The Renewed Man

What does Renewal mean to you?

For example, perhaps you have seen the process of restoration.

Some view, restoration and renewal as the same thing.

But when an item is restored you are trying to being it into a better version of its former self.

But friends, when something is renewed it is a complete change.

It isn’t a better version of an old creation.

It is new.

Today, renewal in the new year is just that.

Newness.

today, as we inch ever closer to new years.

It is a time for us to reflect on the year, but also a time to look forward.

Paul often writing in scripture gave clear definition to the past, but also had a primary focused on the forward facing man.

focusing on the future of the churches he wrote the letters to.

One such church was Ephesus in Ephesians.

They represent the truth that we will speak on today in Ephesians 4:17-32

Ephesians 4:17–32 KJV 1900

This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But ye have not so learned Christ; If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.

What an excitement a new year brings.

An opportunity for reflection and an opportunity to look to the future.

Some of us have been through some trials this year in our church.

We have lost those we love.

Some of us have faced sickness and health scares.

Some of us have experienced the joys of new life.

But Hallelujah, God has given each of us here another year.

I have to wonder as we end this year, friend, have you ever been guilty of following the path of those around you?

In other words, you just do what is popular and convenient.

Have you been guilty of having a herd mentality?

Friends, we are often imitators. We imitate what we see.

Such as, we follow the crowd because of the popular choice.

This is similar to that of what Paul was speaking on.

He had hoped and prayed and encouraged in today scripture that the Ephesians would not follow the path set before them that the Gentiles had set.

The Gentiles lived as…

I. The Old Man

For those of us who know Christ today what does the Old you look like?

Friends many of us have an older version of ourselves that seem to haunt us.

For whatever reason it seems that the sins of our past follows around our future.

But why?

Well friends perhaps you haven’t been able to move on from the old you for a couple of different reasons.

You may not trusted in Jesus with all faith.

You have not allowed the Holy Spirit to lead you out of a life of sin.

The Gentiles he mentioned were living separated from God.

One major symptom of lives separated from God is that in separation of our fellowship with God our world becomes distorted by the sin that dwells within it.

The Gentiles view of the world was distorted by sin.

Friends, this is what scripture calls....

A Darkened View

A Darkened view is the way that Paul describes the Gentiles in Ephesians 4:18.

At times many in our world live in a darkened view.

the symptoms of this are indicated by various ways.

Becoming closed minded and stubborn in our ways as the Sadducee and Pharisees in Jesus's day are one easy example.

In Matthew 12 Jesus and the disciples went through the garden to pick grain to have a meal on the sabbath and were quickly told by the Pharisees that this was not a way to approach such a situation.

The Pharisees said “look the disciples are doing that which is unlawful”

But Jesus knew the truth.

That something greater than the temple was here and that the law of the land were nothing more than ancient traditional documents.

The Pharisees view was distorted and darkened due to tradition.

This was their sin.

They misled many because of the simple fact that they became obsessed with the law of the land.

For some this is indicated by a desire of social status, greed, selfishness and more.

For the Gentiles it was indicated in verse 19 Ephesians 4:19

Ephesians 4:19 KJV 1900

Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.

Though I do not know the hearts of the people today there is one who who does.

Thankfully today we can rely on that one to provide an opportunity to have hope for our future year and ahead.

That one is the Holy Spirit and as he perhaps is convicting you of your distorted view and of whatever sin is causing your to live as the Old Man.

There is an opportunity of repentance.

If you are one here today who has lived this year and perhaps past years perhaps thinking that you are saved but in realization today the Holy Spirit is beginning to convict you and show you that perhaps your faithfulness has not been as strong as you once believed.

If you are that one today, you need to repent of that sin.

But the Beauty in you being in this building today is that the Lord could be giving you another opportunity to change the direction of your Life.

For the Gentiles Paul made it clear in verse 18 Paul that they had already allowed this distortion to blind their heart.

In other words it was going to be hard to get the Gentiles to move from the spot in life that their sin had taken them.

They were blind to it, they could not see it.

you feel that feeling of conviction and your blind heart is opening today and you are beginning to see the sin in your life, most of all you see an opportunity to repent from your sin.

Why wait friends, even though this sermon is not over you can take the time right now in your seats to repent of your sin and I encourage you to do just that.

Just simply beleive in faith that Jesus Christ is Lord and Repent of your sins by asking the Lord to forgive you of them and then turn away from them.

When the Holy Spirit draws us unto action, out of our darkened view and into total faith in Jesus Christ we get to decide to follow Jesus with all of our self.

Friends, sometimes this can present itself as not giving your past hurts over the Jesus Christ.

We try to carry them all on our own.

Because we feel strong enough.

We wonder why we always feel emotionally and physically defeated when we carry our own burdens.

What this does is cause us to live as the old man or woman.

We cannot move to a new us because we are not allowing Christ to take our burdens.

Perhaps today

you need a transition.

By that I mean you need to transition the direction of your heart.

Some for salvation here.

Some for past hurts.

Some for grief.

But whatever the case is in your life you need may need to transition to Jesus today

wouldn't that be life changing.

The Old man within you would becoming…

II. The New Man

The new man is to describe a man or woman who is transformed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

What hope is in Jesus Christ today.

That He may transform us through his spirit.

For many of us today, we have experienced that life transformation already.

but I want to encourage all of you today to ask a simple question.

What is different in my life today than at the start of the year?

What is going to be different at the end of 2024?

You see as time passes we can be guilty of trying to go back to the Old Man.

Thankfully we have God’s Spirit to reveal to us that truth and draw us out of that darkness.

For those of us who fail to listen to the spirit of God and venture out on our own, that is living as the Old Man and not the new man.

Philippians 3:13–14 KJV 1900

Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

Friends, we need to listen to the Spirit today.

We need to Press On as scripture teaches us.

Moving forward to the high calling of God.

Well you may ask, what is the high calling of God?

Simply put, it is allowing Christ to pursue us.

And for us, we are going to seek God’s will, mission and vision on our life.

Bot not only on our life, but on the life of our church and in the lives of our families.

Friends, that may mean we have to give up some sacred cows.

We may have to give up some idols, in our life or in our church that have encouraged us to live as the Old Man when scripture has called us to live as the New man.

Perhaps we have to make a bold decision to move on from something today that is isn’t drawing us into the pursuit of God.

rather, it is drawing us into the past old self. One who lived separated from God.

Friends, this brings us to our final point.…

III. The Grief of the Spirit

The last verses we read In our scripture are verse 30.

Let’s look at the Word of God one more time.

let us really pay attention to the truth of the scriptures today.

Ephesians 4:30 KJV 1900

And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

Webster defines grief in this way

deep and poignant distress caused by or as if by bereavement.

When we avoid the Spirits call to live in Newness and choose to live as the Old scripture teaches us that the Holy Spirit of God grieves us.

It is as though we are dead by definition.

Friends, this is a scary truth.

But today there is opportunity for joy.

There is hope that we can receive the peace of God.

We do not have to grieve God’s Spirit today.

We do not have to live as the Old man today.

Perhaps for each of here, those who already follow Jesus and those who do.

Let’s take moment and as the alter call begins, the spirit of God is in this place.

take the time to pray for God to reveal unto you today, how you may be living as the old man.

And as 2023 nears an end, follow the spirits call.

Do not go into 2024 with a darkened heart that is living in the old.

Let’s