Ephesians 4 - Living a life worthy of our calling - Mark Ralf

Ephesians 4 -Living a life worthy of our calling.

SLIDE – A LIFE WORTHY OF OUR CALLING

This morning I want us to consider the passage that Brenda read for us - “A Life Worthy Of Our Calling”.

In this passage, Paul is commanding Christians to leave their old ways and practices and replace them with new types of behaviour that bring honour to God and strengthen their relationships with others.

Before we get into some of the detail of the passage, it is important to understand the background behind this section of Ephesians – so we can draw from it what God intended.

SLIDE – BACKGROUND

Ephesians was written by Paul.

He wrote it while he was imprisoned in Rome sometime between AD 60 and AD 63. During this time he wrote Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians & Philemon.

As it reminds us in v1 of chapter 4, he was confined and awaiting trial in Rome. He wrote it as a circular letter - one to be read by several congregations. It was designed so that many people would benefit from it on its journey so it is quite formal.

So this is a general letter and has general significance to a fairly young churches grappling with what it really means to be a Christian in the world. It had significance for all the churches in Asia Minor and it most likely has relevance to Ewell as well.

SLIDE – MAP

So where is Ephesus?

Ephesus was a principal port on the West Coast of Asia Minor - situated near present-day Izmir in Turkey. I have also marked Istanbul, Cyprus and Rhodes in case you have been around here on your holidays. And Rome is 870 miles off to the Northwest where Paul is under house arrest awaiting trial.

SLIDE – MAP 7 CHURCHES

You may have noticed some of the other names around this region. Ephesus is one of the seven churches to whom Jesus addressed his letters in Revelation 2 and 3 which Declan has been preaching on recently. So it is likely that this letter was originally circulated to approximately the same group of churches. In both cases there is a strong link between their faith and their behaviour.

SLIDE - STRUCTURE

Ephesians is written to new believers and covers the basics of the new lifestyle that they are a part of.

The first part of the letter tells the Ephesians about the new life that they have received in Jesus (1:3 – 2:10).

Once Paul has described the new life in Christ, he moves on to cover the new society to which those who follow Christ now belong (2:11 – 3:21).

He then tells them how they should live in response to the gift of this new life (4:1 – 5:21). Finally, Paul speaks about how Christians should relate to one another in this new society (5:21 – 6:24).

SLIDE – DRESS FOR SUCCESS

In Chapter 4 of Ephesians, starting in verse 17, Paul begins to lay out for his readers

a new way of living. He tells them to “no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the

futility of their thinking”. And in verse 19 he states that those who do not follow Christ “having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity with a continual lust for more”.

Paul wants Christians to live in a completely different way than those who do not know Jesus. He wants them to “put off the old self” and “put on the new self” (verses 22-24).

We are talking about putting off Adam and putting on Christ.

And we need to do both. We have to put off and put on. We need both parts. What use is half a pair of scissors? They are only valuable when both parts come together. The same is true here.

You’ve probably heard the phrase “dress for success”. People in the business world who want to succeed know that they must pay careful attention to how they look. In Ephesians 4:22-24, Paul tells us how to “dress for success” spiritually speaking.

In one way, changing our lifestyle is like changing our clothes. You take off something and you put other things on. When a prisoner is released from jail, he doesn’t continue to wear his prison clothes, he changes and wears ordinary street clothes. They might seem strange at first because he is not used to them. In the same way the Police, firemen, pilots, nurses all wear a uniform in the jobs. They take off their usual clothes and assume the clothes of the role they will undertake.

We are going to look at some specific ways in which Christians should “put on the new self”. In the seven verses from verse 25 to verse 32, Paul gives us some simple

commands that cover vital areas of the Christian life.

SLIDE - TRIANGLE

In each case there is a prohibition, followed by a clear call to action and then clarity about the desired outcome. All of these commands involve abandoning an old way of life and actively living in a way that brings honor to God. We have to ensure that the church doesn’t only stress the prohibition or even the call to action. In the church, we have a reputation for saying, “Don’t do that”. This is not what God is saying and is unattractive to non-Christians. God wants us to describe the full message of prohibition with a reason, a call to positive action and then the outcome desired by God – that way we show Christ in the world – and draw people to God.

So let’s look at the first of these descriptions of living the Christian life.

SLIDE – 6 POINTS

SLIDE – POINT 1

Speak the truth instead of lying (v.25).

“Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbour, for we are all members of one body”.

The command to speak truth is a quotation from the Old Testament in Zechariah 8:16 which Paul would have known well:

“These are the things you are to do: Speak the truth to each other, and render true and sound judgment in your courts;”

The active command in this verse is for the Christian to “speak truth”. A Christian is to be seen as trustworthy and honest. The negative command about “falsehood” literally means “the lie” – it is singular. John Stott says that Paul is probably referring to “the great lie of idolatry” as decribed in Romans 1:25.

“They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served created things rather than the Creator”

For the readers of this letter and for us, we have left behind this great deceit and now we need to get rid of some of the of smaller deceits and be fully committed to God.

You will see that each command in this passage deals with relationships. Therefore, the command to speak truth to one’s neighbor is given to bring about unity in the body of

Christ. When telling the truth is a high priority in a Christian’s life, trust builds between members of the body. Paul wants followers of Christ to make every effort to be of one mind and one heart. Paul wants the Christians in Ephesus to reject their old way of living by actively telling the truth to each other so that God is glorified and the church is built upon trust.

SLIDE point 2

The next verse deals with anger.

If you have anger, it must be righteous instead of destructive (v. 26-27).

“In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, ²⁷ and do not give the devil a foothold.

Here, the positive command is outgunned by three negative commands. The first part of verse 26 is a quotation from Psalms 4:4:

“In your anger do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent.”

Since Paul is trying to get the point across that he wants Christ’s church to be unified, he lays down specific guidelines for Christians to follow when they are angry. Paul clearly sets out the idea of righteous anger, but his main focus is that unity is preserved despite differences among the members of the body of Christ.

He wants Christians to control their anger by not sinning. To be truly Christ-like, Christians must get angry at what makes God angry yet must love as Christ loves. This means we have to be free of any selfish motives – no easy task.

We should not water-down the truth of God, by being overly tolerant and accepting of things that God does not accept.

However, as JJ Bruce said, “there is always a temptation to regard my anger as righteous indignation and your anger as sheer bad temper”.

So if we become angry – we have to beware! You are at edge of sin’s door.

Much of our society encourages and rewards anger – sport, business and laddish behaviour & road rage. We have to make sure we don’t get caught up in it.

There is also a second negative command,

“Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry”

This is not meant to be taken literally. It does not mean leave it until the nighttime to deal with it. Paul is stressing that Christians should resolve their differences quickly. Anger should not be given a chance to take control.

Just as we should get angry at sin by God’s example, we should also follow His example in being quick to seek resolution and quick to forgive.

All the way through this passage is the link between human relationships and spiritual relationships. So the third negative command concerning anger is:

“do not give the devil a foothold.”

The word translated as “foothold” can be literally translated as “place”.

When there is disharmony between members of the faith, Satan is given a place by us. We cannot blame the devil for the sin we yield to by our own will. Paul is implying that selfish anger is used by the devil to confuse the church in petty arguments and feuds against one another rather than focusing its energy on obedience and love. And many of us have seen it or heard of this happening all to often.

When the church has righteous anger it can be unified against the enemy, but when destructive anger comes in, it can backfire, creating disunity and giving Satan a place.

SLIDE POINT 3

After truth and anger we look at work…

Work hard and give to those in need instead of stealing (v. 28).

“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.”

This is an amazing command. Paul calls on Christians to abandon the ways of the old life and embrace the new life in Christ.

The believer is to stop acting in a selfish way by stealing and become concerned with others.

“The thief is to become a philanthropist.”

“The deadbeat is to become a donor.”

We can see the transformation: from thief to worker to giver.

Is God transforming us in the same way?

The motive for the believer to work hard and earn money is that they may have something to give – a great reason to earn more.

It is not merely a call to stop stealing or being greedy but a call to be generous, to demonstrate a true change of attitude.

Strongly connected to truth and anger is our use of words

SLIDE POINT 4

Build up others with the way you talk instead of using rotten speech (v. 29).

“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”

The word translated “unwholesome” is used of spoiled or decayed fish or rotten fruit – YUK! So Christians should get rid of their “rotten” speech.

This is not just referring to the use of specific crude words, but any speech that tears down the esteem of a believer or the relationship between believers.

And it’s not enough to do away with unwholesome talk. The positive part of the command is to speak in a way that builds others up. We are to speak “good” words that fit the “need” of the moment.

This verse shows the importance of words and our speech in everyday life. Offering an edifying word can be just as healthy as much needed food. On the other hand, a destructive word can be just as rotten as theft.

And so standards of speech for Christians are extremely high “no rotten talk” (I know that I find this hard enough) but it doesn’t stop there we also have to ensure that we build people up with our words too. Here we need to keep returning to God for strength and forgiveness.

SLIDE POINT 5

Do not sadden the Holy Spirit by the way you act (v. 30).

^“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption”

This verse is in contrast to verse 27. The devil is not be given a place, but the Holy Spirit is to be given full and free access without being saddened by disobedience. The word used for “grieve” means to cause distress, injury or pain. This type of language tells the readers of Ephesians that the Holy Spirit should not be treated as some mystical force or “it”. He is a Holy Being, a Counselor. He is saddened by our disobedience and our disunity with other believers. This verse, along with verse 27 lets us know that we are not simply following a set of moral rules so that we can get along with one another. There are spiritual forces at work that influence the actions of believers, and when one believer chooses to act in disunity towards another believer, he not only hurts that relationship and saddens that individual, but he also saddens God’s Spirit and gives the evil forces of Satan an opportunity to gain control.

How can we understand grieving the Holy Spirit of God?

Imagine you and a child crossing the road. Despite what you tell them, they rush across the road and are almost run down. Part of you is angry, part of you is terrified, and part is disappointed.

We are angry for the disobedience. Terrified because only we truly understand the consequences – the child doesn’t. We are disappointed because we know it is likely to happen again.

This is how God feels when we fail him each day. He is angry because of our sin. Fully aware of the effect sin has on us. And disappointed because we are fallen men. Each one of us makes the choice of Adam over and over again.

SLIDE POINT 6

So for the sixth command…

In relationships be kind instead of malicious (v. 31-32).

“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.”

Let’s look at the six attitudes we have to get rid of amongst believers…

“Bitterness” refers to “sour spirit and sour speech”.

“Rage” speaks of an emotional frenzy of anger,

“Anger” means “sullen hostility”.

“Brawling” occurs when believers get into shouting matches or worse

“Slander” is saying harmful things about someone.

“Malice” implies “wishing and probably plotting evil against people”

These are all examples of disunity in the church.

God wants the relationships among his people to be healthy. As part of this new life in Christ, believers must give up their rights to hold a grudge and must not take out their frustrations on one another.

The positive command is given in verse 32.

Believers are to replace all the things that caused disunity with kindness and forgiveness. So in this new way of living, we Christians are to mirror God in our attitudes as in chapter 5 verse 1:

“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children ² 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.”

We have to rid ourselves of the worldly practice of getting even, not forgiving, holding grudges or spreading gossip or rumour. Instead we have to remember that we too are fallen but forgiven people. We should also remember that part of the Lord’s prayer which shows forgiveness is fundamental to having our own prayers for forgiveness answered.

When we take communion later we should take time to ask forgiveness for how far we have fallen short in this.

Today in the church, there is lots of disunity and impurity. Often the body of Christ looks nothing like Christ at all. Instead of finding a place of encouragement and love, many see only narrow-mindedness and bickering. All of the commands given in Ephesians 4:25-32 go against our culture.

The culture today tells us to get what you can while you can no matter who you have to step on. For Christians, this is not an option.

So there are the six commands…

SLIDE – 6 BEHAVIOURS

Speak the truth instead of lying (v. 25)

If you have anger it must be righteous instead of destructive (v. 26-27)

Work hard and give to those in need instead of stealing (v. 28)

Build up others with the way you talk instead of using rotten speech (v. 29)

Do not grieve the Holy Spirit by the way you act (v. 30)

In relationships, be kind instead of malicious (v. 31-32)

SLIDE uPVC Christianity

In some ways we have become too distant from the day-to-day renewing of our faith.

We have to exercise daily faith. The Lord’s prayer does not say: give us this year our annual bread – it is meant to be renewed daily.- just like manna from heaven.

Jeff Lucas talks of UPVC Christianity – just like low maintenance uPVC windows.

We make our homes low maintenance and labour saving then fill our lives with busyness.

All too often we do the same with our faith.

We make it low maintenance – we give God what we can spare from our busy lives.

God created us to be high maintenance – to have an increasing dependance on him, to turn to him each day, despite our busy lives, and choose to demonstrate our closeness with him to those around us.

SLIDE – A LIFE WORTHY OF OUR CALLING

God has made it possible for us to put off the old life when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. Now He commands us choose each day to put on a new life - “a life worthy of our calling.”