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Ephesians Chapter 6 – Intro Video

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For more information and resources on Ephesians, go to my Ephesians page.

Hi, I’m Cody Sandahl.

The field of war reporting has really changed over the last few years. As I’m filming this, the Iraqi government is fighting ISIS for control of the city of Mosul. The battle has been dragging on for many weeks. And throughout the fighting, reporters are actually embedded with front-line combat units, not just reporting from far off. They are definitely in harm’s way. But that means they are also seeing war for what it really is – terrifying, stressful, nothing like the movies.

One of the tidbits that has stuck with me recently is the sound – the sound of bullets striking the armor of the vehicle they’re in. And more terrifying – the sound of bombs crumpling part of the protective shell or destroying the wheels, leaving them as sitting ducks. And that stuck with me, because it highlights that you can get hurt even if the armor works. You can go deaf, you can get tossed about and injured, even if the armor works.

It’s kind of like those giant padded sumo wrestling suits – ever worn one of those? They are a fan favorite at youth group, because they let you fight with no risk of injury. Who could get hurt with all that padding, all that armor? Well, that’s what I thought, too, right up until the moment when one of the kids fell awkwardly in the suit and broke his arm. You can still get injured, even with all that padding, all that armor.

In Ephesians 6, we see how badly we need the whole armor of God. We need to protect our minds, protect our bodies, protect our hearts and souls. But like the armored vehicle transporting the war reporters, like the copious padding of the sumo wrestling suit, we can still get hurt by whatever life is throwing our way. We can survive anything thanks to the armor of God, but don’t be surprised when it still hurts.

As you read chapter 6, remember that Christians aren’t supposed to just float above the cares and concerns of life – we are supposed to be right there in the thick of it, so we’re going to take some hits. When have you been hurt, but kept your faith thanks to the armor of God? Enjoy chapter 6.

Ephesians Chapter 5 – Intro Video

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For more information and resources on Ephesians, go to my Ephesians page.

Hi, I’m Cody Sandahl.

I grew up watching Michael Jordan play basketball, and he did it possibly better than anyone else who has ever lived. But he wasn’t known for being a great team player. He thought that it was best for the team if he scored all the points. And, to be fair, he got six championships out of that, so who am I to argue.

But one of his coaches certainly argued that point with him. After Jordan engineered a remarkable comeback victory, the coach told him, “There’s no ‘I’ in team.” Jordan responded, “There’s not, but there’s an ‘I’ in win!”

That “me-first” attitude worked for Jordan in basketball, but it wouldn’t get a passing grade from Ephesians 5. This chapter is basically setting out what it’s like to be on Jesus’ team.

We see that it’s not a free-for-all. There are some expectations of being on Jesus’ team. Expectations about how we handle our sexuality, our words, our relationships, our attitudes. And then Paul goes on to talk about expectations in marriage.

The biggest point for all these teams, including marriage, is that we are to be “Jesus first,” “you second,” and “I’m third.” Not exactly the Michael Jordan mindset. But then again, we don’t need to get the win – Jesus already won.

As you read chapter five, think about what kind of teammate you are as you suit up for Team Jesus. Enjoy chapter five.

Ephesians Chapter 4 – Intro Video

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For more information and resources on Ephesians, go to my Ephesians page.

Hi, I’m Cody Sandahl.

I am not ashamed to admit that I am a certified – and certifiable – geek. When I was in college I was playing around with some early text-to-speech programs from Microsoft. And it had these little characters – I still remember using Merlin the Magician – and you could type in phrases and listen to the computer turn your text into speech. Keep in mind this was a long time ago, so instead of sounding like Siri or Google Now, it was a little more like “Danger Will Robinson, Danger!”

Even if you just mashed on the keyboard randomly, it would attempt to say it. This sounds silly, but it actually became a big hit. Even my non-techie friends loved to type things in for Merlin to say. But, you know, hearing Merlin say “I love you” wasn’t quite the same as a girlfriend or boyfriend or spouse saying that. Typing in the exact words my brother used to tell a joke – well, let’s just say Merlin doesn’t have a good sense of comedic timing. This little virtual robot would spout off anything you told it to say, and it was amusing, but it wasn’t meaningful.

As I read Ephesians chapter four I am reminded of Merlin. Because Paul writes over and over again how we are one – one Body, on Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism. BUT in v7 he reminds us that we aren’t the same – “grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” God didn’t make us to be a bunch of Merlins spouting off the answers he typed in himself. He made us uniquely.

Our unity isn’t found in being identical – it’s found in our one God and father of all. We’re in God’s family, together. But just as I am different than my brother or my parents, we who are in God’s family are different, too. That’s not a bad thing, it’s by design.

As you read chapter 4, try to think about this from two different angles – is there anyone with whom you really don’t want to be “one?” And on the positive side, how has God uniquely made you? What makes you “you” and not just a virtual Merlin? Enjoy chapter 4.

Ephesians Chapter 3 – Intro Video

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For more information and resources on Ephesians, go to my Ephesians page.

Hi, I’m Cody Sandahl.

I knew a woman who, if Protestants had saints, she would be on the short list of nominees. She had an incredibly deep faith. She had brought many people to Christ by her deeds and words. She was universally respected in our church and by the thousands of people who knew her around the world. She had been a part of praying for and seeing miraculous healing in others. But now she needed that miraculous healing herself. Cancer.

Those thousands of people around the world rallied in prayer for this saintly woman. And after a few months she had a vision of being overwhelmed by a brilliant light, and she woke up feeling differently. She proclaimed to everyone who would listen that she had been healed. She and her husband joyfully went to the doctor to confirm what they already knew. And as the doctor came back into the room with the test results, he shared the news: the cancer was worse than it had ever been. It was untreatable. She wasn’t healed.

As I read Ephesians 3, I see that Paul is a prisoner, someone who has suffered greatly and is suffering still. And like this saintly woman I knew, it’s not because he’s offended God. His suffering wasn’t a result of God’s wrath, and neither was my friend’s. Paul and my friend had plenty of people praying for them, but they still suffered.

I know some people who think when life is going great it’s because God is rewarding them. And when the stuff hits the fan God is punishing them. But I don’t see that line of thinking in Ephesians 3. I see that the faithful – like Paul – sometimes suffer even when they’re following Christ very closely. And despite that suffering, he encourages the church in Ephesus to “know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge.”

When you’re suffering, do you still know the love of Christ? When someone you know is suffering, can you still see the love of Christ?

As you read the third chapter of Ephesians, think about the times you have experienced or witnessed suffering. Where was God?

Enjoy chapter three!

Ephesians Chapter 2 – Intro Video

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For more information and resources on Ephesians, go to my Ephesians page.

Hi, I’m Cody Sandahl.

When I was growing up I was a bit of a perfectionist. And I was tired of having sin in my life. Now, I’m a pretty systematic guy, so I naturally came up with a rational, orderly plan for eliminating sin. First, I created a calendar with the days of the week at the top. Next I created a list of sins on the left. And my plan was to take one sin at a time, track how often it occurred each day, and get that sin down to zero by the end of the week. Then I could just move on to the next and within a few weeks, PRESTO! No more sin! What could go wrong?

So I started with lying. Three times on Sunday. Twice on Monday. Eight times on Tuesday. Down to zero by Saturday.

Then I moved on to lust. Once on Sunday. Once on Monday. Five times on Tuesday – it was always worse on Tuesday. Down to zero by Saturday.

But I noticed that every time I moved on to the next week, the previous sin always came back. I could suppress one sin at a time – and even then I was probably fooling myself – but I could never keep them all at bay.

So with that context, maybe you can see why I think Ephesians 2:8-9 pretty much saved me from my perfectionist self: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works so that no one may boast.”

I would really like to be perfect. I gave it the good ol’ college try, and I failed miserably. But this text reminds me that I’m not saved by my perfection even if I could ever obtain it. I’m saved by Jesus, and that’s enough. I can crumple up that sin calendar and all the shame and judgment and pressure that it represents, because in Jesus I can be confident of God’s love just as I am.

Do you still feel like you have to earn God’s love? Do you feel like you have to be perfect or God’s going to start hurling lightning bolts at you?

As you read the second chapter of Ephesians, receive the gift of God’s love, the gift of God’s forgiveness, the gift of God’s grace.

Enjoy chapter two!

Ephesians Chapter 1 – Intro Video

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Buy It Now or Leave a Review on Amazon

For more information and resources on Ephesians, go to my Ephesians page.

Hi, I’m Cody Sandahl.

A few weeks ago I was telling my wife that I was going to be one of the pastors at an upcoming funeral. The person attended the church at the same service my wife typically does, and so she asked, “Now who was he?”

That’s a difficult question. “Who was he?” How could I describe this person, knowing full well that my wife had never met him? Have you ever tried to do that? Did you start with gender, hair color, height, weight? Or maybe their job, or their friends, or where they live?

For that matter, how do I describe myself? One of the hardest parts of writing this book was writing the author biography for the back cover. It’s really weird trying to describe yourself to people who’ve never met you.

And yet that’s one of the things that Paul knows like the back of his hand. He nails his bio in the first verse: “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God.” If you know Paul’s story at all, you know that Jesus changed his name from Saul to Paul. It’s like saying, “I’m a new man because of Jesus.” Then he’s an apostle – someone personally sent by Jesus. And is this something he aspired to? No, it’s by the will of God. He knows who he is. He knows what he’s about. And he knows the “why” behind the “what” of his life.

In the first chapter of the book I tell the story of Hendrik Kraemer, who was credited with telling some Dutch Christians who were debating what to do about the Nazi treatment of their Jewish neighbors: “If you know who you are, then you will know what to do.”

Do you know who you are?

As you read the first chapter of Ephesians think about who you are. Think about what you’re about. And do you know the “why” behind the “what” of your life? Because if you know who you are, you’ll know what to do.

Enjoy chapter one!