October 2, 2011

We have heart transplants; but what if we were able to do brain transplants? Wouldn’t that be interesting? I imagine that the person who received the brain would have a whole different log of memories and ways of thinking and acting.

When Paul writes about being in Christ, he says that we have a new attitude. We have a new self that is created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Of course, this newly created self is integrated into our lives which have been deeply affected by sin. The new self within us changes who we are, but not without our active participation in it. So Paul writes that Christians are called to put on the new self created in Christ Jesus

I. THE NEW SELF HAS REGARD FOR THE BODY OF CHRIST. Eph.4:25, 28-29

Now one would imagine that this new self we have received in Christ would bring new interests, new perspectives, new considerations. These interests, perspectives, and considerations would certainly be in keeping those of Christ. We read in Eph.5:25 that, “Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” Well, if Christ loves the Church, and I have received a new self created in Christ, then should I not love and have high regard for the church? In these verses Paul calls us to live with the church as one of our primary considerations.

As followers of Christ in his Church we are to have integrity. We must put off falsehood. Falsehood is an old self way of living. Instead we must speak the truth. Now speaking the truth does not require that we be unkind because we are not going to sugarcoat it. Nor does speaking the truth require that we always speak all we know. But it does require that everything we say is true. If we do not speak the truth, we help to create a spirit of mistrust in the church. When there is a lack of integrity in the church that congregation is in great jeapordy. We ought not to lie in any form or fashion, both in the church and outside of the church. We have put on the new self.

In v.28 we learn that those who put on the new self will stop stealing. The verse sort of gives us the idea that the thief is someone who isn’t working. He makes his living by stealing. But in society there are any number of people who are working and yet choose to steal from their employers. There are many who cheat the government by not paying their taxes. There are people who steal from the government by misrepresenting themselves on application forms to get various kinds of government aid. Some with inside information profit from the stock market at the expense or others. And I don’t even want to venture into the waters of robbing God. The person who has put on the new self will be conscientious and industrious. He will work for pay.

But again, look at the motivation. This person will give and honest day’s work, for an honest day’s pay so that he or she can share with those in need. And again, the church is the context of Paul’s words, although there are many in need outside of the church as well. The new self created in Christ Jesus looks beyond oneself to serve others, especially our brothers and sisters in the church.

In v.29 Paul tells us that those who put on the new self do not let unwholesome words come out of their mouths. The word for “unwholesome” is used for rotten trees and rotten fruit. Instead, new self people speak what is helpful for building others us according to their needs. We seek to be beneficial to others. That doesn’t mean we only say nice things. Sometimes we need to give constructive encouragement. It’s not always easy. What we will not do is seek to hurt and discourage others with our words

New self people have regard for our brothers and sisters in the body of Christ. We cannot hold ourselves aloof from the church. We cannot hold ourselves above the church as if we are better or as if our opinion is better than others. We are part of the church. We are part of the body of Christ. It’s easy to be part of the problem. It’s easy to toss off our opinions and comments that criticize and hurt. The goal is to build up the church through integrity, service and encouragement.

 

II. THE NEW SELF RECOGNIZES THE POWER OF THE EVIL ONE. Eph.4:26-27

In these verses Paul focuses in on the problem of anger. How are we to understand v.26? The ESV translation says, “Be angry, and do not sin.” Is Paul commanding us to be angry, but to not sin in our anger. There are some who think that Paul is allowing for righteous anger. Jesus showed righteous anger when he cleansed the temple of the money changes and merchants who were hindering the Gentiles from worship. Is Paul promoting righteous anger here? I don’t think so. Paul’s point in these verses is to describe what it means to put on the new self. In Jms.1:19-20 we read, “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.”

Do we all get angry? Yes. Anger seems to be alive in all of us. Paul tells us here that anger is a broad avenue to sin. So if you get angry be very careful that you don’t fall into sin, which seems to be just about impossible. In a paper entitled, “Graduating ‘Good’ People: How Do We Facilitate Character Formation and Teach Morality in Today’s Christian College?’, Dallas Willard writes, “Anger is a will phenomena. We are angry when our wills are crossed. It is a natural response which alerts us to the need for something to be attended to, like physical pain. But in coming into the kingdom by the birth “from above” we have surrendered our will to God. Anger then becomes merely an alarm bell, not a resolve to “hurt back” or possibly even to destroy. It is not a sin, but in the person apart from God it quickly becomes that.” He continues, “In God, however, we find that everything that can be done in anger can be done much better without it.”

New self people have surrendered their will to God. If God is in control of my will then when my will is crossed, it’s not just my problem, but God’s problem as well. To help us here, Paul says that we should not let the sun go down on our anger. This isn’t meant to be a legalistic limit on our anger. I mean if we lived in Alaska, we could be angry for many hours every day. No, Paul is telling us to let go of the anger quickly. We don’t want to live in anger. And yet there are many believers who are very quick to anger. They are quick to anger because they do live in anger. Some believers live in a perpetual state of anger because of unkind, abusive things done to them as children. If this is the reality for you, it is important to let the truth set you free. You must face your anger and deal with it before God. You may need some help doing this.

But if we don’t resolve our anger, Paul says that we give the devil a foothold, a place in our lives. O the devil enjoys feeding our anger so that we become resentful and bitter, quick to fly into a rage. Anger will eat you up and it doesn’t have to. God is going to work in you to help you deal with your anger. But he won’t do it apart from your cooperation. It’s difficult to imagine a new self person created in Christ Jesus filled with anger.

III. THE NEW SELF HONORS THE INDWELLING HOLY SPIRIT. Eph.4:30-31

Now really, who among us would desire to grieve the Holy Spirit of God? I mean, to grieve the Holy Spirit is to grieve God. I’m sure no one of us wants this. But obviously we all do grieve the Holy Spirit. How do we grieve the Holy Spirit? We grieve the Spirit by living according to the old self, by entering into the very things Paul is writing against.

Let me just remind us that the Holy Spirit is a real person. He is the 3^rd person of the Godhead, the Trinity. He is one with God and yet he is his own person, as is the Son and the Father. When a person turns to Christ in faith, the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in that person. In fact Paul reminds us that the Holy Spirit seals us in Christ for the day of redemption. The day of redemption is the day when Christ returns to bring us to glory with him. In chapter 1 Paul tells us that the Holy Spirit is “a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession.” The fact that God dwells in us by his Holy Spirit assures us that the day of our being with God in glory will soon be a reality.

So here is the Holy Spirit dwelling in our lives. To grieve him is like getting white paint on a beautiful black suit. To grieve the Holy Spirit is like getting dark chocolate stains on a white dress. The Holy Spirit is saddened, distressed, brought to sorrow by our sins. He is sensitive to sin. He is distressed when we tell lies, when we sow discord in anger. He is saddened when we harbor resentment, bitterness and malice. But as we put on the new self we become aware that God dwells in us and we do not want to grieve him. We long to hear his words of approval. When we sin, we humbly confess and renew our life with him. We strive to honor him in all we do.

 

IV. THE NEW SELF SEEKS TO IMITATE GOD. Eph.4:32-5:2

What an astounding statement, “be imitators of God"? Obviously there are many ways in which we cannot possibly imitate God. But Paul spells it out for us. We imitate God by focusing on the character of Christ, who reveals God.

So in v.32 we’re told to be kind and compassionate to one another. How interesting that the word for “kindness” is χρέστος, which is very close to, χρίςτος, which is the name for Christ. To be compassionate is to be moved to help others in need. To forgive is to extend the grace of Christ to others who have sinned or who have offended us just as Christ has shown grace and mercy to us in our sins.

In 5:1, Paul reminds us that we are dearly loved children of God. And since we are dearly loved, we can live a life of love towards others, expressing the same love that Christ has expressed to us. What kind of love is this? It is a sacrificial love. It is a very intentional kind of love. Sacrifice always requires willful intention. This is how we imitate God. It’s by treating one another as God in Christ has treated us. The golden rule says, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” The law of Christ says, “Do unto others as God in Christ has done unto you.”

Now I know that we have all heard this kind of thing many times. What we need to embrace is that this is who we are in Christ. This is the reality for us as followers of Christ. This new self is our new self in Christ. Maybe you are thinking, “I’m not that kind of person.” I lose my temper often. I am kind to others only when it serves me well. And I don’t really have much affinity for the people in church. They’re nice but I’m busy with other things in my life.”

This is a serious matter. You see, it’s not as if Paul is telling us that one way another we have to manufacture a Christ-like life. Paul is telling us that if we know Christ, we have the new self in us already. The question is do we want to surrender our life to Christ so that the new self can be revealed in us? Do we want to live our life according to the pattern of Christ?

If you say, “yes,” but take no active steps in that direction, what does that mean? God is not going to live this life for us, against our will. If this is not all that important to you, maybe you do not really know Christ.

I love being married to Angie. Because I love being married to Angie, the way I live at home and away from home is very important. The way I live either reflects my love for Angie or it doesn’t. If I claim to love Angie but take little interest in her and the things that are important to her, what does that say about my love for Angie? Being married to Angie has changed my life in profound ways.

Likewise, knowing Christ has changed my life on the very deepest level of who I am. He love me. Do I love him? Does the way I behave in this world reflect the fact that Christ dwells in me? Please do not dismiss this question too quickly. Ask God to open your heart to the probing of the Holy Spirit. Ask God to draw you deeper into his love, grace, and mercy. Ask God to help you love his church as he loves his church. Put on the new self, created in Christ Jesus. Amen