Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
Study Gateway's First Listens: Find your next Bible study! Join host Shelley Leith as she curates first sessions of Bible studies on various themes each season, taught by some of the world’s most influential Christian authors, teachers, and pastors. To learn more, visit https://StudyGateway.com.
First Listens Season 4: Episode 3
Beautiful Word: Ephesians, by Lori Wilhite
Plus interview with Lori Wilhite
SHELLEY: Well, welcome to Study Gateway’s First Listens where you get the first listens to the first sessions on Study Gateway, so you can find your next video Bible study. We are in season four where we are taking our inspiration from Women's History Month and focusing in on women Bible teachers you should know. I'm Shelley Leith, your host, and today, I have the joy of introducing you to author and Bible teacher Lori Wilhite.
LORI: Hello. I'm so happy to get to be here with you.
SHELLEY: Lori has written two of the Bible studies for us in our Beautiful Word series, the one on Ephesians and the one coming soon is on Philippians. So, Lori, how would you introduce yourself to someone who has never read your work or done one of your studies before?
LORI: I would say I am just a normal girl whose mission in life is to try to help women find strength, freedom, and joy in who God created them to be. And so that looks a lot of different ways in my life, I'm also a pastor’s wife. And so I do a lot of that with my church family in Las Vegas where I live and beyond kind of the most...well maybe the least likely city for a Bible study writer, but we absolutely love getting to be here in Vegas. And then that also plays out in my life. I also lead a nonprofit ministry called Leading and Loving It, which is for women in ministry and leadership, pastors’ wives, etcetera. And it’s just such a joy to get to lead that.
And then I did that with my kids. I have two awesome kids, I’m a mom. They’re adults now. Both of them remind me of that daily. And so I have two young adult awesome children and I’m now in that phase of my life and parenting where I don't get to control anything in their lives anymore, it's really sad. But I do get to come alongside them which is a joy.
SHELLEY: That's awesome. How did you get into writing books and Bible studies?
LORI: Many, many years ago, our first book came out probably ten or eleven years ago. And I just... It was directly for pastor wives. And I just had come out of a really nasty season of discouragement and depression and really just struggling with a lot of insecurity about the role that God had placed me in. And just really, I think wrestling and unsure of what God's call was on my life. It was so clear to me on my husband's, but I wasn't sure about myself. And so as I got my feet back on the ground and then expanded into trying to help other women in ministry like me, the door opened for us to be able to write a book. So that was, like my first step in.
SHELLEY: Let me interrupt there for a second. What was your first book? And tell me about who your husband is and what your church is?
LORI: Yeah. Well, you know, aptly named Leading and Loving It. So the ministry that I lead. Very easy to remember. My husband is a senior pastor at Central Church in Las Vegas. And so it's like I love ministry. I love it. It's the best job ever. And it is also hard and really tough and very stretching and demanding and the enemy is in your mind with all the insecurities that you feel and just throws them in your face on a regular basis. And so I just wanted to come alongside women like that and as much as I loved writing a book, what I found as I kind of, like, continued on in my writing journey was loved digging in the scripture. Like in it. As much as I love dealing with felt need things, I loved diving into the scripture.
And so from that point, to now, that's mostly what I've done is Bible study writing and I just love it.
I just absolutely love it.
SHELLEY: So you enjoy more digging into a book of the Bible rather than doing a topical
study for instance.
LORI: I do. I have done a topical Bible study, which I did like, but I really do like doing a really deep dive into a character or a book of the Bible which have been my last couple of studies, I just learned and grow so much. I know, you and I both share a love for like a good chunk of scripture and really just seeing all that it has to offer for our lives and have relationship with Christ. And so I just personally have grown so much. And my hope is just to have people come alongside me on that journey and learn with me and grow with me and hopefully, we both just fall a little bit more in love with God's word together.
SHELLEY: Do you find that there are any recurring themes that come up for you as you are writing your studies?
LORI: Yes. I... Well, my husband always jokes that he's, like, every preacher has one message that they come back to over and over and over again, and come in tons of different forms. And over the years of as I have written, he was, like, you have two themes Babe. And I see them, and I don't even consciously think about it. But identity and purpose are typically the two that I lean into. The third if I had to choose would be joy. And I think it's just so much of what God has been writing in our lives comes out through our writing. And because my own identity and my own purpose was such a challenge for me when I started out in ministry, and God has brought me such a long way, and he's taught me so much when he's written that story on my heart and in my life, it just kinda comes out in my writing as well.
SHELLEY: Wow, that's beautiful. We really see that in the study on Ephesians and will we see some of that in the study on Philippians as well?
LORI: Philippians is all joy. It is all joy, all happiness, and I'm so so so excited about it because actually,
what it does is it intertwines all three of those together and really takes a look at, you know, so many of us are just trying to chase happy in our lives through relationships or success or any of the things are maybe our children, whatever we're trying to do, and we just come up dry and empty and not fulfilled.
And what I discovered in Philippians as I was really digging in is that as much... You know, I've heard people say, God cares more about our holiness than our happiness. But I actually think they're connected. They're not disconnected like that. The more we chase holiness, the more we chase God,
the more we actually are discovering happiness. And so when we chase God's purpose, we discover happy. When we chase our identity in who we are in Christ, we find happy. And so actually they're all so intertwined and it's just been so fun to get to mine it out in my life.
SHELLEY: Now let's transition to talking about some of the mechanics of actually writing and recording a Bible study. Did you have any obstacles you had to overcome as you began this part of your journey.
LORI: Yes. Well, when you see the videos you will think because this live in Michigan. No. I live Vegas! But we had the craziest cold front come through of course the week I was filming. And so every cute little outfit I had purchased had to go away and every coat that my friends owned had to come to me because I have the one coat. We all have one coat. I was like, I need everyone's one coat so that I can wear it when we filmed. So it was in the low forties, which I know for some people isn't that low but in Vegas that is crazy. And so we all just bundled up. There was a lot of Starbucks runs trying to drink coffee and stay warm, but we did brave it. We filmed in a beautiful park, and we made it work, but there's definitely way more coats than I anticipated. But we stayed warm, and we did it, and my nose wasn't too red by the end, so I felt like we had success.
SHELLEY: It wasn't the look you were going for.
LORI: It was not. But you know it's okay. It was actually like this moment, because I had written a lot about happiness isn't based on our circumstances, but on God's character, and I was like, okay. Here we are. None of these are the circumstances I wanted and hoped for and prayed for planned for. But we will be happy nonetheless because God is good, and he was, and it ended up being a really beautiful experience altogether.
SHELLEY: Oh, that's awesome. Now looking ahead, are there any projects that you're working on that you are excited about that are coming up?
LORI: Yeah. Well, outside of Philippians, which I am pumped about, my husband and I are actually working on a couple of different projects together which I'm really excited about. We've done a lot of teaching things together and we've spoken at marriage conferences or that kind of stuff together. But this is our first time to write together. So we're doing one devotion book that is really out of Exodus and Numbers. It's kind of a wonder in the wilderness kind of thing. Those times in our lives where it’s really tough but God shows up and does really miraculous and beautiful things. And so it's a forty day devotion through that. And then we're working on a Bible study on some of the miracles of Jesus together. And so I'm really excited to get to kind of team up with him in this new way.
SHELLEY: That sounds great, Lori. Well, it has been so great getting to know you a little bit and learn about your journey as a Bible teacher. Thank you so much for taking the time to share with us today. And now I'm so excited to be able to share our with our First Listens audience the first session from your study in our Beautiful Word collection called Ephesians: Head Held High. Let's tune in right now to session one called Chosen. Thanks, Lori.
LORI: Thank you.
[MUSIC PLAYING] LORI WILHITE: Welcome to Ephesians, Head Held High. I'm Lori Wilhite, a pastor's wife, mom of two pretty incredible young adult children, and the founder of Leading and Loving It, which equips and empowers women in ministry and leadership. We live in Las Vegas, also known as Grace City because we believe Romans 5:20, "Where sin increased, grace increased all the more." Our family loves getting to be part of God's redemptive work in one of the most unlikely cities.
And I'm thrilled to be going on this journey through Ephesians with you. Over the next six sessions we're going to dive into Paul's teaching. First, learning why we can walk with our heads held high. Then, seeing how God will use that posture to make an impact.
I love the book of Ephesians because it gives us beautiful insight into the Lord's redemptive work and how a life that has been completely changed can change the world. How a person walking confidently in who God says they are can put her shoulders back, her chin up, and walk with her head held high. From the moment sin entered the world, just three chapters into the Bible, shame, guilt, and regret also entered. And those same burdens and so many more weigh us down today and keep our focus on us and our circumstances instead of on God.
Several years ago I headed out of the grocery store with a cart mounded full of groceries for my family who was convinced at all times that we have nothing to eat. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Suddenly, the guy helping me push my overstuffed cart to my car decided it was the perfect time to give me an informative little lecture. After all, it was not senior citizen discount day. That discount day was on Wednesday. And I had, in what he deemed a stroke of irresponsibility, shopped for my groceries on a Tuesday. If I had come to get my groceries on Wednesday, like I clearly should have, I could have gotten 20% off my total. You know, senior discount and all.
Now, in moments like these I'm usually pretty good at filtering my words and responses. But I really need to work on my face filter because if my mouth doesn't say it my face certainly will. And there was no hiding the horror and astonishment that immediately crossed my face. I mean, I had just gotten my hair colored so my grays weren't even showing. What is the proper response when someone thinks you look 20 years older than you actually are? There's no discount that can make that right.
Those words that day were like a kick in the gut to my self-esteem. Words. Just a few simple but stinging words can weigh us down. An offhanded comment, hurt, insecurity, and the heaviness of life itself can keep us from walking with our heads held high. It might be the burden of criticism that draws out your deepest insecurities. The weight of decisions that are questioned at every turn. And your fears rise.
The heaviness of a struggling marriage. You aren't connecting. You aren't communicating. The strain of finances, which are in a mess right now. You don't know how bills are going to get paid and you're terrified. The millstone of depression and discouragement that you can't shed and you can't escape. The crushing pain from kids who are crumbling under the pressure of school, friends, busy schedules. And every parent knows that you're only as happy as your saddest child. Hurt, betrayal, fear, anxiety, disappointment, failure.
All burdens that can keep us from walking with our heads held high. You're not meant to be under that burden any longer. You are a child of God saved by his grace, forgiven and free. It's time to walk with your head held high. Meaning, you walk with confidence and strength and who God created you to be.
As we dig into this study we're going to be challenged by Paul's words to discover who we are in Christ. That we are chosen, we are alive in Christ, and empowered through prayer. We can live worthy and walk in light. And we can stand firm in God's strength. None of this is because of our own goodness, strength, and power but because of the goodness, strength, and power of Jesus Christ.
The book of Ephesians is a letter written by Paul when he was a prisoner in Rome around 60 AD. The book begins in verse 1, "To God's holy people in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus." To God's holy people in Ephesus. In some ancient manuscripts there's a blank space instead of the words, in Ephesus. Some scholars believe this letter was actually kind of like an ancient version of a group text message, not just to one church but meant to be shared with many congregations in different cities.
While Paul's letter was most certainly intended for Ephesus, could it be that Paul also intended his message of God's great eternal plan to be shared with other believers as well? Just fill in that blank. To God's holy people in Corinth. To God's holy people in Rome, in Galatia, in Phillipi, in Thessaloniki. If there is a blank space in the manuscript where others read, in Ephesus, it's certainly because we could put our cities in that blank space.
Since God's word is living, breathing, and as relevant now as it was 2000 years ago, it's possible that Paul might add a few more churches to his group text today. Just fill in the blank. To God's holy people in San Diego. To God's holy people in Austin, in Fort Lauderdale, in Amarillo, in Franklin, and yes, even to God's holy people in my city, Las Vegas. To God's holy people, the faithful in Christ Jesus.
Ephesians was written to those living less than three decades after the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. And it's a book written to us today. What follows Paul's greeting is a verbal explosion in the original language verses 3 through 14 are one long, stunning sentence. And outpouring of 202 words of worship and a declaration of God's blessing, kindness, grace, and glory.
And I imagine Paul so overwhelmed by God's goodness. Mind moving faster than his pen can keep up. Speaking without ever taking a breath. Let me read this gorgeousness to you. Although, I will have to take a breath. Let's start in verse 3.
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will-- to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us.
With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reached their fulfillment- to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.
And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession-- to the praise of his glory."
Paul's declaration begins with praise, ends with praise, and is infused with praise. But there's another common thread that weaves its way through this passage. Being chosen, adopted, God's possession. Chosen before the creation of the world. Predestined for adoption. Chosen according to his plan and the purpose of his will. The idea of being chosen shouldn't lead us to theological war but lead us to our knees in thankfulness. To pour out our praise. To freely give our gratitude.
Want to walk with your head held high? Embracing that you're chosen changes everything. I've seen, it in my own family. As World War II came to an end, my granddad came home from Europe and settled in a small farming town in Texas. Remembering the beautiful girl Betty from his hometown, he started courting her by letter. Love letter after love letter went back and forth, and my grandparents married just a short time later.
That feel-good Hallmark movie beginning quickly transformed into a Lifetime movie with all its dramatic twists and turns. My grandmom confessed she was pregnant with another man's baby and had been during their courtship. Afraid he wouldn't be able to love and care for the baby the way he would his own biological children, my granddad suggested they place her for adoption. My grandmother agreed, but both of them would carry the heavy weight of guilt and fear and regret for decades.
Baby Girl, as they referred to her, would become the family secret that was quietly put to the side, never to be talked about, referred to, and certainly not to be shared. Then, on a wintry day 46 years later, the phone rang. My grandma lifted the avocado colored receiver off the phone hanging on the wall.
As she said hello she walked back to the kitchen pulling that long phone cord behind her. The voice on the other end of the line said, does the date February 20th, 1946 mean anything to you?
[MUSIC PLAYING] SHELLEY: Cliffhanger!! I know, I’m so mean to do that to you, but we’ll find out the end of the story in just a moment. You’re enjoying the first session of Ephesians, Head Held High, by Lori Wilhite, a part of our Beautiful Word series, published by HarperChristian Resources and streaming on Study Gateway. Study Gateway is a streaming video service, and we’re the only one that has a subscription plan especially for small groups. For our First Listens listeners, we offer you an exclusive rate on our small group plan. When you use the promo code FIRST at studygateway.com, you’ll get 20% off of small group plan for up to 20 people. And, for a complete experience with Beautiful Word: Ephesians, take advantage of our publisher-direct pricing on the essential Bible study guide designed to be used with the videos. You’ll get the group discussion questions and leader materials, the Scripture text and key ideas, and personal Bible study and reflection exercises to do between sessions. Get all the details at Studygateway.com.
Okay, the phone has just rung, Lori’s grandmother has picked it up, and a voice has asked if the date of February 20, 1946 means anything to her. Let’s pick up now with Lori Wilhite and find out what happened.
[MUSIC PLAYING] LORI: And my grandmom froze because that was baby girl's birthday. She took a deep breath and said, are you her. And thus began the reunion of my family.
My aunt Sarah could have walked through life shoulders slumped, head down, feeling rejected, unwanted, unloved, but that wasn't the case at all. Growing up, the schoolyard bullies gave her a hard time about being adopted. But Sarah confidently looked at them and declared, your parents were stuck with you but my parents chose me.
She imagined a warehouse full of babies. Her parents walked down rows and rows of children until they finally locked eyes with her. They picked her among the many kids. They chose her. They accepted her, wanted her, loved her. So she walked with her head held high. Embracing that you're chosen changes everything.
Maybe you've walked through life feeling rejected, unwanted, or unloved. Maybe you've been weighed down by betrayal or hurt. Maybe your shoulders are slumped from feeling unqualified or insecure. Maybe the mistakes you've made, the hurt you've inflicted, caused you to walk with your head down. But Paul declares here in Ephesians that you are chosen, adopted, God's possession.
Let's look at verse 5 again. It says, "In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will." The word adoption here uses the root of that word for full-grown adult children. You see, adoption in the ancient world was often of adult children.
If a wealthy family did not have a male heir, they would adopt a son in his 20s or 30s who would inherit. When the adoption was complete, the person who had been adopted had all the rights of a legitimate son in his new family. In the eyes of the law he was a new person. The debts and obligations connected to his previous family were abolished as if they never existed.
And don't miss this. This is so rich. There's so much here to help us keep our heads held high. First, the Romans adopted adults. The ones who had lived a life with all of its breathtaking moments from the mountaintops and all of its breath stealing heartbreaks in the valleys. The ones who had experienced the darkest disappointments and discouragement.
The ones who had to grapple with the consequences of their own choices and would give anything to take back their mistakes. They were chosen anyway, despite their failures and shortcomings. Even though they had personality quirks and emotional scars, they were chosen and adopted.
Ephesians shows that God, knowing each failure you would experience, every weakness and shortcoming you have, every quirky part of your personality, each injury that would leave its scar emotionally and mentally, that God chose you anyway. He chose you despite of. He chose you even though.
Romans 8:15 says, "The Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, 'Abba, Father.' The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children." Abba, Father. Dear Father. Beloved Father. One translation says, "You have received the 'Spirit of full acceptance,' enfolding you into the family of God. And you will never feel orphaned, for as he rises up within us, our spirits join him in saying the words of tender affection, 'Beloved Father!'
For the Holy Spirit makes God's fatherhood real to us as he whispers into our innermost being, 'You are God's beloved child!'" You are God's beloved child. You are his chosen one. You are the heavenly daddy's adopted kiddo. So hold your head high.
Next, adoption abolished all debts and obligations that existed before being brought into the new family. In ancient times, when a debt was paid, the creditor wrote paid in full or it is finished across the certificate of debt, meaning the debt was canceled. The obligations were fulfilled.
When we were adopted through Jesus Christ by his glorious grace and by his sacrifice on the cross, he abolished our sin debt marking it paid in full. In fact, one of Jesus's last words from the cross were those same words, meaning it is finished. The debt has been paid. The obligations no longer exist. That is redemption.
If we look back at Ephesians 1:7 it declares, "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us." Charles Spurgeon said, "'It is finished', is the believer's conquering word". Jesus was the substitute for us. He died to finish that work of redemption. Your sins are wiped away. You are free, redeemed by Jesus. Your debt, paid in full. Your outstanding balance, abolished.
So keep your head held high. Because you are chosen. You're chosen when you feel lonely and left out. You're chosen when you feel bare and broken. You're chosen when you feel forgotten, or when you're frustrated by an offer of the senior discount. You're chosen despite your shattered family. You're chosen despite missing out on that promotion. You're chosen despite not knowing how to move forward. You're chosen even though your future seems uncertain.
You're chosen even though your life has turned upside down. Your chosen even though your love for somebody else isn't returned. You're chosen because God is good. You're chosen because he loves you. You're chosen because Christ redeemed you. You're chosen because he planned it from the foundation of the world. You're chosen because Jesus is powerful. You're chosen because God created you, saw you, empowered you, and released you to accomplish his purpose and his vision. Embracing that you're chosen changes everything.
Over the next few days you'll be diving deeper into Ephesians in the workbook as we look further into being chosen before the creation of the world, predestined for adoption, and chosen according to his plan and the purpose of his will. You'll spend some time digging into Paul's beautiful prayer at the end of the chapter that I'd love to pray over you right now.
I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. Amen.
[MUSIC PLAYING] SHELLEY: I loved having that powerful prayer prayed over me, didn’t you? If you were wishing you could watch Lori Wilhite teach, then wish no longer! We have unlocked Session One of Beautiful Word Ephesians on Study Gateway, so you can go there and watch the entire first session for free! Ephesians is a video Bible study published by HarperChristian Resources and streaming on Study Gateway. Here at Study Gateway you can find your favorite authors, pastors and Bible teachers, all in one place. We’re the only streaming video subscription service that offers a small group-sized plan, AND has user-based pricing for churches, no matter what the size. And don’t forget, you can use the promo code FIRST to get a 20% savings on a small group plan, and that discounted rate lasts as long as you keep your subscription!
With Study Gateway, you also get a direct link to our store, where you get publisher-direct pricing on the essential Bible study guide for Beautiful Word Ephesians. The study guide gives you everything you need to have a great discussion with your group, and then go deeper between sessions with activities and study to help you take action on this material and learn to live out the principles. Is Ephesians going to be your next study? Get started right now by going to studygateway.com, click start free trial, choose the monthly small group plan, and use the promo code FIRST for your 20% discount.
Make sure you rate and review this podcast so other people can find this show too. And come back next week for our next episode in the season on Women Bible Teachers You Should Know. In Episode 4, we will be meeting Bible professor Sandra Richter. My interview with her was so interesting – it’s not every day you get to meet a female professor of Old Testament who specializes in environmental theology! She really is a fascinating human, and I can’t wait to give you a peek into how Sandra came to be a renowned Bible professor. Then, we’ll listen to the first session from her Bible study called Epic of Eden: Psalms—and we’ll find out why it’s called Epic of Eden!
See you next time on Study Gateway’s First Listens.
[MUSIC PLAYING]