Walk This Way
Ephesians • Sermon • Submitted
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· 31 viewsPaul's instruction to the church on walking in light of our Christian identity
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Introduction - Growing up I used to love to watch Chuck Norris movies and Walker Texas Ranger with my dad. If you don’t know much about Chuck Norris let me tell you a little about him.
Chuck Norris
Chuck Norris’ tears cure cancer. Too bad he has never cried.
Chuck Norris has counted to infinity. Tice.
There is no chin behind Chuck Norris’ beard. There is only another fist.
The Great Wall of China was originally created to keep Chuck Norris out. It failed miserably.
Chuck Norris doesn’t wear Superman PJs, Superman wears Chuck Norris PJs
Time waits for no man. Unless that man is Chuck Norris
Now before we dive into the passage I want to pose TWO questions to you, and I want you to group up with those around you and seek to answer them:
What makes someone a Christian?
What does a Christian look like?
In today’s passage Paul is going to exhort the Church in Ephesus to walk in three specific ways because of their identity in Christ.
Now this is not a Do this, Do that message. Those are called Do-Do sermons which normally stink.
But the Bible reveals to us who God is and what He has done for us. If we think back over the past four chapters in Ephesians we see that those who believe in Christ have a new identity, they are new people, because of the work of Christ.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles.
Because of the work of Christ we have a new identity
Dead - Alive
Children of wrath - Beloved children
Enemies - Saints
sons of God
Darkness - Light
It is not about what we do, but what He has done for us, and how then we live out this new life, this new reality of our identity.
Walk In Love
Walk In Love
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.
We imitate our heavenly Father and walk in love just as Christ loved us.
Our identity is that we are beloved children because Christ loved us and sacrificed himself for us.
We live out that identity by walking in love.
Our understanding of love is from the actions of Jesus
Walk In Light
Walk In Light
for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.
Non-Christians are described as darkness whereas Christians are called light and the “fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true”
,,
We are to Walk in Light, in this reality that we are Light. This does not mean that we walk around with headlamps or flashlights all the time. It does mean that we now see the things of God and the things of the world. Look at
for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
Waking Up: Napping room that was completely dark. No amount of alarm noises would wake me up. I am a habitual snoozer. But the rising sun lighting up the room. That will wake me up.
Before I knew Jesus. I was dead in my trespasses and sins. It was if I was asleep. I didnt realize my sinfulness and the consequences of my sin. I didn’t know about God and his love for me. But when my eyes were opened to the gospel it was like waking up. I could now see my sin and Christ’s righteousness. And that my life was in contrast to the darkness in them world.
Paul then gives a couple specific areas where we should shine the light of the gospel.
But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints.
Sexual Immorality and Impurity
Sexual Immorality and Impurity
Sexual Immorality is a catch all term for any and all sexual activity outside of God’s good design.
The World’s attitude is that
Covetousness
Covetousness
What is covetousness? It is Greed, craving something that God has chosen to not give us at the time. It is Never being satisfied.
Why are these not proper for the believer? It is a form of idolatry, of worshipping something in the place of God.
Idolatry
Idolatry
You worship what you think is necessary to have a good and happy life.
God is supposed to be the only thing we need to be content in life, and when we’re dissatisfied with what we have, we are saying God is not enough.
It dishonors God when our happiness is contingent on something besides him
What makes you dissatisfied? What is the one thing you must have if you are going to be happy?
Certain grade
Approval of your friends
Newest technology or clothes
Having a specific body type
We shouldn’t feel that way about anything in our lives except God
When we take good things and make them God things that is a bad thing.
Because our eyes are awake to the gospel, we walk in that reality. That we now know what sin is and we know what righteousness is.
Walk In Wisdom
Walk In Wisdom
Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
Wisdom means learning to think correctly about those things not spelled out in Scripture
A lot of life’s decisions are not spelled out directly in Scripture like what job you should take or major you should pursue, how to spend your money, what to do with your time, who you should date, what you should watch on TV
Walking in wisdom means making decisions in those areas in ways that fit well with an understanding of what God is doing in the world.
Examples:
You have a big text tomorrow. Do you spend 5 hours watching Netflix and playing video games OR do you study and prepare.
You see a new student at school, do you ignore them OR do you go introduce yourself and invite them to get to know your friends.
In Closing
In Closing
The Christian life is far more about what God has done for us in Christ then what we do, but they way in which we live out our new identity in Christian displays that we are in Christ.
The way in which we love
The way in which we say no to sin and yes to righteosness
The way in which we are wise
Eph 5:
giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
In your group or table go around praying and thanking God for what He has done for you.