Ephesians - 6

Ephesians - 6

Ephesians 4:17-32

Introduction

One of the hallmark characteristics of the Apostle Paul’s NT letters is his usage of grammar. Particularly his usage of indicatives and imperatives. Let’s do a review of middle school English grammar. An indicative is a statement of fact. And imperative is a command. Paul will open his letters with an abundance of indicatives, statements of fact. And then, only after establishing the truths of who Jesus is and all Jesus has accomplished in the gospel, Paul will switch to issuing imperatives. All commands are to be understood as implications and applications of the gospel.

Messing up this order is disastrous to the faith. If you were to issue indicatives only, then what you end up with it what we call ‘cheerleader’ Christianity. God loves you. Jesus died for you. You’re just amazing. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. Just keep living like you’ve been living, you Queen, you Stud, because God is going to love you anyway. This is called by theologians, licentiousness. Living however you please because God places no moral or ethical expectations on you. The other side is just as bad. It issues only imperatives. We call that legalism. It is highly restrictive, narrow. It is joyless obedience. It makes God to be a tyrant. Do all these things, because I said so. Indicatives only is a problem. Imperatives only is a problem. Even worse is reversing the order. Putting imperatives before indicatives gets you every single world religion. Live this way, obey these commands, and then God will love you.

The precise Gospel grammar matters…indicatives before imperatives. Ephesians is the clearest example of this method by Paul. The first three chapters are loaded with dozens of indicatives about who Jesus is, what Jesus has done, and what that means for you. And then, only after the turn in 4:1 does he start issuing the imperatives. With the solid foundation of the gospel in place, now it is time to see the right response. What are God’s expectations on you? Who a Christian is ‘in Christ’ dictates what they do for Christ. In our text for today Paul sets out a stark contrast between the former unbelieving life of the Gentiles with their current status as Christians. Who they are, whether unbeliever or believer, practically manifests itself in a lifestyle. And the practical outworking of their status of Union with Christ applies, first and foremost, to their Unity with Christians.

Ephesians 4:17-32 - 17 Therefore this I say, and testify in the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind,

18 being darkened in their mind, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart.

19 And they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness.

20 But you did not learn Christ in this way—

21 if indeed you heard Him and were taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus—

22 to lay aside, in reference to your former conduct, the old man, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit,

23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your mind,

24 and to put on the new man, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

25 Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth each one of you with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.

26 Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger,

27 and do not give the devil an opportunity.

28 He who steals must steal no longer, but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need.

29 Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for building up what is needed, so that it will give grace to those who hear.

30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

31 Let all bitterness and anger and wrath and shouting and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.

32 Instead, be kind to one another, tender-hearted, graciously forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has graciously forgiven you.

Who you are ‘in Christ’ is contrasted with who you were outside of Christ. And since who you are determines what you do, how you live now ‘in Christ’ is to be noticeably different from how you used to live outside of Christ. Let’s walk through this contrast:

THE OLD MAN (V. 17-19)

I say and testify in the Lord…implies some sense of authority and force behind his words. Do not walk as the Gentiles do…’walk’ is a metaphor for lifestyle, practical daily living. Now that you are ‘in Christ’ don’t live as if you are outside of Christ. There are distinct differences between the two.

HIS POSITION (V. 17-18)

Paul describes the position of the Gentile (nations/pagans) outside of Christ in the darkest of terms, showing the emptiness of life without Christ. Those outside of Christ live in the ‘futility of their mind.’ Futility refers to a purposeless, an inability to meet a goal. It is used throughout Ecclesiastes to refer to ‘vanity’ or ‘meaningless.’ The pagan mind is incapable of knowing God and, therefore, of knowing His will. They cannot understand God on their own and cannot live in a way that honors Him.

They are ‘darkened’ in their mind. Meaning, they have not been ‘enlightened’ like the Christian has (1:17-18). Truth has not shined into their minds to light up the dark and depraved reality of their thinking. This dark thinking shows how much they are ‘alienated’ from God and the life found only in Him.

He has already described the Christian’s former reality in 2:1…you were dead in sin. Now he makes the comprehensive claim for all who are outside Christ…you are dead. This darkness, this death has a direct cause. v. 18 - because of the ignorance that is in them. Ignorance comes into English as agnostic. They don’t know, they can’t know. And it is not because they haven’t read some books. The ignorance is ‘in them.’ It is their choice to remain outside of Christ. They have rebelled against God. Romans 1 says they can see the truth but have chosen to ‘suppress’ it by their wickedness. v. 18 ends with a second cause…because of the hardness of their heart. Again, this is internal. Personal choice. No one’s fault but their own. The ‘heart’ is the control center of a person’s life. Their’s is hard, immovable, inflexible, unwilling to change.

TS - the spiritual position of an unbeliever is disastrous. Separated from God, dead in sin. Hard, closed off to God and His ways. And that has very real implications for how they live.

HIS PRACTICE (V. 19)

v. 19 opens with a final description of them, in that they have ‘become callous.’ A word used only here in the NT, means ‘unfeeling.’ ILL - have you ever heard of Congenital Insensitivity? It is a rare genetic disorder that causes the person to never be able to feel pain. While that may seem like a good thing, it is deadly. Pain is how we know something is wrong and needs to be fixed. Without the ability to feel, there will not be any indication something is broken or dying. Those outside of Christ do not have a genetic condition, but a spiritual one…they do not feel. Therefore…

They have ‘given themselves over to sensuality.’ Notice again, this is their own doing. Given self over. ‘Sensuality’ typically refers to sexual sin in the Bible, along with drunkenness. It refers to ‘unrestrained desires.’ It is to sin openly and without shame. Not even embarrassed by it. Don’t care if you or God knows. There is a pride to their pursuit of sin. And this sensuality has a purpose…’for the practice of every kind of impurity.’ ‘Practice’ is the Greek word for ‘work.’ Their sin is actively working towards impurity of every kind. Sin, and their pursuit of it, has corrupted every single aspect of their life. And they do this…with greediness. This does not mean that they are greedy in a financial sense, he will deal with that later in chapter 5. Greedy is how they feel about their sin…like an addict, they are totally consumed by the pursuit of their personal gratification.

TS - this is a picture of those outside of Christ painted in the darkest tones, described with the harshest language. No one could read this text and then look at the world around them and declare, ‘people are basically good.’ Outside of Christ, this is their spiritual reality.

THE NEW MAN (V. 20-32)

‘But you’ opens verse 20. It is placed first in the sentence of emphasis. You are not the same. You are different.

Ephesians 4:20-24 - 20 But you did not learn Christ in this way—

21 if indeed you heard Him and were taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus—

22 to lay aside, in reference to your former conduct, the old man, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit,

23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your mind,

24 and to put on the new man, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

HIS POSITION (V. 20-24)

Herein lies the fundamental difference between those outside of Christ and those ‘in Christ’ - you have ‘learned Christ.’ ‘Learn’ is part of the word family of ‘disciple.’ A disciple is simply a ‘learner.’ The word is used throughout the NT to refer to learning information, things, doctrines, lessons. This is the only time it is used to learn a person. This emphasizes the relational aspect of being a Christian. You are ‘in Christ.’ You were placed in Union with Christ when God saved you.

But you not only ‘learned’ Christ, v. 21 - you heard Him and were taught in Him. Learn/heard/taught…images of school. There is a very real academic, intellectual nature to the faith of Christianity that is ignored by too many Christians. You have to know some stuff to be a Christian. You have to know more stuff to grow as a Christian. And in the School of Christ, the curriculum is simple…end of v. 21 - just as truth is in Jesus. Our required textbook, our curriculum is the Bible, the source of truth.

When we learned Christ, when we were converted and became disciples of Jesus, here is what we learned…3 actions: First, v. 22, to lay aside the old man, which he defines as our former conduct. Walk away from your old lifestyle. You are in Christ now, you cannot continue to live like you are still outside of Christ. We’ve already seen the description of that…it’s bad. ‘Lay aside’ is a clothing word. This lifestyle that defined you…take it off. Just like taking off a coat. Remove it from you and set it aside, you will not need it anymore. Because it is corrupted with the lusts of deceit. It is decaying. It is rotting. It is dead and getting worse.

Instead, v. 23 - be renewed in the spirit of your mind. Just as those outside of Christ live with darkened, dead thinking, in Christ your mind has been brought to life. God has shined the spotlight of His truth in your mind and dispelled the dark thinking. Your eyes are now opened to the truth of the Gospel and the truth of His Word. Your thinking isn’t dark anymore because Scripture lit it up. And because God opened your eyes to the shining truth of Scripture, you now v. 24, put on the new man. Your old lifestyle is dead and gone. Put on the new one which is revealed in Scripture and personified in Christ, that is described as righteousness and holiness. Of the truth…all comes from Scripture.

TS - just as the old man’s position outside of Christ dictated his practice, so now your new position in Christ dictates the new man. Being a Christian has dramatic effects on your personal lifestyle. For the next several verses, and into chapter 5, Paul will lay out what one scholar calls the ‘nitty-gritty’ of Christian living. And chief among his priorities is the Unity that exists among Christians. This is the theme we’ve been developing throughout Ephesians…you have been placed in Union with Christ and that Union creates Unity with Christians. All of these commands are to be understood as how to live out the reality of unity with your brothers and sisters in Christ.

HIS PRACTICE (V. 25-32)

To begin laying out the incredibly practical aspects of unity, Paul lists 5 expectations on the Christian that shows what this new man looks like. All but one of them have the same order…negative prohibition, positive command, purpose behind it.

DO NOT LIE, BUT TELL THE TRUTH (V. 25)

v. 25 - 25 Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth each one of you with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.

According to a research study done earlier this year, the average person lies 4x per day. A full 7% of everything people say is false. But in Christ, we are to lay aside falsehood. It is the same word used for lay aside the old man in v. 22. Part of what that means is we take off the reality of lying and speak truth. Last week we looked at 4:15 and the command to ‘speak the truth in love.’ There, Paul is talking about communicating the objective body of truth found in Scripture to one another, literally ‘truthing.’ Here, he has more the idea of being honest with one another. Why should we do that? ‘For we are members of one another.’ The unity of the body depends on honesty. The ancient preacher John Chrysostom made the clever point that you wouldn’t want parts of your body lying to each other. If you were walking down a path and saw a snake, would you want your eyes to lie to your feet? No! Lying harms the others we are supposed to be unity with.

BE ANGRY, BUT WORK IT OUT (V. 26-27)

v. 26-27 - 26 Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger,

27 and do not give the devil an opportunity.

In an odd twist, we are actually commanded to be angry. But isn’t anger sinful? Maybe. The word for angry is ascribed to God several times in the Bible, so anger is not inherently evil. It is possible to be angry and not sin in that anger. John Stott writes, “There is a great need in the contemporary world for more Christian anger…in the face of blatant evil we should be indignant not tolerant, angry not apathetic. If God hates sin, his people should hate it too. If evil arouses his anger, it should arouse ours also.” And to mitigate our anger to ensure we do not slip into sin, Paul places a time limit on it. Be angry, but get over it. Work it out before the end of the day. Otherwise, you are giving the devil an opportunity to wreak havoc. In Romans 12, Paul teaches to not seek revenge but to ‘leave room’ for God’s vengeance. ‘Leave room’ is the same word as ‘opportunity’ here. When you let your anger continue unchecked and unresolved, you are leaving room for Satan to work. And he would love nothing more than to destroy God’s unified people.

DO NOT STEAL, BUT GIVE GENEROUSLY (V. 28)

V. 28 - 28 He who steals must steal no longer, but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need.

Stealing is selfish and self-serving. Instead of taking advantage of someone else’s hard work and being a parasite on it, do your own hard work with your own hands (not meaning manual labor but personal responsibility). Why? So that you can have resources to give away to help others. So if someone has a need come up in the church, they aren’t to take matters into their own hands to fix it by something like stealing. They are to rely on the unified body of Christ to meet that need.

DO NOT TEAR DOWN, BUT BUILD UP (V. 29-30)

v. 29-30 - 29 Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for building up what is needed, so that it will give grace to those who hear.

30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

No ‘unwholesome’ speech…that word is used of bad fruit and rancid fish. Nasty, rotten, not good for anything. The opposite of it is that which builds, helps, encourages. Speak what is good. While v. 28 said we are to work for what is good, here we speak what is good. Not only do we provide for people’s physical needs by our generosity, we meet their spiritual needs with our words…gives grace to those who hear. Otherwise, your harsh tearing down words will grieve the HS. Think of the implications of this…your harsh words not only hurt the person in the body of Christ, but they also grieve the HS who indwells them. Your harsh words hurt the unified body and the Spirit who has accomplished that very unity.

DO NOT BE MEAN, BUT BE KIND (V. 31-32)

v. 31-32 - 31 Let all bitterness and anger and wrath and shouting and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.

32 Instead, be kind to one another, tender-hearted, graciously forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has graciously forgiven you.

‘Put away’ all these forms of relational sins. Notice there is a progression to them. Bitterness, anger, wrath are all internal dispositions. But those inevitably come out in the form of shouting and slander. As Jesus noted, out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. Put all that away. Take it off and walk away from it. Instead, v. 32, be kind. Now, lest you think we have reverted back to kindergarten class, look at how he defines kindness, a word he already used to describe God Himself in 2:7 as it is God’s kindness that drove salvation. To be kind is to be tender-hearted. Euspagxnos. Sounds like a German military invasion. It is the word for bowels, or guts. It is referring to the feeling, the ache you feel in your gut when you truly care for someone. Be tender-hearted with one another. Have real affection for God’s people.

And to be kind is to graciously forgive each other. Oddly enough, the word ‘forgive’ is not in the text. The verb literally translates as ‘gracing’ each other. But forgiveness is clearly implied. Because it is God who ‘graced’ you in Christ. He has forgiven you. He blessed you when you didn’t deserve it. He has abundantly provided for you when you hadn’t earned that. He withheld punishment when you did deserve that. He is kind. So you are to be like Him…be kind. Be quick to forgive. Don’t hold grudges. Help when people don’t deserve it. Take all the good things the Lord has done for you and do that for His people.

Conclusion

This is how God’s people live in unity. These things are foundational teaching for life together. And all of it is based on God’s saving work in the gospel. He has loved you. So love His people. He has forgiven you. So forgive His people. He has blessed you. So bless His people.