Ephesians 5:1-17 // Got dressed, now get walkin’

WELCOME

PASTORAL PRAYER

intro this new aspect of our service.

Vocations present at MLC

Partner Local Churches

Partnership Regional → Global Churches

Missions: Global & Local

INTRO

Having been dressed in a new set of clothes (AS SEEN LAST WEEK), believers are called to imitate God by walking in love, light, and wisdom.

ILLUS: AMBASSADORS - Ambassadors are in a foreign land that is not their own. They go away temporarily to a foreign land to spend time away from home. Ambassadors have to learn the language and learn the customs, but they’re never to belong there. They are just to live there in order to carry out their mission. In order to carry it out, they’ve got to live there. In order to carry it out, they’ve got to talk the language.

To carry it out, they’ve got to function in the context of the people, but they are to never forget it’s not where they belong. The Bible says your citizenship is in heaven.

What good is an ambassador who doesn’t represent the homeland? The problem is that today we’ve got a generation of ambassadors who like the foreign country. In fact, they have fallen in love with the foreign country.

READ

English Standard Version Chapter 5

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God

WALK IN LOVE (v.1-2)

Walk - to conduct one’s life in a certain way. We look like God the most when we give to him our very best.

People love the outcome. God loves the process (every step of the journey)

Walk in love is living a life of love. It’s a daily behavior

Christ provides the model for how Christians are to live in love; His sacrificial death is

the definition of love.

This description of Christ’s death draws on language from the sac system in the OT.

Christ loved us & gave His life for us.

Like the story of a soldier that was wounded so badly he had to get an amputation. The surgeon after the surgery said to him: "I am sorry to tell you that you have lost your arm." "Sir," said the lad, "I did not lose it; I gave it -for my country." Christ did not lose His life, He gave His life for us.

The description of Christ’s death uses language from the sac system in the OT

Offering – products from the field [what the worshiper brings to God]

Sacrifice – animals from the flock [refers to the sacrificing of animals]

Sweet smelling aroma – speaks of its acceptableness.

An offering & a sacrifice always speaks of a cost. Love costs!

There is always a tremendous price to pay for freedom.

With love there is always sacrifice. Always a cost.

READ

English Standard Version Chapter 5

But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. 4 Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. 5 For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,

“Awake, O sleeper,

and arise from the dead,

and Christ will shine on you

WALK IN LIGHT (v.3-14)

To lower our standards of sexual purity—or at least to keep quiet about them—is going to become increasingly attractive, as we see unbelievers and government authorities increasingly hostile to our message and to us because of our restrictive sexual ethics, and as we bear an increasingly high cost for publicly standing against the tide of society and of institutional churches that compromise.

Thankfully, we can turn to a great Christian scholar who battled with the extreme sexual expression of his day and clarified some simple timeless principles that spell out the will of God for us today: the apostle Paul.

Here he says “no” to three vices: sexual immorality, impurity, and greed.

“Sexual immorality” translates the Greek word pornei (from which we get words like pornography), which means any sexual activity outside marriage (even if it’s between consenting adults).

“Impurity” is a broader vice that includes sexual lust, but also includes other sorts of licentiousness—whether drunkenness, lewd conversations or riotous behaviour

“Greed” is an unrestrained desire for more money, food, property or other material things. It makes us covetous of what others do have and bitter about what we don’t

Because we are made in the image of God, as humans we flourish in relationships that are shaped like God. This has profound effects on all our human relationships

God is permanent in eternity: this is why we benefit from lasting relationships, not transitory ones.

God is plural: community > isolation

God is equal: every age, race, economic status, etc. - equally precious to the heart of God

God is complementary: harmonious, diverse social contexts > homogenous social environments

God is ordered: we benefit when there is loving leadership and yielding to one another that doesn’t imply superiority or inferiority.

God is loving: not merely sentimental affection, or sensual desire, or feelings of compatablilty. Not based on performance or appearance. We benefit when a commitment exists to benefit one another in relationships.

You were once darkness...not were in darkness.

How to know if you are walking in darkness:

when you hide (erasing your history on your computer, why?)

lie (what are you covering)

blame someone else (1st thing adam/eve did when they 1st walk in darkness. Its my x-wife, its my lousy kids, its my impatient boss, its my...)

It’s when you’re not allowing light to expose something.

Children of light - If God is light then naturally His children would be also.

Think purity, not lumens. Think spiritual light not phys light.

It’s hard to walk in light, in a dark world.

Light produces Good Fruit

Here are some of the products of light (goodness, righteousness, truth).

Walking in the light produces spiritual fruit.

Light Exposes Motives

Light enables the Christian to discriminate between what is pleasing & what is not pleasing.

Here is where all motives, attitudes, & actions must be tested.

We are to find out what pleases the Lord.

Just find out what’s acceptable to the Lord. (i.e. not to others)

Light Exposes Evil (11,12)

Light exposes the unfruitful works of darkness.

Evil activity, when dragged into the light of Christ, is seen for what it is & dies a natural death.

Jn.8:12 Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.

Light Cleanses/Exposes (13,14)

The light cannot compromise with the darkness; it can only expose it.

Awake you sleeper, arise from the dead - this is not a direct quote from any OT passage. Or, he also might be borrowing from an early Christian hymn or traditions related to baptism. [Paul might be alluding to Job 14:12 or Isa 26:19, 61:1]

READ

English Standard Version Chapter 5

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

WALK IN WISDOM (v.15-17)

Circumspectly – accurately, carefully, intelligently. Carries the idea of looking around carefully so as not to stumble.

ILLUS: Have you ever not turned on the light at night & then ended up catching your baby toe on the corner of something?

We need to take advantage of the light He has given us.

Walking intelligently and not in ignorance.

Those who don’t walk accurately/carefully, they miss the mark, miss the road, & end up suffering on some detour.

Redeeming the time – buy up the opportunities.

The idea here is not clock time but what one writer calls kingdom opportunities.

Those openings for ministry that often come at inconvenient times: a friend who wants to talk; a child with a problem; the chance to lend a hand to someone in need.

Paul is encouraging us to keep our lives uncluttered so that we can respond when the need arises - because kingdom opportunities can get squeezed out of an overly tight schedule.

And do not waste time, energy, money & talent in that which is apart from His will. Lost opportunities may never be regained; they might be gone forever.

Usually when Christians talk about God’s will, they are referring to God’s will regarding major decisions about things like their careers.

I do not think that is what Paul has in mind here.

He is referring to God’s already revealed will, and for us today that means understanding the Bible.

Understand his WORD and you’ll understand his WILL.

Believers need to understand what God has called every believer to pursue and what He has called every believer to avoid.

In short, understanding the Lord’s will means to pattern our lives after Jesus (cf. Rom 8:29).

CLOSE

We should remember today that Christians are new creations because Jesus submitted to God’s will. He cried out, “It is finished,” after doing God’s will obediently.

He rescued those who did not love others perfectly, those who committed these dark, shameful deeds, and those who were living a life of folly.

Now the Spirit indwells His people, enabling them to imitate God by walking in love, by walking in light, by walking in the Spirit.

Let there be thanksgiving to God for His Son, Jesus.