Why is it so hard for people later in life to put their trust in the Lord? It is true that the older we get, the more sceptical we become of change. The attitude that typifies this mindset is, “If it hasn’t worked for me up until this point then why try now?”
In Ephesians Paul is speaking to people who have yet to really understand what the filling of the Spirit could mean to them and the profound difference that it could make in them. The notion that I won’t change is based so much on self produced effort. This is a book about transformation...NOW, in this life. A dominating verb is the last three chapters is to WALK! It is missed in the NIV, but it is there. Start walking! Today, this week, in this moment. It was always meant to be done in the Spirit.
The heart of this passage is this calling to lay aside what used to be and that leads us to putting on what we have always been called to wear as we talked about last week. Don’t even think about going to the laundry hamper to wear those clothes full of stench! We are not stuck being who we once were. It about new conviction, new hope, new courage and now we have the Spirit of God!
This is an intensively convicting because it is challenging us to live on such a high level and with greater and greater consistency. Our posture to receive from the Spirit of God is incredibly important if we are to hear with clarity from the Lord.
WALK IN HIS LOVE as you
Guard your heart with the purity that springs from your identity v1-7
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
3But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. 4Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. 5For 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. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7Therefore do not become partners with them;
Proverbs 4:23 Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.
Your heart needs to be a fresh water flowing stream. You need to take inventory!
What is your appetite? Take a look at what you are stocking up on in your fridge and your pantry.
What causes our heart to be stagnant? Allowing ourselves to be captivated by impurity, racing thoughts, fantasy life – our thoughts will burst into actions.
Psalm 15 Lord who may dwell in your sanctuary
1 Corinthians 6:19,20 you are bought with a price..every other sin is outside your body, it touches the very core of our being.
Matthew 15:17-20
The fact is that if your life is characterized by these kind of sins, if this is your lifestyle, then it is becoming more and more clear that the work of redemption has not taken place.
We are called to really be wise, be so discerning in our entertainment choices.
Not even ‘a hint’ of sexual immorality – Often sexual love is sought out as a `counterfeit god` as Tim Keller writes in his most recent book. In the search for love, one looks for the deep kind of affirmation and acceptance that only God can provide.
He goes on to write how we know a good thing has become a counterfeit god when its demands on you exceed proper boundaries. Making an idol out of work may mean you work until it ruin your health and marriage, or you break the laws in order to get ahead.
Making an idol out of love may mean allowing the lover to exploit and abuse you.
Paul is not condemning sexual love...the stress is on going outside the boundaries of what God has desired for the most complete and satisfying expression within a committed marriage. However even in marriage, we must not load all of the deepest needs in our heart of hearts for significance and transcendence into romance and love. God longs for us to discover the love that makes us complete in Him.
He speaks to repenting about coarse (sexual) joking and he can`t stress how much this kind of lifestyle has nothing to do with those who are the people of God!
Foolish talk is a combination of two words in the Greek being ‘moron’ and ‘talk’
Can you think of TV shows that would fit that description?
Can you understand that when people hear you talk like that, how quickly you are dismissed, written off a child of God by non-Christians?
We have to say no in order to say yes...
We can’t add a Christian virtue without taking other things away
So Paul tells us to do the opposite. Start with looking for ways to share your thankfulness.
The pure in heart will see God – Matthew 5:8
WALK IN CHRIST’s LIGHT as you
Discover His Pleasure v8-14
8for 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), 10and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
"Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you."
Wake up sleeper, arise from the dead is taken from Isaiah 60:1,2 where the prophet is overwhelmed with the awesome glory of the Lord. Let’s go there to get a fresh vision of the Lord!
When we walk in the flesh we will know by what our life is manifesting. For example to cope when things aren’t going the way that you planned how do you react?
When you are under a great amount of pressure and stress, what is your panic button?
If we are walking in the darkness we will do one or a combination of the following:
• We become self absorbed, feel sorry for myself, play the role of the victim
• We will withdraw and isolate ourselves by running from others, escaping, go into a shell
• We become obsessed with accomplishments, recognition, the past, hold on to some form of structure
• We will escape by business, locked into computer games or social websites, even church activities, sleep, active fantasy
• We may choose to become self reliant, perfectionism,
• We may choose self indulgence by impulsive purchasing
• Anxious, dominant, controlling ... it is all there
Keep asking the hard questions, let God expose you to the ugliness you need to see in yourself. Get a peer mentor, allow others to see the real you. We can so easily deceive ourselves into thinking we are doing just fine and that is when we need the honest wounds of a real friend to bring the challenge, the rebuke, the encouragement to keep in the light.
WALK IN THE FULNESS OF THE SPIRIT v15-21
Discover the wisdom and discernment He gives!
15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.
• Make the most of every opportunity – Here the NIV really captures where the emphasis needs to be. It is recognizing that very fact that we need to seize the day or buy up the opportunities that surround you. The days are getting more evil. It is about godly influence, make your mark. Don’t waste time on things that won’t last and remember that relationships do. We need to be more bold in our faith
• Recognize the will of the Lord – we could do a whole message on this one, but in brief...when so many people equate this with whether to move, take a job and certainly those things are important, but the Bible when speaking of the will of the Lord, it is to be saved, Spirit-filled, sanctified, submissive and be ready to suffer.
• Be filled with the Spirit – this is an active and ongoing process for the believer. We are commanded to keep being filled with the Spirit.
We are baptized in to the body of Christ when we come to know Jesus as our Saviour. However; there is often a very distinct point where we are initially filled with the Spirit for the first time. The reality is that is comes in a place of surrender.
You are filled with the Holy Spirit when you are tuned to and releasing the flow of the indwelling Holy Spirit Who is saturating and invigorating your heart and is anointing your mind, will, emotions and speech and hands as you yield them to the flow of the river of God within.
Mark Virkler
The contrast here is given to being drunk with wine where there is no control, no ability to influence and leads us further into the kind of sins we first looked at in this passage.
What does the fullness of the Holy Spirit do in us?
He gives us words of wisdom and knowledge
He gives us incredible faith to believe whether it is for salvation, healing and prayers to that end
He can do the miraculous through us
We already seen through the gifts of the Spirit, He imparts the gift of the prophetic, verses and words that He only can give, bringing people to our heart to pray for.
He gives us an inner witness to distinguish between His Spirit and false demonic spirits. If you feel godly guilt that calls you to repentance, that is the Spirit. If you feel shame, after confession of sin, the matter keeps being brought up, that is from the enemy of our souls.
He gives us the ability to pray with power and even without words that can we can comprehend.
• The posture of praise music – Every new movement of the Spirit of God has brought a fresh outburst of song. Let me illustrate, “The question goes something like this... really struggle with this whole HS thing, I’m always depressed . I ask them what are you listening to...the answer, comes back, `death metal’. You may want to look at your diet when it comes to the music and songs that fill and occupy your mind and heart. Now I used this illustration as an oversimplification, but seriously, take stock of the music that fills your ipod, mp3, you name it. We absolutely need a strong diet of music that we can soak in God’s presence. The power of great contemplative and celebratory music cannot be denied in our lives in giving way to the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Even if you can’t sing, you must learn the posture of soaking.
• He finishes with a call for us to mutual submission – The pride of position, an overbearing or authoritarian spirit are destructive for fellowship and friendship. We were always called to lay down the titles and serve one another in the strength of our calling.
The Takeaway
Walk in the LOVE that God has for you, walk in the LIGHT of Jesus and let Him expose the heart of the matter and finally walk in the fullness of the SPIRIT as you make music in your soul and you will soar to heights you never imagined!
Questions For Discussion
1. Why are sexual immorality and greed listed together?
2. Think about your reputation. In what ways do you protect it?
3. Take an inventory of your music collection. How much time do you spend listening to praise and worship music?
4. How can you posture yourself to receive more from the Spirit of God
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