Putting on the new self
Ephesians • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Call to worship
Welcome everyone!
LET US STAND AND WORSHIP!
“What a beautiful Name”
Words and Music by Hillsong
PRAYER OF PRAISE FOR WHO GOD IS
Lord,
“What a beautiful Name”
Words and Music by Hillsong
“What a beautiful Name”
Words and Music by Hillsong
PRAYER OF ILLUMINATION TO OPEN OUR HEARTS
Lord,
SERMON
Introduction
Last week we talked about “renewing the mind” and how God brings us from the darkness into the light. He gives us spiritual understanding, He teaches us how to live for Him, and He delivers us from our old way of living. We left on in this verse last week and are going to pick back up here:
and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.
In these next 8 verses, Paul gives us a detailed description about what it looks like TO LAY ASIDE THE OLD LIFE AND PUT ON THE NEW SELF. These are specific commands (not suggestions) that have to do with our conduct and apply to life of every believer regardless of their situation.
Each command begins with a negative, followed by a positive, and then offers a reason why it should be obeyed. So we are going to walk through each of these today in detail and make application into our lives today.
1) Be People of Truth
1) Be People of Truth
Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth each one of you with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.
Lifestyle of the old person
“Lay aside falsehood”
Very plainly that means stop telling lies
One of the characteristics of our natural human nature is to bend the truth. Even children do not have to earn to lie, they naturally drift that way because we are all born with a sinful nature.
A lie is anything that is not true. It does not have to contain malicious intent to be a lie. It does not have even have to be intentional to be a lie. Anything that we say that is not true is a lie.
Here are some different kinds of lies we need to consider:
lies of fabrication
This is simply saying something that is not true
to fabricate something means to put together a bunch of bologna and pass it off as the truth
A plain old lie
lies of distortion
this is an attempt to manipulate the truth to some degree
there may be some truth to what we are saying, but we have minimized or distorted it to make it not sound so bad or even sound true
This is the chief lie of Satan
“Has God said you shall not eat from any tree of the garden...You surely will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil”
Now Eve ate the fruit, and she didn’t die right then, but she did die eventually and had she never sinned she would have never died
What Satan did was distort the truth to deceive her
lies of exaggeration
This is “adding to” or “taking away” from our stories or words to make them fit a certain agenda.
often people do this to make themselves look good or get themselves out of trouble
lies of manipulation
A good example of this is flattering others to get what we want
Prov 29:5 “A man who flatters his neighbor Is spreading a net for his steps.”
Here is some advice I have learned over the years: NEVER TRUST A MAN WITH FLATTERING LIPS
What is the big deal about telling a lie?
Lying is a characteristic of the devil
Jesus speaking to the Pharisees says this:
“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
And the book of Ephesians teaches us that we are no longer under the leadership of the devil, but children of God.
And the Jesus said, He is the way, the TRUTH, an the life
And if we are going to be Christlike, we have got to be people of truth
What if we are guilty of telling lies?
New behavior in Christ
“speak truth to one another”
WE are to stop lying regardless of the consequences, and speak truth
Since we have committed our lives to the way of truth, we have been delivered from the deception of the devil, then our words should demonstrate that
But Paul makes this command specific here: each one with his neighbor, for we are members of one another
That does not mean we can lie to people outside the church, or our children, or anyone else.
But what Paul has in mind here is the relationships within the church:
Why is lying so hurtful the church?
Because we cannot have authentic meaningful relationships until we become absolutely honest with each other.
Without honesty there is no real trust.
And if there is no trust, then the relationship will always be superficial.
Have you ever been friends with someone who practiced lying?
It is impossible to ever really get to know them because you never know if what they are saying is true or false.
Everything in that relationship is superficial, it never gets below the surface, and it is shallow and empty
Relationships are built upon trust. And without TRUTH, there can be no TRUST.
Application:
What does it take for us to be people of truth?
Trust that God will ALWAYS work things out for your good if you will commit to always speak truth.
We have to make that commitment before we enter as situation where we are tempted to lie
And that takes faith that God knows better than we do.
Will it hurt at times? YES
Is it worth having a clean conscience than carrying around a heart full of lies? YES
Dewalt Drill broke illustration
2) Take Command of Your Anger
2) Take Command of Your Anger
Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity.
Command
“be angry and do not sin”
Often we think that anger in itself is a sin and that we should never get angry!
But God gave us that emotion, and it is OK to be angry in certain circumstances
And we certainly see the anger of God aroused throughout the Bible.
Jesus flipped over the money changing tables in the temple because he was angry, YET HE NEVER SINNED
If evil aroused the anger of Jesus, then it should arouse us too
This is not a prohibition to never be angry, but to NOT let our anger lead us to sin
Anger is a dangerous thing. It has the ability to destroy our lives and those around us in a moment
Example:
Murder is just the outward fruit of anger which is why Jesus says there is no difference in the two.
Listen to this proverb
A fool always loses his temper, But a wise man holds it back.
Its not wrong to have a temper. We are neither better nor worse
The call here is to restrain our temper
How do you know if you have an anger problem?
If your anger controls you then your in danger.
Many marriages have been wrecked because of unchecked anger.
People have made life altering decisions for the bad because of unbridled anger!
Many people live in places of absolute misery because their anger controls them rather than they controlling it
Let me say this: ANGER SHOULD NOT BE A REGULAR PART OF YOUR LIFE!
(v 31) “let all bitterness, wrath, and ANGER…be put away from you!”
If you are a child of God it is not ok to be “Angry Andy” OR “Angry Ally” every time the toast burns, or things do not work out perfectly!
What that says to God is I am dissatisfied with nearly everything in my life and walking in Your will stinks!
Application
How do you deal with an anger problem?
“do not let the sun go down on your anger”
Get over it quickly!
Stop and ask yourself why you are mad in the first place.
Forgive the person that wronged you
Overlook the little things.
Do not let your anger simmer, get over it before you lay your head down that night
(v 27) “do not give the devil an opportunity” (lit: a place)
If we let that anger simmer, we are surrendering a place in our minds for the devil to influence our actions.
John Calvin said this,
“I have no doubt that Paul was warning us to beware lest Satan should take possession of our minds, like an enemy-occupied fortress, and do whatever he pleases.”
Satan has a game plan and it works wonderfully. Divide and conquer. He would love to divide your marriage, and then your home, he would love to divide the church, he would love to divide this nation (and is dividing this nation), and he often does so through the doorway of anger.
Be wise and get it under control
3) Make an honest living so that you can share with one another
3) Make an honest living so that you can share with one another
He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need.
Explanation
“He who steals must steal no longer”
Stealing takes many forms
Miriam Webster gave these definitions for stealing
to take property of another wrongfully (theft)
to come or go secretly, gradually, or unexpectedly (trespassing)
to appropriate to oneself without one’s proper share or right (to take more for ourselves more than we should)
to seize , gain, or win by trickery, skill, or daring (gambling, deception)H
Here are a few ways that Christians can break this command and maybe not realize it:
Selling goods that are defective or broken without telling the buyer of their defects
Buying something from the store, using it to meet your need, then returning it for a full refund
Cheating on our income taxes
Borrowing money with a promise to repay, yet never repaying
Stealing time from a time-clock
Taking petty things that have significantly low value like a pencil or ink pen
Paying employees less than what is right
Receiving Stole property: When we receive what is knowingly stolen, we are participants in that theft
Stealing from God
Mal 3:8 “Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings.
Insurance fraud
Making claims that are not covered under our policy to receive payment
I worked with a guy that claimed lightening struck his HVAC unit and they gave him a brand new one
He stole from that insurance company
What should we do if we have a habit of stealing?
“but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good”
Work hard to make an honest living.
The word “labor” implies “hard work” or “toil”.
To exert oneself physically or mentally.
We must never get the idea that God never expects us to work hard!
And if some people would put in as much effort in work as they do getting out of work they’d be much better off in the end and have a clean conscience
God did not save us to lay around all day eating cheese puffs and watching movies!
God made us to be a people who are busy and earn their keep, WHO ARE UPSTANDING CITIZENS OF THIS WORLD BECAUSE WE ARE CITIZENS OF HEAVEN
Why does God want us to work?
“so that he will have something to share with one who has need”
We’re not to work to get rich, or buy all the things we want in this life.
We are to work so that we can be generous to those God has put around us.
If God has blessed you with more than you need, it may be to meet someone else’s need around you
We are better off investing in people than we are in the stock market
There is no better security for your money than to invest it in the ways of God and reap His eternal rewards
And when we do God says and promises he will meet all our needs (Matt 6:33)
4) Choose words that edify so that we do not grieve the Holy Spirit
4) Choose words that edify so that we do not grieve the Holy Spirit
Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
Explanation
“let no unwholesome word come out of your mouth”
The word “unwholesome” is means “rotten” or “filthy”.
This would include cursing, but specifically Paul is talking about what tears other people down.
Look at the positive: “only such as is good for edification”
What does this include?
Cursing at others
Foul language
Dirty jokes or perverted language
And anything that we say that would tear another person down even if it is true.
Degrading them, saying harsh things to them or about them
Gossiping about them
Making false assumption about others
It is so easy to think that our words do not really matter much
But Jesus said this:
Matthew 12:36 (NASB95)
“But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment.
Notice the phrase, “every careless word”
That implies we say things without ever thinking of their implications
Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit.
This does not mean we can speak things into existence, or change situations by what we say.
This verse is speaking about the impact on others that our words have.
They can tear others down and even destroy them, or they can be greatly improve other people’s lives
What should we do instead of using unwholesome words?
Only use words that edify (build others up)
The call here is to make it a habit to replace our destructive language with edifying language
Instead of gossiping about someone, think about their good qualities
“so that it will give grace to those who hear”
Be quick to show grace to people who hear no matter what we think they deserve
Why?
BECAUSE God showed us grace when we did not deserve it but desperately needed it
And while we were in rebellion against Him, God gave us life
(v 30) “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”
The command to not grieve the Holy Spirit is connected to the command to use words that edify.
So what Paul is saying is that when we use words that tear down others, we grieve the Holy Spirit within us.
What does it mean to grieve the Spirit?
To grieve means “to feel sorrow, pain, or distress”
When our words are used to tear others down, or speak filth, or gossip, it grieves the Spirit that lives inside of us and inside of them
One scholar said this, “God is not grieved by how our speech, anger, or malice affects Him, but by how it affects us. He’s grieved not because He can’t handle our sin, but because it hinders Him from doing His work in, through, and for us.”
I wonder how much more we would see the power of the Holy Spirit working in our lives if we cleaned up our words and made it our ambition to only say what would build others up
5) Be kind to one another
5) Be kind to one another
Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.
Put away:
bitterness: animosity, resentfulness
wrath: just is another word for anger
clamor: screaming or shouting
slander: speaking in a way that tears someone down
malice: is a mean spirted person. Someone who has a vicious attitude”
The command is to put away ALL bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, slander, and malice
Cut bitterness off at the root!
Take control of your anger
stop screaming and shouting
Don’t live like you haven’t been given the greatest gift that has ever come to mankind!
And how do we do that?
Replace it with, “being kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ has also forgiven you.”
The motivation to change our attitude towards others is remembering the fact and meditating on the way that God has dealt with us.
He has forgiven us!
He has been tender-hearted toward us!
He has been kind to us!
He is not mean spirited toward us
He has accepted us and all our faults
And as grace goes, those who have received it are expected to show it to others
Final closing points:
If there is no change in our behavior, then there is no change in our heart
And trying to change our behavior will not change our heart. It must go the other way around.
The first step in this is just being completely honest with God and opening ourselves up before Him and taking an honest look at ourselves and realizing we desperately need God
Confess your sins to Him, and confess your inability to rid yourself of those sins.
And then come to Him, and ask Him to grant you the ability to walk in the newness of life.
TO THE BELIEVERS
Sin has no place in our lives. These kinds of vices can find their way back in if we are not diligent in in getting these things out of our lives and not making excuses
Sinful habits, things that grieve the Holy Spirit within us, and hinder our walk with God
Take inventory. What areas do you need to work on?
Repent and commit your life to putting them out permanently and pray and ask the Holy Spirit who has sealed you to give you the power to get them out.
~PRAYER~
RESPONSE
PUBLIC INVITATION
“What a beautiful Name”
Words and Music by Hillsong
OFFERING
We will now worship the Lord through our tithes and offering.
BENEDICTION
Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you, and keep you; The Lord cause His face to shine on you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His face to you, And give you peace.’”