Ephesians 5C. It s time to return to Paul s instructions to the church concerning walking in love. We are to arise from our slumber

Transcription

1 It s time t return t Paul s instructins t the church cncerning walking in lve Last week we gained a reprieve frm Paul s exhrtatins fr Christian living Instead, we heard Paul s arguments fr why we shuld pursue this walk In shrt, Paul argued ur lives are t be missinally-minded And he gave several reasns fr making missinal living ur gal Paul summed up his argument in v.14 quting a hymn f his day that paraphrased Isaiah 60:1 We are t arise frm ur slumber T wake up frm living like the wrld S that as we walk ut ur new life befre the wrld, we may serve Christ as He intended Displaying light, expsing the wrld s evil and prving what pleases the Lrd As we d these things, we will see Christ shine n us We will be blessed nw and in the kingdm As we understand this truth, we find greater mtivatin t tackle ur sin, crucify ur flesh and walk in the Spirit Yu remember he started the chapter discussing immrality, vulgarity and ther ways ur behavirs can detract frm ur witness t the wrld In Ephesus these behavirs were likely cmmn amng the Greek pagans wh were cming int the Church S Paul called upn the church t put aside their ld self and put n a new self, ne cnsistent with their new nature But as we nted, these behavirs are still cmmn in the unsaved culture arund us 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

2 2! f! 14 S we still have equal reasn t set them aside tday We need t lk different if we re ging t cnvince the wrld we pssess a different message That s ur missin, and it requires fcus Then Paul gave us added urgency saying we must make the mst f the time Gd gives us fr accmplishing this missin Because ur lives are shrt, at least in view f eternity We each get very little time t serve Christ befre we receive ur reprt card And the days in which we live are evil Paul says S we have t prepare and plan t d the right thing if we hpe t succeed mre ften than nt S let s g back t Paul up where he left ff, naming sins that easily entangle believers and distract us frm ur missin Eph. 5:17 S then d nt be flish, but understand what the will f the Lrd is. Eph. 5:18 And d nt get drunk with wine, fr that is dissipatin, but be filled with the Spirit, Ntice Paul begins with the wrd s He s drawing the prper cnclusin fr us And there truly is just ne sensible cnclusin we can make given what we studied last week We re here t serve a purpse, a missin t bring light int a dark wrld, t expse the wrld s evil by prving what pleases Gd Our missin requires we stand apart frm the wrld, that we lk different and live differently And we d this knwing ur time is shrt and the days are evil Therefre, Paul says we cannt affrd t be flish The label fl is a strng wrd in scripture It means t act withut reasn, t act withut sense 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

3 3! f! 14 And given the imprtance f ur missin and the limited time we have, we must act sensibly, nt flishly A lt f Christians d, in fact, live flishly thugh They live withut prper reasning They are nt thinking abut what life is truly abut and what they re here t d fr Christ Sme Christians flat thrugh life, frm mment t mment, pursuing the wrld while keeping Jesus in a crner reserved fr Sundays, Easter and Christmas What s missing fr these believers? Paul says in the secnd half f v.17 that the issue is they aren t seeking t understand what the will f Gd is In this cntext, the will f Gd refers t Gd s desires fr their life His will fr hw they live, what they are n earth t d in service t Christ They aren t asking the questin, What des the Lrd want fr my life? And they aren t cnsumed in finding the answer And therefre they can t walk accrding t His plan and fulfill His purpses in their life Perhaps mre imprtantly, they dn t cncern themselves with Gd s will fr His fllwers in general They aren t reading His wrd t learn His expectatins fr a called-ut life They aren t aware a judgment is cming, they are thinking abut the day they stand befre Christ And they aren t cncerned with hw their chices and decisins nw will impact that day t cme Imagine a yung man wh was drafted int the army but he never bthered t read his draft ntice when it came in the mail 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

4 4! f! 14 The yung man had been called int service, yet he kept n living fr himself blivius t his new calling He was blivius because he hadn t taken time t read what he was true, and certainly we wuld describe such a man as flish One day a pliceman kncks n his dr, and much t his surprise he s taken away I think that s Paul s cncern fr the church in Ephesus He didn t want the church t live ignrantly unaware f the missin Gd was calling them t serve Or even wrse, disregarding what they already knew Gd expected Having been distracted r deceived int fllwing the wrld instead f Christ Paul then calls ut ne particular frm f distractin and disbedience, ne that frm the first have f a cmparisn at the heart f tday s teaching Paul says d nt becme drunk with wine There is n mystery in the Greek wrds Paul is using here T be drunk means simply t be inebriated, t lse cntrl f ur faculties by cnsuming t much alchl And the wrd wine refers t the fermented drink cmmn t Paul s day just as it is tday Sme have tried t argue that wine in the Bible isn t really wine And if yu are interested in an in-depth explanatin f hw we knw the wrd wine in the Bible refers t an alchlic beverage, read ur article here But the Bible teaches believers have liberty t cnsume alchl respnsibly s lng as they d s withut becme drunk We are expected t recgnize where the line is between enjying wine in the way Gd intended And crssing that line int drunkenness is abuse and it is sin 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

5 5! f! 14 Substance abuse is a particularly dangerus frm f sin It rbs us f ur senses and erects barriers between us and the Spirit s leading If substance abuse becmes a fixture in ur lives, it will likely give rise t ther sinful practices In the end, the sin f drunkenness is the abandnment f selfcntrl Self-cntrl is always the gal fr the Christian It is the gal fr all areas f ur walk Nting f this wrld shuld cntrl us Only the Spirit f Gd shuld have ur bedience Therefre, whether we abuse wine r prescriptin drugs r illegal drugs r fd r smething else, we are sinning S why did Paul fcus n wine? First, wine was the drug f chice in his day It was easily made, reasnably priced and cmmnly available There were few ther ways t sin in the same, scially-accepted way Tday, we have a smrgasbrd f chices fr stimulating ur bdy in an attempt t escape S we shuld understand this teaching bradly as a cndemnatin f any kind f inebriatin regardless f the surce It is always a lack f self-cntrl and a giving ver f ur bdies t smething ther than the Hly Spirit Paul says when we demnstrate a lack f self-cntrl and allw urselves t becme drunk, we are experiencing dissipatin The Greek wrd translated dissipatin can have three meanings, and all three are applicable here First, dissipatin means self-indulgence r excessiveness Acting in an excessive way and fr selfish reasns 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

6 6! f! 14 Certainly, the decisin t be drunk can be understd t be an excessive act brn ut f selfishness This definitin reminds us that drunkenness is ultimately a chice, a decisin Christians wh get drunk are making a chice, they are nt victims f an utside frce There may be cmplex life circumstances that lead us t make ur mistakes But in the end, becming drunk invlves a decisin r series f decisins made in ur flesh and at the expense f thers Secndly, the wrd dissipatin means a squandering f resurces And certainly becming drunk invlves a squandering resurces But we re nt referring t the mney spent n drink r drugs Paul is primarily referring t the squandering f time and pprtunity Remember, last week Paul said we must make the mst f ur time, this brief perid we will live n earth t serve Christ In my life I cunted maybe 10,000 days remaining in my life Assuming that s accurate, then everyday I might chse t spend drunk wuld be ne less day I m serving Christ and the missin And I dn t have enugh days that can I affrd t waste even ne I want t make the mst f every day knwing I will face judgment ne day Paul als said the days are evil, s we must be n ur guard We must make plans and adpt strategies t avid being sidelines in ur missin whether by the schemes f the enemy r ur wn temptatins And drinking excessively is ne f the surest ways t get sidelined in the pursuit f Christ and His will in yur life S if I m prne t drunkenness, I must take meaningful steps t avid that temptatin because the days are shrt and evil 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

7 7! f! 14 In fact, every addictive drug creates a craving in the flesh S as we give urselves ver t it, we make future episdes f drunkenness all the mre likely We re strengthening ur flesh at the expense f ur spirit S a chice t becme drunk tday means dissipatin tday and makes it mre likely the Christian will lse mre days in the future The nly hpe is t break the pattern s we can establish a new pattern We must starve the flesh f its drug s that it s attractin will weaken ver time Meanwhile, we spend time strengthening ur spirit thrugh pursuit f Christ in the disciplines r ur faith T d ther wise is t waste resurces, and the mst precius resurce we have is ur time t serve the Lrd And finally, the wrd fr dissipatin in Greek can als be translated unsavedness Because the entire existence f an unbeliever can be described as dissipatin An unbeliever lives a lifetime n earth ppsing Gd and wasting their time Only then t spend eternity in the Lake f Fire Their life is ne big self-indulgent, excessive affair that ends in nthing and they will be frgtten in eternity Then in v.18 Paul applies this same wrd t believers wh get drunk because drunkenness makes the believer indistinguishable frm unbelievers Physically, a drunk believer lks exactly like the wrld in many ways While we are drunk we sideline ur witness and ur pursuit f the missin Because inebriatin is rbs us f ur sensibilities 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

8 8! f! 14 We can t make chices that reflect Christ r shw lve We are simply a walking display f debauchery S t any bserver, we simply lk like the wrld, and lacking cntrast we cannt serve the missin And spiritually, the drunk believer is als like the wrld, at least in a sense Clearly believers share nthing in cmmn spiritually with unbelievers But in practical terms, the drunk believer is n mre spirituallydirected than the sber unbeliever Neither an unbeliever nr a drunk believer is under cntrl f the Spirit While we re under the influence f any drug, ur flesh takes change and hands cntrl ver t the enemy If yu ve ever been drunk, d yu remember saying r ding things yu wuld never nrmally say r d? That s prf t yu that yu are nt acting under the cntrl f the Spirit but f the flesh and the enemy The mre we drug urselves, the mre ur flesh gains cntrl while ur spirit becmes imprisned All three meanings f the wrd dissipatin pint us t the same cnclusin: We re engaged in a battle between flesh and spirit s we can t affrd t be flish The wise thing t d is t seek t be filled by the Spirit rather than wine, Paul says in the secnd half f v.18 It means t cme under cntrl f the Spirit, t filled in the same way as smene may be filled with rage r jy The Greek verb filled is in the passive tense, meaning this is smething dne t us nt by us S we are called t set aside anything that cnflicts with the Spirit s that He is free t lead us 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

9 9! f! 14 We are t cnsumed by the will and desires f the Spirit We are t be under His cntrl in the sense that we yield t the Spirit s will and desires by denying ur flesh its desires That s hw the Lrd has cnstructed the prcess f ur sanctificatin We must set aside ur flesh t give the Spirit pprtunity t take ver We must say n t self befre we can say yes t the Spirit When we d that, the Spirit will guide us fr as lng as we seek the will f Gd Sme believers see Paul s cntrast in v.18 between being drunk in the flesh vs. being filled by the Spirit and cme t a wrng cnclusin They assume a filling f the Spirit is like a filling f wine, smething we must take in that isn t with us nrmally As if we must take in a secndary experience f the Spirit beynd what we already received at the pint we were saved Secndly, they imagine that being filled with the Spirit must result in a similar physical respnse t being drunk with wine A believer filled with the Spirit shuld exhibit strange r uncnscius behavirs Out this thinking cmes charismatic errrs f ne kind r anther including the teaching that a persn isn t truly saved withut such manifestatins And that even true believers must seek after a subsequent filling f the Spirit fllwing salvatin Reading v.18 in its cntext makes clear the charismatic teachings are brn ut f a wden interpretatin f the text, ne that misses Paul s pint entirely We can see Paul is cntrasting a slavery t a physical addictin with submitting t the Spirit And these things wrk in ppsite ways, nt in similar ways One is a barrier t serving Christ while anther is a means t serving 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

10 10! f! 14 One causes us t lse cntrl ver ur flesh, while the ther puts ur flesh in subjectin One is giving in t self while the ther is yielding t the Spirit In fact, Paul ges n t clarify what walking in the Spirit lks like in the life f a believer Eph. 5:19 speaking t ne anther in psalms and hymns and spiritual sngs, singing and making meldy with yur heart t the Lrd; Eph. 5:20 always giving thanks fr all things in the name f ur Lrd Jesus Christ t Gd, even the Father; Eph. 5:21 and be subject t ne anther in the fear f Christ. In this list we find fur behavirs that typify a believer walking in the Spirit Each f these believers has a parallel t the earlier cntrast with drunkenness In cntrast t the cunterfeit jy that cmes frm feeding the flesh with wine r any such thing, Paul s examples illustrate true jy amng believers walking in the Spirit These things enhance fulfilling the missin, in cntrast t the dissipatin f feeding the flesh First, Paul says a believer walking in the Spirit with a mind set n the missin speaks t ther believers in psalms, hymns and spiritual sngs He s talking abut public expressins f jy A psalm is a pem f praise taken frm the Old Testament bk f the same name A hymn is a sng f praise sung t the glry f Gd And spiritual sngs are simply any ther jyful expressin f spiritual truth (we might include Christian pp music here) When yu see smene singing in public, they appear jyful and exuberant Irnically, yu might wnder if they are drunk And that s Paul s pint f cmparisn, f curse 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

11 11! f 14! If yu want t get a little silly in public, then d it in the Spirit rather than the flesh Rather than getting drunk, standing n tables and singing yur schl fight sng, sing sngs f praise t the Lrd by the Spirit That s an expressin f jy that serves the purpse f the missin Secndly, a believer in the Spirit directs their jy t the Lrd in private praise Paul says we are t sing and make music t the Lrd in ur hearts This is inward praise and jy befre the Lrd S find jy in knwing what yu have eternally in Christ and carry that jy in yur heart praising Him cntinually This is in cntrast t thse wh run frm Gd int their addictin We can t shw Gd jy in ur heart if we re s drugged we can t think straight much less praise Him sensibly Furthermre, the desire t be drunk is inherently an act f running frm Gd, nt tward Him Of deny Him rather than praising Him Like the Prdigal Sn, we re saying we want t run away t enjy ur inheritance nw rather than remaining patient under the Father s authrity Thirdly, Paul says give thanks fr all things in the name f the Lrd Jesus Christ t Gd Thse wh abuse wine r ther drugs are usually seeking an escape At first, we may turn t a drug t numb urselves frm pain r disappintment in ur life Eventually as we cme t rely n the drug, and then the addictin takes n a life f its wn Seeking t escape frm disappintments and trials in life is the ppsite f giving thanks t the Lrd fr all things, including fr trials The Bible teaches we are t thank the Lrd fr the trials we face knwing they are pprtunities fr spiritually reward 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

12 12! f! 14 James 1:2 Cnsider it all jy, my brethren, when yu encunter varius trials, James 1:3 knwing that the testing f yur faith prduces endurance. James 1:4 And let endurance have its perfect result, s that yu may be perfect and cmplete, lacking in nthing. James says trials are cause fr jy because they present pprtunity fr eternal reward But f curse that assumes we endure them prperly We must face them sberly, prayerfully, seeking cunsel and supprt frm ur brthers and sisters Asking what gd thing is the Lrd trying t accmplish thrugh this trial and hw shuld I respnd t it in gdliness t ensure a reward? If we bring that mature perspective t ur disappintments, we can learn t cunt r cnsider ur trials as a surce f jy Therefre, we thank Lrd fr everything, bth the things that please us and the things that try us But if we escape int a bttle r a needle, we wn t be thanking the Lrd fr a trial We ll be t busy trying t frget the trial is even happening Finally, Paul says Christian led by the Spirit will be subject t n anther in the church ut f fear f Christ Paul isn t saying that we are t bey everyne and everyne is t bey us That s a recipe fr anarchy in the bdy Paul will g n t explain what he means specifically in the fllwing passages n wives, husbands, children and thers In shrt, Paul is saying we are t willingly submit t thse spiritual authrities in ur life whever they may be And everyne has ne r mre spiritual authrities in their life Children have fathers, wives have husbands, wrkers and slaves have masters 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

13 13! f! 14 And everyne has elders and teachers in the church Cllectively, these peple (when they rule prperly) help ensure gdly utcmes in ur lives Therefre, a Christian led by the Spirit will recgnize the benefit f these psitins and respect them and turn t them in times f need As we allw Gd t wrk thrugh thse relatinships, we are the beneficiaries As the writer f Hebrews said: Heb. 13:17 Obey yur leaders and submit t them, fr they keep watch ver yur suls as thse wh will give an accunt. Let them d this with jy and nt with grief, fr this wuld be unprfitable fr yu. Thse in authrity ver us are there t help us be mre gdly The Lrd even cnsiders them respnsible fr the utcme t a degree, such that they will give an accunt ne day We can make their lives easier r harder as they seek t guide and teach and admnish us We can fight against the spiritual authrities in ur life, r avid them r lie t them r even dispute their right t have authrity But if we make it harder fr them t serve us in these ways, then we re nly hurting urselves Because we re the nes wh fail t prfit by their leadership Scripture says S Christians wh walk in the Spirit will be thse wh shw a sincere willingness t be led by thers in spiritual matters and they will submit By cntrast, thse wh turn t wine r ther escapes t deal with their spiritual issues are in effect failing t submit t leaders First, they are escaping frm a trial rather than turning t the church fr assistance and guidance thrugh the trial Secndly, by becming incapacitated they erect barriers t fellwship that prevent thse leaders them frm crrecting r encuraging them thrugh the trial 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

14 14! f! 14 Thirdly, they are disbeying the spiritual cunsel f thse in authrity and f the wrd f Gd In all three ways, they are nt submitting t ne anther but are engaged in dissipatin Paul ges frward frm here int an extended discussin f submissin in the bdy, since it is a key t walking in the Spirit and accmplishing the missin S we have a lt mre t say n this tpic Tday we stp here reflecting n the imprtance f sbriety in ur walk, regardless f hw ur life circumstances may turn If yu are facing difficulties in yur life that feel verwhelming, dn t escape int a prescriptin bttle r wine bttle r smething similar Ask the Lrd t help yu understand why this trial was necessary in yur life Ask Him what eternal gd wrk will be accmplished thrugh yur endurance Ask Him t cmfrt yu thrugh the church bdy and t bring relief sn But dn t try t escape and thereby lse the benefit the Lrd is wrking t bring t yu Walk in the Spirit, giving thanks fr everything, praising the Lrd in yur heart 2017 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.