Sunday Morning Service

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Ephesians 5:1-20

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“A Consistent Life” • 9.8.13 • Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service

Intro.

- We have begun to move into very practical waters, having begun in heaven, in eternity past, and come all the way down to where we walk each and every day.

- Christians have laid aside the old man with his attitudes and practices. We reckon him put away and have put on the new man, fashioned after Jesus, who desires to do things that please God.

- As such, we put off lying and put on speaking the truth in love to one another. We put off stealing and put on working for each other's benefit, etc. etc.

- Today, Paul brings it down to an even more intimate level. Let's begin with what Paul speaks to us in verse 1.

Text

• Ephesians 5:1,2 : "Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma." : Paul has not finished a thought, but has moved on to the very next implication of God's call for us to not walk as the world does.

- Therefore, Paul issues this command for the church: We are to always be imitators of our God. Our word "mime" comes from this word.

- In Paul's day, this was an impressionist performer, not the white face painted performer today. The mime would act as he had observed his subject act.

- Christians are to imitate God and therefore, are to know Him. We are to be familiar with Him as a favorite child is familar with their Father.

- Imagine how well such a child would know their Dad. They'd know every facial expression, every idiosyncrasy! They'd know how He would answer certain questions and what He would like.

- As dear, favored children of God, the first part of that imitation is found in the fact that we're to walk in love, again, as Christ has loved us and given Himself for us! That is the example!

- Perhaps you can find justification for witholding love from another person, but Christ did not withold it from you! He loved us and did something about our position before Him.

- He loved us and then allowed His own body to suffer for the sin that was present in your life. He was not loving you and letting you in "as you are!" He has done something about your sin!

- Jesus has offered an offering. He has brought a sacrificial present to the altar of God and God was satisfied when He looked upon Christ's sacrifice.

- At the cross of Christ, God's love for the World and His commitment to justice were both satisfied forever! In the same way, our life is to be lived sacrificially for others.

- That life is pleasing or satisfying to God! Now, Paul corrects the other way of thinking.

• Ephesians 5:3 : "But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints;" : Love is giving of yourself. What Paul describes here is an imitation of the world's love, which is to get for yourself.

- He begins with fornication which gives us the word "pornography." This refers to any sexually arousing situation experienced by a non-married, heterosexual couple.

- In a marriage, between a male husband and his female wife, there should be sexual expression. Outside of a legally tendered, state recognized heterosexual marriage, it's pornographic!

- If you are not married, you need to heed these words: Sex outside of the fidelity of a legally married couple does the opposite of what it does in marriage.

- In marriage, sex bonds a couple together, increases their capacity to be intimate with one another in non sexual communication. Not so outside of marriage.

- Outside of marriage, intimate relations cause greater insecurity as the couple seeks to keep the interest level high. God is not trying to ruin your fun. He intends for your fun to be permanent!

- Next to fornication, there is the word "uncleanness" which we have examined in Romans, 2 Corinthians and Galatians.

- If I were to synthesize what it meant, I'd put it this way: The unclean person will hurt themselves and anyone else in order to be physically pleasured! They are addicted!

- That is why Paul lists it next to covetousness. They are hungry, greedy for more, their appetite is insatiable! These things, to any degree, must not even garner a mention among us!

- They are commonplace outside of the church but out of place within the church!

- The text seems to indicate that it shouldn't even be mentioned once! It's not fitting, it's not proper for saints.

• Ephesians 5:4 : "neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks." : Filthiness refers to obscenity, which when one hears it spoken, is never complementary. Foolish talking simply means speaking as a fool.

- The context fits in line with speaking in an inappropriate manner, especially as it's couched between "filthiness" and "coarse jesting."

- Coarse jesting refers to joking at another person's expense, especially as it moves toward lower humor. We must remember that this isn't fitting either!

- Is Paul outlawing a little comedy? Is he trying to kill the fun that can be had as a body? No.

- The Apostle is insuring that we know where the line is and that we remain very clearly away from it! Instead, we are to give thanks! That's appropriate!

- We're to be thankful to the Lord together, celebrating His goodness toward us.

- We're to be thankful for one another and our fellowship in Christ. When you leave having heard foolish or obscene things, are you thankful or burdened heart? Let's always leave thankful!

• Ephesians 5:5-7 : "For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them." : How serious is this? Listen to Paul. "We know" certainly that people who are unrepentant fornicators, unclean persons and the covetous have nothing in heaven!

- Why then would we laugh at their expense? When we do are desensitizing ourselves to their plight. We aren't considering our responsibility toward them.

- None of these people will go to heaven. Why? Is it because they are fornicators or are unclean? No. It's because they are idolators, people who place a higher value on pleasure than God.

- Why would one believe that they could indulge such things and have an inheritance reserved for them in the Kingdom of Christ and God?

- What does Christ represent? The very righteousness of God. How can somebody who enjoys such behaviors expect to enjoy the enduring kingdom of righteousness for eternity?

- Somehow, in the Ephesian mindset, the tendency given their culture, gave them a light heart toward these behaviors, probably because most of their friends and family were living these things!

- Listen to how incredibly clear this is: Our behavior in this world matters! Let no one deceive you with empty words! Don't let anyone cheat you with vain words.

- Don't let anyone tell you otherwise in seeking to excuse these sins personally or on another's behalf. We need to heed these things in the church.

- If we do not take them seriously in our lives, how can we expect to see people freed from them in the world! These are the very things that has provoked God's wrath in the world!

- Those who are the sons of disobedience, the ones who refuse to bow their knees to the only One that deserves their worship, are inviting God's righteous anger toward them!

- It's almost too obvious to have to say, but Paul tells the church, "Don't look to enjoy the same things as the world!" Don't participate with them in these things.

• Ephesians 5:8-10 : "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord." : There has been a break between what you once were, darkness, and what you are now, light!

- Before Christ made you a new person, you were darkness. You were a part of a system whose thinking was shrouded in spiritual darkness and you expressed that darkness through your life.

- Then Jesus came into your lives and turned on the light by His Holy Spirit! Suddenly there was purpose and wisdom from the Lord. Now, conduct yourself as a child of light!

- Paul refers to THE Light of the World, Jesus Christ, whose little lights reflect His giant light!

- Let's look at this sentence without the brief interruption: Walk as children of light, finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.

- The goal is to walk and prove, to test that which is good and well pleasing to God! As children of light, we know that the Spirit produces all goodness, righteousness and truth!

- We know then the consistency of a walk in the light when our lives are busy producing these good things and that our mouths now express good, righteous and true things.

• Ephesians 5:11,12 : "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret." : Don't share in the barren works of darkness! This is an interesting picture, as there is a tree which looks as though it's healthy, but it's barren!

- The works of darkness end up being a waste of our time and resource as the promise of fruit gives way to a barren, unproductive landscape.

- In the end, the darkness of the world collapses upon itself, the pleasure it promises destroys and decays a soul until that soul is utterly ruined! Don't take part in that!

- Notice that it says not to be a partner with the unfruitful works. Don't support such things. Don't make it easy on friends who choose that life by helping them in their degeneracy!

- What are we to do? Expose them instead! Bring them to light! Why?

- Because it's shameful to speak of those things which are done in secret. If it's shameful to speak of them, how much greater a shame is it to be caught in them!

• Ephesians 5:13,14 : "But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light. Therefore He says: 'Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light.'" : Here is what Paul is telling them. When you cease from a behavior or a way of speaking, light has exposed darkness.

- When you refuse to participate in it, your walking away exposes the darkness in others. For those that are Christians who are crossing lines, this is a wake up call.

- For those who are non-Christians who are acting like non-Christians, this is a moment of living witness. Your light is exposing darkness.

- If you have walked into a room and silence was the response, light has come!

- If you have ever walked into a room and seen people scamper, there is light that has exposed darkness. You cannot help this.

- This is what you are by God's grace. If that never happens in your life and those in both scenarios welcome your usual input, then something is really wrong and I'd call you to question it!

- Paul says "this is what this means when we quote this to each other! Awake and arise!"

- While this bears some resemblance to a few passages in Isaiah, especially that of Isaiah 60:1, many commentators believe that this was a quote from a church hymn that they had learned.

- "Awake you who sleep!" Get up from your slumber. Arise from the dead. Get out from where you had been in the company of the dead and Christ will give you light!

- When you and I begin to participate with the world in filthiness of speech, we are sleepwalking Christians, living amongst the dead as the dead live!

- WAKE UP! Christ wants to shine His light through you! Take a look at verse 15.

• Ephesians 5:15,16 : "See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil." : Being that we are the light which exposes darkness, we are to walk circumspectly.

- The word that Paul uses gives us the word "acrobatic." An acrobat is one who walks precisely on their mark, knowing for certain that if they do not, they will plunge to their great injury.

- In this world, we are to expose darkness, but don't be fooled into thinking that you can walk carelessly as you go! Some walk as fools, but we are to walk in wisdom.

- Paul explains what he means by walking in wisdom. Walking in wisdom is to redeem or make the most of the time. In this case, the word "time" refers to opportunity.

- Make the most of the opportunity to shed light on darkness! Make the most of what voice you have and the opportunity that you are afforded! Why? Because the days are evil!

- The sense of the passage is that there is ever increasing evil. In fact, the word that Paul uses indicates an evil that is only satisfied as it draws all into itself! It is an active aggressive evil!

• Ephesians 5:17 : "Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is." : The days are getting darker so, the NLT says, "Don't act thoughtlessly." It's a shame that so many Christians are completely unaware of where the real battles lie.

- We are not to unwise, thoughtless, but instead thoughtful. Understanding of the Lord's will.

- The word "understand" means to put things together. This is what God wants and this means that I am to carry that out through my life!

- Seize the opportunities! Walking with a sensitivity to what God is doing around you. Understand that your prayers and desires are conjoined in the will of God for your life.

• Ephesians 5:18-20 : "And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ," : Understand what God's will is and do not be drunk with wine. Do not become intoxicated. If we are to walk a straight line as an acrobat does, how does being drunk help with that!?s

- What good comes from drinking? What good has ever come from it?

- Paul says here that in becoming drunk, there is dissipation. The KJV uses the word "excess," the NIV and ESV employ the word "debauchery" and the ASV uses the word "riot."

- It literally means an abandoned life! You leave your life on the table when you pick up a s

- That's what alcohol does when you drink it and has done from the very beginning of time.

- What a sad settlement to be drunk with wine when you can be filled with the Spirit! Paul commands them not to be filled with spirits but be currently filled with the Spirit.

- What are the signs of a Spirit filled life? First, you speak differently! You speak in the language of praise, sharing with one another why God has give you hope and peace!

- Second, your heart is lighter, as you make up songs in your heart to the Lord! You are constantly singing His praises in your heart. You should be thankful it doesn't say "mouth!"

- Third, you are always giving thanks to God for what He has done! You are thankful for all things that come your way, recognizing God's sovereign hand over you!

- By the way, notice again the Trinity! We are to be filled with the Spirit, busy in our praise of the Lord Jesus and thankful always to God the Father for all that we have in Him!

Conclusion
- Paul is telling us to live a consistent life. We're to live a life of love, consistently seeking the good of others and consistently speaking the good for others.

- We are to live a life of light, exposing darkness by consistently abstaining from activities that might be viewed as supportive of darkness and avoiding behaviors that would derail our witness.

- Are you imitating your Father? Are you wisely looking as He does for people who would be willing to turn to Him? Are you filled with His Spirit?

- These are the keys to a consistent life in Christ. The good news is that Jesus died for you so that you'd have access to this life. I pray you won't waste the opportunity