Ephesians 5:8-10 Podcast
8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), 10 finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. (Ephesians 5:8-10)
We were darkness. Darkness defined us. And, darkness is the absence of light. Due to the fact that there is no such thing as darkness, we were defined by that which is non-existent. From the beginning it was a lie.
We all drag around loads we were never intended to carry. Fear. Worry. Discontent. No wonder we get so weary. We’re worn out from carrying this excess baggage. While we were the darkness, hidden from us was the heart of God for us. We naturally concluded that He was out to get us, just like Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. So we ran, thinking that we could find our way on our own to no avail.
Do you remember when you realized that you needed Him? I was in my shower, just three days before my dad died on October 29, 1981. I was so broken. My brokenness allowed His light to shine in. This is it, we must be willing to let Him shine in our darkness. This is Christianity, Christ shining through the cracks of our broken existence.
The light is in the Lord Jesus, the Light is the Lord Jesus. He drives out darkness. Darkness frightens us. Not being able to see is scary. But, God's way is to live by faith, to live looking with our hearts.
Paul reminds us in v.8, we "are now light in the Lord." The key is "in the Lord." Living out of this new place where God defines us is what it means for us to be the light now.
We lack this point of view because it is the product of two things: that we turn to the Lord in the midst of our trials and hearing His voice in that context. We avoid pain, pressure and problems. In so doing, we miss the opportunity to grow in faith or our heart's ability to see God.
Darkness is useful, though, it magnifies the light. The light is the Lord Himself. Without the darkness, we do not know the Lord, we do not know His presence, we do not know His life.
Paul, in v.8 tells us to "walk as children of the light." Children are helpless and dependent. We are most spiritual when we are children. Christianity is the preoccupation of our hearts with the Lord Jesus. As a result, when something of God comes out of our lives, He gets the credit. He is our pursuit. The fruit of curiosity is fueled pursuit. And, as we have pointed out before, faith is divine persuasion.
Paul mentions the fruit of the Spirit in v.9 because the light is God Himself and His presence is recognized by the fruit of the Spirit. And, the soil of this fruit "is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth."
Goodness here is the Greek noun "agathōsunē." This word denotes the excellence of the object being described. It includes the idea of "uprightness" and "generosity."
Righteousness here is the Greek word "dikaiosunē," which means what is right and just. It includes the act of doing what is in agreement with God's standards, the state of being in proper relationship with God.
Truth here is the Greek word "alitheia" which means genuine, reliable, trustworthy, and valid. Knowing the One who Himself is the truth, frees us from the shackles that have long held us in bondage from Him and His perfect ways.
It is out of this threefold soil (goodness, righteousness and truth) that the fruits of the Spirit are expressed in us, to us and through us.
Finally, this fueled pursuit is underscored in v.10 when Paul writes, "finding out what is acceptable to the Lord." It is in the context of relationship that we discover the expression of the Lord Himself, this one who is THE light.
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Friday, July 05, 2019
Thursday, July 04, 2019
Ephesians 5:3-7
Ephesians 5:3-7 Podcast
3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. 4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7 Therefore do not be partners with them.
(Ephesians 5:3-7)
Why do you think that Paul would tell Christians not to engage in sexual immorality? Because, even though we are born again and guaranteed heaven, we can still do some bad things, like having sex with someone whom we are not committed to.
In our text today, the Apostle is addressing the alternative for the believer in Christ. These are the appetites of the flesh and even though we should not feed the flesh, we will. And, it is the dumbest thing in the world, because the flesh brings with it destruction.
Paul isolates sexual immorality, impurity (demoralizing behaviors), greed, obscenity, foolish talk, coarse joking, and immorality. He is doing this because these believers in Ephesus had a propensity (natural inclination) toward these sins. Remember, Paul had spend about two and a half years in Ephesus, he knew these believers real well.
Every day, we have the choice to feed the flesh (the sinful desires in us) or to feed the Spirit (letting God's definition of things define us). Having sex with someone who is not our wife or husband is driven by greed or covetousness. Covetousness is a deep discontented craving that dominates us.
On the other hand, if we are overflowing with thanksgiving to God, then we are not dominated and driven by discontentment at what we have been denied. Gratitude is what we feel when we believe God is for us and not against us. Gratitude is what we feel when we believe God .
So you can see how thanksgiving is the alternative to a life driven by cravings for what you don’t have (whether sex or money). Thanksgiving says, in God I have all that is good for me, and I will not be driven to engage in the alternative lifestyle.
According to v.5, our root problem is this sinful lifestyle is in opposition to God. Paul puts gratitude in the place of covetousness, he is simply putting God in the place of our fleshly desires. Gratitude enthrones God. Greed or covetousness dethrones God. Gratitude says that God is the satisfaction of all my longings. Covetousness says that God is not adequate . I must have money or I must have sex, God is not sufficient!
And, those who are defined by the sinful desires, not those who are occasionally tripped up by these sinful desires, will not be found in heaven. There is a huge difference between dabbling and totally embracing. Mind you, to give in the least bit will be bad for us. You see, this is where the battle is won. God is not out to rob us of our fun, the problem is that we have long believed a lie. The enemy has convinced us that feeding the flesh is the answer, yet the second we finish feeding the flesh, we feel that sense, that convincing message in the back of our heads that says, that was wrong. This is where confession comes in. Confession is agreeing with God that this behavior which is contrary to His way, is wrong.
Finally, Paul ends our text for today with a very important principle: do not hang with those who embrace such a lifestyle. He says this because it is much easier to pull someone down than it is to pull them up. When I was a kid, I spent most of my summer days in the neighborhood pool. By the end of each day, I was like a raisin. I remember vividly all those times when my friend, Billy Herrin, would yell at me to help him out of the pool. I would go over to him, grab his hand, and you guessed it, he would pull me in. You see, it is much easier to pull someone down than it is to pull them up. This principle is also true in the world of whether we feed the Spirit or whether we feed the flesh. The first builds us up. The second invites destruction. It doesn't take a PHD to figure out the smart decision.
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3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. 4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7 Therefore do not be partners with them.
(Ephesians 5:3-7)
Why do you think that Paul would tell Christians not to engage in sexual immorality? Because, even though we are born again and guaranteed heaven, we can still do some bad things, like having sex with someone whom we are not committed to.
In our text today, the Apostle is addressing the alternative for the believer in Christ. These are the appetites of the flesh and even though we should not feed the flesh, we will. And, it is the dumbest thing in the world, because the flesh brings with it destruction.
Paul isolates sexual immorality, impurity (demoralizing behaviors), greed, obscenity, foolish talk, coarse joking, and immorality. He is doing this because these believers in Ephesus had a propensity (natural inclination) toward these sins. Remember, Paul had spend about two and a half years in Ephesus, he knew these believers real well.
Every day, we have the choice to feed the flesh (the sinful desires in us) or to feed the Spirit (letting God's definition of things define us). Having sex with someone who is not our wife or husband is driven by greed or covetousness. Covetousness is a deep discontented craving that dominates us.
On the other hand, if we are overflowing with thanksgiving to God, then we are not dominated and driven by discontentment at what we have been denied. Gratitude is what we feel when we believe God is for us and not against us. Gratitude is what we feel when we believe God .
So you can see how thanksgiving is the alternative to a life driven by cravings for what you don’t have (whether sex or money). Thanksgiving says, in God I have all that is good for me, and I will not be driven to engage in the alternative lifestyle.
According to v.5, our root problem is this sinful lifestyle is in opposition to God. Paul puts gratitude in the place of covetousness, he is simply putting God in the place of our fleshly desires. Gratitude enthrones God. Greed or covetousness dethrones God. Gratitude says that God is the satisfaction of all my longings. Covetousness says that God is not adequate . I must have money or I must have sex, God is not sufficient!
And, those who are defined by the sinful desires, not those who are occasionally tripped up by these sinful desires, will not be found in heaven. There is a huge difference between dabbling and totally embracing. Mind you, to give in the least bit will be bad for us. You see, this is where the battle is won. God is not out to rob us of our fun, the problem is that we have long believed a lie. The enemy has convinced us that feeding the flesh is the answer, yet the second we finish feeding the flesh, we feel that sense, that convincing message in the back of our heads that says, that was wrong. This is where confession comes in. Confession is agreeing with God that this behavior which is contrary to His way, is wrong.
Finally, Paul ends our text for today with a very important principle: do not hang with those who embrace such a lifestyle. He says this because it is much easier to pull someone down than it is to pull them up. When I was a kid, I spent most of my summer days in the neighborhood pool. By the end of each day, I was like a raisin. I remember vividly all those times when my friend, Billy Herrin, would yell at me to help him out of the pool. I would go over to him, grab his hand, and you guessed it, he would pull me in. You see, it is much easier to pull someone down than it is to pull them up. This principle is also true in the world of whether we feed the Spirit or whether we feed the flesh. The first builds us up. The second invites destruction. It doesn't take a PHD to figure out the smart decision.
To invest in BYM, click here
Wednesday, July 03, 2019
Ephesians 5:1-2
Ephesians 5:1-2 Podcast
1 Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children 2 and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (Ephesians 5:1-2)
1 Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children 2 and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (Ephesians 5:1-2)
Christianity is not about getting us ready for heaven, though many falsely teach this.Christianity is a personal relationship with the Father through the Son, designed to equip us for influencing others for Christ.
The Apostle writes,"Follow God’s example." This is the goal of a personal relationship with God. Mind you, we can not produce this, He must. The role we play is to resist the flesh and to appropriate His presence and person in and through our lives. There is no strength like God's strength. His is the greatest strength. His is a different kind of power. It is quieter and less obvious. It changes us from the inside out. Make no mistake, we aren't getting better, but He is getting more prominent.
Paul identifies in v.1 the inertia behind our desire to follow God ... "loved." This is a foreign love to us fallen humans. It is a love that loves no matter what. You're thinking, "if God loves like this, then why doesn't He love everyone? Why do some suffer the penalty of hell?" He does love everyone. By nature, He loves, but He does not force His love on us. This is why we have a choice to access His love through the Lord Jesus. He desires us to desire Him. This is a true love story of the best kind. The kind that led Him to drink every drop that hell threw at Him. He did this for love for you and me, He did this for the willing.
This kind of love not only breaks our hearts, but fills our hearts. This love reshapes our hearts, it enables us to see others as the people they are, made in His image. Just like Bruce at the end of the movie Bruce Almighty, we want to see others through His eyes. Once we wanted to use people and love things. Now we discover we want to love people and use things.
This kind of love not only breaks our hearts, but fills our hearts. This love reshapes our hearts, it enables us to see others as the people they are, made in His image. Just like Bruce at the end of the movie Bruce Almighty, we want to see others through His eyes. Once we wanted to use people and love things. Now we discover we want to love people and use things.
The more we get to know the Lord Jesus, the more we will see Him in all of life. In fact, we will find ourselves looking for Him in everything, even in that which we do not expect. This is what Christ is like. He emptied Himself and embraced the cross on behalf of those who hated Him.
Chuck Colson tells a story of a group of American prisoners of war during the Second World War, who were made to do hard labor in a prison camp. Each had a shovel and would dig all day, then come in and give an account of his tool in the evening. One evening 20 prisoners were lined up by the guard and the shovels were counted. The guard counted nineteen shovels and turned in rage on the 20 prisoners demanding to know which one did not bring his shovel back. No one responded. The guard took out his gun and said that he would shoot five men if the guilty prisoner did not step forward. After a moment of tense silence, a 19-year-old soldier stepped forward with his head bowed down. The guard grabbed him, took him to the side and shot him in the head, and turned to warn the others that they better be more careful than he was. When he left, the men counted the shovels and there were 20. The guard had miscounted. And the boy had given his life for his friends.
Can you imagine the emotions that must have filled their hearts as they knelt down over his body? In the five or ten seconds of silence, the boy had weighed his whole future in the balance, a future family, an education, a new truck, a career, fishing with his dad—and he chose death so that others might live. Jesus said in John 15:13, ""Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends." To love is to choose suffering for the sake of another.
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Chuck Colson tells a story of a group of American prisoners of war during the Second World War, who were made to do hard labor in a prison camp. Each had a shovel and would dig all day, then come in and give an account of his tool in the evening. One evening 20 prisoners were lined up by the guard and the shovels were counted. The guard counted nineteen shovels and turned in rage on the 20 prisoners demanding to know which one did not bring his shovel back. No one responded. The guard took out his gun and said that he would shoot five men if the guilty prisoner did not step forward. After a moment of tense silence, a 19-year-old soldier stepped forward with his head bowed down. The guard grabbed him, took him to the side and shot him in the head, and turned to warn the others that they better be more careful than he was. When he left, the men counted the shovels and there were 20. The guard had miscounted. And the boy had given his life for his friends.
Can you imagine the emotions that must have filled their hearts as they knelt down over his body? In the five or ten seconds of silence, the boy had weighed his whole future in the balance, a future family, an education, a new truck, a career, fishing with his dad—and he chose death so that others might live. Jesus said in John 15:13, ""Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends." To love is to choose suffering for the sake of another.
To invest in BYM, click here
Tuesday, July 02, 2019
Ephesians 4:29-32
In Ephesians 4:29, Paul literally writes, "let no decomposed words come out of your mouths." Decomposed words are decayed and smell really bad. These words came along with our flesh. Those who are characterized by these words are being defined, ultimately, by Satan himself. The Evil One has so twisted God's definition of things to the point that his definition renders corruption and foulness.
In addition, using such words cheapen us in the eyes of others. It only hurts us to use such speech. This is the goal of the Evil One, he wants to corrupt and destroy our lives, especially in the eyes of others. He knows this cheapens our influence upon others.
The words that we should use, according to v.29, are those which build up others. Our goal should be the health of others. Of course, if we lack this health for ourselves and we are using words that are cheapening life, then we will live unwholesome lives. Our lives will be full of holes and we will be in no position to build others up. No wonder we tear down others from this posture, because when we are living out of a torn down posture, we can't build up.
The key to all our behavior lies in our relationship with God, not with our relationship with others. The latter is an effect which comes after the cause. The key is in our relationship with God, that He is defining us.
The word "grieve" is related to love. It is impossible for you to grieve someone who does not love you, nor can you be grieved except by those whom you love. This word, grieve, reveals that God loves us, and that the Holy Spirit lives in us.
We should not grieve the Holy Spirit because we have been sealed by Him until our redemption day, that is the day Jesus returns to take us home. A seal is a protective device. It is designed to prevent loss or invasion. The Holy Spirit has been given to us to seal us, to guarantee that we will arrive at our home, heaven.
The Holy Spirit will never stop his work in and through us. He is in us to stay. Therefore, if we grieve Him, we will be miserable due to the grieved Spirit of God living in us. Who accomplishes their calling with a grieved Holy Spirit living in them, anyway?
Note the wrong attitudes mentioned in v.31. Bitterness is a cynical hateful outlook toward someone else. The word "rage" describes someone who is hotheaded, and losing their temper. Anger means an inward boiling resulting in a desire to punish somebody, to seek revenge.
The word for "brawling" means "to shout, to rail on someone." "Slander is speech that is injurious to someone else -- gossip, rumor spreading. Malice is the desire to injure someone else. When we feed the flesh, we can expect a list like this to describe us. Paul tells us to put away these things, and feed the Spirit who lives in you.
The Apostle ends our text with forgiveness which is shown by being kind and compassionate. In the same way we have been forgiven, we should forgive one another. Our problem is we do not know the depth of God’s forgiveness of us. If we did, we would not withhold our forgiveness from others.
In Israel there are two bodies of water: the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea. The Sea of Galilee is alive, filled with fish and surrounded by lush foliage. The Dead Sea lacks life. No seaweed or plants of any kind live in or around the water. There are no fish or any kind of swimming, squirming creatures living in or near the water. Both the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea are fed by the Jordan River.
There is really only one difference between these two bodies of water. The difference is that the Sea of Galilee takes water from the Jordan River, and then it gives water. The water simply passes through. As a result, the Sea of Galilee is full of life and beauty. The Dead Sea, on the other hand, only takes water, but it gives nothing back, and as a result it sustains no life.
Those two bodies of water bear witness to a truth of human life. It is in receiving and then giving back that life and hope are sustained. In other words, The Sea of Galilee is a conduit, The Dead Sea is a container. The first is full of life, the second is full of death! Which are you?
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Monday, July 01, 2019
Ephesians 4:25-28
Our faith is best seen in our deeds. The Lord Jesus said, "Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adultery..." (Matthew 15:19). And, our new life literally is Christ, Himself. If we do not have Christ we do not have new life.
Now, the Apostle is not actually telling us to literally put off our old self. He is saying to deny the urges to fulfill our God-given desires in a non God-defined way. There are those who have the idea we are to go about crucifying ourselves, putting the old self to death. But we are not told to put the old man to death, we are to appropriate what Christ accomplished in His cross and in His resurrection.
Denying the old life, and putting on the new life is done whenever we face temptation. Paul writes, "having put away falsehood", that is don't feed the flesh or don't do it the world's way. The he writes, "let each one of you speak the truth." He is saying be defined by God's definition of things.
In Galatians 6, Paul wrote, "If we sow to the flesh, we will reap corruption." Lying brings with it corruption and subsequent death to relationships. Lying, along with all other sin, was judged at the cross, so we should be defined by truth. We should tell the truth because that is God's culture, this is what is right.
In Galatians 6, Paul wrote, "If we sow to the flesh, we will reap corruption." Lying brings with it corruption and subsequent death to relationships. Lying, along with all other sin, was judged at the cross, so we should be defined by truth. We should tell the truth because that is God's culture, this is what is right.
Paul then writes, "for we are members one of another." This means, as members of Christ's life, we do not live on an island. And, if we lie, we not only hurt ourselves, but we hurt others as well.
Next Paul writes, "Be angry and do not sin, do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the Devil."
Next Paul writes, "Be angry and do not sin, do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the Devil."
Our capacity for anger is part of the image of God in man. God gets angry, but He does not sin. We can be angry and not sin. We sin when our anger is self-motivated. Sinful anger is anger that comes when our feelings have been hurt, or our pride has been injured, or we have been mistreated in some way.
God-like anger is that which is concerned with others' wrongs. When people are unjustly treated and it bothers us, even to the point of standing up to it, this is righteous anger.
God-like anger is that which is concerned with others' wrongs. When people are unjustly treated and it bothers us, even to the point of standing up to it, this is righteous anger.
We should not let the sun go down on our anger because anger has a tendency to simmer and fester. When this happens, the Evil one is given an opportunity to make the situation worse.
When I was a kid, I deliberately annoyed my sisters. What younger brother doesn't? Well, when they had had enough, they would come after me. There were three doors that locks on them in our house, the front door, the back door and the bathroom. Guess where I would run to flee my angry sisters? Yep, the bathroom. If I could get the door locked, I was safe. If any one of them could get their foot wedged between the door and the doorframe, I was toast. This is the idea, when we hold on to anger and do not solve the issue, the Devil gets a foothold.
Friday, June 28, 2019
Ephesians 4:20-24
Ephesians 4:20-24 Podcast
In Christ, we have a different way of living, a different way of thinking. In Christ, we have been given the truth by which we can test everything. We have found in Jesus Christ the truth about life, about ourselves, about the world, about the makeup of all things.
In Christ, we have a different way of living, a different way of thinking. In Christ, we have been given the truth by which we can test everything. We have found in Jesus Christ the truth about life, about ourselves, about the world, about the makeup of all things.
Christ is the truth who reveals to us the truth. Truth is realistic and it reveals to us the senselessness of the alternative.
The key is we have heard the Lord Jesus and we have been taught by Him. In Romans 10:17, Paul writes, "Faith comes by hearing, hearing the word of Christ." Faith is created by hearing the spoken word of Christ. The word used for "word" in Romans 10:17 is rhema, meaning the spoken word.
The key is we have heard the Lord Jesus and we have been taught by Him. In Romans 10:17, Paul writes, "Faith comes by hearing, hearing the word of Christ." Faith is created by hearing the spoken word of Christ. The word used for "word" in Romans 10:17 is rhema, meaning the spoken word.
You are probably thinking, "the world knows truth. In fact, the discoverer of the Laws of Gravity wasn't a Christian." To which I would say, the world doesn't have God's vantage point on this life, they don't know God's principles of dealing with relational issues. In Christ, we have the tape measure for recognizing the false.
The Apostle Paul uses a metaphor. He says, "put off" and "put on." Put off means to rid ourselves of something, to get rid of something that is destroying us. We reject the thinking and the culture which is contrary to Christ's, putting them off, just as we would put off our dirty clothes.
We do this because, from these, comes corruption. He says our old life is corrupt, decayed, selfish, and dead. These are the things which make our lives miserable. Paul identifies these ways as "deceitful lusts." This word lust is any urge or basic drive. It is the drive to fulfill our desires in ways God has told us not to.
God intends for us to recognize the false from the truth. Put off the old way, lay it aside, refuse to accept it, no longer give it place in our lives. Then recognize the new life that Jesus died to give you.
Paul writes, "be renewed in the spirit of your minds." This is the fundamental difference between a Christian and a non-Christian. The Christian has the possibility of living on a different level, because we have been renewed in the spirit of our mind.
In v.22, we are told to "put off our old man (our old nature)." In other words, we do not have to live the old way. We now can live differently. The new man has within him the life of God. So, we are to appropriate His life because it is available to us. It is not something put on the for the moment, it is real and alive if appropriated.
Paul writes, "be renewed in the spirit of your minds." This is the fundamental difference between a Christian and a non-Christian. The Christian has the possibility of living on a different level, because we have been renewed in the spirit of our mind.
In v.22, we are told to "put off our old man (our old nature)." In other words, we do not have to live the old way. We now can live differently. The new man has within him the life of God. So, we are to appropriate His life because it is available to us. It is not something put on the for the moment, it is real and alive if appropriated.
And, not only that, it is holy. An accurate translation of this word holiness is wholeness. As God intended us to be. Again, we must appropriate His life by not feeding the flesh (the old man) and feed the Spirit (the new man).
Thursday, June 27, 2019
Ephesians 4:17-19
Ephesians 4:17-19 Podcast
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Paul beings our text with "I affirm together with the Lord." The Apostle could say this because this was a result of divine revelation. So, this is not mere human advice. This is the word of God placed squarely upon the root of the human problem.
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Paul beings our text with "I affirm together with the Lord." The Apostle could say this because this was a result of divine revelation. So, this is not mere human advice. This is the word of God placed squarely upon the root of the human problem.
Paul continues, "do not live like those who do not know the Lord." The word Gentiles here is "ethne" in the Greek. This has no reference to the distinction between Jews and Gentiles, it refers to anyone who is outside of Christ.
"You," he says, "must no longer live as those who are outside Jesus." Notice the next words" ... "In the futility of their minds." Paul does not start with actions or emotions. He is not one of these pious religious people who moves in and tries to change the outward scene only. He starts with the mind, and he declares that the world's thinking is futile and empty.
"You," he says, "must no longer live as those who are outside Jesus." Notice the next words" ... "In the futility of their minds." Paul does not start with actions or emotions. He is not one of these pious religious people who moves in and tries to change the outward scene only. He starts with the mind, and he declares that the world's thinking is futile and empty.
The word for futility, means "void of purpose or pointless." The people of the world live as they do because their thinking is lacking purpose and is pointless. Paul describes it this way in Romans 1, "21 For although they knew (about) God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles. 24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen. 26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error. 28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them. (Romans 1:21-32).
In Ephesians 4:18 we discover the world thinks futilely because their understanding is darkened. Their ignorance is pointless because it emanates from ignorance. Mankind's spirit is darkened and dead to God.
In Ephesians 4:19 we see that mankind's darkened mind leads him to make greedy, selfish decisions which invites destruction into his existence. This is a person who is ignorant of the true meaning of things, and the true values of life. His mantra is "anything but God, and everything without God."
But the good news of the gospel is that God reaches even these kind of people. He draws and softens and melts the hardened heart. The amazing love of Christ penetrates even the hardest hearts.
One of my favorite hymns is "Amazing Grace" written around 1750 by John Newton who commanded an English slave ship. His ship would make its voyage from England to the African coast. There, tribal chiefs would deliver men and women, captured in raids against tribes to the ship. The captives would be loaded aboard, packed for sailing. They were chained below decks to prevent suicides, laid side by side to save space, row after row, one after another, until the vessel was filled with as many as 600 at a time.
Once they arrived in the New World, slaves were traded for sugar and molasses to manufacture rum, which the ships would carry to England for the final leg of their "triangle trade." John Newton transported more than a few shiploads of the 6 million African slaves brought to the Americas in the 18th century.
After reading Thomas à Kempis' book, Imitation of Christ, he trusted Christ as his savior. Later he was promoted to captain of a slave ship. Commanding a slave vessel seems like a strange place to find a new Christian. But the inhuman aspects of the business began to take affect on him, and he left the sea for good.
While working as a tide surveyor he studied for the ministry, and for the last 43 years of his life preached the gospel in Olney and London, England. At 82, Newton said, "My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things, that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Saviour." No wonder he understood so well grace, the completely undeserved favor of God.
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me,
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved.
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come.
'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
But the good news of the gospel is that God reaches even these kind of people. He draws and softens and melts the hardened heart. The amazing love of Christ penetrates even the hardest hearts.
One of my favorite hymns is "Amazing Grace" written around 1750 by John Newton who commanded an English slave ship. His ship would make its voyage from England to the African coast. There, tribal chiefs would deliver men and women, captured in raids against tribes to the ship. The captives would be loaded aboard, packed for sailing. They were chained below decks to prevent suicides, laid side by side to save space, row after row, one after another, until the vessel was filled with as many as 600 at a time.
Once they arrived in the New World, slaves were traded for sugar and molasses to manufacture rum, which the ships would carry to England for the final leg of their "triangle trade." John Newton transported more than a few shiploads of the 6 million African slaves brought to the Americas in the 18th century.
After reading Thomas à Kempis' book, Imitation of Christ, he trusted Christ as his savior. Later he was promoted to captain of a slave ship. Commanding a slave vessel seems like a strange place to find a new Christian. But the inhuman aspects of the business began to take affect on him, and he left the sea for good.
While working as a tide surveyor he studied for the ministry, and for the last 43 years of his life preached the gospel in Olney and London, England. At 82, Newton said, "My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things, that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Saviour." No wonder he understood so well grace, the completely undeserved favor of God.
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me,
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved.
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come.
'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
Wednesday, June 26, 2019
Ephesians 4:14-16
Ephesians 4:14-16 Podcast
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We continue in Ephesians 4 where the Apostle Paul is teaching us about how God has called the church to do His work on the earth. Before we can minister to others, we must first be ministered to, ourselves. The key phrase in our text today is found in v.15: "Speaking the truth in love." This is HOW we build the body up.
In v.14 we learn we are not to be babies who are blown around by every wind of doctrine. The issue is stability in knowing the Lord for ourselves, so that we will not be deceived by false teaching.
The apostle uses a word here in v.16 which is used twice in the New Testament. It is this word that is translated "fitted and held together." He is saying that one of the factors that makes us grow is the fact that everyone is gifted and every gift is useful to our holding togetherness. It is the word of God that glues us. You will remember that in Genesis, God spoke the word and everything came into perfect being. Such is the nature of the word of God as we choose to be defined by Him.
"Fitted and held together" comes from three different Greek words that are brought together here by Paul. The apostle actually coins a word here. He takes a word which means "a joint," then he uses the word "with"; and then he uses the word "to choose." "to choose with a joint."
In other words, it's God's choice that has put us in the body of Christ, among the Christians He wants us to be with, exercising our gifts and benefitting one from another.
As we walk with the Lord, He speaks truth to us. It might be painful (I've had Him tell me MANY times that He does not need me), but it is His truth that fits us and holds us together. It is out of this posture that we deal with one another. The result is spiritual maturity in Christ. A friend who I attended college with always went about misquoting that verse in John 8, "and you shall know the truth", he would say, and then he would say, "and the truth shall make you mad."
Finally, notice the key to it all: LOVE. Paul mentions love throughout Ephesians 4 (v.2, v.15, v.16). This “love” is agape love, a self-sacrificial love that works for the benefit of the loved one. This is the type of love that will love another with no expectations of being loved in return. And, as we speak the truth in love, we will build one another up. When we are being defined by God and His word, we lose sight of self and we find great joy in ministering to others. Let me encourage you to find creative ways to love others in the body of Christ.
To invest in BYM, click here
We continue in Ephesians 4 where the Apostle Paul is teaching us about how God has called the church to do His work on the earth. Before we can minister to others, we must first be ministered to, ourselves. The key phrase in our text today is found in v.15: "Speaking the truth in love." This is HOW we build the body up.
In v.14 we learn we are not to be babies who are blown around by every wind of doctrine. The issue is stability in knowing the Lord for ourselves, so that we will not be deceived by false teaching.
The apostle uses a word here in v.16 which is used twice in the New Testament. It is this word that is translated "fitted and held together." He is saying that one of the factors that makes us grow is the fact that everyone is gifted and every gift is useful to our holding togetherness. It is the word of God that glues us. You will remember that in Genesis, God spoke the word and everything came into perfect being. Such is the nature of the word of God as we choose to be defined by Him.
"Fitted and held together" comes from three different Greek words that are brought together here by Paul. The apostle actually coins a word here. He takes a word which means "a joint," then he uses the word "with"; and then he uses the word "to choose." "to choose with a joint."
In other words, it's God's choice that has put us in the body of Christ, among the Christians He wants us to be with, exercising our gifts and benefitting one from another.
As we walk with the Lord, He speaks truth to us. It might be painful (I've had Him tell me MANY times that He does not need me), but it is His truth that fits us and holds us together. It is out of this posture that we deal with one another. The result is spiritual maturity in Christ. A friend who I attended college with always went about misquoting that verse in John 8, "and you shall know the truth", he would say, and then he would say, "and the truth shall make you mad."
Finally, notice the key to it all: LOVE. Paul mentions love throughout Ephesians 4 (v.2, v.15, v.16). This “love” is agape love, a self-sacrificial love that works for the benefit of the loved one. This is the type of love that will love another with no expectations of being loved in return. And, as we speak the truth in love, we will build one another up. When we are being defined by God and His word, we lose sight of self and we find great joy in ministering to others. Let me encourage you to find creative ways to love others in the body of Christ.
Tuesday, June 25, 2019
Ephesians 4:11-13
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In v.11 we have "apostles" who were those who laid the foundation for the beginning of the church. Apostles were also used of God to write the 27 books of the New Testament.
Again, in v.11, we have the prophets who were those who spoke for God. In the early church before the New Testament was written, prophets spoke by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, speaking the truths that are now recorded in our New Testament.
Next, in v.11, we have the evangelists, who are those with a special gift for communicating the gospel in relevant, compelling terms and ways to people who are not Christians. Billy Graham was an outstanding evangelist.
Then there are pastors-teachers, who are those who take care of the church community. They feed and guide and meet the needs of people within the church. They are aware of and attempt to meet the spiritual needs, emotional needs, and physical needs of all in the church.
Through the years, the church has become identified with buildings, great massive cathedrals and imposing structures, and these were referred to as the church.
In our text here, the Apostle makes clear that our giftedness has specific purposes, to prepare God's people for the work of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up, until we all reach the unity of the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
In Ephesians 4:3, we are told to maintain the unity. Here, in Ephesians 4:13, we are told to reach or attain unity. In v.3 unity is a reality to be maintained. In v.13 it is a goal to be attained. The reason for this is that Christian unity has already been accomplished but we have to appropriate it.
As seen in v.13, the unity is appropriated in steps that lead from one to another. The first step is "to prepare God's people" or "to equip God's people." The equipment is the culture of God given through His word. It is training believer's to think like God.
This leads to a lifestyle of "service. We are most like God when we are serving. In Luke 12:35-37, we read, "35 “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, 36 like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. 37 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them." In heaven, the Lord Jesus will serve us.
This leads to, "so that the body of Christ may be built up...in the faith and the knowledge of the Son." Christianity is relational. The idea that Paul is giving here is that we apprehend the unity and comprehend the teachings of the Son and we apprehend and comprehend the Son personally. That He becomes real and more real to us in a practical way.
This leads to "maturity." This "maturity" includes a deepening relationship with Christ wherein He is seen to be teaching each believer. This describes a fellowship with God that is tangible and as real as knowing our best human friends.
Finally, I like what Andy Stanley recently said about spiritual maturity, he said, "Spiritual maturity is measured in terms of persevering faith, not perfect behavior."
Through the years, the church has become identified with buildings, great massive cathedrals and imposing structures, and these were referred to as the church.
In our text here, the Apostle makes clear that our giftedness has specific purposes, to prepare God's people for the work of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up, until we all reach the unity of the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
In Ephesians 4:3, we are told to maintain the unity. Here, in Ephesians 4:13, we are told to reach or attain unity. In v.3 unity is a reality to be maintained. In v.13 it is a goal to be attained. The reason for this is that Christian unity has already been accomplished but we have to appropriate it.
As seen in v.13, the unity is appropriated in steps that lead from one to another. The first step is "to prepare God's people" or "to equip God's people." The equipment is the culture of God given through His word. It is training believer's to think like God.
This leads to a lifestyle of "service. We are most like God when we are serving. In Luke 12:35-37, we read, "35 “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, 36 like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. 37 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them." In heaven, the Lord Jesus will serve us.
This leads to, "so that the body of Christ may be built up...in the faith and the knowledge of the Son." Christianity is relational. The idea that Paul is giving here is that we apprehend the unity and comprehend the teachings of the Son and we apprehend and comprehend the Son personally. That He becomes real and more real to us in a practical way.
This leads to "maturity." This "maturity" includes a deepening relationship with Christ wherein He is seen to be teaching each believer. This describes a fellowship with God that is tangible and as real as knowing our best human friends.
Finally, I like what Andy Stanley recently said about spiritual maturity, he said, "Spiritual maturity is measured in terms of persevering faith, not perfect behavior."
Monday, June 24, 2019
Ephesians 4:7-10
Ephesians 4:7-10 Podcast
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7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it says: “When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.” 9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) (Ephesians 4:7-10)
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7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it says: “When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.” 9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) (Ephesians 4:7-10)
In v.7 Paul writes about how each Christian is gifted by Christ with various gifts of His grace. When we were born again, the Holy Spirit came bearing gifts. Christ gave to us each a gift in a measure suited to His good purposes for each of us. This means that we are not an accident in the body of Christ. This is how the church demonstrates the power and presence of God in the sight of those around us.
This power, which is in each believer, is released when we exercise the spiritual gifts that we've been given. This is largely a forsaken practice today. If we are to influence those around us, it will be by a return to the exercise of each person's spiritual gift.
There are two kinds of gifts mentioned here in v.7. One Paul calls the measure of the other. "But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it." Note Paul's emphasis here: "grace has been given." This is the gift of the Spirit. Paul employs the Greek word "charis", which means "grace." Literally Paul is saying, "grace has been graced to us." This is a great reminder, it is all of grace. Even the faith and the gifts we exercise, it is all of grace.
In v.8, the Apostle quotes the 68th Psalm. "When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people." Paul places emphasis on Christ's triumphal march, because v.8-10 is an explanation of the previous phrase in v.7, "as Christ apportioned it." He is bringing these two, the gift and the power, together. Gifts are the ability to do certain specific ministries, but the power that is needed is different.
Our gifts are not the same as our talents. Our gifts are divinely-given abilities requiring the power of God to exercise them. Resurrection power operates in the midst of weakness and death, when everything around us is lifeless. It needs no human support, and is not thwarted by obstacles.
This power is that which changes the human heart. This power causes us to turn from self to turn to the Savior. The only thing that can limit this power is the limiting nature of faithlessness. Note I didn't say the size of our faith. It is the unwillingness to exercise our faith. As faith is exercised, we will discover that our ministry effectiveness will grow.
The goal of the exercising of our faith and gifts is that the whole universe being filled with Christ. When we willingly step through the doors God opens for us and we depend upon the Holy Spirit's power, there will be no limit to the spread of the truth throughout our universe.
Finally, did you notice the phrase in v.8: "he took many captives?" Who were the captives? We were. Anyone enslaved to sin and separated from God. This is what it looks like for the glory of God to fill the whole universe. One day, this will be the reality. Everyone in that place will long to worship the Lord Jesus, rendering to Him our hearts and souls because of what He has done to free us from our captor.
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