"The Cruciform Life"

Ephesians 5:1-6:9

Chapter 5, verses 1-2 give us a guideline for the whole next section on behavior and relationships.

"Therefore, be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."

The Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City has a cruciform seating arrangement. There is a central section that goes from the altar to the narthex , but part way back two wings open on each side for further seating. Outside cruciform structures include First United Methodist Church in Lubbock, Texas. There are examples of cruciform printing, in which each page is displayed in the form of a cross. But the early church fathers talked about a cruciform life, a life of self-sacrifice for the kingdom of God in which the vertical arm of the cross represented our devotion to God and our the horizontal arm represented our service to the world.

The Vertical Dimension

In this version of the cruciform life, our holy life is our vertical dimension. We renounce impure actions and conversation and choose to follow Christ. It's worth remembering that much of the unholy behavior of the Gentiles had a religious dimension - the following of the emperor's religious cult where Caesar was Lord and pagan religious sexual promiscuity. To follow Christ was to be an alternative society in the Greco-Roman world. We still are that alternative society. Paganism just tends to get redefined and the idols and selfish practices change from generation to generation. Our own generation's addictions to materialism, entertainment, over-preoccupation with sports, and ultimate trust in technology would be contemporary examples. And just a casual watching of TV or the movies will reveal a definite sexual emphasis in our society that is both unhealthy and encourages promiscuity. We are to be "light" in a world of "darkness," something I share in each baptism we do.

The choice to live in holiness is a moment to moment commitment. The King James Version in 5:16 tells us "to redeem the time." We use our time for holiness rather than selfishness. I have noticed from observation and personal experience that sinful behavior is often just a waste of precious time. In verse 17, he gives an important principle, "Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Holy Spirit." Most people did not get drunk on one drink, especially in biblical times when the wine was less potent. Similarly, one filling of the Holy Spirit will not sustain you for a lifetime. We must keep on being filled with the Spirit (the Greek here does refer to repeated action). One of the ways we do that is in fervent and open-hearted worship. Every once in a while, I am with Christians who really sing, pray and participate in the sermon. The place becomes electric with the presence of God.

The Horizontal Dimension

The horizontal part of the Christian life is discussed in 5:21-6:9. These verses have been profoundly misunderstood and abused throughout Christian history. Some have asked whether Paul is pro-patriarchy (men in authority over women), supportive of no rights for children, and pro-slavery. While Paul's Pharisaic background does show through, we can easily miss the revolutionary character of his words. He does not denounce the order of families and relationships in his day, but Paul does introduce mutual yielding. "Husbands love your wives as Christ loves the Church. "Fathers do not exasperate your children." "Masters do not abuse your slaves, for you have God as your master." Wives, children and slaves were the property of the Greco-Roman household and, to some degree, the first century Jewish household. When I was learning to study in school, I was taught to pay attention to topic sentences. Ephesians 5:21 is the topic sentence, ""Be subject to one another out of reverence to Christ." We are talking about mutual submission and responsibility. If you are in the authority position, the role is as a servant leader. And where we are in the following position, we choose out of our strength to offer ourselves in love.

There is no justification here for oppressive leadership by those in authority, nor is there justification for abdicating our roles as servant leaders. I have observed a reaction by those in authority that if they cannot lead according to authoritarian whims, then they will not lead at all. Parents, bosses, teachers, preachers, government officials and others are called by the bible to neither authoritarianism nor abdication, but rather to a servant leadership that leads to growth and transformation around them. But the focus of the one in leadership is never on themselves. It is leadership for the benefit of others. When leadership turns selfish, it becomes counterproductive and even demonic.

Cruciform marriage is about spouses offering themselves fully for the benefit of the other. It is not a 50-50 relationship, but rather 100/100 in which both are fully giving and fully receiving, fully leading and fully serving. Tina and I have a partnership marriage. There are certain parts of our relationship that draw on Tina's leadership. When it comes to organizing, long-term planning, and keeping details, Tina is the clear lead. When it comes to providing a sense of groundedness, overall responsibility, and filling in the gaps, that would be me. But there is much of our marriage where leadership shifts according to the time, resources, sensitivity, passion and availability. It might be easier for me to be the head of everything, but it would not honor what God has put together, nor would it be as interesting or enjoyable. We submit to each other in Christ, and Christ is who holds us together. We're still learning what that means and expect to be learning for quite some time.

Cruciform parenting is about parents providing the love and boundaries necessary for healthy growth of the children. It is interesting that Paul does not talk about mothers here. Because fathers were "the authority" in Greco-Roman structure, they were the main exasperators. Now that authority is shared by parents, we can also be equally exasperating. Our boys would probably agree with that. It is absolutely crucial that children learn obedience - obedience when they don't agree, don't understand and don't want to. Watchman Nee was correct when he taught, "To be in authority, you must first learn to be under authority." We live in an anti-institutional and anti-authority society. Teaching children obedience to authority is not only biblical, it is a key life understanding. The exercise of authority as servant leadership offers clear boundaries in love, always for the benefit and growth of the child.

Cruciform employing is probably the best parallel we can give to the master/slave relationship. We live in power relationships every day: boss/employee, nurse/aide, owner/manager, teacher/student, etc. When we are in subordinate positions, we serve those in power over us as we serve Christ. In fact, our service to those over us is an act we do for Christ. When we are in the leadership position, we understand ourselves to be accountable to God for how we lead. Just as those under us are under authority, so are we. In truth, even if we are the business owner, we are not "our own boss."

The cruciform life is not easy. It means dying to some very natural ways of acting, thinking and speaking. But the more we do it, the freer we become and the more God is able to use us for His glory and the changing of our world. Have a great day.