So I tell you this and insist on it in the Lord,
that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do in the futility of their thinking.
They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God
because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts.
Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality
so as to indulge in every kind of impurity with a continual lust for more.
You, however, did not come to know Christ that way.
Surely you have heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.
You were taught with regard to your former way of life to put off your old self,
which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires,
to be made new in the attitude of your minds,
and to put on the new self created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Therefore, each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbour,
for we are all members of one body.
In your anger, do not sin.
Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,
and do not give the devil a foothold.
He who has been stealing must steal no longer,
but must work doing something useful with his own hands
that he may have something to share with those in need.
Do not let any unwholesome talk come from your mouths,
but only let what is helpful for building others up according to their needs,
that it may benefit those who listen.
And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God,
with whom you are sealed for the day of redemption.
Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger,
brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.
Be kind and compassionate to one another,
forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children,
and live a life of love, just as Christ loved and gave himself up for us,
as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Be 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.
Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking,
which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.
It would be great if you could have that passage in front of you, ready to go,
as we continue to look through the book of Ephesians.
I don't know about you, but after a couple of hits in the short space of time,
you might be feeling a little bit fuzzy in the brain,
so I'm going to ask God to sharpen us,
so that we can hear him speak this morning.
So let's pray.
Father God, we want to thank and praise you for your word.
We thank you that you're a God who has revealed himself
and who wants us to know him.
We thank you that you are a God who shows us things in our lives that need to change,
that you're a God who gives us the answers.
Lord, you don't leave us to guess.
And we ask this morning that you would take away tiredness or distraction or anything else
and enable us to hear you speak,
the result being that we might be more like your son
and that our lives might give you more glory.
Amen.
I remember when I was growing up, I used to be a bit of a church event junkie.
So I used to go to a lot of different church events.
I used to do two youth groups when I was in high school.
On Friday night, I'd go to my local Anglican church,
and on Saturday night, I'd go to my local Pentecostal church
because I couldn't get enough of youth group.
And I remember something that struck me as I hung around youth groups and events
was these incredible testimonies that evangelists had.
It seemed like a prerequisite to being a guest preacher
was a serious drug habit somewhere in life.
And I remember I used to sit there and think,
this is not long after I'd become a Christian.
I knew that I wanted to spend my life telling people about Jesus,
and I was thinking, where am I going to squeeze this drug habit in?
I'm busy.
I've got time.
And I'd be looking at my life and thinking, my life's so boring.
It's reasonably good.
And I had some stuff that I thought was pretty serious.
But when I heard these testimonies, my life just sounded like I was already a Christian.
I'd just forgotten to go to church.
But the problem was that I'd completely misunderstood what my life was like in God's eyes.
I'd completely misunderstood what God saw when He looked at my life.
And for the Ephesians, Paul comes to this point in chapter 4,
and there's been a shift in this second half of the book.
He started to really drive on the practical application of what he's been talking about.
He's been talking about the significant work that God has been doing.
In chapter 1, we learn about the gospel of Jesus,
by which we were chosen and predestined and adopted and forgiven.
And in chapter 2, he reminds them that in Christ they were brought from death to life.
There's a significant work that has gone on.
And then he begins chapter 4 by saying,
As a prisoner for the Lord then, I urge you to live a life worthy of that calling.
This second half is all about what that life in the gospel is supposed to look like.
But here, in this second part of chapter 4,
it's like Paul needs the Ephesians to look again at what their life is like without Jesus.
It's like the Ephesians maybe, like I used to, have looked at their life and thought,
we were kind of not amazing before, but we weren't bad either.
A few subtle changes and we'll be pretty sorted for this new life that God has called us to.
But in case they've missed the phrase dead in chapter 2,
Paul goes hard again here.
Have a look at verses 17 to 19.
I mean, this isn't subtle.
This is an absolute denunciation, an absolute slamming of the way of life without Jesus.
He says,
I tell you this and insist on it in the Lord that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do.
And for the Jews, Gentiles is the same as what we would think of as pagans.
For the people who don't know Jesus, he says,
I insist you must no longer live like they do in the futility of their thinking.
See, their way of life is based on a hopeless thinking.
They can't actually use their mind to understand their existence and their earth
and what the right path for their life is.
There is a futility and a hopelessness even in their ability to choose right and wrong.
It says they're dark in their understanding.
They're separated from life.
You've got to hear it again.
Without Jesus, you were dead.
Dead in your transgressions and sins.
Separated from God.
Cut off from the source of life.
And ignorant.
Hard-hearted.
Lost all sensitivity.
It's like sin has become second nature.
Sin is the normal.
It's like this happens for us as an ongoing challenge.
I remember finding myself as a younger man
perfectly okay with the increasing nudity and profanity
that I would find on television.
I remember as a 10, 11, a 12-year-old,
I'd get really embarrassed if there was nudity on television
and I'd run out of the room or my parents would cover my eyes
or something like that.
But progressively, I got desensitized
to the point where it was normal.
That's what's on TV.
So I'd just watch it.
And Paul is saying that's what life is like before Jesus.
There's no sense of this is wrong.
It's natural.
Your life is completely on a path of disobedience to God.
Your life is consumed by it.
It's like you're gathering up impurity.
It says there in verse 19,
Without God as the standard for our lives,
the only standard here is sensuality.
It's the things that I feel right now.
It's me.
I'm the center of the universe.
Paul says that is the existence of every non-believer.
Now, at first, we feel this kind of awkwardness.
Isn't that a bit harsh?
I know some nice non-Christians.
I know some non-Christians that seem to do good things.
But the point here is that sin,
that the life without God is life without God.
That's what sin is.
Sin is life lived outside of God's rule.
And it's there.
Without Jesus, they're cut off from life.
They're separated from God.
So people who don't know Jesus,
this is the reality of their life.
They are driven by their sensual desires.
They're cut off from life.
And they are just building up impurity.
And they are on a path of futility.
But Paul says in verse 17,
This is not okay anymore if you're following Jesus.
This is what it used to be.
This was your life.
This is your evangelist story, if you like.
This is the path that you can't continue on anymore.
You can't just live the same life with church attendance.
The gospel, Jesus, as has been explained all through chapters 1 to 3,
brings a new life.
It brings a transformation.
It brings something different.
Look at verse 20.
You, however, this is the contrast,
did not come to know Christ that way.
Surely you heard of him and were taught in him
in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.
You were taught with regard to your former way of life
to put off your old self,
which has been corrupted by its deceitful desires.
Paul says you now know Jesus.
You now know what is true.
There's no hopelessness in your thinking anymore.
You can't claim ignorance as an excuse for the sin in your life.
You have been shown the truth.
The mystery has been revealed in chapter 3.
And so for us, we're not ignorantly wallowing in the mud
because we don't know any better.
To continue in our old lifestyle
is to willingly reject the gospel.
It's to willingly deny the headship and lordship of Jesus
that was won on the cross.
To continue in your life the same way as it was before Jesus
is to reject the blood of Jesus which was shed for you
so you might be forgiven.
A life worthy of the gospel must be different.
A life worthy of what Jesus has done
can't even be just a changed life.
It's got to be a new life.
Death is where we were before.
Cut off from God.
Cut off from life is our starting point.
And so the life in Christ is so radically transformed
that it is new.
It is unrecognizable.
It is different.
And so Paul calls the Ephesians in this passage
and God is calling us today
to put off the old life.
To leave the habits.
To leave the sinful patterns.
And to put off the old life.
Because it is being corrupted.
But there's something really interesting there.
What is it that's corrupting that old life?
Have a look there in verse 22.
Put off your old life, your old self,
which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires.
It's your deceitful desires that have corrupted your old life.
Before you say,
I was ignorant.
I didn't know what I was doing.
Human sinfulness is so ingrained
that it is us that corrupts our life.
It is us that cuts ourselves off from God.
And to continue in that path,
it is your desires that will try and drag you there.
Your desires will wage war with this new life
that the Spirit is working in you.
Your own sinful human nature
will do everything
to keep you rooted in that old life
that you once existed in.
That is unless you fight
to put off the old self.
We significantly underestimate
just how sinful we are.
We think that sin is an issue, sure,
but it's a small issue.
In fact, we're so good
at distorting the truth of sin
that we can convince ourselves
that when we're sinning,
not only are we not doing the wrong thing,
but we can even make it noble sometimes.
I was listening to a sermon recently
and the preacher told a story about a man
that he met at a conference
and this man approached him
and started speaking proudly
of his wife and his girlfriend.
And the preacher pushed back going,
hang on a sec,
what do you mean your wife and your girlfriend?
And so the man,
without missing a beat,
started explaining,
well, my wife is quite cold
and disconnected
and our marriage wasn't really working,
but now I have this woman
who cares for my emotional needs
and my physical needs
and so it's saved my marriage.
That's a true story.
He had so twisted the truth
that he convinced himself
not only is adultery not wrong,
it's a good idea.
It's the way to fix the problems
in his marriage.
He's convinced himself that it's wise
and it sounds ridiculous
because that's not our sin.
But think of the ways
that we daily convince ourselves
that dishonesty is a good idea.
We can always find a noble outcome
for dishonesty
so that it's the right thing to do.
Think of the way you convince yourself
that speeding is a good idea
so that you get to church on time
because church is an important place to be.
So complete and so disgusting
is our sinful nature
that we can convince ourselves,
we can justify ourselves
to the point where sin is not a vice
but a virtue.
So complete is the rebellion in our old life
that if we continue to walk in it,
we reject the grace offered
in the gospel.
Paul is calling the Ephesians here
having reminded them
in those first three chapters
of the incredible grace and love
that God has shown them in Jesus.
He calls them here
to an active life change.
There is no possibility
of being passive in this activity.
In Christ they've been given knowledge,
they've been given the freedom
from the ignorance and the darkness
and the hard-heartedness
and the hopelessness
and now they can choose
to put off that old life
that is dead.
Now we are actually released
to choose what God has shown us
is right
but understand that this putting off
will be a daily struggle
until Jesus comes back.
It will be a daily struggle.
The life worthy of the gospel of Jesus
demands that there is an ongoing
every minute of every day
putting off of old habits that deny God
and putting on holiness, righteousness
and God-likeness.
That's what it says there in the passage.
Verse 22 finishes,
put off your old self
which has been corrupted
by its deceitful desires
to be made new
in the attitude of your minds
and to put on the new self
created to be like God
in true righteousness
and holiness.
What Paul is demanding here
is that the Ephesians
be recreated.
That's what he's asking them to do.
He's saying an old life
goes
and a new life begins
and the only way
a new life begins
is creation
and the only one who creates
is God.
He is saying
you need to swap death
for life,
darkness for light,
unwise for wise
and as a young kid
I just couldn't understand
that my old life was dead.
I couldn't see it as dead.
I could see those evangelist lives
as dead
with the drugs
and the guns
and the whatever else.
All I saw was good people
and bad people.
Bad people who met Jesus
needed to change
and good people like me
who met Jesus
needed to start going to church.
I couldn't grasp that
to God my life was disgusting.
That it was dead
and rotting
and decaying
and even more so
I didn't grasp
the blinding light
of the life
that God was calling me to.
I didn't understand
that following Jesus
meant a recreation.
It meant a whole new existence.
It meant that there is nothing
similar about my old life
and my new life.
God is calling us
from one extreme
of willful rebellion
to wholehearted
absolute
unquestioned
devotion.
Jesus is demanding
change.
Verse 23 again
says,
Be made new
in the attitude
of your minds
and put on
the new self
created to be like God
in true righteousness
and holiness
exchanging impurity
for righteousness
futility
for renewal
sensuality
for holiness
the ultimate
and complete
transformation.
Now,
I don't know about you
but I often get
uncomfortable
when people,
particularly non-Christians,
make comments
about how Christians
are supposed to be
the good people.
It usually comes
in the context
of a Christian
who's stuffed up
and they're letting us
know that we've
stuffed up
but my response
has always been,
no,
we're not supposed
to be good,
we're just forgiven.
I usually walk away
feeling kind of smug
and look,
that's kind of true
but in this passage
in Ephesians
Paul is saying
that a life
worthy of the gospel
does involve change,
that there is
a goodness,
that there is
a morality
that should mark
the people of God.
There should be
a visible difference
between those
who are darkened
in their understanding
and hardened
in their hearts
and those who have
been brought
to know Jesus.
Those who have
been forgiven
and cleansed
and set free.
And the scary part
in this passage
for me is that
it feels like
some of the responsibility
sits with us.
In verse 22,
we were taught
to put off
the old self.
You put off
the old self.
In verse 24,
you put on
the new self.
It's we
who are to
consciously
and actively
wrestle with sin
in our lives.
We are to
actively
and consciously
and desperately
seek God-likeness,
seek righteousness,
seek holiness.
There's this
incredible list
of examples
in the verses
that follow.
We're to stop
stealing
and instead
be generous.
We're to stop
lying and instead
speak truthfully.
We're to avoid
sinning and anger
and instead
be forgiving
and compassionate
and gracious.
We are to use
our words
to build others
up and not tear
down.
We're to forgive
like Jesus did.
We're to avoid
sexual immorality.
There's a list
of what we
must do.
There's a sense
of responsibility
there and we're
called to take
responsibility
for our lives
and for the
transformation
that is demanded
by the gospel.
So the question
is,
how seriously
do you take
sin in your
life?
How regularly
do you pray
for things
that you know
don't honour
God in your
life?
How hard
are you trying
to grow
in areas
of godliness?
Because the
call is clear.
Live a life
worthy of
the gospel.
The call
is forceful
in verse 17.
I insist
on it
in the Lord.
But I guess
the question
remains,
what does it
look like
practically
for you
to put off
and put on
this week?
What will it
look like
for you
to live this
out?
Look again
at verse 20
and 21.
You,
however,
did not come
to know
Christ that
way.
Surely
you heard
of him
and were
taught in
him in
accordance
with the
truth that
is in
Jesus.
You did
not come
to know
Christ
that way.
There's
this hint
of looking
back to
what Paul's
been talking
about for
the first
three chapters
of this
book.
We're
looking back
to what's
gone before
to chapter
one.
How did
the Ephesians
come to
know Jesus?
How do
we come
to know
Jesus as
Christians?
By hearing
and learning
the truth
that is in
Jesus.
The truth
of chapter
one that
tells us
that we
were chosen
before the
creation of
the world,
that we
were predestined
and adopted
and forgiven
and all
that when
we're included
by Christ
by faith.
That's what
it looked
like.
That's how
we came
to know
Christ,
is by
faith.
In chapter
two it's
explicit,
it's by
grace.
Our
knowing
Christ has
nothing to
do with
you,
it's by
his grace
and through
faith and
this is from
God.
Paul makes
it really
clear,
just to be
sure you
can't boast
about this
because God
does it
in Christ
and you
participate
in it
by grace
and through
faith.
It's God's
work in
you by
the Holy
Spirit that
opened your
eyes to be
able to
choose what
is right.
It's God's
work that
freed you
from the
ignorance and
the futility
and the
hopelessness.
And in
verse 23,
in amongst
us putting
off and
us putting
on,
we are
to be
made new.
That doesn't
say go make
yourself new,
it means be
made new,
it's something
that God
is doing,
it's his
work and
the only
one who
has the
power to
create is
God through
Jesus.
This
transformation
that is
demanded and
that is
insisted on
is only
possible in
the power
of the
gospel.
It's only
possible in
the power
of the
Holy Spirit
and it's
something that
God alone
can do.
Now you
might be
feeling like
I'm arguing
in two
directions here
but let me
show you.
God in
his infinite
wisdom and
power has
so worked
that he
can say
in the
space of
a couple
of verses
put off
you do
it.
Be made
new,
I'm doing
it and
put on
you do
it.
His
spirit works
in such
a way
that it
empowers
you and
it demands
of you
that you
take
responsibility.
God
says your
life must
be transformed,
must be
different,
must be
recreated and
he gives
you the
power to
do it and
in his
power he
gives you
the
responsibility
to say
I will
wrestle with
sin,
I will
put it
off,
I will
seek
godliness,
I will
put it
on.
The
Christian
life is
this journey
from being
redeemed in
Christ to
the final
redemption when
Christ comes
back and
because of the
cross we are
irreversibly rescued
and forgiven.
We have been
given the new
nature that is
talked about
here.
We now know
Christ,
we are no
longer that
verse 17
to 19
bit,
but you
and I
both know
that so
often we
wander back
into it.
We know
what is
right,
we know
what God
wants but
still we
wander back
into old
habits.
Still we
continue in
patterns of
sin that we
know to be
wrong.
We often
pretend that
we don't
know what's
right,
let alone
have the
willpower to
actually choose
it.
But Paul
says here,
I insist
in the
Lord,
don't settle
for sin.
Don't settle
for not
okay.
Don't become
desensitized but
daily put off
your old
life.
Daily put
on this new
man, this
new self that
has been
created.
Confess
sin.
Pray for
strength to
resist.
Practice
godliness.
Encourage
instead of
tear down.
Share
rather than
steal.
Forgive
rather than
revenge.
Are you
growing to
be more
like Jesus?
Because that
is the new
self that
God has
created in
you.
He is
transforming
you to
be like
Jesus.
What are
you doing
to actually
make that
part of
your agenda?
Do you
have someone
in your
life who
will regularly
challenge you
on areas
that you're
struggling in?
do you
have someone
holding you
accountable in
an area that
you're seeking
to grow in?
Are you
trying to
memorize
scripture that
might shape
your desires
and your
heart?
How
regularly do
you confess
sin in your
life?
Because it
is a daily
struggle to
put off and
to put on.
How we live
can't unsave
us but that
doesn't mean
that it's
not important.
It still
matters.
This is what
it looks like
to be a
Christian.
There is a
transformation
to be more
and more
like Jesus.
That's what
the gospel
looks like
when it
takes root
in our
life and
shapes us.
But the
last question
I have for
this passage
is why
is it
here?
I mean
I get it
that the
second half
of Ephesians
is practical
but this
book is
about the
church.
This book
is about the
community of
God's
people.
We just
learnt in
the section
immediately
before about
gifts for
building one
another up.
So why does
he take this
apparent left
turn and
start talking
about the
life of the
individuals?
Why does
he suddenly
slap people
around about
their sinfulness
and their
failure to
pursue
godliness?
Something that
I like to do
and that has
been significant
in my
Christian life
is having
older godly
men as
mentors.
And one
particular guy
who I won't
name because
that would
make him
particularly
uncomfortable,
I spent
time with
regularly over
the course
of about
18 months
and this
man for
me was
the godliest
man I've
ever met.
I have
often referred
to him
slightly in
jest as
Jesus because
he's the
closest thing
I've seen
in my
lifetime.
he loves
the scriptures
in a way
that I can
only hope
to get
to.
He has
boxes and
boxes of
memory verse
cards and
he knows
them.
We would
meet together
and he'd be
carrying around
this little
wallet in
his back
pocket with
sort of 10
15 memory
verses that
he had
learnt,
some new
ones he
was learning
and some
that he
was revising
from as
long as
25 years
ago and
he'd go
can you
test me
on them?
He'd hand
them over
and he'd
get every
one of
them word
perfect.
He'd
even progressed
with his
church through
the various
translations of
the Bible.
He had
some of
his verses
in King
James,
some in
RSV,
some in
NIV and
he knew
which ones
were in
which because
they were
so imprinted
on his
mind and
his life
that he
couldn't
forget them.
And
spending time
with this
man was a
significant
encouragement
to me.
We wrestled
with some
specific issues,
we occasionally
talked about
specific things
but the most
significant
encouragement
was just
watching him
follow Jesus.
Watching him
love his
wife through
sickness.
Watching him
love his
kids even
as some
of them
strayed.
His
transformed
life
spurred me
on to be
transformed as
well.
His living
out of the
gospel,
his living a
life worthy
of the
gospel pushed
me to
maturity,
pushed me
to growth.
This sits
perfectly in
this chapter.
This is
exactly the
right place
because yes
the church
is a unit
but it's a
unit made
up of
people,
made up
of individuals
who are
living lives,
made up of
relationships and
a life worthy
of the gospel
is a life in
relationship to
God but it's
a life in
relationship to
those who
belong to
God as
well.
What we
need to
understand is
your life
and the
way you
live impacts
me directly
and indirectly.
My life
and the
way I
live impacts
you directly
and indirectly.
The
transformation
or lack
of transformation
has an
impact on
you as my
brothers and
sisters that
I'm in
relationship
with.
Look back
to verse
16 just
before our
passage.
Talking about
the building up
of the body
it says,
from him
the whole
body joined
and held
together by
every supporting
ligament grows
and builds
itself up in
love as
each part
does its
work.
Part of
the work
that each
part must
do is what
follows in
this passage.
To be
equipped to
do the
work you
must be
being
transformed.
You must
be growing to
be more like
Jesus because
that is what
the gospel
does.
It changes
us.
We need to
take seriously
the call to
put off and
wrestle with
sin in our
life and we
need to take
seriously the
call to grow
in godliness.
It's not
enough to
just put off
but as we
are recreated
our desires,
our goals,
our aspirations
are shaped to
line up with
Christ that we
might be created
to be like
God in
true righteousness
and holiness.
As you
change and
grow, that
spurs and
encourages the
people around
you to do
the same.
We're not
all wrestling
with the same
sins but
seeing you
wrestle with
sin in your
life, seeing
you make the
decision to
say that
God's being
obedient to
God and
his call on
your life is
more important
than your
sensual desires
makes me want
to do the
same.
God's grace
in your life
gives me joy.
God's work
in your life
gives me a
vision for
what he wants
to do in
my life and
the life that
you are living
even in
secret matters
for the rest
of us.
This passage
is kind of
heavy but
it's kind of
light at the
same time.
There are so
many examples
of stuff that
we are all
bad at.
Speech,
sexual impurity,
anger but
it's all
driven by
the gospel.
Verse 20
to 24
it just
unpacks the
gospel.
You did not
come to know
Christ that
way.
You heard of
him and were
taught in
him in
accordance with
the truth
that is in
Jesus.
You're being
made new in
the attitude
of your mind.
It's the
coming to
know Jesus
by grace
and through
faith that
frees us to
live a
transformed life.
Frees us
from futile
ignorance and
empowers us to
choose Jesus.
So what's it
going to look
like for you
to put on
and put off
this week?
It's going to
look exactly
the same as
it looked the
first time you
put off and
put on.
That's what you
did when you
became a
Christian.
You left your
old life behind
and you took
on a new
one.
And what did
it look like
then?
It looked like
you saying,
God, please
do this in
me.
God, I don't
deserve it.
I'm not good
enough.
I'm not worthy.
Please do this
in me.
It looks
like prayer.
Humble,
dependent,
and desperate
prayer.
Saying, God,
change me.
Pray for your
holiness.
Pray for my
holiness.
Pray for one
another so that
together we can
live a life
worthy of the
gospel.
so that
together we
can be the
church that
is pictured
in these
passages.
So that
together we
might grow
up and
mature into
the head
that is
Christ Jesus.
Humble,
dependent,
desperate
prayer.
That's what it
looks like to
put off and
put on.
Let's pray.
Pray.
Pray for
God.
Father, we
want to
acknowledge that
there is so
much in our
lives that is
not okay.
That there is so
much about the
way we are
living that we
have become
desensitized to.
We have become
comfortable with
things that are
disgusting to
you.
Father, we
remember the
forgiveness and
the freedom that
you have won for
us in Jesus.
Please remind us
of the work you
have done.
Lift our eyes to
see the good
that you would
have us do in
our lives.
Show us the
sins that you
would have us
deal with and
wrestle with.
Give us the
strength to
overcome them.
Lord, keep us
from settling with
where we are
now.
Give us eyes to
look to Jesus,
to understand that
you are transforming
us from one degree
of glory to
another.
That you are
constantly by the
power of your
spirit cleansing
us and shaping
us.
That we might
love what you
love and hate
what you hate.
God, use each
of our lives
individually to
be an
encouragement and
a joy to one
another.
God, please
transform us
that our lives
might reflect your
gospel, might
point to Jesus.
Amen.