A Quick Post on Ephesians 4
Tonight as I was confronted concerning political posting on Twitter as a Christian, I felt something rise up within me and began to post tweets about speaking truth. In the course of engaging several friends this passage came up. It's about living as Christians in unity one with another while speaking the truth. It's also about using our influence to speak the truth and not allowing our minds to be influenced by ungodly ways. I have felt what I have called a mandate to speak up during this election as I know our country is at a crossroads. There has been a move over the years to take God out of every fabric of society and we have seen as a result a decline in moral values. Because this passage seemed to come up a lot, I decided to write a real quick blog on some things I took note of when I read this passage. I will post the bullet points first and then the entire passage for anyone wanting to take the time to read:
In this beautiful passage Paul
addresses the body of Christ encouraging them:
- Use
the gifts God has given them to edify the body, realizing we are not all
in full unity now but God is leading us into a fullness and on that day,
we will all be in unity. Until then we strive for it.
- Speak
the truth in love, contributing your part!
- Don’t
allow your mind to be tossed about by trickery and plotting both of the
devil and deceitful men. There are
both. Christians are to be knowledgeable of the truth so as not to be
influenced.
- Don’t
follow after old ways and deceitful lust but live for Christ
as a new man that has been changed by him to live & walk in his ways. All born again Christians come to the place where they have committed to live their life for Christ and have put away the old man and his ways.
- Be
continually renewed by God’s Spirit.
- Speak
truth.
- Be
angry about things without sinning. Many think anger and expression of it
is wrong. That’s not what’s said. It says to be angry without sinning.
- Don’t
let the sun go down on your wrath. That just means don’t let your anger
affect your inner man. Don’t harbor anger against others. Walk in love
without compromising truth but don’t be so angry that it festers and turns
to bitterness. That does give place to the devil.
- Live
an honest life- working to have, that you may be generous and giving!
- Always
remember to be kindhearted toward one another. Back to what I first noted,
we aren't always going to agree as Christians. This is specifically speaking to
Christians among each other. Put away evil speaking and malice. Malice is ill will. We can disagree w/o
ill will. This is where many
Christians mistakenly think we cannot be firm and bold. There’s a
difference between being kindhearted and being a pushover. On the other hand we should always be
respectful in our speech.
Remember, speak the truth in love and strive for unity
but don’t ever sacrifice truth for unity! Amen!
EPHESIANS 4: 11 And He Himself gave some to
be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and
teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of
ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come
to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect
man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and
fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in
the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the
truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16 from
whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies,
according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes
growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
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.
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. (NKJ)
Scripture taken from:
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=ephesians%204&version=NKJV
Well I hope this was as enjoyable for you to read as it was
me. Sometimes in the heat of disagreements it’s hard to keep focused on what
our role is. We are to speak truth, but always in love and seasoned with
grace. This doesn't mean we are to keep
silent. It just means to handle our
disagreements with good Christian conduct!
Amen and be blessed!
