Ephesians chapter 4, we're looking at verse 17 to 24.
It's page 978.
If you're looking in the Pew Bible, we've been going through the book of Ephesians this year.
We started in the fall and we're going to continue until Easter.
So, I'm going to read Ephesians chapter 4, verses 17 to 24, and that is what we'll be looking at tonight.
These are the words of the Apostle Paul here, God's Word.
Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do in the futility of their minds.
They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to their hardness of heart.
They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.
But that is not the way you learned Christ.
Assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him as the truth is in Jesus,
to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires,
and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds and to put on the new self,
created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.
So this evening's passage is about the power of God and Jesus Christ to transform us,
and it's about living in light of that transformation.
So let me start by giving a couple examples of transformation.
There are some examples of transformation in nature, and the one that comes to my mind is a caterpillar,
ugly gray caterpillar slithering along the ground,
and somehow it goes into that gray little cocoon, that ugly cocoon,
and comes out a beautiful, colorful butterfly gracefully fluttering through the air,
spreading its wings.
Or think about some examples in human life.
Think about an athlete who's on a losing team where everyone's miserable,
and everyone argues, and they all hate the coach,
and they're all blaming each other all the time, and that's why they're a losing team.
And suddenly that athlete gets traded to a team where that's really a team,
and people have each other's back, and they're not just trying to be the superstar,
but they're trying to work together and be more than they could be on their own.
And because of their attitude, and they listen to their coach,
and they have a coach that encourages them, and that's why they're a winning team.
And you go from one team to another.
Or think about a child who, for whatever reason, is orphaned.
Their parents die or can't take care of them.
The child is alone, hungry, afraid.
And then they're welcomed into a stable and loving family
with people where all their needs can be met,
and they can feel secure.
Here's a story of transformation.
This week I was reading a story of a man in Scotland
who's a pastor now named Mez McConnell.
And he came from a very rough background.
He had never lived in a stable and loving home growing up.
His mother abandoned him, and he was abused at different times
in different households.
And as a teenager, he became addicted to drugs,
started dealing drugs, eventually was sent to prison for violent crimes.
But just before he was sent to prison, he had met some Christians
while he was playing soccer on the street.
And these Christians shared the gospel with him
and then came to visit him in prison.
And then when he came out of prison,
some of them actually welcomed him to live with them in their home.
Even some people who hadn't known him for very long.
And he wrote about what it was like to finally,
for the first time in his life,
be welcomed into a stable, loving, and Christian family.
But here's the thing.
Even though he had become a new person in Christ,
he'd become a Christian,
and he had been welcomed into a church,
and even into someone's home,
it was very hard for him to adapt to this new way of life.
So this is what he wrote.
He said,
In the beginning, when I moved into this couple's home,
it was an older couple whose children had all left the home,
and he lived in their attic.
He says,
In the beginning, I was paranoid and suspicious of their motives.
Why would they let me into their home?
What were they getting out of it?
He says,
I knew they weren't looking for money because I didn't have any.
I was so scared of them kicking me out that I didn't unpack for months.
I slept on the floor next to the bed so I wouldn't get too comfortable.
I would hide up in that attic for hours on end
and creep around so as not to make a noise.
I would sneak food into my room and eat alone.
Listening to the conversation from their dining room table
as guests joined them for meals.
They always asked me to join them,
and I always refused because I was too embarrassed.
Then he says,
Over many months,
took some time,
I began to relax,
and so did they.
It started when I joined them for breakfast one morning for five minutes.
My conversation was one-word answers.
It progressed to a lunchtime bowl of soup and a few sentences of chatting.
Then supper and a funny story.
Then they asked me about my day.
They showed me how to cook a meal,
how to use a washing machine,
how to budget my finances.
I learned to help around the house.
I spent less and less time locked away in my room
and more and more time sitting at that dining room table
joining in the family conversations.
You see,
what he's describing is this journey
where he began in a place of fear
and shame and isolation
and over a long period of time
began to live in this sense of security
and belonging and being loved.
And he had experienced a transformation,
but it took time to live into that.
And I think that's true
in nearly all transformations
that human beings experience.
Right?
The caterpillar to the butterfly
is a smooth, complete transformation.
Right?
I have never seen a butterfly acting like a caterpillar.
Have you ever seen a butterfly
pretending to be a caterpillar
and slithering along the ground?
No.
It just, once it's a butterfly, it's a butterfly.
It doesn't go back into the cocoon again.
But I think people,
when people like us experience transformation,
it's not smooth and simple
and easy and a finished product.
We sometimes tend to revert.
We tend to go back to our old ways.
We tend to go back into our caterpillar skin,
if you want to put it that way.
We carry our past with us.
Sometimes we go back to our old mindsets
and our old attitudes
and our old habits.
And that's what the Apostle Paul's talking about
in this passage.
Earlier in Ephesians,
he's talked about how in Christ,
everyone who has turned from their sin
and put their faith in Jesus Christ
and believe that he has died on the cross
for their sins
and received them into their life,
it says we are new creations.
Chapter 2, verse 10,
we are God's workmanship
created in Christ Jesus for good works.
Chapter 2, verse 15 says,
not just individually,
but God has made of us all one new humanity,
reconciled to God and to one another.
2 Corinthians 5, 17,
another great verse about this.
If anyone is in Christ,
they are a new creation.
The old is gone.
The new has come.
Or in this passage,
verse 24 talks about the new self.
We have a new identity.
We're a new person in Christ.
But the problem is
we don't always live like that new person
who's been adopted into God's family
and forgiven of our sins
and set free from our bondage.
We sometimes go back
to the life we used to live
or just the old habits of our sinful nature.
Even if you grew up like me
in a Christian family
and you can't remember a time
when you didn't believe in Jesus,
we are all born with a sinful nature.
So there's always something
for us to revert back to.
It doesn't just mean
you had to have this dramatic conversion experience
at some point in your life.
We all have a sinful nature
that we tend to default back to.
And that's what Paul's talking about.
Paul says,
no, live into your new nature in Christ.
So there's two commands Paul gives in this passage.
And then there's three areas of our life
where we need to practice those commands.
So let me briefly look at the two commands
and then we'll look at the three areas.
So the two commands are,
number one in verse 17,
you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do.
And Paul's very serious.
He says,
this I say,
I testify in the Lord.
It's like he's speaking under oath in court.
If you're speaking,
if you've ever had to speak under oath in court,
you think twice about what you say, right?
You're not going to make a careless joke
or say something you don't really believe
or say something that's not really true.
You're under oath.
And that's how Paul is speaking.
He says,
I testify to you in the Lord.
I'm serious about this.
You must no longer live as the Gentiles do.
Don't go back to your old way of life.
When he's,
that word Gentiles
just means the nations.
And it's a word that's sometimes used in the Bible.
Sometimes it's just used to talk about
all the nations of the world.
But sometimes it's used specifically
to talk about people who don't know God.
Sort of the people who aren't yet
part of God's people.
Who know him and love him.
And this is people who haven't,
who don't believe in,
who don't believe or trust in God.
So Paul says,
don't live like people who don't know God.
Instead,
live as a new person that you are in Christ.
That's the second half of the passage.
Verse 20 to 24.
And there's actually three commands in this part.
But I think it's basically all one.
Put off your old self.
Be renewed on the inside.
Put on the new self.
So we might summarize.
Put off the old.
Put on the new.
And it's sort of like Paul's saying,
if you're that athlete,
you've been traded to a new team.
So don't behave like you did
on that dysfunctional team
where nobody listens to the coach
and everybody tries to take shortcuts
and nobody does workouts on their own
because they're all just being lazy.
Right?
Don't,
and everybody's cutting each other down
and talking behind each other's back.
Don't behave like that.
You're on a new team.
And the new team doesn't work that way.
And the coach isn't out to get you.
The coach is on our side.
And he wants us to win.
And he wants us to work as a team
and work together.
Live as part of this new team.
Don't live like you're on that old team.
You have to change those habits.
Or it's like Paul's saying to somebody who's been,
it's like he's talking to somebody
who's been released from prison
and they're still walking around every day
wearing prison clothes.
And he's saying,
what are you doing?
You're free.
You can wear whatever you want now.
You don't have to wear prison clothes anymore.
It's like he's saying,
you're part of a new family now.
God's welcomed you into his house
so you can unpack your bags.
You don't have to sleep on the floor anymore.
You can relax.
You can be at peace
because Jesus loves you.
And he says,
come to me and you'll find rest.
You can rest now
because you've come to him.
Put off the old,
put on the new.
Now in the coming weeks,
in the next three weeks,
we're going to look at some specific applications
of this idea of put off the old,
put on the new.
And they come in the next paragraph,
the rest of chapter four.
So we're going to look at our words.
Paul talks about speaking truth
and speaking in a way that builds others up.
I think that's next week.
Then we're going to talk about,
Paul says,
do honest work.
Don't steal from others.
But instead of stealing,
do honest work.
So we're going to talk about work
instead of stealing
or sort of mooching off others.
And then third,
he talks about anger and forgiveness.
Right?
And these are all very practical things
that in probably in all of our lives
at some level need to change.
The words we use,
the work we do,
and how we deal with anger
and forgiving others.
So that's the next three weeks.
So come back to the next three weeks.
We'll look at each one of those one by one.
But today,
I want to,
today's sort of the big picture
of what it looks like
to put off the old
and put on the new.
So Paul points us
to three areas of our life
where we need to do this.
And I'm going to briefly go through each one.
Our mind,
our heart,
and our behavior.
So Paul starts in both sections.
There's sort of two sections of this passage,
verse 17 to 19
and verse 20 to 24.
And they both start by talking about our minds.
That is our thinking
or our understanding.
And Paul,
in verse 17,
he says,
the Gentiles,
people who don't know God,
walk in the futility of their minds.
They are darkened in their understanding.
Later in verse 18,
he says,
they live in ignorance.
That is without true knowledge of God.
Now I wonder,
have you ever talked to somebody
who sincerely believes something
that you knew to be
completely false and misguided?
Right?
Probably all of us, right?
You've heard somebody say something
and they're like,
I know this is true.
And you're like,
I actually,
but I know it's not true.
Now,
of course,
one of you is wrong.
Now maybe,
right,
maybe you felt that
and then realized
that you've been wrong in the end.
But right,
but still then,
then you're that person.
Right?
Okay?
But Paul says,
you know,
this is our human condition.
Right?
We believe,
not just other people,
but all of us,
at some points,
believe all kinds of things
that aren't actually true.
And we might believe them
very sincerely
and very strongly.
But we believe things
that aren't true
or at best,
they're only partial truths.
He says,
our minds are darkened.
Our perspective's limited
and not just limited,
it's often distorted.
This is one of the effects
of living in a fallen world.
And Paul says,
living life apart from
the light of God
is like stumbling around
in a dark house
where there's no lights on,
there's no light coming in,
there's not enough light
coming in from the windows
to see where you're going.
It's like being in a basement
with no windows
and the lights are off
and you're stumbling around
and tripping over things
and bumping into things
and things are poking you
in the eye
and you don't even know
what's going on.
Paul says,
that's sort of our human condition.
But he says,
and you might say,
well, what are some examples
of this darkened understanding
or this feudal mindset?
Well, a couple examples
that Paul points to
elsewhere specifically.
One would be idolatry,
right?
That was characteristic
of the Gentiles,
pagan nations back then,
people worshiping created things
rather than the creator,
superstition and fear.
And even if we don't bow down
to statues like people did back then,
there are still ways
that we can replace God
with other things.
But that word futility
in verse 17
is also the same word
that's used over and over
in the book of Ecclesiastes.
And if you've ever read
the book of Ecclesiastes,
basically here's what
the writer says.
The writer says,
I tried everything in the world.
I tried making a lot of money.
I tried gaining a lot of knowledge.
I tried enjoying a lot of pleasure.
He said,
I thought money
would make me happy.
I thought knowledge
would make me wise.
And I thought pleasure
would bring me peace.
But it didn't.
None of them
delivered on those promises.
It was all empty,
futile,
vain,
fleeting,
meaningless.
Paul says,
that's not the way
you've learned Christ.
Christ has shined
his light into your mind
and he's taught you
to think
a different way.
Notice in verse 20 and 21,
all the words
that refer to thinking,
how we think.
he says,
you learned Christ.
It's actually
a very unusual expression.
Right?
You,
how do you,
where do you ever heard
you learned another person?
But he's talking about
you learned Christ.
You have heard about him.
You were taught in him.
The truth is in him.
Paul says,
we need to put off
our old ways of thinking.
Whether it's
idolatry
or superstition
and fear
or one of those things
that the writer
of Ecclesiastes
talks about.
Thinking that money
is the thing
that's going to make you happy
or thinking that pleasure
is the thing
that's going to bring you peace
or thinking that
knowledge,
just knowing a lot of facts
is going to actually
make you a wise person.
Paul says,
no.
None of those things
are true
because God
is really what you're
looking for
and your heart
is going to be restless
until you find rest
in the true God.
So Paul says,
put off your old way
of thinking.
You need to begin
to think differently.
You need to think
differently about yourself.
You need to think
differently about the world
that God has made.
You need to think
differently about God himself.
So you need to hear
and listen.
That's,
you know,
that's why we
preach from the Bible
every week
and have teaching,
Bible teaching
as a core part
of what we do.
It's not the only thing
we do,
but it's a core part
of what we do
because our minds,
we need to change
the way we think
and understand things.
And when we read
the Word of God
and listen to it,
that's part of what happens.
We start to think differently.
So that's the first thing
we need to put off
some of our old ways
of thinking
and put on new ways
of thinking
that are in line
with the truth of Christ.
But Paul doesn't just
talk about our minds,
right?
It's not just about
our thinking
and understanding alone.
He goes on to our hearts,
our desires,
our attitudes.
So verse 18
describes our desires
and attitudes
apart from
the saving grace
of Christ.
Talks about being
alienated from God.
Talks about hardness
of heart
or stubbornness.
Verse 22
talks about deceitful
desires
that corrupt us.
But verse 23
says,
be renewed
in the spirit
of your minds
or that is
in the attitudes
and the desires
of our minds,
right?
Not just our thinking
and understanding
but also our attitudes
and desires
need to be renewed.
He says,
be transformed
in your desires
and attitudes.
So think,
what are the desires
and attitudes
that need to change
in my life?
I'll just throw
out a few examples.
Put off
self-sufficiency
that is
thinking that
I know best
and I'm fine
and I don't need
any help
and I don't need
any advice
and I don't want
anyone's input.
Put off that
and put on humility.
What was the first
of the Beatitudes
that Jesus said
in the Sermon on the Mount?
Blessed are the poor
in spirit.
That means
those who are humble
before God
and who come
before God
with open hands
and say,
I need you,
God.
I need your help.
I'm not self-sufficient.
I can't do this
on my own.
He says,
blessed are the poor
in spirit
for theirs
is the kingdom
of heaven.
That's where it starts.
You can't go
anywhere further
unless you start there.
How about
put off
taking people
for granted
and taking things
for granted
and put on
gratitude
toward God?
A lot of the first
half of Ephesians
is about
how amazing
are the gifts
that God has poured
out upon us
in Jesus Christ
and how
even though
we don't deserve
any of them,
how lavish
and amazing
God's gifts are
and part of the response
to that
is simply gratitude
and
that's probably
why we sing.
that's probably
why we sing
songs of praise
every time
we get together
because that
fosters gratitude.
It reminds us
of what God
has done for us.
That's what the songs
speak about
probably more
than anything else
is the greatness
of what he's done
for us
and I think
particularly through music
it sort of
fosters
a gratefulness
in our hearts
if the Holy Spirit
is working in us.
And so that's
as we sing
let gratitude
well up in your hearts
toward God.
Put off taking things
for granted
or feeling entitled
put on gratitude
for his grace.
Or third
put off hardness
and stubbornness
Paul talks about
hardness of heart.
He actually says
some of
he actually talks
about ignorance
being the result
of hardness of heart.
Sometimes the reason
why we don't see
things clearly
is because we're
being stubborn
and hard hearted.
And if we would
be receptive
to God
and his word
then we would begin
to see things
more clearly.
So Paul says
be renewed
in the spirit
of your minds
and that's
you know
that's very interesting
how he puts it
because on the one hand
it's a command
be renewed.
On the other hand
who's the one
who's doing
that renewing?
Right?
Does Paul say
renew yourself?
No.
He says
be renewed
by God
the Holy Spirit
working in you.
So we need
God to be working
in us.
He's the one
who renews us
but Paul also
says be renewed.
There's a command
to us
but it's also
a reminder
that we're
not alone.
We're not alone
in seeking
to be transformed.
We're not just
trying to transform
ourselves.
It's God
at work
deep within us
transforming us.
So our minds
that is our thinking
and our understanding
our hearts
our desires
and attitudes
and third
our behavior
our habits
and practices.
So if you notice
each of these
three sections
or sorry
each of the sections
of this passage
when he describes
the behavior
of the Gentiles
people who don't
know God
it starts
with the mind
goes on to our
heart
desires
and sort of
outflows
in our behavior
and it's the same
way with the
20 to 24.
So verse 19
and 24
both talk about
our behavior
how we live.
Okay verse 19
talks about
people who've
become callous
that is they don't
feel anything anymore
and they've
given themselves
up to sensuality
greedy to practice
every kind of
impurity
unrestrained
by honor
or shame
or pain
people are just
sort of giving
themselves up
to sensuality
and impurity
and never satisfied
always being greedy
for more
there's sort of
a downward spiral
you want more
and more
and so you
I mean this is
a good description
of what we often
call an addiction
right
whether it's to
food
or drugs
or alcohol
or something else
where we
sort of latch
onto something
and just want it
more and more
and get deeper
into it
and part of the
reason that we're
in there in the
first place
is because we
don't want to
feel
right
we're dealing
with some
deep pain
and we look
and we try to
find something
that numbs us
that makes us
feel callous
that makes us
stop feeling
that deep
pain
or grief
or loss
and what
Jesus says
is
I don't want
I want you
to learn
to feel
again
and you know
what you don't
have to be
afraid to feel
those things
even though
they're really
hard
because I'm
gonna
I'm gonna
take you by
I'm gonna
take you by
the hand
I'm gonna
hug you
and embrace
you
and say
you're not
alone
in what
you're feeling
and so
you don't
have to
try to
numb
yourself
and run
away from
these hard
things
but you
can begin
to experience
my grace
you can start
to live a life
of what
verse 24
calls true
righteousness
and holiness
we begin
to feel
compassion
and empathy
for others
that's part
of part
of what
God does
when he
makes us
a new
creation
and does
that renewing
work on
the inside
as we
begin to
have
different
feelings
another
example
of this
would be
you know
maybe
there's
someone
that
you've
held
a bitter
grudge
against
for years
and years
and I've
known some
situations
where someone's
held a bitter
grudge
against someone
else
for years
and years
and gradually
the power
of the Holy
Spirit
usually this
doesn't happen
all at once
but usually
happens over
a period
of time
sort of like
if you
burn something
in the oven
on a cookie
sheet
and you
can't just
throw it
in the
dishwasher
because the
dishwasher
is not
going to
do it
and you
can't just
scrub it
off
because it's
black and
coat
it's all
burned to
the cookie
sheet
right
and you
have to
soak it
in the
water
hot water
and soap
and leave it
there for a
while
and then
you can
scrape it
down
and then
maybe you
got to
do it
again
and scrape
it down
that's a
little bit
how God's
Word and
God's Holy
Spirit works
we need to
soak in it
so that our
deep rooted
sin
and impurity
can gradually
get washed
away
it doesn't
all happen
all at once
with one
experience
usually
it usually
takes soaking
for God
to do
that
renewing
work
but I've
known
people
and I've
experienced
this myself
there was a
situation
where I was
holding a
bitter grudge
against someone
else
and
through a
period of
time
God worked
to change
my heart
and I
actually felt
differently
toward that
other person
sometimes it
starts with
just saying
okay
I need to
stop
wronging
this other
person
I need
to speak
in a
kind
way
to them
or not
speak
to them
but actually
over time
God works
even deeper
and he
gradually
begins to
change
even our
feelings
those things
that are
sort of
burned into
us deeply
as we soak
in his word
and spirit
so that's
a behavior
change
it goes
from this
downward spiral
always being
greedy for
and more
never satisfied
but then
when we
put on
Christ
when our
minds
and thinking
change
when our
desires
and attitudes
change
then our
behavior
can change
and we
can live a
life of
true righteousness
and holiness
that's pleasing
to God
so we might
ask what
in our
behavior
needs
what in
each of
these three
areas
needs to
change
what in
our
thinking
where do
we need
to put
off the
old
thinking
put on
the
new
in line
with
Christ
put off
the
old
attitudes
and desires
put on
the
new
in line
with
Christ
put off
the
old
ways
of
behavior
put on
the
new
in
Christ
and again
all of this
comes from
the Holy Spirit
working in us
through the
word of God
and renewing us
day by day
so that's Paul's
message tonight
you're a new
creature in
Christ
remember who
you are
and live
like it
more
and more
and if
you haven't
experienced
this
saving
grace
this
cleansing
power
of
Christ
turn to
him
today
you can
say
Jesus
I haven't
experienced
this
being
becoming
a new
person
in you
I need
you to
forgive
me of
my
sins
and send
me your
Holy Spirit
so that I
can I
can be
new
by your
power
and then
help me
to live
that way
let's pray
God our
father we
thank you
for your
mercy and
grace
that through
Christ
you have
made us
new
creations
through
faith in
him
Lord we
pray that
we would
continue to
look to
you
and that
you would
do this
renewing and
transforming work
in us
that we
would
and help
us to be
decisive
in putting
off the
old
and not
going back
and not
reverting to
our old
ways of
thinking
and
and our
attitudes
and our
ways of
living
but help
us to
live as
the new
person
that you've
made us
in Christ
we pray
this in
Jesus name
amen