28T22:55:46
As I write this, New Zealand is shocked and grieving. My own nation Australia is shocked and grieving too, along with them. But news stories about terror attacks and shootings in our world are f...
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This love (Ephesians 2:4–5) from 2019-03-25T22:55:53
“God loves you”: if I say just those three words, you may not hear what I want you to hear. This is because of a communication problem that arises whenever Christians try to talk about biblical ...
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We too: the offenders (Ephesians 2:3) from 2019-03-21T22:55:27
Judgmentalism. It’s a bigger problem than we think. Judgmentalism is certainly a danger for God’s people. That’s because God’s people have God’s word. God’s word helps God’s people to see how wo...
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The root of the problem (Ephesians 2:1–2) from 2019-03-18T22:55
I hadn’t visited the dentist for years. Then I felt a tiny amount of pain in one of my teeth. But I ignored it. I didn’t want to bother with a dentist. Anyway, I had my own solution: I’d always ...
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The first thing to say about church (Ephesians 1:22–23) from 2019-03-14T20:00:20
Here in Ephesians 1:22–23, for the first time in his letter, the apostle Paul uses the word “church”. He’s taken quite some time to get to this point. That might make you think that the church i...
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Strength to live (Ephesians 1:19–21) from 2019-03-11T22:55:31
What do we do when we feel weak in the face of the powers that be? One response might be just to shut down, close ranks and find a bitter satisfaction in our identity as victims. Another respons...
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What’s the point of theology? (Ephesians 1:17–18) from 2019-03-07T22:55:43
The full name of the college I teach at is “Moore Theological College”. That word “Theological” says something important about who we are. It reminds us about what we're on about. Yes, the Bible...
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Prayer: What are we actually doing? (Ephesians 1:15–16) from 2019-03-04T22:55:15
“A Muslim, a Jew and an Anglican Minister walk into a classroom”. This was the advertising blurb for a local Community College seminar I participated in a few years ago. I joined a Muslim educat...
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The Holy Spirit: Our security (Ephesians 1:14) from 2019-02-28T22:55:57
The Stanford Marshmallow Experiments are a favourite illustration of motivational speakers. The lesson is this: If you can learn how to delay gratification early in life, you’ll do better in lat...
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The message is the mission (Ephesians 1:13) from 2019-02-25T22:55:27
What is God’s mission? What means is God using to bring about his purposes in Christ? What does that mean for our own mission as Christians and churches?
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Rejoicing in the blessing of others (Ephesians 1:11–12) from 2019-02-21T22:00:22
Although the Bible is always relevant to us, not every sentence is directly about us. When we realise this, we can rejoice in God’s blessings even more.
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So here’s the plan (Ephesians 1:8–10) from 2019-02-18T22:00:15
The God of the universe has a plan to sum up all things in Christ. He’s revealed that plan to us, and is putting it into effect through the gospel.
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Are you trying to redeem yourself? (Ephesians 1:6b–7) from 2019-02-14T22:00:39
When it comes to God, we can’t redeem ourselves. Redemption is something that God has to do—and has done—for us. This is why it’s such a wonderful thing.
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What if it’s not about me? (Ephesians 1:4–6a) from 2019-02-11T22:00:55
The Bible gives us a vision for living life that’s the exact opposite of the narcissistic attitude. This is highly confronting, and profoundly comforting.
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#inChrist (Ephesians 1:3) from 2019-02-07T22:13:23
Ephesians starts with an explosion of praise for the ‘blessings’ God has given to us. But they’re different from the kind of blessings we often talk about.
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This God (Ephesians 1:2) from 2019-02-04T22:00:07
Many people believe in ‘God’. But the word ‘God’ means different things to different people. What does the Bible say about God: who he is and what he’s like?
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Amazing holiness (Ephesians 1:1b) from 2019-01-31T22:00:09
God sees believers in Jesus as holy. This fact is amazing, especially when you grasp the history of the gospel going out from Israel to the nations.
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