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I will start at verse 20, as these verses were not written in isolation.
In fact we need to go back to verse1 because that is where this passage springs from.
1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
As we saw last week, Paul says
17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that
you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.
Moving on to verse 20
20 That,
however, is not the way of life you learned 21 when you heard about
Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22
You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old
self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be
made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new
self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
25
Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your
neighbour, for we are all members of one body.
26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do
not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not
give the devil a foothold.
28 Anyone who has been stealing
must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own
hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.
29 Do not
let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for
building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who
listen.
30 And do
not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of
redemption.
31 Get rid
of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form
of malice.
32 Be kind
and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God
forgave you.
7 simple instructions 6 relating to our relationships with one another and one about our relationship with God.
1. Speak truthfully
2. In you anger do not sin
3. Do not steal
4. No unwholesome talk
5. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit
6. Get rid of ….
7. Be kind, compassionate and forgiving
I have called this ‘living in the Spirit’ because if we are powered up in Christ, these 7 instructions make sense. They are good sound pieces of advice. They are about the spiritual man living out the life God intended in the power of the Holy Spirit. Spirituality is measured by our relationship one with another. Jesus said “By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” We are heading towards the key verse in chapter 5:1 “ Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love , just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God”.
To often, we are sidetracked into believing that spirituality is to do with supernatural gifts, but we are here to declare that God can change lives. If our lives are not different, holy, then they are not spiritual. The gifts are vital to our work but they, if they are to be of any value, must spring from a transformed and holy life.
So let’s look at each instruction in turn. But notice first that the BIG 10 is being hinted at here. Speaking the truth is command 9; Anger is dealt with in Command 6; stealing in Command 8; wholesome talk in command 3 5 &8.
So God’s word this morning is not a new word but a reminder of an old word, repeated because we are so prone to forgetting and letting our holiness become a sham.
In verse 24 we are told to put on the new self, created to
be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Step 1.
25 Therefore each of you must
put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbour, for we are all
members of one body.
That seems to be headline news these days. Who knows what
the truth is, papers are written to make money not tell the truth. The creation of South Sudan or the famine in
Put on and put off are conscious acts. Like putting on your coat or taking it off. So the question is What are you wearing this morning? Have you put off falsehood and have you put on the new self?
The new self is created to be like God and next week we are called to be imitator of God, as dearly loved children. Jesus is the truth. And we must be men and women of integrity. Are you?
Look at the context … for
we are all members of one body. You are the body of Christ and each one of
you is a vital part of his body. The body does not work by falsehood, deceit or
excuses. It works because each one of us is honest to one another. It should be
able to bear the upset of each of us being honest and thrives on the trust that
is built from each of us being truthful.
This is repeated in chapter 6 as Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, Belts hold yer trousers up. Truth holds the body together. Speak truthfully, but not brutally. Elsewhere we are told to speak the truth in love. But we would be better church if we were more able to admit our weaknesses and our strengths and gifts to one another. This particular part of the body of Christ would be more healthy if we were building one another up rather than protecting our own egos.
Step 2.
26 “In your anger do
not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27
and do not give the devil a foothold.
A most difficult expression in that I think of anger as sin. But let us be realistic. We all get angry, at some tine with one another. That is when temptation appears. It is what we do about anger that we must address. Sin is not the initial anger, it is what follows, words and actions which are evil, bitterness and recrimination that twist us up and eventually damage us. They are the sins to avoid. And what is the baseline Anger Management?
1.
Do not let
the sun go down while you are still angry,
2.
do not give
the devil a foothold.
The first is a simple clear command. It means that we must not let anger simmer. Deal with it. Otherwise it will explode destructively.
It does not say that this is easy. It does not say what to do. It simply tells you that you should avoid sleeping on a quarrel or anger.
Simple question? What do you wake up thinking about?
The film you watched before you go to bed?
What you were worrying about last night when you went to bed?
What you were arguing about last thing?
The brain seems to pick up where we left off. But worse than that, we can create a lot of imaginative speeches, actions and excuses as we lie restless over the anxieties of the day.
So when possible, turn off the TV at the end of the day, at least half an hour before bed and spend time reviewing the day and praying over it. Talk to God about what is on your mind, give over to him your anxieties. Talk to him about your anger and remind yourself of his way.
Sometimes when we are angry, we need to cool off. But this verse is not to deal with the initial fire of anger, it is to stop you stoking up the fire and keeping the BBQ going all night so that you can grill your protagonist in the morning!
Anger is a challenge for us as Christians, a test of faith. And we often fail but God calls us to put off our old selves and put on the new self. AN active discipline, meeting each challenge with the desperate need to ask for his power and strength to overcome temptation and not to sin. Anger Management is a well rehearsed subject for many courses but here today we are reminded to deal with anger and not let is simmer. The devil likes nothing more than we hold grudges, take back forgiveness that has been offered and become bitter, divided and ineffective in our faith and in our expression of being the body of Christ, the church.
Step 3.
28 Anyone
who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something
useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those
in need.
Simple enough and I don’t want to linger here much Notice that the objective is more than providing for yourself and your family. A Christian is responsible for those in need. Our protestant work ethic is not to grow rich at the expense of others, it is to earn sufficient to be able to share with those in need. So what are you doing about sharing with those in need? Or are you hanging on to what God has entrusted you to share? The measure here is what you share not what you receive.
Step 4.
29 Do not
let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for
building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
This could lead to a rather quiet fellowship time as we suddenly become anxious about unwholesome talk and only building up others. It is not intended to silence us, but to discipline us. Step 3 was about sharing so is step 4. This is about the body of Christ working together and in a body each cell supports the surrounding cells. You are responsible for the building up of the saint in this church, each of us has a part to play in encouraging, exhorting and even reproving one another.
When we come to unwholesome talk, I find most often we are too good and telling others their faults, rather than recognising our own.
Clearly sexual innuendo, being negative, being dishonest and putting others down are unwholesome. We need to be thoughtful about how we sound off about our husbands, wives, children, parents, and other members of the fellowship. The danger is that we can create a damaging culture in the same way as the MPs did over expenses and the journalists did over phone hacking and bribes to Police.
However, this is about putting off your old self and putting on your new self.
The question to ask as you leave this morning is more to do
with , did I build up rather than did I avoid upsetting others or saying
inappropriate things. We must be careful not to confuse unwholesome with
middle-class virtues. We are to speak
truthfully in love to our neighbour, for
we are all members of one body.
But do take note that what comes out of your mouth has now been mentioned twice! Our mouths let us down because they reveal what our heart thinks! That is why we need to let the Holy Spirit change the way we think so that our hearts are attuned to think as Jesus thinks. Then we would not have so much trouble with our mouths!
Step5.
30 And do
not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of
redemption.
When David had committed adultery and murder, his penitent prayer draws our attention to the fact that our relationship with our neighbours deeply affects our relationship with God.
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge.
You can’t have good relations with God while sinning! As redeemed people, we know that our sin is laid on Jesus. He suffered on the cross for our sin. Our sin caused him pain, and the Holy Spirit is grieved when we behave in a way which is not an imitation of God as dearly loved children. So this step reminds us that what we do and say in any circumstance is said and done before a God who loved us and sent his Son to bare the punishment for our sin and sends his Holy Spirit to be in us to transform us into being like Jesus. The Holy Spirit of God here is described not only as Holy but also as with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. The call to holiness and godliness is coupled with grace. Our desire to be holy is because we have obtained salvation and look forward to that being completed when we get to heaven. The day of redemption is looking forward to the day he comes to take us to be with him, but the Holy Spirit of God is the seal or guarantee that that future day is certain. We are not left alone to struggle on, God is with us, we need ever to cry out for his help, seek and find his forgiveness, live as those who are citizens of heaven because that is what we are.
Step 6.
31 Get rid
of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form
of malice.
Here we return to the business of putting off our old
selves.
Psalm 139 23 Search me, God, and know my
heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
It is our job to be open before God and do a regular spiritual health-check. Our relationship with God depends on it. If we are grieving the Holy Spirit but un-confessed sin or worse, sin we are unwilling to give up, then it is time to put off our old self.
But we do not just empty ourselves of sin, we must fill ourselves with godliness.
Step 7.
32 Be kind
and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God
forgave you.
We are to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Here we are reminded that kindness and compassion and forgiveness are the key Christ-like attributes we need to develop. Forgiveness is so foundational in our gospel that it is the ultimate expression of Christ-likeness. Jesus even includes it in our sample prayer:
4 Forgive us our sins,
for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
(or debts in Matthew
Matthew 6
12 And
forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.)
But that is not the only comment. Forgiveness is so much to do with what God has done through Jesus, it is key to our relationship with him. So it follows that we should be forgiving like him.
Jesus said:
Mark 11:25
25 And when
you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that
your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”
Jesus said:
Luke 17:3-5
3 So watch
yourselves.
“If your brother or
sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. 4
Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to
you saying ‘I repent,’ you must forgive them.”
5 The
apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”
To which I say “ Amen to that”
It is a tough call forgiving one another. It means letting go of the ‘I am offended’ , letting go of revenge, letting go of holding the past over our brother or sister. It is not easy but that is what God has done for you and me. If you have turned from your sins and pouot your faith and trust in him, you have eternal life, you have sonship, you have the Holy Spirit, you have a loving relationship with Father God. Don’t spoil it, share it with others by living the life imitating what God has done for you.
God call us to put of the way of life that we used to live, the way of life of those around us and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. And we have 7 steps as examples of how to do it.
25
Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your
neighbour, for we are all members of one body.
26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do
not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not
give the devil a foothold.
28 Anyone who has been stealing
must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own
hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.
29 Do not
let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for
building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who
listen.
30 And do
not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of
redemption.
31 Get rid
of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form
of malice.
32 Be kind
and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God
forgave you.
This has just been talk, lets do it in fellowship over coffee and throughout the week as and when we have opportunities to imitate God as dearly loved children.
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