WALK IN LOVE

Sermon  •  Submitted
0 ratings
· 23 views

Paul uses the word "walk" 6 times. Each time he does, he uses it in the sense of one's conduct or manner of living their life.

Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
View more →
WALK IN LOVE
(NKJV)
1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.
2 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.
3 But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints;
4 neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.
5 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.
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 be partakers with them.
8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light
9 (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth),
10 finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.
Eph2:10, 4:1; 4:17; 5:8; 5:2; 5:8;
(NKJV)
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
(NKJV)
1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,
(NKJV)
17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind,
(NKJV)
2 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.
(NKJV)
8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light
(NKJV)
15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,
WALK LIKE AN EPHESIAN
Intro: We normally think of one's walk as their means of locomotion, or how they move from one place to another. Our walk is something that develops early in our lives, somewhere around the age of 1. However, there is another sense in which this word is used. It can also refer to a person's walk of life. That is, what they do with their life and how they live their life can be described as their walk.
In the book of Ephesians, Paul uses the word "walk" 6 times. Each time he does, he uses it in the sense of one's conduct or manner of living their life. He is writing to these Ephesian believers to show them how they are to live their lives as they pass through this world as pilgrims and strangers. He is writing to teach them how they are to live their lives.
I want to touch briefly on each of these 6 verses this evening. You what Paul told these believers 2,000 years ago is still valid for us, in our world, today. Let's take a few minutes to look into these verse and learn how to Walk Like An Ephesian.
I. 2:10 THE WORKING WALK
A. While we are not saved by our good works, , (NKJV)
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
we are saved to work,
.
(NKJV)
18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
No amount of good works can produce salvation, but salvation will produce a limitless number of good works.
B. God has saved us to serve, and He has prepared the works which we are to do as we pass through this life. He has a special assignment for each person He saves. , .
(NKJV)
7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all:
(NKJV)
11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.
C. We are His workmanship, (Poem, Masterpiece). He saved us to show us off and let the world know what He can do with sinners. He has chosen to paint the glory of His grace and love upon the canvas of our lives . He has chosen us to show a lost world what a great God can do with a lost sinner.
D. As we abide in Him, we will have no problem carrying out the assignment which we are given, .
(NKJV)
15 The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.
II. 4:1 THE WORTHY WALK
A. The word "worthy" comes from a word that means "to balance the scales." What Paul is saying here is this: "Let your walk balance with your talk." Simple stated, we are called upon to be what we claim to believe!
B. Too many believers claim to believe on thing, yet live another. Such things should never be! This verse reminds us that we have been called by God to a part of His saving plan. We are to walk "worthy" of that calling. We are to balance our lives with the fact the He has called us "out of darkness into His marvelous light.", !
(NKJV)
9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
C. Only one who's life balances is worthy of the name Christian!
III. 4. 17 THE WHOLEHEARTED WALK
A. Paul's emphasis in this verse is that believers ought to be different! They have been saved and they are no longer to live like the world around them. Remember, those who are in Jesus are "new creatures", .
(NKJV)
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
B. Ill. The corruption and vice of the Ephesus of Paul's day. It was a wicked city filled with wicked men and wicked worship. (Ill. The Temple of Diana (Artemis) was there, .
(NKJV)
24 For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Diana, brought no small profit to the craftsmen.
25 He called them together with the workers of similar occupation, and said: “Men, you know that we have our prosperity by this trade.
26 Moreover you see and hear that not only at Ephesus, but throughout almost all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that they are not gods which are made with hands.
27 So not only is this trade of ours in danger of falling into disrepute, but also the temple of the great goddess Diana may be despised and her magnificence destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worship.”
28 Now when they heard this, they were full of wrath and cried out, saying, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!”
It was a place associated with paganism, prostitution and crime.). The Greek philosopher Heraclitus said this about Ephesus and the Ephesians, "the darkness of vileness. The morals were lower than animals and the inhabitants of Ephesus were fit only to be drowned." Ephesus was no easy place to live. But, Paul calls upon them to be different!
C. The same clear lines of demarcation should still exist between the people of the Lord and the world around us!
We have been saved to be different.
The way to do this is to avoid the path of the lost, , and to walk in the path of life, . We can live for God!
(NKJV)
17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind,
18 having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart;
19 who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.
(NKJV)
20 But you have not so learned Christ,
21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus:
22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,
23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind,
24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
25 Therefore, putting away lying, “Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,” for we are members of one another.
26 “Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath,
27 nor give place to the devil.
28 Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need.
29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.
32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
IV. 5:2 THE WONDERFUL WALK
A. Paul tells the Ephesians that their lives are to be characterized by love. Jesus said that love was to be the earmark, or the defining trait of His disciples, . The love Paul refers to here is the word "agape". We know that this refers to "God's kind of love." It is unconditional that is based on a conscious choice, after close evaluation. In other words, it means to love someone in spite of what they are, what they have done, or what you know about them. It is loving like Jesus. Spelled out clearly in .
B. This love should be evident in our lives in three areas.
1. Love For The Savior - - This kind of love will keep us Holy.
2. Love For The Saint - - This kind of love will keep us Humble. (By the way, if you can't love a brother, your claim to love God is a lie, .) 3. Love For The Sinner - - When we learn to love the lost around us like Jesus does, this kind of love will keep us Hot!
C. The ability to love this way is not natural, but it is the supernatural work of God in us!
V. 5:8 THE WITNESSING WALK
A. Note the contrast in this verse. We "were darkness", lost folks still are. Now we "are light". Our whole nature has been changed and we are to live that change out before a world trapped in darkness.
B. As we do, our lives becomes living testimonies to the awesome power of God to change the sinner! Lost me see the change and are stirred in their hearts, . You see, it is not just enough to walk in the light, we are light, ; ; . Because who are who we are by the power of God, we are to live out the Light of God's truth in every moment of life!
VI. 5:15 THE WISE WALK
A. The word "circumspectly" means, "accurately, exactly, diligently." Paul's call is for believers to walk with their eyes open. We are to watch each step we take, looking diligently for the snares of the devil, , and for the opportunities of the Lord, .
B. The idea of this verse is two-fold. We can either live our lives like fools. That is, we can fall for the devil's traps, we can walk in disobedience, or it can be something as simple as living your life for the wrong things. All those make for foolish living. Or, we can live as wise men. This means that we make every minute count for the glory of the Lord, . We use the opportunities God gives us and we watch out for the traps and tricks of the devil. We don't just set our sail to the wind and go where the day takes us, we plan our time around the will of God so that we can accomplish much for His glory.
Conc: So, how is your walk? Have you seen ways it could be better? Are there things that need to be fixed this evening? If so, Jesus is giving spiritual tuneups.
Related Media
See more
Related Sermons
See more