Walk in Wisdom
Notes
Transcript
This morning we are concluding the series called, “Life is a Journey”
Life is a journey. Each of us has a road to walk and decisions to make. In Life journey there are two roads you can choose to walk, you can walk in the flesh or walk in the spirit.
The Christian road a difficult one to walk. But walking with Jesus and staying focused on Him will fill your heart and life.
We began in Eph 4, Paul instructing the Eph. church to walk in newness of life, then beginning in Chapter 5 to Walk in Love , Light and today we will see to Walk in Wisdom.
Having completed his call to the Ephesians to walk in love and in the light (5:1–14), Paul now as we will see from today’s text, further calls on them to embrace wisdom. In fact, he says for them to walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise. So we are called to walk in wisdom.
Paul knows the difficulty of learning what pleases the Lord (5:10) “finding out what is acceptable to the Lord,” and so he expresses his desire that they walk with discernment.
This means that they must be careful and mindful of their use of time and energy (5:15–18). They are encouraged to make better use of their efforts by being filled with the Spirit, which will draw them together in praise, thanksgiving, and submission (5:19–21).
15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,
16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,
19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,
20 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
21 submitting to one another in the fear of God.
As I have already said, In the previous section Paul called on the Ephesians to walk in love and in light. He continues the language of walking in this verse, but he shifts his attention to a broad perspective. Specifically, he calls on them to be careful in the manner of their walk.
Because they are to be light/love, they must be intentional in the choices they make. In particular Paul instructs them to walk as wise people as opposed to being foolish.
15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,
“Circumspectly” - mindfully, diligent, perfect, in a careful and deliberate manner.
16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
In 5:15 the Ephesians were told to walk with wisdom, and in this verse a further description of this walk is provided. Paul explains that this walk makes the best use of time. Instead of living for oneself or wasting days, the wise one will use his or her time to the fullest.
5 Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time.
The world in which we live is filled with dangers and deceptions. It is not always easy to live an enlightened life even when we want to. We can get tripped up or ambushed by events and people without even being aware of the danger. We must be very careful to live our life rooted in wisdom, using our time wisely. Not to do so would be foolish. The will of the Lord is that we live carefully, cautiously, always matching our lifestyle with the teachings of Scripture.
17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
Now, Paul more fully describes what it means to walk in wisdom. To do this, he provides two pairs of instructions in 5:17 and then in verse 18 and then expands on it in 5:19–21. The first command is not to be unwise or foolish.
In contrast to this, he calls on the Ephesians to understand God’s will. They are not to use ignorance as an excuse, but instead are to make efforts to become informed so that they can walk appropriately.
2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
9 For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;
Is is possible to know the will of God for your life? Absolutely yes!
18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,
5:18. Ephesus was a center of pagan worship and ritual. The Ephesian culture worshiped Baccus, the god of wine and drunken orgies. They believed that to commune with their god and to be led by him, they had to be drunk. In this drunken state, they could determine the will of their god and determine how best to serve and obey him.
Paul was talking about how to commune with the God of heaven, how to live for him, how to serve and obey him, how to determine his will. It was natural for him to draw the contrast between how the god of Ephesus is served and how the God of heaven is served. With the God of heaven, you do not get drunk with wine. Rather, you are filled with the Spirit. Being drunk with wine leads to the sexual sins and immorality of darkness described above. By being filled with the Spirit, you can determine God’s will and serve him faithfully in moral living.
What does it mean to be filled with the Spirit? Some interpreters equate this command with instances of being filled with the Spirit in the Book of Acts in which miraculous things happened: people spoke in tongues; prophecies and visions were given; people were healed. “Be filled” in this verse (plarao) is not the same word as the one used in the Book of Acts (pimplemi), nor are the consequences the same. Rather than understanding this command in verse 18 to have anything to do with miraculous or extraordinary happenings, it is better to understand it in context. In this ethical context, it means directed, influenced, and ultimately governed by the Holy Spirit.
In Colossians 3:16, the Colossian believers are instructed to let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. The consequences of this are the same as the consequences here in Ephesians 5 of being filled with the Spirit. That suggests that there is a close correlation in meaning between the two.
This filling, then, is best understood, as a command for the believer to yield himself to the illuminating, convicting, and empowering work of the Holy Spirit. As he works in our hearts through his Word, our lives are brought into conformity with the will of God (v. 17).
19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,
Paul provides four characteristics of being filled with the Spirit (from 5:18). These are each introduced with a descriptive participle. In 5:19 the first two aspects are provided.
The first is that those who are filled with the Spirit will speak to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Those filled with the Spirit will be unified as they praise God together.
The second characteristic of those filled with the Spirit is singing and making melody in their hearts unto God.
20 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
In 5:19 Paul called on the Ephesians to speak praise to one another and to sing praises to God. In this verse he adds the third characteristic of Spirit-filled believers, which is that they are to give thanks to God the Father. Instead of qualifying this thanksgiving based on circumstances, Paul explains that this thanks should always be offered, and that it should be offered for all things.
21 submitting to one another in the fear of God.
The last quality of a Spirit-filled believer is being subject to one another. Those who are filled with the Spirit are not concerned for personal ambition or glory; rather, they are willing to humble themselves and submit to others.
Furthermore, they are to be subject due to their understanding of Jesus, who demonstrated true love by giving his very life.