WEEK 6: EPHESIANS 5

06/02/23 Light Church: Benji Horning.

Ephesians 5:1-20 Ephesians 5:1 is a picture of the christian life Our basis Our behavior

Sex Money Time Words Our belovedness Behavior is about ethics. Ethics bring order around certain rules A Brief overview of Ethics:

Teleological Ethics - the end sets the premise for what is right and good (Plato and Aristotle) Utilitarian Ethics - what will produce the greatest good for the greatest number (Jeremy Bentham) Deontological Ethics - ethical theory that uses rules to distinguish right from wrong (Immanuel Kant) Postmodern Ethics - defined by self-referentiality, intellectual and moral relativism, pluralism, and irreverence. Postmodernism is a new set of frameworks that have been around for about 50 years. We were born into postmodernism. A major belief of postmodernism is that there is no real truth. Throughout history, what was right and wrong was determined by a sacred text Psychologized self. Ethics are now governed by ourselves. If we come against one’s beliefs that they themselves live by, we can offend them Cs lewis calls this chronological snobbery "Chronological snobbery," - The innate human bias to think we're smarter than people who came before us and therefore new ideas are naturally better or more truthful than old ones. -C. S. Lewis, surprised by joy

Every culture must answer these questions:

How do we know right from wrong? Who gets to decide what is right and wrong? Why does this group or this person carry moral authority and another does not? By what standard is right and wrong defined?

The way of the world vs the way of love

The Way Of The World: invites into a self-focused paradigm of consumption and fulfillment based on personal pleasure, subjective morals, and a deep fear of rejection. The Way of Love: invites us into an others-focused paradigm of care and flourishing based on our reality of adoption, divine purpose, and deep rest in Christ's lordship. 1 Corinthians 14:4-8 Galatians 5:22-25 Ephesians 5:3. There must not even be a hint of sexual immorality

Not Even A Hint: two greek words

Porneia - all sexuality activity outside of the covenant of marriage Akatharsia (less of an action and more of a thought pattern) - lewdness, promiscuity, unclean motives the Ephesians grew up in a culture where the greeks worshipped the god of sex, where the way they would worship this god was through prostitution Around the 1960’s began this sexual revolution. It was this rejection to the order of sexuality In 1972, the supreme court said birth control could be administered to people who arent married In 1969, there was no longer a punishment for divorce. Turning covenant into a contract In 2012, tinder was created to “get your needs met.” To have sec without relationship Then homosexuality was legalized in all 50 states Newsweek says 1 in 9 Americans have been in a polygamous relationship. And 1 in 6 would like to try one "The intuitive moral structure of our modern social imaginary prioritizes victimhood, sees selfhood in psychological terms, regards traditional sexual codes as oppressive and life denying, and places a premium on the individual's right to define his or her own existence.” - Carl R. Trueman, The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self Another book by carl Trueman, strange new world "One finds philosophical justification for what are now intuitive commonplaces of our culture: to be free is to be sexually liberated; to be happy is to be affirmed in that liberation. - William O'Neil, The New Left John mark comer in live no lies asks, is it working? Every new cultural shift promises us something new Americas happiness levels have been declining steadily since 1960’s, and although correlation is not causation, it is interesting Is our current cultural paradigm working? (Data from Live No Lies, John Mark Comer)

Divorce is increasing and is a traumatic event for children of all ages, and we're learning it's directly tied to the rising number of people who struggle to develop intimate, healthy relationships in adulthood. Psychologists argue that the drop in those who identify as having' “secure attachment" wreaking havoc in our society. Divorce, while cited as an example of liberation from the patriarchy, has been shown to Disproportionately benefit men Those who cohabitate before marriage are less likely to marry, are more likely to get a divorce if they do, and often develop long-term trust issues. Research on oxytocin and vasopressin, the two chemicals released by our body during sex that bring our attachment system online and cause us to bond to another person. It seems that the more sexual partners you have, the less capacity your body has for intimacy The much-documented but little-talked-about data on the effects of abortion on women's mental and physical health, causing some to hypothesize the Left will eventually change its now hard-line view. 25 percent of children spend a portion of their childhood without a father in the home. Overwhelming evidence indicates that this experience is damaging to both boys and girls. Sex reassignment surgery and hormone therapy for those who identify as transgender do not benefit their emotional or mental health (which is the main rationale behind them). Porn is becoming increasingly violent, misogynistic, and cruel and is now a multibillion-dollar industry, intentionally targeting children. While #metoo was dominating headlines, the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy -a story about male sexual domination- was becoming the highest-selling book series of the decade and one of the highest-grossing film franchises of all time. Sexual abuse and sexual assault are getting worse, not better. Statistically, one out of every four women will experience sexual violence at some mint in their lives.

Remember, God calls us to not have a hint of sexual immorality

jesus had a sex drive. As a single individual man, that he did not give into We can have a fully fulfilled beautiful life without having sex at all. Jesus did So much scientific research goes against “test driving the car before you buy it.” On a psychological level, this causes sex to become more about performance than faithfulness. This isn’t to shame anyone. This is to point out the cultural narratives that we have been taught If you are not moving towards marriage then step out of relationship. Being engaged is not being in covenant Practice restraint in marriage. Serve your spouse in sex. We need to practice restraint with everyone else in the world and only have sex with our spouse What do i assume culturally? What does the bible say?

B. Money

Ephesians 5:3. or of greed. It is about finances. The Ephesian church was dealing with affluence. They were a wealthy church 1 Tim 6:6-10 Pauls instruction to timothy is that when we pastor an affluent church WE NEED TO WARN THEM. Ive been in many different environments, greed is everywhere, but in affluent areas, greed is much more sneaky. People are like i don’t need a Ferrari, i just want a tesla.

The cultural promise what money will produce is false

He had everything, but he possessed nothing. There is the spiritual secret." A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God: The Human Thirst for the Divine The cultural promise that you will never have enough

jesus had everything but possessed so little Matthew 6:28-33 It is our mandate as the body of christ that there would be no needy person among us. If you are lacking food and clothing we need to know that

C. Time

Ephesians 5:16. Making the most of your time because the days are evil

"Jesus understood his purpose, and that allowed him to take the long list of things he could do and pare it down to the things he knew he should do to finish the work the Father gave him to do (see John 17:4). Prioritizing daily time with the Author of time is one of the primary ways we can demonstrate our devotion to the Lord. " - Jordan Raynor, Redeeming Your Time Our budget, our sexuality, AND our calendar says a lot about how much we trust God

D.

Are your words formed in the way of love. eph 5:4 James 3:9-12

Our belovedness

there is a danger to walk away from this sermon with morals and good behavior. Ephesians 5:1,8. We are dearly loved children. If we do not understand that we are a beloved child of God, every single one of those behaviors will feel overwhelming for us. If i follow jesus and i am doing these things and i find myself looking down on others who are not i am in great danger. Self righteousness has snuck in. This is what happens to the church in ephesus. In revelation 2, the writer of revelation says, I KNOW YOUR DEEDS. You have done the stuff and the actions and the behavior, BUT I HOLD THIS AGAINST YOU, you HAVE FORGOTTEN THE LOVE YOU HAVE AT FIRST. You can be sexually pure, financially generous, be efficient with my time, have self control and purity with my words and still miss it. DO NOT FORGET WHY I DO THIS Benji didn’t let zoe get a phone. Every kid in her 5th grade class had an i phone. Benji printed articles that showed the mental affects of how iPhones have a negative affect on girls from 11-17 You will never have any amount of research or data that will inform your ethical beliefs that will ever trump sitting on your fathers lap saying okay God ill trust you "Every time you feel hurt, offended, or rejected, you have to dare to say to yourself: "These feelings, strong as they may be, are not telling me the truth about myself. The truth, even though I cannot feel it right now, is that I am the chosen child of God, precious in God's eyes, called the Beloved from all eternity, and held safe in an everlasting embrace." - Henri Nouwen