Our Former Reality

Introduction

Verses 1-3 are a sort of hinge place between what we have seen in chapter 1 and what follows in chapter 2. These verses contain the beginning of the story for every human being on earth. This is something that every person can relate to whether he believes it or not. What is important for us to note is that verses 1-3 are all written in the past tense. These things were, at one point, true of us, but they are no longer. That is the implication which we will see more, Lord willing, next week. It leads me to ask this question in preparation for the text. Do you recall of who you once were? In what state were you in before the Lord Jesus saved you? Paul is reminding the believers in Ephesus of these things. Not for the purpose of bringing them down and to wallow in remembrance. But to bring them to a recognition of these things to, once again, look to the work of Christ as most amazing (vv.4-5). In an effort to not forget the significance of Christ’s work on the cross, we must be reminded of the deplorable nature of who we were as sinners in the sight of God.

May this not be of discouragement to you as we look at verses 1-3, but I pray that it would be an encouraging reminder of the wondrous work of Christ to save you from the wrath of God because of your sin. To help us do that, we will look at three things to guide us… Our former reality

I. Is our starting place (v.1)

II. Is living like the devil (v.2)

III. Is inescapable (v.3)

Is our starting place (v.1)

Verse 1 gives us the beginning place for every human being, saved or not. Every human being is dead, spiritually speaking. This is not the most pleasant of starting places, but it is one that is most necessary to see the grandeur of the good news of Christ that brings a dead man to life.

A lifeless starting place

Verse 1 gives us the most morbid of starting places, quite contrary to the world I might add. There are two absolute claims that Paul reminds the Ephesians of concerning their former way of life. They were 1. dead, lifeless people (as in a walking corpse) and 2. consumed with and by sin. This is a summary of the lifeless starting place. Nevertheless it is a place in which every human begins. This is the death that is warned against in Genesis 2:17, “but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat from it; for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”” Adam did not die on the day that he sinned physically speaking, but spiritually speaking, he was a physically walking spiritual corpse in desperate need of Yahweh’s mercy. Having this understanding helps us to answer well the question that is commonly raised. That is, “how can I be dead, when I am walking, talking, and having the time of my life?” To the world, the thought of a dead person being alive is most foolish! Only a person who is alive is alive, this is the human reasoning. This brings us back to our Scripture reading in Romans 8:6-8. The one who lives in the flesh, lives according to his nature, and that nature is sinful at the core. In the last few years there has been quite the resurgence of zombies, especially around Halloween. There have been shows and movies with zombies in them, toys that are made, and they are on shirts. Maybe you are familiar with the “Zombie Apocalypse.” Why do I bring this up? Because every person who lives according to the flesh, according to sin and transgression is a spiritual zombie. That is a person who walks and is alive but is dead at the same time. Consider what the Scripture says in 1 Timothy 5:6 about the widow who lives a selfish life, “But she who lives in self-indulgence is dead even while she lives.” Scripture does not shy away from this topic.

Consumed by sin

Not only were the Ephesians (and every person unregenerate before salvation) a lifeless corpse, but they were utterly consumed by their sin. In other words, all that they could do, and we as well before salvation in Christ alone, was sin, incessantly and uncontrollably. I do not mean that we sin as bad as we can, for God restrains us from doing so. But all we can do before coming to Christ is sin. The Ephesians were dead in their sin before coming to Christ. Before Yahweh gives the conditions of living that would emulate being His people, He blatantly states that He is sovereign over every person and their destiny. He says in Ezekiel 18:4, “Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins will die.” He does not say this because there are souls who do not sin, but because the one who does, or better yet, is consumed by sin is righteously condemned by Yahweh God Himself. It must be noted that what Paul is reminding the Ephesians is that they were guilty of severe crimes. One of those crimes is committing transgressions. To commit a transgression is to overstep the line or push the boundary and go beyond it. This boundary is the limit that God has set. Therefore, we must not take transgressions lightly because we are disobeying God by going out of bounds according to his set way.

But why would Paul bring them back to such a decrepit place? After all of the spiritual blessings that are given in Ephesians 1:3-14 and all of the precious promises that are mentioned throughout it why come back to such a sorrowful reality? There is only one explanation and that is to emphasize the great work of Christ on their behalf. This, Lord willing, we will see in verses 4-7 next week. But for now consider what is said in John 5:24, ““Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.” Just as the Ephesians needed to be reminded of the bad news so do we sometimes because we lose sight of just how great the work of Christ on the cross is.

Now in no way does Paul put forth to the Ephesians that they are merely sinful people as though there is nothing worse than that. He is getting at something deeper and that is that their sin that they were consumed by would ultimately lead them to the second death. This goes beyond a mere spiritual death that is experienced on Earth. It has everything to do with the eternal state. Although the eternal state is not clearly stated here, everything that we see at the end of Revelation regarding the eternal state of the wicked lines up with this first verse in Ephesians 2. For the question could be asked if a dead person remains dead what is his state after life on Earth? Calvin comments, “Those who are of a mind alien to God’s righteousness know that his judgment seat stands ready to punish transgressions against him.” Can a man go from death to life? Without Christ, this is impossible. And we are going to see that more clearly when we look at verse two and how the way in which we live mirrors the way in which the evil one lives. It is not as though we are associated with the devil in that he is our ruler and master. The truth is that the devil is identified in his spiritual death as are humans who remain in that condition. But the life that is lived whether the evil one or human in sin is carried out in a similar manner.

Is living like the devil (v.2)

At the outset of verse two we must not look at this in a hierarchical sense. The devil is not above humans whacking or whipping people with whips like an unrighteous slave-master would. Yes, Satan has power over them, but the end punishment is the same. Let us look at several truths that are obvious from this text. They are these sins are an active lifestyle, the course of this world is evil inherently, the ruler of the power of the heir (who is Satan) oversees it in a managerial sense, and the spirit of iniquity and wickedness is working itself out in those who love their sin. And that is seen in the works of disobedience. I want to look at each of these in turn but in short you could say it is living like the devil which is our 2nd point.

An active lifestyle

The first thing that must be noted here is that this is an active lifestyle of sin. Not one that lies dormant and is never activated. It is something that is performed, something that is done, something that is worked out. You could say that even the passive sins are passively active sins. And there is no sin that is not included, for every sin is in this category. You might be familiar with the unrighteous manager in Luke 16 who tells his clients to write down a lesser amount so that he can be provided for after he is fired. But listen to the active nature of sin as Jesus says in Luke 16:8, ““And his master praised the unrighteous steward because he had acted shrewdly, for the sons of this age are more shrewd in relation to their own kind than the sons of light.” Even though the unrighteous manager was sinning in his work by acting shrewdly, the master praises his iniquity. You could compare this to somebody who steals food from an employer to feed his family. And the employer saying that’s OK go ahead and steal because you need to feed your family. And in the same way, the evil one is still actively sinning against God. He didn’t stop at the garden but he continues to sin over and over again.

The course of the world is evil

The second truth of verse 2 is one that would put enmity between what the world thinks of itself and what God says of the world. The world tells us every day that human beings are basically good and that the world is trying to do good for the people who live in it. Whether we see this as a tainted idea of good or something that is for the general benefit of another what we must understand, here, is that at the core the world is evil. We know this because living a life of death in transgressions and sins that are actively walked in are due to the natural dealings of the world. Paul explains this very clearly. Evil does not come from God. Evil only comes from the world, further evil comes from within man who inhabits the world. Consider what the Colossians were warned of in Colossians 2:8, “See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, and not according to Christ.” There is not one blessing, or notation of anything godly. Instead what is given is that which is evil and wicked. These both are attributed to worldly thinking. I want to hit close to home for a moment. When we think of people who are living according to the world or even a brother or a sister who is momentarily stepped back into the world it is not just a life according to a principle in nature. But what are people doing when they live according to the world? They are living in open rebellion against God. This is why it is so important and such an urgent matter to live and speak the truth to people who are living this way. It is just as important to be in prayer for those who have not come to Christ that the blinders would be removed and that they would no longer live according to the ways of the world. We must also speak the truth and pray for those who have backslidden into worldly living. Because these things are literally a matter of life and death.

The evil one oversees in a managerial sense

The third truth is fixed on Satan himself. For “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one” (1 John 5:19). Satan rules in a managerial sense in that he keeps the operation going, but he also keeps men and women who hate God in continual oppression. He rules with dominion and power over the spiritually dead. Further Kent Hughes writes, “This devil dominates and energizes the spiritually dead.” Yet his dominion and power are limited in that they are fixed upon the world stage. His power does not go any further than the world stage. He has no power in heaven, nor does he have any power in hell. He only has power on Earth and that power is for a limited time. But the power of Satan is powerful. He is not a wimp who is easily walked on. Before the Ephesian believers repented of their sin and came to Christ, they were under the dominating power of Satan. Satan dominates unbelievers today. But it doesn’t have to be this way. To any unbeliever in this room Christ has called you to repent and forsake your sins. Trust in Him and be liberated from the dominion of Satan!

The spirit is working in those who love their sin

The final part of verse 2 tells us that man does not live entirely free. There is a spirit that overshadows them and implores them to continue on in wickedness. People will today say that I am living a life of liberty and freedom for I live in the freest country imaginable on Earth. And although they might think that they live in absolute freedom, this spirit that is of the evil one is one that prompts disobedience in the lives of unbelieving people. This is not to say that human beings are controlled by Satan like robots and that is why they sin. On the contrary, humans sin because they love sin and Satan ensures that the blinders are on so that sin may continue. This spirit resides in those who live in opposition (2 Timothy 2:25) to the Way. The one who is in opposition to the things of God is marked by disobedience. You will notice that at the end of verse 2, the children of the evil one per se are labeled as the sons of disobedience. Now this disobedience holds a much heavier weight compared to the way that we look at that word to day. Consider this word in light of what Colossians 3:6 says “On account of these things, the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience.”

What might even be worse than living like the devil is that that kind of lifestyle apart from the work of Jesus Christ is inescapable.

Is inescapable (v.3)

Paul cuts right to the chase at the beginning of verse 3 and says that every single person before coming to Christ formerly lived in the lusts of their flesh. He then goes on to break it down a little further. The main crux of the matter is you either live in the flesh or you live in the Spirit. Unless Christ has radically changed you, you cannot live in the Spirit therefore by default you can only live in the flesh and that is what Paul is getting at in verse 3. Living in the flesh is inescapable apart from Christ.

Inescapable truths

There are mental and practical ways that we can look at verse three in our own life. The sins of one person are not going to look like the sins of another person. Some sins might be continual while others change over time. Paul skips all of these thoughts and gets to the very root of sin. What matters for Paul in verse 3 is that everything he mentions is true of every person regardless of what the sin looks like. There is no believer or unbeliever who would be able to look at this and honestly say that this was /or is not true of them. The OT makes this clear. Listen to Isaiah 53:6 which reads, “All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way.” If that was not convincing enough, listen to Isaiah 64:6 which says, “For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, carry us away.” 1 John 1:8 is an indictment which reads, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” As we saw earlier, the scripture does not hide from difficult subjects. This is another one that the scripture does not hide from. The Bible from beginning to end tells us that human beings are evil. We are rightly labeled children of wrath as verse 3 says it. The act of conducting ourselves is spiritual in nature according to the Greek language. The reason I bring that up is because verse three does not just hint at the physical actions that are being done. It dives deeper than that and looks again at the spiritual condition.

Nothing more hard could be true

I don’t want to sound insensitive here but I want you to see the severity of verse 3. There are many hard things that we have to hear in our lives like a medical diagnosis of some kind or a loss of job or having to move from a place that you have been for many many years. I say this gently but all of these situations pale in comparison to the hard truth that sinners who remain in the life of verse 3 are condemned to eternal hellfire. The afflictions that we deal with on Earth are not of the same magnitude in comparison to our eternal destiny. One day, the difficulties of this life in the physical realm will go away and will no longer have any impact upon any one of us. But your second dwelling place whether that is in heaven or in Hell lasts forever. The torment never dissipates in hell. Further, on Earth we experience God’s comfort throughout our lives. This comfort is not afforded to those in hell. The wrath of God according to what we saw earlier in Colossians 3:6 is forever. It is definitely going to come to pass. Listen to this sobering truth from Galatians 5:19–21, “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” You want to talk about a hard truth! It would seem as though there is no hope for the one of whom this is said!

Conclusion

A glimmer of hope amidst such darkness

All is not lost amidst this horrifying reality . For I hope that you have noticed that in all three verses the past tense is used. ‘You were’ in verse 1. ‘you formerly walked’ in verse 2, and ‘we all also formerly conducted ourselves’ in verse 3. This was true of the believers in emphasis before conversion . And I want to plead with you one more time that there is only One hope for you if you want to be freed from a life of sin and enslavement and escape such a terrible eternal dwelling place. Jesus words to Nicodemus in John 3 give us the remedy. John 3:3 “Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”” What does it mean to be born again? Simply put, it means that you must turn from your old way of living, trust in Christ who took all your sins and died so that you could be forgiven, and as an outpouring of this you will no longer live a live enslaved to wickedness but of freedom doing good works to the glory of Christ.

Christian believer may I encourage you to do two things this morning? First, make it a point to live with gratitude this week. Looking at verses 1-3 as believers, we have so much in Christ to be grateful for. Second, may these texts not only be a reminder to you of where you once were, but may they propel you to share the good news of Christ to those of whom verses 1-3 are still true, and may this church be a praying church for the salvation of the lost.

Let’s pray!

Benediction

Jeremiah 17:7 (italics mine) “Blessed are you O man who trusts in Yahweh and whose trust is Yahweh.”