EPHESIANS # 8
Every Christian should know Paul’s letter to the Ephesians well for basics of the Christian life are all right here in these 6 chapters.
The letter opens with amazing statements about who we are because Jesus Christ.
“I am blessed... with every spiritual blessing!”
“I am included in God’s family by His design and will.”
“I am valued because He invests His grace in me.”
“I am at rest because I am included in Christ.”
The second half of the letter applies the truth to real life. There are ethical standards to which Christians are called. Because we are‘in Christ,’ we have a responsibility to ‘live a life worthy’ of that calling. “Walk worthy,” another translation teaches us, helps us to understand that we don’t just fall into holiness; we work out what it means in our daily choices.
Last time I spoke to you from chapter 4, we learned that we put off the old ways and put on the new. We are to live our baptism, entering into new life because we buried the old nature and are raised to new life. The Christian life, as I have said repeatedly, it not just knowing a set of facts, or even adding our agreement to some dogma. It is about becoming new, letting the Spirit transform our moral choices.
Yes, “Walk worthy of the calling you have received in Christ!”
Today’s text is not a difficult one to understand. It has clear demands of us, applicable to everyday decisions. Basic to this passage is the idea of integrity. When Jesus confronted the religious leaders who controlled Judaism, the point of the spear was shaped around hypocrisy. They claimed truth that they would not live! Nothing discredits Christ’s church like those who talk a better game than they play!
What does the Lord expect to see in us?
TEXT - Ephesians 4: 25- 5:2
Signs of the NEW Life
Be truthful!
A friend posted this on Facebook this week:
“May your life someday as awesome as you pretend it is on Facebook.”
Isn’t that a hoot? There are many ways to lie without using words. If we limit our obedience to truthfulness only to the words we actually say, there will be huge amounts of us that are still open to dishonesty,
The Spirit tells us to ‘put off falsehood.’ We need to face up to the facts, deal with reality, admit to our sins and failures, and be authentic. That’s a high calling, to be sure.
Truth is the foundation of relationship - with God, with others.
Ever tried to love a ‘wanna-be’? People who are pretenders, who try on a new identity every month, who hide behind movie lines or Bible verses are like slippery eels; you just can’t connect with them. So, the Spirit says that when we come to Christ we must make a commitment to being no more and no less than we are - truthfully!
We have no need to hide from the truth. God invites us - “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool." (Isaiah 1:18, NLT)
Be careful about tossing about words cheaply. Words have power. Jesus urges us to “let your yes be yes and your no be no.” A sign of a heart changed by the Spirit are the words that flow out it.
Don’t be hostile! Re-read v. 26-27
There is an enduring myth that the best Christians are those who lack strong feelings, who cannot or will not be stirred by the pain and problems in the world. How sad.
The Bible is NOT forbidding anger in our lives! Anger serves a useful purpose. It is a powerful motivator for change - in ourselves, in our world.
∙ When I read about cruel men who take young, poor girls and through abuse turn them into slaves in the sex industry, I burn with anger and I know I share the emotion of my Heavenly Father!
∙ When I think about the abuse of black persons and native Americans by those in authority in past, I feel anger rising. My strong revulsion to those injustices makes me more conscious of justice today.
But, anger is like gasoline. It is explosive, dangerous, and hard to control. In the right place it is extremely useful. In the wrong place it is horribly destructive. Some people slip from righteous anger into open hostility. They are full of rage at everything and everyone. In that kind of emotion, the devil finds a place to turn a good motivator into a source of all kinds of terrible destruction.
∙ Angry with your spouse about the way he treats you or the kids? Fine. Deal with it, but don’t turn it into a war, or the Devil will use it to destroy you.
∙ Angry with yourself over some failure? Good, use that to seek help for change, but don’t start to hate yourself or the Devil will find an opening for his deceptions.
∙ Angry at God because you can’t understand why He allows this in your life? Let your anger drive you to pursue Him, to learn to love Him more deeply.
Toward the close of the passage the Spirit amplifies the thought of abandoning hostility and replacing it with the Lord’s kindness. Re-read v.30-32
“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.“
These are not suggestions, not some advice for a little better quality of life. They are core values of the Christian’s life! Our anger cannot become an excuse for sinful hatred or for cruelty.
Anger in those who do not know God so often finds its expression in malice, in abuse of power.
We are different! We can pray to change the world. We can stand in the cause of right. And even when we are hurt, we can forgive, extending the same kind of grace to others that the Lord has extended to us.
Don’t steal, instead, be productive! "He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need." (Ephesians 4:28, NIV)
I wonder if Paul smiled as the Spirit inspired him with this part of our text. In sum he says, “Stop stealing. Go to work. Become a philanthropist!” Isn’t that great picture of the transforming power of the Spirit? The person who was self-centered enough to steal is changed into a person who loves so much that he gives the earnings from his hard work to those in need.
The late Ray Stedman wrote:
“This is not a word addressed only to the professional thief, but includes all amateurs as well, and covers all amateur forms of stealing, no matter how sophisticated they may be. It includes shoplifting, tax dodging, shady bookkeeping, borrowing without returning, obtaining money on false pretenses, false advertising, shifty promotion schemes, and whatever else may be the means of depriving another of his property without giving him true value in return.” --www.raystedman.org
Most Christians would not be tempted to break into somebody’s house and take their big flatscreen TV or try to carry something out of a store without paying. However, there is a mind-set that creates a kind of theft that slips through the net of our conscience. It’s called ‘entitlement.’ It’s a way of thinking that says, “you owe me.” It costs our economy $billions.
People inflate claims of insurance, without a qualm of theft.
People accept government benefits for which they should not qualify.
Some refuse to do what they can for others because they think they are too good to serve.
And these are forms of theft.
The Bible consistently urges those who have ‘new life through Christ Jesus,’ to live diligently, to contribute to others, to work hard. There is joy in being able to contribute because we are productive.
Christians value work because they see it as a way to honor God. They realize that the Kingdom of God does not start at death, but NOW, as we bring His will to this world. The Puritan writer, Richard Baxter, wrote:
• Be diligent in your callings, and spend no time in idleness, and perform your labours with holy minds, to the glory of God, and in obedience to his commands.
• Idleness is a robbing God, who is the Lord of us and all our faculties.
Speak to build up!
There are times that our English translations just do not capture the power in the original Greek text.
The NIV says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth.” So tame, so nice - isn’t it? The Greek Paul used literally means “do not spew rotten, putrefied words.”
Think this is just about the person dropping constant “F” bombs or telling sexually explicit jokes?
That is not the primary thought here, though that certainly is a secondary issue for Christians! In the 5th chapter, we will come to a passage that speaks to lewd, filthy speech.
What is in view here are those whose speech spreads corruption, who deal in faithlessness, criticism, and misery!
Those who are new in Christ have every reason to make the world a better place by encouraging, by speaking hopefully, by lifting up, by correcting error with truth.
∙ Do you know how to celebrate another’s success?
∙ Do you look for ways to say “I believe in you” and mean it?
∙ Do you unconsciously say to others, “I love you,” and leave them ready to take on another day?
∙ Do you see someone who’s fallen flat on their face and have the grace to tell them, “I know you and you’re not defined by your failure.”?
"Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them." (Ephesians 4:29, NLT)
There are few things that more evidence the work of the Holy Spirit in us than this. It is so easy to become a critic, so natural to complain and condemn, but Christ’s way is to give life with our words!
Invite God’s presence, don’t grieve Him.
Are you the kind of child of God that makes Him rejoice or that tests the limits of His grace?
Do you love Him so much that your greatest desire is to bring Him joy?
Ill.- The most powerful restraint on my rebellion as a teenagers was not fear of my father. I loved him so much I checked my behavior before it caused him sorrow. On those occasions when I did something that brought him grief, on realization it crushed me.
The old movie “Chariots of Fire” tells the story of Eric Liddell, a devout Christian whose principles were tested during the 1924 Olympics in Paris. His event was scheduled on Sunday and despite certainty of winning, he did not compete. It’s a great, inspiring, thought-provoking film. You can find it on Netflix. But is this quote that I love best - “God made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure. ”
Do you understand that your Heavenly Father loves you deeply, that He stakes His reputation in this world on you? Seriously – He has feelings! God loves people. God hates evil. God rejoices in truth. He weeps over suffering. And here, we learn that we can live in such a way that we grieve His Spirit.
How can that happen? When we sin casually, abuse grace, show contempt for His will, refuse to trust Him with our sorrow - He grieves. Our fellowship with Him is broken and what could be worse for a child of the Lord?
He tells us to align ourselves with His will, to live in obedience. Oh, be careful! This is not about making Him love us more or earning privileges or answers to prayer. That is the stuff of immature Christianity. This is about living near to His heart, held in the grip of His love, letting His glory shine through us. The Message sums this passage up -
"Don’t grieve God. Don’t break his heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself. Don’t take such a gift for granted. " (Ephesians 4:30, The Message)
Imitate God. Live lovingly!
It might seem cliched or trite to you, but this is the heart of the Christian life - Love as you’re loved!
We really must take this last direction seriously and thoughtfully.
"Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." (Ephesians 5:1-2, NIV)
Love is amazing, wonderful, comforting, and EXTREMELY COSTLY. Love caused God to send Jesus Christ, mysteriously laying aside the Divine powers, to become fully Man. What a sacrifice. God becoming subject to the same kinds of things that make our life so hard - hunger, fatigue, temptation, rejection, disappointment, and death!
To walk worthy we imitate Him, giving ourselves away in love - the kind that does not calculate returns or protect itself from pain.
__________
Christianity is not just an idea, a feeling, something to drag out of the memory closet for special occasions.
The life of the Spirit is a practical one that is expressing in the way we live everyday, not just in the prayers we pray in this room.
Be truthful!
Don’t be hostile!
Be productive, don’t steal!
Use words to build up, not to tear down!
Invite God’s Presence, don’t grieve Him!
Imitate Him, live in love!
Amen.
