In Ephesians chapter 5, St. Paul teaches us to “walk circumspectly, not
as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore
be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.”
To walk circumspectly is to see our current world in the light of Holy
Scripture. It is to see things as they really are, not as the rest of the world
sees things.
To see your life in the light of heaven is not to trudge through your
life as one meaningless day after another. Your life is not merely an endless
struggle to put food on the table and a roof over your head. “The Gentiles seek after
all these things,” says Jesus, “and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all” (Matthew 6:32).
Life is more than food. And the body is more than clothing. You were
created in the image of the One True God. You should see your life in that
majesty and glory.
C.S. Lewis said it this way: “There are no ordinary people. You have
never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations—these are
mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals
whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub and exploit—immortal horrors or
everlasting splendors.”
The true meaning of life is that you are “not
wrestl[ing] against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the
authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the
spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).
This gives your life great dignity and meaningful purpose. What you do
and say matter in the great scheme of things.
Small things—like doing your work well and laboring honestly with your
hands—drive arrows into the heart of darkness. Ordinary activities—like raising
your children and being a good citizen—are spiritual warfare against the powers
of darkness.
But don’t think that you can participate in this great cosmic battle
with your own strength and with worldly weapons. You have this power only in
connection with Christ. Without that faith, you can do nothing.
“Everyone
who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has
overcome the world—our faith” (1 John 5:4). You are destined for eternal glory.
But that eternal glory depends entirely on faith, which is your connection to
Christ.
That potential for connection with Christ dignifies your life in three
ways.
First, all human beings are a direct creation of the Most-High God. Contrary
to the world’s lies, we are not mere pawns crafted by a pantheon of lesser gods
and used in their incessant war games.
Nor are human beings the random product of chance and time—mere cosmic
accidents. Rather, the Creator of the universe specifically willed you into
existence. And created you in His own image and likeness (Genesis 1:26-27).
God gave you a special place and function in the universe that only you
can fill. And He did the same for everyone whom you have ever met. This is the
first foundation of human dignity.
Second, as the title Christ indicates, God Himself became a human being in the person of Jesus. God
did not become an animal or a plant, or even an angel. But, in the womb of the
Virgin Mary, He dignified human existence by becoming a man. This is the second
pillar of human dignity.
Third, all human beings—as evil and flawed as they are through sin—can
be made holy through Christ’s redeeming sufferings and death. No one was above
the law. But no one was too far gone for God’s mercy, either.
No matter how far away from God you may be—no matter how low you may
feel—our Lord Jesus Christ has died for you and offers you forgiveness,
restoration, and meaning through faith in Him.
Jesus has come to a world that preaches hopelessness and despair. And
He contradicts the world to offer you new life and hope. Don’t let the devil
tell you otherwise.
Go to Church. Listen to God’s Word. That’s the will of God because that’s how Christians redeem the time.
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