Pleasing The Lord

Pleasing The Lord – Ephesians 5: 1 - 14

Intro: The story is told about a dog who often walked in his sleep. One night the dog wondered into a PetSmart saying to the attendant, “I’m a cat!” – “I’m a cat.” The attendant responded, “Yes sir, you are a cat.” The sleepwalking dog left and a patron asked, “Why did you agree with him? That dog is not a cat!” The attendant replied, “You’re right, but my orders are to let sleeping dogs lie.” (Sermon Central – “Are You A Sleepwalking Christian? By John Gaston, Jul 14, 2021)

I VV. 1&2 “Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly love children and walk in the way of love, just a Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

A One Sunday in a small church in Kentucky, a man stood up during the sermon and walked out of the church. After the service the man’s wife approached the Pastor saying, “Pastor, I can assure you that my husband meant no disrespect when he walked out during your sermon. You see, my husband has been sleepwalking since he was 5 years old!”

B Perhaps the man in Kentucky was “walking in the way of love,” as a loving comment on the sermon of the pastor rather than making a scene b/c he disagreed with what he was hearing.

C What do you think it means to “walk in the way of love”? Is it ignoring the behavior of others? Is it experiencing the attack of a “godless” person by not expressing our beliefs? Is it just “getting along” with those who chose not to follow Christ Jesus? Isn’t that “sleepwalking” through life ambivalent to the hurt or needs of others?

II Tim Hansel in his book, “When I Relax I Feel Guilty,” writes of what most people want from God. “I would like to buy $3.00 worth of God, please. Not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I don’t want enough of Him to make me love a black man or pick beets with a migrant. I want ecstasy, not transformation; I want the warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the Eternal in a paper sack. I would like to buy $3.00 worth of God, please.”

A VV 3 – 7 of the lesson for today lists those things we are NOT to do. Some are easy to walk away from; while others are more difficult for us to give up.

B For just a moment, scan down the verses contained here. Think to yourself about where you fall in relation to the “you must nots.” Where do you fall short?

C Are there places where you are not honest with yourself? Can you see yourself saying or doing things that are not acceptable in a person who claims to follow Christ? --- I sometimes find myself falling short and only wanting “$3.00 worth of God” in my life b/c it is easier.

III VS. 10 – “And find out what pleases the Lord.” Do you honestly know what pleases God? An old hymn says, “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, than to trust and obey.” In what do we place our trust? Who or what do we obey? The answers are not easy.

A We cannot “sleepwalk” our way through life as a Christian, ignoring the problems and wrongs among us. I’ve heard it said that “if you are not a part of the solution, you are part of the problem.”

B Too many people go through life completely oblivious to the problems and lives of others. This is why we have a problem with homelessness in our country. This is why we have crumbling infrastructure. This is why we have one empty building after another in our community. B/c it is easier to walk through life pretending there is no problem than it is to get involved in challenging our leadership to create a vision for growth and progress in our community.

C There is such a thing as a sin of omission. By that I mean it is a sin to ignore a problem, it is a sin to ignore the poor, the homeless, and the uneducated.

Concl: VS 14 – “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” Are you alert to the spiritual dangers around you? Are you aware of the building anger and unrest that exists in many parts of not only our country; but around the world? Are you witnessing for Christ? Are you teaching and sharing with those around you?