Ephesians 5:1
"Be
ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;"
“Be … followers
of God”: The Christian has no greater calling or purpose than that
of imitating his Lord. That is the very purpose of sanctification,
growing in likeness to the Lord while serving Him on earth (Matt.
5:48).
The Christian life
is designed to reproduce godliness as modeled by the Savior and Lord,
Jesus Christ, in whose image believers have been recreated through
the new birth (Rom. 8:29; 2 Cor. 3:18; 1 Peter 1:14-16). As God’s
dear children, believers are to become more and more like their
heavenly Father (Matt. 5:48; 1 Peter 1:15-16).
Those who carry
God’s name are to be “imitators” of His character. By His grace
it is possible to reflect Him seen in our present limitations. To
know what God is like we must study His Word, His revelation of
Himself, His great Self disclosure. The only way we can become
imitators of God is for the Lord Jesus Christ to live His perfect
life through us. We are totally dependent on His Spirit to become
like Him.
Yet the more we
learn of God’s character the more we learn how far above us He is
and how impossible in ourselves it is fulfill the command to be like
Him, to be absolutely perfect, just as He is.
A Christian is a
believer in and a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. That is what the
verse above is saying, also. If we really are Christians, then we
should pattern our life after our Leader's life. Children, who have
honorable parents, will usually be honorable, also. Parents are a
living example to their children.
We are sons of God,
if we are really Christians. We must follow the example that He gave
us in Jesus. The great commission that Jesus gave all believers is
found in Mark 16:15:
"And he said
unto them, Go ye into the entire world, and preach the gospel to
every creature." He said to heal the sick and many of the other
things that He had done on this earth. If we belong to Jesus, we
should be doing the things He would do.
Ephesians 5:2
"And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given
himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling
savour."
“Christ also loved
us … given himself for us”: The Lord’s the supreme example in
His self sacrificing love for lost sinners (4:32; Rom. 5:8-10). He
took human sin upon Himself and gave up His very life that men might
be redeemed from their sin, receive a new and holy nature, and
inherit eternal life.
They are henceforth
to be imitators of His great love in the newness and power of the
Holy Spirit, who enable them to demonstrate divine love. Because
forgiveness is the supreme evidence of God’s love, it will also be
the most convincing proof of our love. Love will always lead us to
forgive others just as love led God in Christ to forgive us.
The greatest
evidence of love is underserved forgiveness. Because Christ has paid
the penalty for every sin, we have no right to hold any sin against
any person, even a nonbeliever. Just as the depth of God’s love is
shown by how much He has forgiven, the depth of our love is shown by
how much we forgive.
Unforgiveness is
also a measure of unbelief, because the person who feels no need for
forgiveness feels no need for God. The person who sees the greatness
of his own forgiveness by God’s love will himself in love be
forgiving. He forgives in love because his heavenly Father has
forgiven in love and he desires to be an imitator of His Father.
I believe
Christianity to be a way of life. When we are saved that is not the
end. We must walk in the salvation we have received. Every offering
and sacrifice in the Old Testament law was fulfilled in Jesus.
To get the in-depth
teaching on this, read the lessons in Leviticus. Jesus is the
everlasting sacrifice and offering to God for all mankind.
“A sweet smelling
savor”: Christ’s offering of Himself for fallen man pleased and
glorified His heavenly Father, because it demonstrated in the most
complete and perfect way God’s sovereign, perfect, unconditional,
and divine kind of love. Leviticus describes 5 offerings commanded by
God for Israel. The first 3 were:
1.
The burnt offering (Lev. 1:1-17), depicting Christ’s
perfection,
2.
The grain offering (Lev. 2:1-16), depicting Christ’s total
devotion to God in giving His life to please the Father; and
3.
The peace offering (Lev. 3:1-17), depicting His peacemaking
between God and man. All 3 of these were a “soothing aroma to the
Lord” (Lev. 1:9, 13, 17; 2:2, 9, 12, 3:5, 16).
The other two
offerings, the sin offering (Lev. 4:1 – 5:13) and the guilt, or
trespass, offering (Lev. 5:14 – 6:7), were repulsive to God because
though they depicted Christ, they depicted Him as bearing sin (Matt.
27:46). While Christ was the sin bearer, God could not look on Him or
rejoice in Him or be pleased in Him. In the end, when redemption was
accomplished, the whole work pleased God completely.
Christ did not
simply have a deep feeling and emotional concern for mankind. Nor did
He sacrifice Himself for us because we deserved. Romans 5:8, 10 tells
us: “While we were yet sinners,” He gave Himself for us purely
out of sovereign, gracious love, taking our sin upon Himself and
paying its penalty in our behalf. And He continues to love us as
believers, even though we continue to sin and fall short of His
perfection and His glory.
Those who are given
God’s nature through Jesus Christ are commanded to love as God
loves. In Christ, it is now our nature to love just as it is God’s
nature to love, because His nature is now our nature. For a Christian
not to love is for him to live against his own nature as well as
against God’s.
Lovelessness is
therefore more that a failure or shortcoming. It is a sin, willful
disobedience of God’s command and disregard of His example. If
God’s love can reach out even to His enemies, how can we refuse to
love our enemies? If He loves His imperfect children with a perfect
love, how can we not love fellow believers, whose imperfections we
share?
And if divine love
led Christ to sacrifice Himself for unworthy and ungrateful sinners,
how can we not give ourselves to fellow sinful people, unbelievers as
well as believers, in His name?
Ephesians 5:3
"But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it
not be once named among you, as becometh saints;"
“Fornication …
covetousness (greed)”: In absolute contrast to God’s holiness and
love, such sins as these exist (also in verse 5), by which Satan
seeks to destroy God’s divine work in His children and turn them as
far away as possible from His image and will.
Whatever God
establishes, Satan will counterfeit. Where God establishes true love,
Satan produces counterfeit love. Counterfeit love characterizes
Satan’s children, those who are of the world, just as true love
characterizes God’s children, those who are citizens of heaven.
Fornication
(porneia, immorality) refers to all sexual sin, and all sexual sin is
against God and against godly love. Loss of sexual control leads to
its opposite, which is immorality and impurity (uncleanness). These
consist of immoral thoughts, passions, ideas, fantasies, and every
other form of sexual corruption.
The influence of the
lustful world has been so pervasive and the church so weak and
undiscerning that many Christians have become convinced that all
sorts of sexual excesses and impurities are covered by grace or can
be rendered morally safe if engaged in with the right attitude,
especially if some scripture verse can be twisted to give seeming
support.
Because of the
strong sexual nature of human beings, sexual sins are powerful and
can become perverted in unimaginable ways. If given free rein, sexual
sins lead to complete insensitivity to the feelings and welfare of
others, to horrible brutality, and frequently to murder as news
stories testify daily.
As do many other
Scriptures, this verse shows the close connection between sexual sin
and other forms of impurity and greed. An immoral person is
inevitably greedy. Such sins are so godless that the world should
never have reason even to suspect their presence in Christians.
“As becometh
saints” means that it is not proper for Christians or “saints”
to be guilty of committing the sexual sins listed here. “Not be
once named” means such deeds should not even be the topic of normal
conversation.
When we are saved,
we are born again, not with a license to sin. We are a new man in
Christ. We no longer live, but Christ liveth in us. The old man of
sin is buried along with the lust of the flesh.
Christians are new
creatures in Christ. We no longer have the desire in our heart to
sin. We must walk in newness of life. All of the sins above are part
of the old flesh man that was buried.
Ephesians 5:4
"Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are
not convenient: but rather giving of thanks."
“Not convenient”:
These three inappropriate sins of the tongue indicate any speech that
is obscene and degrading or foolish and dirty, as well as suggestive
and immoral. All such are destructive of holy living and godly
testimony and should be confessed, forsaken, and replaced by open
expressions of thankfulness to God (Col. 3:8). Convenient means
“proper or fitting”.
“Filthiness” has
to do with general obscenity, and talk that is degrading and
disgraceful. It comes from the same Greek root as “disgraceful”
in verse 12, where Paul says that such vile things should not even be
mentioned, much less participated in and is related to the term in
Col. 3:8 meaning dirty speech.
“Foolish talk,
used only here in the New Testament, is derived from moros (which
means dull or stupid and is the word from which we get moron) and
lego (to speak). It is stupid talk, talk only befitting someone who
is intellectually deficient. It is sometimes referred to as low
obscenity, foolish talk that comes from the drunk or the gutter
mouth. It has no point except to give an air of dirty worldliness.
“Jesting” refers
to talk that is more pointed and determined. It carries the idea of
quickly turning something that is said or done, no matter how
innocent, into that which is obscene or suggestive. It is the filthy
talk of a person who uses every word and circumstance to display his
immoral wit (like a clever talk show host). But the low obscenity of
silly talk and the “high” obscenity of coarse jesting come from
the same kind of heart, the heart given over to moral filthiness.
Christians need not
to do any of the things listed in the last three verses. We must not
even give the appearance of evil. These sins are signs of a life full
of sin. They come of those who are sold out to the flesh and the
devil.
The unselfish and
loving person, on the other hand, focuses his life and his concern on
the needs of others. Instead of using others, he serves them. Instead
of trying to turn the innocent into the immoral, he seeks to change
the immoral into what is righteous and holy. He is thankful because
the holy life is the satisfying life, and people see love for God in
the thankful person.
Christians should
spend all of their time doing good and giving thanks to God for the
blessings He bestowed upon them.
Ephesians 5:5
"For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor
covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom
of Christ and of God."
“For this ye
know”: Paul had taught this truth many times when he pastured the
church at Ephesus and it should have been clear in their minds. God
never tolerates sin, which has no place at all in His kingdom, nor
will any person whose life pattern is one of habitual immorality,
impurity, and greed, (see verse 3 – fornication, uncleanness and
covetousness) be in His kingdom, because no such person is saved.
The “kingdom of
Christ and of God” is a reference to the sphere of salvation where
Christ rules the redeemed. Those who are characterized by the sins
Paul has just condemned in verses 3 and 4 will have no inheritance in
the kingdom of Christ and God. Such would contradict the truths of
Romans 6 and 2 Corinthians 5:17 as well as the instruction of 1 John
regarding the characteristics of believers.
This really tells it
like it is. Our actions show to whom we belong to. If we are
practicing the sins mentioned in the last few verses, we are not sold
out to God. We are still living in sin. Therefore the life described
here testifies to an unredeemed, sinful nature, no matter what
relationship to Christ a person might claim to have.
A "whoremonger"
is a male prostitute. The word comes from the word porno. The
whoremonger would have to do with all unnatural sex, as well as
adultery. This is speaking of all types of sexual sin that is classed
by God as an abomination.
"Abomination"
means disgusting sin. The unclean person, here, is speaking of an
unclean heart and soul. The covetous person wants things that do not
belong to him. The "idolater" is someone who worships false
gods.
You can easily see
how God would say that people involved in this kind of sin have no
reward waiting for them. These really are children of wrath.
Every person who is
saved, and is therefore a part of that glorious rule of Christ and
God, is instructed by the Holy Spirit and by the inclination of his
new nature to forsake sin and to seek righteousness. The person whose
basic life pattern does not reflect that orientation cannot claim God
as his Father or the Kingdom of Christ and God as his inheritance.
Ephesians 5:6
"Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these
things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience."
“Deceive you”:
No Christian will be sinless in this present life, but it is
dangerously deceptive for Christians to offer assurance of salvation
to a professing believer whose life is characterized by persistent
sin and who shows no shame for that sin or hunger for the holy and
pure things of God. They are headed for wrath (2:2) and believers
must not partner in any of their wickedness (verse 7).
People will try to
deny that those dominated with the sins in this chapter are damned to
hell. Some will try to deny that, but Paul warns not to listen to
them. Let no one deceive you with empty words, telling you that sin
is tolerable and that God will not exclude unrepentant sinners from
His kingdom. Empty words are full of error, devoid of truth and
therefore they deceive.
Even worse than
being a lost person who was committing these sins, would be someone
pretending to be a child of God committing these sins. Judgment
begins at the house of God.
The sin of Adam and
Eve in the Garden of Eden was that they disobeyed God. To be
disobedient children of God is very serious. The wrath of God falls
on these people. The way you could be deceived, is to believe that
you would be above punishment from God.
God’s attitude
toward perverted love and sexual sin is seen clearly in Numbers
25:1-9, where the Israelites had relations with Moabite women and God
slaughtered 24,000 of them. His attitude toward sexual sin has not
changed and perverted love attracts God’s wrath like a fully lit
city attracts enemy bombers.
Ephesians 5:7
"Be
not ye therefore partakers with them."
We must not
fellowship with people involved in these sins. We might be guilty by
association. It is strange how the ways of the sinner seem to be
picked up more readily than the ways of the saint, when they
fellowship together.
In a final warning,
Paul says, “be not ye therefore partakers with them”. Don’t
join the world in its evil, he says. Don’t be partners with them in
wickedness. Be partners with Christ in righteousness. Don’t imitate
the world, but rather be imitators of God, as beloved children (v.1).
Ephesians 5:8
"For ye were sometimes darkness, but now [are ye] light in the
Lord: walk as children of light:"
“Darkness …
light”: “Darkness” describes the character of the life of the
unconverted as void of truth and virtue in intellectual and moral
matters (1 John 1:5-7).
The realm of
darkness is presided over by the “power of darkness” (Luke 22:53;
Col. 1:13), who rules those headed for “outer darkness” (Matthew
8:12; 2 Peter 2:17). Tragically, sinners love the darkness (John
3:19-21). It is that very darkness from which salvation in Christ
delivers sinners.
John 8:12 "Then
spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he
that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the
light of life."
Matthew 4:16 "The
people which sat in darkness saw great light and to them which sat in
the region and shadow of death light is sprung up."
“Darkness”
indicates that the readers used to be spiritually unenlightened, and
accompanying this ignorance was immorality with its resultant guilt
and misery. “Light” denotes that the recipients are now to be
religiously informed. Their knowledge of the truth is attended by
moral purity and happiness.
Before we came to
Christ our total existence, our being as well as our behavior, was
characterized by darkness. There was no other aspect to our spiritual
life than that of darkness. We were children of darkness and “sons
of disobedience” (Eph. 5:6). We were not simply victims of Satan’s
system but were contributors to it. We were not merely in sin; our
very nature was characterized by sin.
It is difficult even
for Christians to imagine that the law abiding, decent and pleasant
unbelievers we run in to every day are children of Satan. Yet every
person is either a child of the devil or a child of God.
There are no other
kinds of spiritual childhood, although there obviously are degrees in
both kinds as far as life style is concerned. But the unbelieving,
well dressed, sophisticated philanthropist will spend eternity apart
from God in the same hell as the demon serving witch doctor.
Walking in darkness
is the condition of everyone, before they come to the Light of Jesus
Christ. In verses 8-14 the focus is on our imitating God in relation
to light. As we have said, Light does away with darkness.
“You are the light
of the world,” Jesus said (Matthew 5:14). Because we now share
Christ’s own nature, we share in His light. Just as He is the
“light of the world” (John 8:12), His people are also “the
light of the world”. Because we are in the Lord, we who were once
children of darkness are now children of light and it is such
children that we should walk.
Ephesians 5:9
"(For the fruit of the Spirit [is] in all goodness and
righteousness and truth;)"
The three supreme
characteristics or fruit of our walk as children of light are “all
goodness and righteousness and truth”. These are the tests of true
faith, of a true saving relationship to the Lord Jesus Christ.
A decision for
Christ, church membership, faithful attendance at worship services,
being baptized, financial support of the Lord’s work and may other
such things are often used as evidence of salvation. Yes, the
faithful Christian should do all of these things, but they are
behaviors that are easily done in the flesh and are therefore
unreliable in themselves as evidence.
On the other hand,
the three characteristics Paul mentions here are spiritual works that
cannot be achieved in the flesh. The “all” in this verse reflects
the perfection of the divine standard. The “goodness” used here
is like agape love that finds its fullest and highest expression in
that which is willingly and sacrificially done for others.
The second test is
“righteousness” and has to do first of all with our relationship
to God. “To the one who does not work, but believes in His who
justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness”
(Rom. 4:5; Eph. 4:24; Phil. 3:9). But righteousness also has to do
with how we live. Those who are made righteous are commanded to live
righteously, to present themselves “to God as those alive from the
dead, and their members as instruments of righteous to God” (Romans
6:13).
The third test is
“truth” which has to do with honesty, reliability,
trustworthiness and integrity in contrast to the hypocritical,
deceptive and false ways of the old life of darkness.
Without that fruit
(the three tests) there is no evidence of the life of God. “Beware
of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing,”
Jesus warned, “but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them
by their fruits. Every person bears fruit of some kind. Those who are
darkness bear bad fruit, and those who are light bear good fruit.
The person who does
not bear some fruit of righteousness in his life has no claim on
Christ. There is no such thing as a fruitless Christian. The complete
absence of any fruit of goodness, righteousness and truth proves the
complete absence of salvation, 2:10.
This is speaking of
that which is produced by walking in the light (1 John 5-7), namely
moral excellence of heart, righteous behavior and truthfulness
(honesty or integrity).
Spirit, here, is
speaking of the Holy Spirit of God. Fruit comes from whatever tree it
is of. Peaches come from a peach tree and apples come from an apple
tree. The fruit that came from the Holy Spirit would be goodness,
righteousness and truth. The Holy Spirit brings all truth to the
believer.
Our righteousness is
the righteousness that Jesus gave us, when He took our sin.
Ephesians 5:10
"Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord."
“Proving what is
acceptable unto the Lord”: “Trying to learn” carries the idea
of testing or proving to learn by clear and convincing evidence what
is truly honoring to God. The point is that, as believers walk in the
light of the truth, the knowledge of the Lord’s will becomes clear.
See Romans 12:1-2
where Paul says the same thing, stating that it is only after
presenting ourselves as living sacrifices to God that we can know His
acceptable will. This relates to assurance of salvation also, see 1
Peter 1:5-11.
Because of constant
temptations and solicitations to evil, believers must always be
“proving” or discerning “what is” and what is not “acceptable
unto the Lord.”
The desire of a true
Christian is to please God in all that they do, and all that they
are. With the Holy Spirit guiding, all our fruit would be pleasing to
God.
Assurance of
salvation cannot be reliably determined by what has happened in the
past, no matter how dramatic or meaningful at the time. It can only
be based with certainty on the evidence of present fruit being
produced by a spiritual life.
Ephesians 5:11
"And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness,
but rather reprove [them]."
“Have no
fellowship … darkness”: Paul’s instruction is plain and direct:
Christians are to faithfully live in righteousness and purity and
have nothing at all to do with the evil ways and works of Satan and
the world. The two ways of living are unalterably opposed to each
other and mutually exclusive (1 Cor. 5:9-11; 2 Cor. 6:14-18; 2 Thess.
3:6, 14).
“Rather reprove
them”: The Christians responsibility does not stop with his own
rejection of evil. He is also responsible for exposing and opposing
darkness wherever it is found, especially when it is found in the
church.
The child of light
should not become involved in evil even by association. To compromise
God’s standards is to weaken our witness as well as our character.
No act of unrighteousness is permissible. We are not even to have
contact at all with a fellow believer who is openly sinning. “I
wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people,” Paul
said to the Corinthians.
I did not at all
mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and
swindlers, or with idolaters; for then you would have to go out of
the world. But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so
called brother if he should be an immoral person, or covetous, or an
idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler, not even to eat
with such a one” (1 Cor. 5:9-11; 2 Thess. 3:6, 14).
“Reprove” is
better translated “expose.” The believer’s duty is expressed
here in two ways. Negatively, he is not to “have” and “fellowship
with the unfruitful works of darkness,” that is, not to indulge in
the sins of the unsaved.
Positively, he is to
“expose” (reprove) those sins, that is, bring them to light and
show them for what they really are, so that the unbeliever may see
their hideous nature and their terrible consequences. To ignore evil
is to encourage it; to keep quiet about it is to help promote it. We
are to confront sin with intolerance.
When those around us
see us helping rather than exploiting, hears us talking with purity
instead of profanity and observe us speaking truthfully rather that
deceitfully, our example will itself be a rebuke of selfishness,
unwholesome talk and falsehood. Simply refusing to participate in a
dishonest business or social practice will sometimes be such a strong
rebuke that it costs us our job or a friendship.
The works of those
dwelling in darkness produce no profitable fruit. To fellowship with
someone means that you are partakers with them also. We should not
join in with them in their evil deeds, but we should tell them of
their evil deeds, so that they might be encouraged to change.
Ephesians 5:12
"For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done
of them in secret."
“Shame even to
speak”: Some sins are so despicable that they should be sealed off
from direct contact and not even mentioned, much less discussed,
except in order to contradict and oppose them.
Paul goes on to say
that it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by
them in secret. Some things are so vile that they should be discussed
in as little detail as possible, because even describing them is
morally and spiritually dangerous. Positive proclamation of the pure
truth in the light of the Word exposes all evil (Prov. 6:23; 2 Tim.
3:16).
“For” tells why
the Christian must expose the sins of the lost. If it is shameful
even to discuss their iniquities in decent company, verse 3, how much
the worse is the committing of these sins. Hence the need to bring
them to light.
This speaking is as
if you are condoning what they have done. Let their evil deeds be
judged of God. Speaking of the devil and his works, even in
condemnation, seems in some way to glorify them to some extent. It is
best just not to mention them at all.
Ephesians 5:13
"But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the
light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light."
This phrase should
probably be part of verse 14 and is better translated “for it is
light that makes everything visible.” The pure and illuminating
light of God’s Word exposes all the secrets of sin. Our commission
as children of light is to hold everything up to the light of
Scripture, to expose and seek to remedy whatever is evil.
This verse may be
paraphrased: “All sins that are exposed are made visible by the
gospel, for whatever sin is made visible becomes light.”
When the Light of
the Lord Jesus shines on anything, it is suddenly revealed what it
really is. This Light is so bright that it reveals everything good
and bad. The Light is a revealer. Most sin is done in total darkness
to cover up the evil deed. The Light exposes everything. It cannot
stay hidden, when the Light is shined on it.
The phrase for
everything that becomes visible is light is a part of verse 14 in the
best Greek manuscripts and is better translated, “for it is light
that makes everything visible”. Light is that which makes things
manifested, that which shows them to be as they actually are. When
sin is revealed, it loses its “hiddenness” and is seen for the
ugliness it is.
Ephesians 5:14
"Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from
the dead, and Christ shall give thee light."
Using this quotation
from Isaiah 60:1, Paul extended an invitation for salvation to the
unsaved, in order that they may be transformed from children of
darkness into children of God’s holy light (Prov. 4:18). These
words may have been part of an early church Easter hymn used as an
invitation to unbelievers. They express a capsule view of the gospel
(the invitations of Isaiah 55:1-3, 6, 7 and in James 4:6-10).
Since exposing sin
is beneficial, God invites the unbeliever (“thou that sleepest”)
to turn from his sin (“arise from the dead”), with the promise
that he will be granted the spiritual enlightenment and help needed
(“Christ shall give thee light”).
Those living in sin
are for all good purposes dead. When they receive the Light of Jesus,
they receive life. When you receive Light, then you must let that
Light shine brightly for the entire world to see.
Ephesians 5:15
"See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as
wise,"
“Walk
circumspectly, not as fools but as wise”: To live morally is to
live wisely. Biblically, an “unwise man” is not so named because
of intellectual limits, but because of unbelief and the consequent
abominable deeds (Psalm 14:1; Rom. 1:22). He lives apart from God and
against God’s law (Proverbs 1:7, 22; 14:9), and can’t comprehend
the truth (1 Cor. 2:14) or his true condition (Rom 1:21-22).
Certainly believers are to avoid behaving like fools (see Luke 24:25;
Gal. 3:1-3).
The word that
"circumspectly" was translated from means carefully,
exactly, diligently, or perfect. This, then, is saying walk on the
narrow path that leads to life everlasting.
Its meaning:
“therefore watch carefully how you live.” Paul commands all
believers to “walk … as wise” men. Just as they are to walk in
humility, unity, separation, love, and light, they are also to walk
in wisdom. In other words, they are to live like the people they are.
In Christ we are one, we are separated, we are love, we are light,
and we are wise, and what we do should correspond to what we are.
A fool wanders
around on the broad path that leads to destruction. The believer
begins his new life in Christ with all the wisdom necessary to live
for His Lord, but he is also to continually grow in wisdom, that he
can be even more mature, more faithful and more productive in His
service. It is wise to follow on the narrow path that leads to
heaven.
When Christians sin
and fall into Satan’s traps they do so because they live as unwise
men, rather than as wise. They revert to following the wisdom of
their old lives, which was really foolishness. As we learn from David
and many others in scripture, believers are not immune from reverting
to foolishness. The first way a believer plays the fool is by not
believing God completely. He believes God for salvation but does not
continue to believe Him in and for everything else.
Ephesians 5:16
"Redeeming the time, because the days are evil."
“Redeeming the
time” (or, “making the most of every opportunity”): The Greek
word for “time” denotes a fixed, measured, allocated season. We
are to make the most of our time on the evil earth in fulfilling
God’s purposes, lining up every opportunity for useful worship and
service.
Be aware of the
brevity of life. (Psalms 39:4-5; 89; 46: 47; James 4:14, 17).
Having sovereignly
bounded our lives with eternity, God knows both the beginning and end
of our time on earth. As believers we can archive our potential in
His service only as we maximize the time He has given us. “Redeeming”
thus the idea of redemption is implied in this verse.
We are to redeem,
buy up, all the time that we have and devote it to the Lord. The
Greek is in the middle voice indicating that we are to buy the time
up for ourselves, for our own use but in the Lord’s service. For
His own reasons, God allows some of His children to live and serve
far into old age. Others He grants only a few years or even a few
weeks. But none of us knows how long or short his own allocation of
time will be.
Contextually, the
specific opportunity in view is that of exposing the sins of the lost
and being a witness to them. “Because the days are evil” assigns
a reason to seize each opportunity. It is because the sins being
committed during these days are so evil. Our opportunities for freely
doing righteousness are often limited.
When we have
opportunity to do something for His name’s sake and for His glory,
we should do so with all that we have. How God’s heart must be
broken to see His children ignore or halfheartedly take up
opportunity after opportunity that He sends to them. Every moment of
every day should be filled with things good, things righteous, things
glorifying to God.
People, who have too
much time on their hands and are not involved in productive
activities, wind up getting into sin. Make use of your time. Do
something good for God. In turn, you will be keeping yourself out of
mischief.
The following
Scripture shows one thing that happens when you are idle.
1 Timothy 5:13 And
withal they learn [to be] idle, wandering about from house to house;
and not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things
which they ought not.
Less than a hundred
years after Paul wrote the Ephesian epistle Rome was persecuting
Christians with growing intensity and cruelty. Believers were burned
alive, thrown to wild beasts and brutalized in countless other ways.
For the Ephesian church the evil times were going to become more and
more evil.
Several decades
after Paul wrote this epistle, the Lord commended the church at
Ephesus for its good works, perseverance and resistance to false
teaching. Christ said in Rev. 2:2; Rev. 2:4: ”But I have this
against you that you have left your first love. Because the church
continued to languish in its devotion to the Lord, its lampstand was
removed, as Christ had warned it would be if the believers there
failed to “repent and do the deeds they did at first” (Rev. 2:5).
Sometimes during the
second century the church in Ephesus disappeared, and there has never
been a congregation there since. Because the church at Ephesus did
not heed Paul’s advice and the Lord’s own specific warning, it
ceased to exist. Instead of helping redeem the evil days in which it
existed, the church fell prey to them.
