Ephesians 5:6-14
Tony Martinez
Ephesians • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 1 viewTruth, follow it. Truth of scripture, don't walk in way's in opposition of it. Don't let anyone teach us that our sin isn't that big of deal.
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Transcript
6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
“Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
We took a little break, Palm Sunday & Easter
Getting back into Ephesians.
Remember first three chapters…teaching of who we are in Christ.
Last 3 chapters…Action! the fruit!
And chapter five is listing some specific’s.
Ephesians 5:1-5
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.
For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.
Imitators, beloved children, walk in love, giving up of ourselves. Be this.
Don’t be this, sexual immoral, impure, covetousness, …not just don’t do these things but not even named among you.
No filthiness, foolish talk, crude joking, but be thankful!
No one who is this way has any inheritance!!!
And then we get this warning…kinda out of the blue
Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.
Like there are people out there that are doing these or being these very things but saying oppisite of what Paul is saying.
Almost this God loves you just the way you are and sin is no big deal!
deceive you with empty words...
sale you something/teach you something that lacks truth.
I get 40 miles per gallon out of my diesel truck towing or empty…Cummins guys...
Us husbands in the room, when we ask is something wrong and we get the “i’m fine” line…and we think everything is fine..
deceived…and lied to I might add.
this is where Paul is at.
“let no one deceive you with empty words”
Example
Empty words.
God loves you just the way you are.
God doesn’t give you anymore than you can handle.
No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
We are always against more than we can handle…hence the power of the cross and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
If you don’t speak in tounges you can’t have the Holy Spirit.
You must of done something bad to be going through what you’re going through. Book of Job ring a bell?
Or you must be doing something right to have all the blessings you have.
The more money you give the more God will bless you.
Or one Paul talks about exclusively in Romans..
To sin is to bring glory to God, so He can show His forgivness all the more.
And why not do evil that good may come?—as some people slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is just.
What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?
This is as a deep perversion of the gospel of Jesus as any!
This ranks up there with God loves you just the way you are and He would never want anything bad to come your way. Yes He does because sometimes that’s the only way to get our attention.
We do it with our own children…Grounding, taking things away, spanking… some of those have been the best wake up calls from my parents!
Heart attack, anxiety! = Truth found!!
Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.
God hates this! This “sin isn’t that bad”.
Yes it is! It destroys, it breaks apart, it’s all that God is not.
“Sons of disobedience” Satan and all that follow his ways.
The wrath of God will come and it’s justified!
Therefore do not become partners with them;
We do not want to be children of wrath! Let me say it again...
Flee run, do not take any part of this.
Some are very good at it too. Mimicing the Bible, mimicing authoritive words.
Which brings up a good point to share…read, understand, discuss God’s Word.
Please don’t just take our word for it…read it for yourselves!
The early church died for God’s Word. It’s one of the most valuable pieces of the living God we have and some don’t even care to know it.
To make sure you aren’t deceived by the sons of disobiedence, read your Bible!
for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light
Truth, real truth given!
Contrast… you were this but now you are this!
Were darkness…not we were in darkness or we walked in darkness but we were darkness.
The very things that Paul is describing. Sexual immoarl, idioltoers, course speach, filthiness, crude joking, lier’s, thiefs, unloving, impure, having defect…messed up…!!!
But no longer, Christ rescued us…we are changed, children of light!
(for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true),
no longer do we have defect, no longer impure, but pure…the darkness that we were, the light has exposed and we now hate the darkness!
This is the truth of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit.
Man alone can’t do this! Man alone thinks everyone else is the problem and their the solution!
The Light is the truth and the way!
and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.
This can be the hard part...
This world we live in and it’s ways that we have lived for so long can put a callous over our sin that is very unnerving!
Not only do we fight our flesh and it’s desires, satan and his lie’s.
The world tells us daily something different to the truth of Light!
From it’s all about you and your happiness, to you can be anything you want to be including a cat. Truth is getting further and further away.
Instead of truthfully loving someone, were taught acceptance of all things and there is no absolute truth.
In the name of love we’ve been taught tolerance of the very things God hates.
Ephesians 5:10 “and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.”
Slow down, pray, talk with the Lord…in all things. Not just the hard and unimagibalbe but in all things talk with the Lord.
is it right to go to a loved ones gay marriage or not...
depends on the heart right…? why are you going? you can argue both ways..
absolutely not, i don’t condone such activities.
To all people need the gospel…how many people has Jesus followed into a bar or even a brothel? I don’t know but I can imagine there’s been a few that God has rescued from that dark life.
The point is we aren’t God and we have a corrupt heart! Pray in all things and at all times..what is pleasing to the Lord.
Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.
Remember the darkness has been exposed by the Light, we see the darkness for what it is and we no longer want any part of it.
How do we expose them? In love for Christ and His truth and also in love for them.
Not in a prideful, arogant, I’m better in you sort of way.
But in a humble understanding way that you, like them, were once darkness but now have been revealed to the Light and by mercy and grace are children of Light.
They deni, they laugh, they percucte, remember they did this to Jesus too. It’s nothing new under the sun but we don’t know what seed the Lord had us plant or what watering we’ve done, for their possible growth in the future.
Love them in truth as Chris Jesus loved us and brought us out of darkness.
For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret.
The darkness that we once were. Pause for a moment…think about it…some of your worst skeltons in the closet so to speak...
Ugly, shameful, hurtful, disgraceful,
Those are the things that sin is crouching at the door for!
Don’t entertain, don’t speak, do not be involved. The darkness is as real as the light!
Are we always thankful for the darkness God has pulled us out of?
But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
“Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
There’s this thinking in some that this is our best life now and all we have here is needed to make us happy.
That our actions really aren’t that bad and God understands that a little fun here and there with crude joking, course talking, sexual immoratlity, etc.. isn’t all that bad as long as I’m not hurting anyone.
Sometimes looking back with fond memories of darkness.
Folks if you find yourself in that place, for the love of God flee!
Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
What or who is God? All good, all loving, all knowing. And if He is after our ultimate good why are we questioning how far is to far and how much is to much when we know none of it is good?
The darkness and it’s ugly ways has been made known to us, how can we live in it any longer.
To even think that the sins of the world aren’t that bad, is to not fully understand who God is!
Folks we really don’t know the depths of our own depravity.
The longer I walk with Christ the realiztion of just how messed up I really am becomes more apparent and how good He really is!
This world is broken! It is not good, does it have some good in it? Yes, by the mercy of God it does.
But if you really stand back and look, it’s not a place to raise a family so to speak...
We can’t love the darkness of this world and the light of God at the same time. We’ll grow to love one and hate the other.
This is what is being taught here today in scripture. A follower of Christ isn’t just a title or an identity but a life that has been transformed!
From death to life, from unloving to loving, from darkness to light.
We are changed and so thankful for that, that we never want to go back.
None of us should be wanting to climb back into that grave of darkness.
As a man standing up here sharing in truth I have to ask..do you have repetance, do you have a change of heart, what fruit are you bearing? Good fruit or bad fruit?
You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Are we bearing fruit of darkness or of light?
I’m not up here trying to beat you down but in love asking a life saving question.
What good is it for any of us to be untruthful in the word of God and not bring up the obvios?
Matthew 16:26 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?”
Has our life changed? This is the meat of what Paul is saying. We are now this not this...
If you don’t see this taking place, don’t be deceived into thinking all is good.
Get on your knee’s and pray for help.
A moment for concern.
As a young boy I’d hear sermons like this and be scared to death!
I’m going to change I’m going to really do it this time and always the same failure.
Sin...
To the point I just wanted to ignore God…it was easier that way.
I never heard about grace…not because it wasn’t preached but because I never heard it (probably because I was so scared of hell that I never heard about God’s grace)
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
All we have to do is surrender! Sounds easy right!? Guess what it’s not, ask me how I know…one of the many sin problems i have is a control freak…or not trusting God always.
Daily we have to ask for help, you can not do it on your own!
If only one thing you hear today, hear this…Pray daily for God’s help! Daily the world, your flesh, and the devil is after you...
Pray daily for help, for repentace, for thankfulness…in all things pray!