Sermon Tone Analysis

Inspirational Jesus people

Have you ever met someone who you found really inspiring in the Christian faith?

What was it about them that drew you to them?

I remember my first principal when I was at college was one of those people who I found incredibly inspiring to be around.

And what was it?

He was one of those people whom Jesus just seemed to flow out of.

A lifetime of learning the scriptures had really transformed him.

Or I remember another, an elderly lady at my church growing up who when I started running the youth group called me up and asked for all the names of the children so she could pray for them and then when I visited her a few years ago in her nursing home spoke to me about the ways she was seeking to be generous and to encourage her fellow residents with the gospel.

Another lifetime of being a disciple of Jesus that you could so clearly see the evidence of.

I’m sure we can all think of one or two or perhaps many more people like this.

Don’t you wish you were like that?

I sure do.

Well people like that are putting into practice the things we’re learning about as we work our way through Ephesians.

Paul has encouraged the church through Chap 4 and now into Chap 5 to be unified under Jesus and to live holy or pure lives.

The kind of lives that reflect Jesus’ love and light.

And as we pick up todays reading lets first remind ourselves how Chapter 4 ends:

Walk in the way of self sacrificial love (5:1-2)

Well Ch 5 picks up Paul’s train of thought, instead of being people of hate, anger, bitterness and brawling we’re called as Christians to walk in the way of self sacrificial love.

Someone said to me this week, “oh you know the thing with Harry is he’s not one to let things go and he will keep on fighting”.

How does that description of Harry sound when you read Ephesians 4:31-5:2?

Harry’s way of living is incongruous (not in harmony) with the gospel.

And that tells you something doesn’t it.

It reveals the shocking truth that Harry mustn’t know the gospel.

The story of God’s self giving love.

He can’t have met Jesus.

Otherwise he’d be known not as an unforgiving brawler but as a compassionate, self sacrificing lover.

And so if you know someone like Harry, you need to model God’s love to them, and continue pray they’d realise how much God loves them.

Flee immorality and idolatry (5:3-7)

Paul says that, sexual immorality, impurity, greed (v3), obscenity, foolish talk, coarse joking (v4) are replaced with thanksgiving.

Don’t be involved in sexually immoral behaviour, don’t talk about sexually immoral behaviour.

Don’t join in on the banter in the lunch room.

Instead give thanks.

Why give thanks instead?

Because instead of seeing something and having greedy thoughts, how much better to give thanks to God for it, or give thanks that the other person has it and is enjoying it.

Instead of making dirty jokes about sex, rather rejoice and give thanks for God’s good gift of sex to be enjoyed between a man and women in the covenant of marriage.

Thanksgiving, you see, helps us to put God’s gifts in their right place.

Greed, lust, these things occur when we fail to remember that God is a gracious God who gives us things to enjoy and that we get the most from His gifts when we use them as he intended.

Immorality arises when we ignore the giver and focus solely on the gifts.

In fact check out what Paul says next:

When we are immoral, impure and greedy we are idolaters and therefore have no place in God’s kingdom.

What is an idolater?

Someone who worships something/someone else instead of God.

It’s a funny idea for us in the 21st century because there isn’t a lot of outright idolatry on show.

Perhaps we get close to it in Hobart once a year when Dark Mofo have their annual burning of the OGOH-OGOH where we write our fears or sins on it and then process it down the street and burn it.

The Ephesians remember lived under the shadow of one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world.

The temple to Artemis.

The goddess of fertility.

There was sexual immorality and idolatry explicitly and constantly before them.

But for us, idolatry is a little more subtle.

It’s the placing of anything in the place of God: ourselves, our family, our work, our worship styles, our money, what people think of us.

When these things are the most important reality in our lives they are our idols.

And when we revolve our lives around them and live for them we’ve become idolaters.

So do you have an idol?

Something that you’ve put in the place of God?

A good diagnostic question someone taught me was to think about what you fear the most in life.

Do you fear most not having enough money?

(money idol)

Do you fear most not being liked by your friends?

(reputation idol)

Do you fear most having a family member disown you? (family idol)

All of those things are unpleasant should they happen, but when we’re worshipping God, they take their rightful place as secondary issues that we know God can get us through.

Our biggest fear should be that we walk away from a relationship with God!

So don’t be an idolater.

Because Paul says, you’ll miss out on your inheritance in the Kingdom of God.

That is you’ll miss out on joining with all other Christians from every age in perfection praising Jesus forever and ever.

Don’t be an idolater.

But also v5-6, be a partner with them either:

That is not don’t hang out with them .

We must because we must tell them about the love of God.

Rather it is Paul telling us not to participate in their immorality and idolatry with them.

Perhaps as you read this you think how does this fit with what Paul has said earlier about God giving us a gracious gift.

It sounds a little bit like we do have to do something to be alright with God.

Well Paul is not contradicting himself.

God has raised us with Christ and given us an inheritance that can never spoil perish or fade.

Here he warns us though not to presume on the grace, rely on it absolutely for it is only by grace we are saved, but presume on it no.

Paul is warning us not to take God for granted, but rather to rely on him and to continue to strive for holiness for if we give in to a life of greed, bitterness and lying then this is clear evidence that we are not worshippers of God at all.

So Paul concludes our reading today by encouraging us to live the way God has made us:

Live in the light - Be wise! (5:8-20)

Paul encourages the Christian to strive to live out their new life as children of light in Jesus Christ.

And to let the light of Christ shine brightly and expose the darkness of the sin and idolatry of the world around us:

Have you ever had that experience where someone found out you were a Christian and started apologising for their behaviour?

This happens to me in the Army a lot.

Army people have a way of speaking that involves some might say a fair share of obscenity and coarse joking.

And what happens when I’m around is people start apologising to me.

Blah blah swear word, oh sorry padre.

blah blah blah swear word, oh sorry padre.

I think this sort of thing happens to us as Christians because our very presence in the lives of our friends who live in darkness shine light and exposes them as Paul says here.

What else should we do as we seek to live in the light?

Paul tells us in the final verses of our reading...

We need to be wise.

Be wise and make the most of everything (v15-16)

Wise people make the most of their time.

How are you making the most of your time?

Too much time on Netflix?

Be wise and understand God’s will (v17)

How could I possibly know what God’s will is for me.

1. God’s general will is found in the scriptures - holiness of living, making disciples, importance of Christian fellowship etc.

2. Particular will - who should I marry?

Where should I go to church?

comes around finding general principles in scripture, and undergoing careful thought prayer and seeking advice from mature and experienced Christians.